Awesome-sounding non-metal albums

[Jarkko Mattheiszen]

I'm sure this has been discussed already, but I didn't find such a thread with a quick look so I thought I'd start a thread.

Whenever I have been working on metal for the day, I love to "clean my ears" afterwards with something completely different, but well produced and sonically astonishing. Here are some of my current top picks:

Beck - Sea Change
Paper Tiger is so intense, with the dry, in-your face vocals and ridiculously loud strings, it gives me the chills.

John Martyn - Solid Air
I love the overall vibe on this record. Warm and laid back atmosphere, goes great as a soundtrack for morning coffee!

Audioslave - Revelations
One of my favorite O'Brien albums. I love the diversity on this one. While I'm not a huge fan of Cornell's later efforts, this shit just grooves like a moose on crack cocaine.

What are your favorite ear cleanser albums?

 

[BrettT]

Beck - Sea Change
Paper Tiger is so intense, with the dry, in-your face vocals and ridiculously loud strings, it gives me the chills.

First album that popped in my head when I read the subject. Everything about Sea Change is A++++ in my book. I wish Beck would do more albums like that. Dude was obviously going through some shit when he wrote that one.

 

[professorlamp]

Yellowcard - Ocean Avenue
Everything fits into a neat little hole and the vocals sound like they've had cream poured over them 100 times over (in a good way)

Pat Metheny - Orchestrion
Beautiful guitar tones and an amazing amount of layers that manage to stay clear all the time.

can't think of any others that are entirely relevant right now :\

 

[DolphinSplatter]

Lewd Acts - Black Eye Blues

 

[Line666]

The best audioslave album is definitely the first one, Cornell raging at the end of Show Me How To Live is one of my favourite alltime vocal moments, its just gnarly.

More on-topic however, I'm listening to a lot of Jamiroquai and Rise Against recently, also Dark New Days Black Porch Acoustic Sessions is a fucking lavish acoustic feast.

 

[dale_a_smith]

The Bends, Radiohead

A masterpiece from John Leckie

Now Here is Nowhere, Secret Machines

 

[SwambA]

Anything by Beck! And I love Jamiroquai also! I like a lot of downtempo stuff like Portishead. If your into that stuff, check out Somafm.com Secret agent station, it rules... its all I listen to at work!

 

[Jarkko Mattheiszen]

Wow, just had a huge Tank Girl flashback from loading up Portishead's Roads Good call on Jamiroquai, too!

 

[HandsOfDespair]

 

[zvish]

Moderat -Moderat, Monolake -Silence

 

[drew_drummer]

Fucking hell... there are loads.... but the first thing that popped into my head was Leftism by Leftfield.

 

[grywolf627]

Spyro Gyra - Stories Without Words

 

[ahjteam]

Faith No More, Mike Patton-era
Devin Townsend, almost all solo material and Vai's Sex&Religion
Queen, almost everything
The Offspring, everything from Smash to Splinter
Michael Jackson, pretty much everything
Guns N Roses, Appetite for Destruction and Chinese Democracy
Backstreet Boys - Backstreets Back (cmon, have you ever listened to the production on this album?)
Cape Nape and The Foundation - Karma Collection
Guano Apes, first two albums


...among other million albums

 

[Harry Hughes]

Every The Reign of Kindo has done. Just epic musically and production wise.
A whole bunch of Thrice stuff, from the more polished sounding stuff, to the stuff that Teppei engineered.
Even though "Beggars" isn't amazing from a technical point of view, the sound just suits the album so well, and considering that Teppei hasn't been doing that stuff for very long, it sounds great. Just really does sound like a bunch of real musicians recording great music.

Jeff Buckley's "Grace" of course. Killer Andy Wallace mix (one of my favorite mix engineers).
"Relationship of Command" by At the Drive In. Another Wallace mix. The whole thing just sounds really unique, I love it.
"The Shape of Punk to Come" by Refused. A really cool sounding 90s record, and like Relationship of Command, totally changed the way I saw punk.

"There is Nothing Left to Lose" by the Foo Fighters. Has some songs mixed by Andy Wallace, but the whole thing sounds great for a late 90s rock record.
Just always in awe of how ridiculously talented Dave Grohl.

"Good Apollo, I'm Burning Star IV, Volume I: From Fear Through the Eyes of Madness". Yet again, another Wallace mix
Love it.

"Fixed At Zero" by VersaEmerge.
Sierra Kusterbeck's vocals just sound amazing. Just in general.
Fucking love that post rock-y, atmospheric outro of Lost Tree

Just a few that come to mind right now and that I listen to regularly.

 

[Ermz]

Borderlands OST (put on 'Fighting Krom and his Gun' for a real monitor system workout, or Jesper Kyd's 'Welcome to the Wastelands' for an instant ambiance-hardon)

Raison D'etre - The Empty Hollow Unfolds (put on 'End of a Cycle', crank the subs and let the neighbours feel your pocket rocket)

Danny Elfman/Russel Shaw - Fable I & II (and soon to be 3) OSTs

Jeremy Soule - Oblivion OST

Jeremy Soule - Total Annihilation OST (some of the hugest shit I've ever heard... don't get the SupCom stuff, its junk compared to this masterpiece)

Mark Morgan - Vault Archives

Kammarheit - The Starwheel (put on 'A Room Between The Rooms' and love it)


Usually when I'm not listening to production relevant to work I'm not listening to metal/rock/pop music whatsoever. My favourite production is in electronica land, and coincidentally so is my favourite music (discounting the orchestral soundtracks of course) so I'm usually spinning dark ambient, soundtrack or orchestral pieces for the perfect re-calibration for my ears after a long day of mixing metal.

 

[Daller]

led zeppelin I to IV

 

[ratsapprentice]

Jeremy Soule - Total Annihilation OST (some of the hugest shit I've ever heard... don't get the SupCom stuff, its junk compared to this masterpiece)

Muthafukin Pee-Wee's! :Spin:

Oh yeah, and "Good Apollo, I'm Burning Star IV, Volume I...." sounds incredible aswell

 

[PhilR]

'Dusk' by The The. Probably my fave non-metal record ever.

 

[drunkard]

For me ,the best modern productions are Minus the bear -planet of ice and isis-panopticon.Just buy these cds and listen to them on your car.Its just so full sounding

My favourite song

 

[Josh Burgess]

^ Minus The Bear is awesome. I prefer Menos El Oso, but everything they do is good. The new one OMNI is quite good too and a little more mainstream pop sounding (for them).

I love these two:
Circa Survive - Blue Sky Noise
Circa Survive - On Letting Go