Not even Stereogum is immune from rehashing blog posts of mine from five or six years ago. Just kidding. I’m sure there are hundreds of other websites and forums where people have devised their lists of the best Steve Albini engineered albums. The one you’ll find at Stereogum includes twenty titles, some of which you would find on my own top ten list from 2005.
I get the inclusion of Mogwai’s “My Father My King” EP, although the studio rendition loses a bit of its lustre once you’ve heard it in a live setting. I don’t really hear what was so unique about that particular High On Fire record, nor do I think American Don stands out from What Burns Never Returns or Don Caballero 2 (personally I prefer What Burns…which was recorded by Al Sutton). I had Yanqui UXO on my list as well as Dirty Three’s Ocean Songs (one of the first albums cut at EA, if Bubba Kadane was to be believed when I interviewed him in ’05). I chose Low’s Things We Lost In The Fire in ’05, but I would conceded now that Secret Name is the better record. I’ve never really gotten into Superchunk or the Wedding Present, or Neurosis, so neither of those made my list. I shied away from any Albini-related bands (so no Shellac, or Rapeman, or Big Black — but if I had to choose one I think I’d go with Two Nuns And A Pack Mule). I included Viva Last Blues on my list. I did not include the Breeders’ Pod or Jawbreaker’s 24 Hour Revenge Therapy. If I could turn back time and remake the list I’d exclude Surfer Rosa in favor of Goat. I would not — in a million years — ever put Joanna Newsom on any list whose goal is to promote good music. I can see the inclusion of Rid Of Me, but I don’t think it’s one of his ten best works. In Utero…have we ever even really, truly heard his actual mix? If you believe the rumor that the UK edition of the Back-To-Black re-issue includes his original mix — I own both that and the original issue and can’t hear a difference, though I’m hopelessly ape-eared when it comes to A/Bing mixes — we can actually grade his performance as an engineer. I’m shocked that Transaction de Novo did not make their list. I’m not surprised that Crain and the Danielson Famile were left off, but I think with Danielson especially it’s important to note how impressive it is to make a band whose sound is so far removed from, say, Atomizer or At Action Park, sound so brilliant. The lack of any Nina Nastasia album — The Blackened Air in particular — shows the author of the Stereogum list is clearly uninformed about the breadth of the engineer’s work. That album is perhaps the most perfect encapsulation of a modern band at their peak I have heard. It’s a phenomenal recording of phenomenal musicians, and warrants a spot on any Albini-related “Top Albums” list.
Instead, unfortunately, there’s that awful Joanna Newsom record. Her voice is enough to make me cut off my ears.
If you asked me to re-rank my top ten list, without giving you explanations of why the new entries belong on the list (I’m feeling depressed and broke right now and I want to spend the rest of the day trying to scrounge up money, not blogging), this would be it:
The Top Ten Steve Albini-Recorded/Engineered Albums Redux
10. Mono – Walking Cloud and Deep Red Sky, Flag Fluttered and the Sun Shined (TRL, 2004)
09. The Danielson Famile – Fetch The Compass Kids (Secretly Canadian, 2001) – It’s nice to hear someone sing about spiritual stuff, even if the Jesus factor is turned up really high. That doesn’t take away much from the album, because listeners are drawn more to the — dare I say it — “lush” instrumentation and wild, zany vocals.
08. Dirty Three – Ocean Songs (Touch & Go, 1998) – Despite being involved with countless noisy, hardcore acts, I think some of Steve’s best recordings are the softer ones. Dirty Three benefit from his ability to capture a band just as they sound in a live setting.
07. Electrelane – Axes (Too Pure, 2005)
06. The Jesus Lizard – Goat (Touch & Go, 1991)
05. Godspeed You! Black Emperor – Yanqui U.X.O. (Constellation, 2002) – I mentioned before Steve’s ability to capture a band as they sound live, and hearing him work with Godspeed makes for a stunning collaboration. Despite the fact that the songs are kinda weak (by GYBE standards), it’s the best of their albums to listen to because it just sounds so good.
04. Low – Secret Name (Kranky, 1999)
03. Mclusky – Do Dallas (Too Pure, 2002) – If you want something that’s going to pummel you from start to finish (the lone exception being “Fuck This Band” – a ballad), this is it. The drums might be the best, most thunderous sounding i’ve heard on record.
02. Bedhead – Transaction de Novo (Trance Syndicate, 1998) – Considering their first few albums were mired in sludge, this album is a departure of sorts, or maybe just a more realized effort. It is the epitome of crystalline. Even “Psychosematica” has that glossy feel to it despite it’s grungy nature. “Lepidoptera” is stellar in both its songwriting and recording.
01. Nina Nastasia – The Blackened Air (Touch & Go, 2002) – She’s a goddess. Her backing band is the most talented I’ve witnessed perhaps in my history of attending live shows. Put ’em together in Chicago at Electrical Audio and what do you get? One of my favorite albums of all time. Steve captured them perfectly.
Early Lines – Ghosts Of Collin Creek [MP3]
