Often in my free time I ponder a hypothetical ranking of the greatest albums of my lifetime or my favorite albums of all time. One quality that would run through all these recording is inclusiveness. By this, I mean the experience of becoming engulfed by an album, almost lost in it. It is its an environment onto itself. And it is for this reason that we listeners return to it. After a few listeners, we become to recognize the world as unique and different. It becomes a place that we can always return to.
Allow me to ponder the initial getting lost. It is a blissful confusion. With every song, more features of the landscape are revealed. Every sound contributes to the distinctiveness. For example, an album that I find myself returning to often is U2's The Unforgettable Fire. Released in 1984, this album carries no sense of nostalgia for me. I do not harken back to time that it was released with fond memories. Instead, it takes on a timeless feel for me. It exists in its own musical landscape, not dependent on what came before it nor what followed it. Going into it, I attempted to construct some context in my head: 1980's U2 equals the time when they were still an "alternative band". They were part of the great group of pioneering alternative/indie acts. Also on this list are giants like R.E.M. and The Smiths. Nevertheless, I gave this album a listen with an open mind. Quickly the guitar playing of The Edge found on this album filled the space in my head. Also, the musical environment created by the complete band on this album drew me in. I characterize it almost storm like. Even thing is heavy and has depth. Whether it is the rhythm section of Adam Clayton and Larry Mullen Jr. or the thoughtful lyrics passionately sung by Bono. I just picture clouds gathering. And I feel that is what the band did on this album. They brought all they had together. Most importantly part of this was the aforementioned guitar playing of The Edge. To stay with the storm motif, each effect-heavy riff is like lighting striking. And just as lighting striking in the summer, these riffs are nothing short of awe inspiring. I invite all of you to get lost in this storm.
Another album I get easily lost in actually does relate to the time and place in which it came into my life. That escape is Coldplay's 2008 album Viva La Vida or Death and All His Friends. This album came out Summer 2008. I bought it in June of that summer when I got home from Boy's State. I drove to my local Target, bought it, and gave it a listen on the ride home. I would continue to listen to that album as I drove around New England that summer. For me, its sounds and symphonies are synonymous with a blue summer sky. This association is also aided by the spacious soundscapes which comprise this album. Based on my reading Coldplay took their time with this album. There was a lot of thought behind it. For example, the recorded it in an old bakery the band bought. On the wall they either wrote "Think Sgt. Peppers" or had a picture of that album. Either way they were inspired by that Beatles masterpiece. That mindset is reflected in the songs. I describe them as wide with plenty of space for a listener to fit in. The production for the album places each of the individual instruments in their own sphere, as if they were individual planets in a solar system. The listener is album to be in the presence of all of them at once. Truly, when I listen to it, I feel that I am in the heavens.
In the case of both these albums, I feel that there is a carved out spaced in the album for the listener to possess. Originally I was going to use the word settle instead of possess but in the case of some albums, the listener is unable to settle or get comfortable. And that is part of the experience. It is part of the getting lost. Overall, this experience of confusion I dub getting lost, is a welcoming in to a place that is unknown and strange, but soon the mysteries are revealed. It is because of this revelation and the desire for more of them that we listeners return to our favorite albums. We can find that spot that we first occupied while getting lost. Except this time, it is more familiar; it feels like a place we can return to.
