Soundgarden - Superunknown (1994) (1 Viewer)

[MacDara]

And TAD.

 

[rettucs]

eh, alice in chains, hello

recommend me an Alice in Chains album to listen to please

 

[rettucs]

Those people who said to take this album in 2 halves, where is the mid-point?

 

[David Kronenbourg]

I think it's cool to like Smashing Pumpkins these days as well

 

[rettucs]

But I do take the point. After 3.5 listens I've found the length of the album the main obstacle to properly digesting this. Maybe another 9 or 10 listens would see me right.

Black Hole Sun will always hold me back from ever thinking this a great album. What a dreadful song.

My first 1.5 listens were on speakers at home. I thought it sounded great. I had read the couple of comments about annoying vocals by then, but didn't really pick up on it, not listening that way, anyway. The next couple of listens were on headphones and understood where the comment came from. But, hes not too bad IMO. The voice suits the songs in most cases (the ones that kept my attention).

And the comment about the music is spot-on too. Its great. Almost without exception (its a given by now that Black Hole Sun should be excluded from all positive comments). The guitar on Spoonman is great. Fuck the h8rs. I don't get that at all. I think this is one of the stand-out songs.

Head Down is the pick of songs for me though. I don't know if it was ever a 'hit' or not, but I'm sure it has to be one of the better known songs on there. Its fucking epic.

I'm gonna stay listening to this. I reckon it'll sound great blasting away in the car on a sunny summer's day (if we ever get one of those again).

Why does it have to be so long though? I know that was common in the 90s because, I presume, of some advancement that was made in CD technology around then.

I wanna say 3.5 out of 5, but I'll round down to 3, mostly because I know I'll end up hating it eventually. I also know nothing about the band but have this horrible feeling that if I did know anything about them, I'd detest them.

 

[nooleen]

recommend me an Alice in Chains album to listen to please

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[Lili Marlene]

recommend me an Alice in Chains album to listen to please

don't do it!

 

[nooleen]

they might be a classic one where you needed to listen to them in your teens

not sure i'd be into it if i was hearing them for the first time now

 

[David Kronenbourg]

Generally agree with others on this. Too long, musicianship is good, marred by the crappy vocals common amongst bands of that era.

 

[Lili Marlene]

I don't get all the hate for his vocals. I prefer them to a fair bit of the sludgy riffing that takes up half the songs.

 

[nooleen]

hmm

the sludgy riffing is my favourite part

 

[Lili Marlene]

Going through the album again now.

• My Wave has equally good vocals as it does cool guitar bits.
• Fell on Black Days has equally shitty riffs as it does vocals. What an embarrassment of a song.
• Superunknown has the same riff as a fairly obscure Blur b-side (I'm fine), which is kinda weird.
  
• I like Black Hole Sun : (
• Head Down and Half kind of point towards the more interesting (for me) stuff they did on Down on the Upside. (@scutter give Burden in my Hand a whirl, it's as stuck in the 90's as this album but from a different perspective).
  
• Sometimes there's a great song I barely notice because I'm so bored by the riffage (the Day I Tried to Live)

I suppose the vocals have dated a lot of this stuff, it's so grunge (once Metallica tried to do it with Load it was all over right?), but being that heavy guitar riffs haven't really moved on since the 70's they sound about as modern now as they did in 1994.

 

[MacDara]

Why does it have to be so long though? I know that was common in the 90s because, I presume, of some advancement that was made in CD technology around then.

CDs can comfortably hold about 70-74 minutes' worth of audio data, so there was a notion at the time of people feeling like they weren't getting their money's worth if they didn't fill the whole thing. (Another symptom of that is the 'hidden track' bullshit.)

I think that kind of thing died off when the 2000s hit, but album bloat remained a thing in hip-hop for a fair bit longer (no idea if it's still a thing).

 

[MacDara]

CDs can comfortably hold about 70-74 minutes' worth of audio data, so there was a notion at the time of people feeling like they weren't getting their money's worth if they didn't fill the whole thing. (Another symptom of that is the 'hidden track' bullshit.)

I think that kind of thing died off when the 2000s hit, but album bloat remained a thing in hip-hop for a fair bit longer (no idea if it's still a thing).

Funnily enough, I own a CD (a Mission of Burma compilation on Rykodisc) that purports to be the longest one ever released, at around 80 minutes. Car stereos would have trouble playing the last track or so as the data's written right to the edge of the disc.

 

[Jerry Twig]

nah

Go says stop

 

[mark]

I wanted to go but my mam wouldn't let me. TAD were scheduled for that one too but someone told me they cancelled, I think?

My memories of that gig:
- my mate nicking the singer from Pennywise's wallet while he stage dived, then giving it back after and being rewarded with t-shirts and CDs.
- White Zombie and Pennywise being dull.
- Soundgarden starting with Seaching With My Good Eye Closed, it being amazing, them saying nothing and closing the show with a vocal-less repeated coda from She's So Heavy.
- being generally dissapointed even though I was on acid.

 

[dudley]

Have found it impossible to connect with this record. It doesn't annoy me, but it doesn't engage me in any regard. Every element is fine, the production isn't terrible, the singing is what it is, some of the riffs are cool, but overall it's just a boring murk. I put it on and it makes me twiddle my fingers.

 

[HMD]

I’ve listened to this album a few time the last week and forgot how deadly it is. Granted it is a long album and the slow, down tuned riffs don’t help that. As for the vocals, i don’t get what people are saying about the wailing, it suits the songs perfectly.

Let me drown & My wave - either of these songs are great decent first songs on this although i think the intro riff for my wave would give it the edge.

Fell on Black days this is nicely laid-back with a good sing a long chorus and works well as the song before the slow heavy riffs in the next song.

Mailman - this is one that took me a few years to appreciate but now it’s one of the first songs i’d listen to from this album.

Superunknow - They should have released this as the first single instead of Spoonman, great crossover rock/pop song from that time.

Head down - best song ever.

Black hole sun - fuck the haters, it’s another great song that may have been over played, but after having not heard it for nearly 10 years i can like it again.

Spoon man - i never really liked this because the lyrics are so fucking shite and the video ffs. But listening to it on the bus the other night i stopped listening to the lyrics and it sounded much better, great riff. I’d love to hear it as an instrumental.

Limo wreck - i love the guitar on this just before the chorus. also great chorus.

The day i tried to live - another solid song

Kickstand - just to show they still have it, balls out.

Fresh Tendrils - This always felt like one they could have dropped just because of the length of the album.

4th of July - another killer guitar sound and vocal performance, great harmonies.

Half - fuck off

Like Suicide - a good song but again it should have been saved for another record.

She likes Surprise - solid song to finish on.

 

[Lili Marlene]

What's wrong with Half @HMD ????

 

[HMD]

What's wrong with Half @HMD ????

It's always done my head in. Maybe on a different album is like it more.