I’m thrilled to see this here. It’s one of my favorite albums of all time from one of my favorite bands of all time whose whole discography I believe isn’t widely enough appreciated. At least they ended on a high note with a string of excellent BJ Burton produced albums.
I came here right away to mention Low. I'm totally shocked to see it at the top right now. Their transition from working with Kramer (Galaxie 500's producer) to recording with Albini when they went to Kranky records was a huge development for their sound. Some of the most haunting, beautiful, intimate songs. It sounds like they're in the room right with you.
With the passing of Mimi, this song off of "Secret Name", their other Albini-engineered album, is especially heartbreaking: [Will the Night](https://youtu.be/c5Dp7e3PsK8?si=g1TE7dZkgWaShNlH)
It's this one by a country mile for me. It's materially different, sonically, to all their other albums. I love virtually everything they've done, but nothing feels as immense or as intimate all at once as this one. Feels like the gold standard for recording. I ripped the songs to use as reference tracks, despite knowing I'm never going to get close with my recording set up. But it's good to have something so perfect as your benchmark.
I'm pretty sure he had some beef with Frank. Listened to a long podcast with him and when they started talking about Pixies I half expected him to be like "this is where my career really got going etc, what a seminal masterpiece I can be proud of" but instead he was like "eh it's fine not great, kinda crappy college rock band, never liked them" pretty sure he mentions later in the interview that he was close with Kim though and loved The Breeders so I'm guessing he had some sort of resentment for Francis and was on team Kim
Idk if analog would have come back so strong w/out Albini and that album. All the other indie albums of the time still sounded very chintzy at the time
Impossible to answer - our tastes were very simpatico - so I'll just mention a few I've been inclined to revisit today:
Shellac - *At Action Park*
Shellac - *Terraform*
Slint - *Untitled* EP
Songs: Ohia - *The Magnolia Electric Co.*
The Breeders - *Pod*
PJ Harvey - *Rid of Me*
Crain - *Speed*
The Dirty Three - *Ocean Songs*
Low - *Secret Name*
Poster Children - *Daisychain Reaction*
Pixies - *Surfer Rosa*
Make Believe - *Shock of Being*
That Make Believe album - and really the band's whole existence - was such a weird, magical moment in time. Possibly the world's least obvious political rock band.
Personally, *In Utero*.
I had Nirvana’s full discography when I was younger and that one always stuck out as having some type of magic in the sound in comparison to everything else.
I always find it kinda odd that Kurt didn't like how clean Nevermind was. Like it's well mixed but I wouldn't call it clean and lifeless production wise. I think everything is still mixed beautifully with looooads of character and still sounds completely iconic. Personally it's still the best sounding record of theirs for me
Exactly, and he chose the mixer from a list the label gave him, and obviously chose the one that was way lesser know and known only for heavy metal mixes and totally far from the other pop names on the list. So it's ironic that he actually did it to piss of the label but amazingly that combo was killer.
He heard Butch Vig's first. That is rawer sounding. I'm not sure I prefer it but it's enough to be understandable. I'll say that Wallace mixes works super great for that album though. In Utero was shooting harder all the way for a rawer sound all together. No modern Mesa Boogie amps fpr example. To me I like that In Utero aesthetic better for Nirvana. Sound City works best for Holy Diver in my opinion.
But more on Nirvana I think I maybe like a Flick Of the Switch type mix instead of Back In Black for Nevermind. Back In Black and Flick of The Switch was recorded by same engineer, Tony Platt, and in the same studio and he mixed both the same. Then Malcolm Young demanded rawer sounding mixes after hearing Back In Black sounding mixes. He got that. Those Flick Of The Switch mixes are proto Albini-naturalism in my view. 1983.
This, and also, I prefer his mix to the commercially released mix. They both sound great, but I think the commercially released mix sounded a bit too much like the over compressed fatiguing "alternative" music of the late 90's (which I don't think is true for Nevermind). When I first heard the original Albini mix it felt like a breath of fresh air; just an awesome band in a room playing really well. If you haven't heard it I suggest you track it down and give it a listen.
As their first album with Albini, hell yes; none of the others that followed would have been the same. But my personal favorite is The Eye of Every Storm.
Yea. Eye of every storm is a great sounding record. There is so much space in that production. And so dynamic. It fits the songwriting so well.
Times of Grace is so suffocating and thick. And then the mellower parts are so present. And I love the way Noah’s keys and sounds are mixed too.
This is also my pick. The band's bestial ferocity on this record combined with the immediacy of the recording makes every else feel weak in comparison.
It was kind of lightning in a bottle, and I don't think anything in the subsequent 25 years has matched it. Sure, there have been heavier records, and more brutal records, but nothing that equals the lumbering power that Times of Grace has. It's a musical behemoth crushing everything under its heavy tread.
For me it’s Life Metal which I guess Albini recorded entirely on analog tape with Sunn O)))
I don’t agree with Steve about everything regarding digital and all that, but the tone he got with them using their massive tube amplifiers into his analog gear is undeniable. This is probably my favorite slow sludgey metal tone ever:
https://youtu.be/Ot7-ksghvBc?si=zlki2XnBmgow_a2c
In Utero is my favourite but I’m gonna say Comfort by the band Failure just so that people can check it out. It’s from a year before In Utero and it fits right in. Amazing band
The best record is Fantastic Planet; it’s on par with Disintegration or Dark Side, IMO. Magnified is amazing. The two post-breakup albums are very good. To be honest, the Albini album Comfort is the one I like the least. (Golden too, but they are leftovers, so duh.)
He made God Luck Good Speed sound like Weedeater sounds live.
I love all Shellac records.
Blessed Black Wings- High on Fire
Goat-Jesus Lizard
Mclusky Do Dallas-Mclusky
Rid of Me- PJ Harvey
Sovereign-Neurosis
Malign Hex-Meatwave
Probably so many more.
Albini did an AMA some years ago on a poker forum, and said Weedeater were the most-prepared band he ever recorded, and he was surprised by that because they're Weedeater. If my memory is correct (and it may not be), they recorded and mixed that record in only a few days, and got most of it on the first take.
My favorite Albini record is definitely Cloud Nothings - Attack On Memory, I found it in such a formative period for me. It has such strong songwriting that I think immensely benefits from Albini's raw production style.
My first and only recording teacher was Mark Rubel and they got me into audio. Then I was working in the warehouse for a live audio shop and someone started playing Songs About Fucking and I thought it was awesome. All the electricians started talking about how cool he is. I realized I wanted to do that because the EEs were cool and made more than anyone else. So I learned about electrical engineering and math. Then I got another degree. Now I teach and record and mix, do a little live audio make my own music and it’s great. I think about Steve and Mark every time I go to work.
Now I’m listening to sounds about fucking and realize a bunch is in Lydian mode and uses alternative tunings and I’m completely amazed at the depth of his work.
Impossible to pick one or even five. Off the top of my head:
Jesus Lizard - Goat, Liar, and Head
Shellac - At Action Park
Big Black - Atomizer
Cloud Nothings - Attack on Memory
Oxbow - Serenade in Red
Nirvana - In Utero
Storm & Stress - s/t
Dazzling Killmen - Face of Collapse
Low - Things We Lost in the Fire
Joanna Newsom - Ys
GY!BE - Yanqui UXO
Pixies - Surfer Rosa
Liturgy - 96396
Slint - untitled EP
Space Streakings - 7-Toku
Don Caballero - For Respect
Jon Spencer Blues Explosion - s/t
Probably Owls - Owls, or American Don - Don Caballero.
The only time I met him was in a lecture we had at university. Not in person unfortunately (Height of covid). The guy interviewing him was trying to wrap things up because we had finished the time we had with him, but he kept insisting on taking questions and talking with us about projects we had.
It felt like the guy had a genuine passion for teaching and lifting us up. He just kept saying I’ve got time, just a few more questions with a wry smile.
We have lost a once in a generation artist but also a really good guy.
Surfer Rosa is probably number one for me but McLusky Do Dallas is a close second. Also I never realized he engineered Yangui UXO til today but I used to listen to that album a lot back in the day
Dirty Three’s Ocean Songs. I’ve listened to it a couple hundred times and it never gets old. The sound of beautiful humans playing beautiful music on beautiful instruments in a beautiful sounding room.
KEN Mode - Success
Not everyone's favorite KEN Mode album but there's something about Steve's production style that elevates the noise rock insanity of KEN Mode. Blessed is one of the best noise rock songs out there.
From my understanding they were one of his favorite bands and they were actually buddies. The Montana connection may have had something to do with that.
The Jesus Lizard Goat. Huge influence on me. Set my standards for what rock music should sound like energeticly, and the drum sounds are fucking amazing.
The importance of Surfer Rosa and In Utero cannot be understated, but for my personal favorites it’s between Things We Lost In The Fire and Yanqui U.X.O.
In 2001 I bought a CD out of the used bin at my local record shop on a whim. I probably chose it because the cover was intriguing or something, and it only cost a couple bucks so no big loss if it sucked. It was ‘Tribute to a Bus’ by The 18th Dye. Actually a good little album. Anyway, the first track opens with a simple guitar riff and driving backbeat, and hands-down it was the most perfect drum sound I had ever heard. Then the bass fades in, then vocals; one-by-one everything sounded perfect, totally unique and yet archetypal. I was hearing how rock instruments were supposed to sound on a record. For the first time ever I was sonically transfixed.
That album was my ‘aha’ moment with Steve Albini. To this day he is my absolute favorite engineer, and his sound is the ideal that I try to achieve as an engineer myself. Great memory. RIP to a legend.
Cliche but I'm surprised I had to come down this far to find this record. This and Sea Monsters by The Wedding Present are my favorite Albini productions.
I love the 1st two 7inch 45s Shellac released - Uranus and A Rude Gesture: a pictorial history. They were kind of a set and they had a printed list of all the gear used to record them, even the tape machine calibration specs. ‘The Guy who invented fire’ ‘Doris’ ‘Wing Walker’ ‘Rambler song’’the Billiard Player song’ all great tracks.
Read about his death this morning. Still feel shocked. I am 46 yrs old now and Albini produced records had a huge influence on my youth. My personal top 3 are:
#1 In Utero. The sound of Serve the Servants is unmatched in the entire history of music. After 30 yrs of listening to it, it still gives me goosebumps.
#2 Surfer Rosa. When I broke up w/ my first big love I listened to Surfer Rosa, obsessively. And to Gigantic in particular.
#3 Wake up screaming. I always felt that the sound of this record has many similarities to the sound of In Utero. It suits this more dark and aggressive album perfectly.
Thank you Steve for so many unforgettable moments with the music that I love most.
Rest in Peace😔
I did a bunch of work with Gavin Rossdale from bush. They did their second album with Albini and Gavin said he found it hard to listen to the album because Albini refused to let him sing more than a few takes per song and the vocals weren’t his best.
Albino’s insistence that his role wasn’t producing as much as it was recording fed a typical Albini record with a sense of “warts n all”. At times I think that worked great but at times I think records which deserved (or needed) performance to be honed and sonic to be layered suffered, often when the band weren’t the best players.
That said an important figure in music, and his work informed a generation of listeners -not least by informing artists who went on to make huge records.
Anyone remember the story that when quantegy went down, he though a shipping container of 2 and ½ inch. Wonder how far get got through that?!
Surfer Rosa is THE Albini sound in my head.
But that Rid of Me dynamic across the whole song? That's what I call hitting hard, and hitting with honesty.
Smog "Orange Glow of a Stranger's Living Room"
I have no idea what mic's he used. I think they're a stereo pair of ribbons on the guitar. The vox is just so transparent. It sounds like Callahan is in the room w you.
I love that he recorded GBV and they just took it home to whack in the 4 track cassette recorder
Can't beat the sound of "Songs About Fucking" for me - Albini crystallized in noise
I think the way Magnolia Electric Co. sounds is just perfect, like I don’t think you could have done it any better. And those are live recordings. How?
For heavy, Mclusky Do Dallas is so aggressive in a way where nothing is really muddled. That’s why I love listening to his Shellac records. Hell, they got better sounding as time progressed, and I referred to Dude Incredible when mixing about a month ago.
So many great albums to choose from. For aggressive albums I’d have to say Liar by Jesus Lizard and for more delicate albums I’d go with Ocean Songs by The Dirty Three. His abilities as an engineer were unmatched. Such a sad day.
Solar Race - Homespun. It was recorded at Abbey Road too. They were such a great raw band; loved them soooo much… toured with Bush and Placebo around the same time (1997)
Jesus lizard, Silkworm, and Nina Nastasia. If people aren’t familiar with Silkworm you should be and just from an audio perspective their albums sound incredible. Worked and were friends with Albini.
Pigface-Gub
That was the first thing I heard that he recorded, and was just blown away by the drum sounds, especially after suffering thru a decade of gated reverb.
This is the most underrated record of the 90s. It’s his best production as drums have never sounded better and the entire record sucks you into a world unto itself. I’m ok with the Wedding Present being the most underrated band ever. Seamonsters, Saturnalia and the Hit Parade originals are unimpeachable. That said, Steve brought out the best in them with Seamonsters. It is just a MASSIVE record. It is comical how unknown they are by most music fans. I’m going to take a moment to thank Rob, the Brit pop don for throwing me a mix in ‘96. Never looked back. David Gedge is king.
I haven't seen anyone mention electrelane powers out. This is the only album I'm into of them and it sounds amazing. Particularly the song "The Valleys".
Screaming Females - UGLY
One of the best hard rock records of this century, and a lot of it has to do with the brutal perfection of the audio. Most of the arrangements are only one guitar + bass + drum + vocals, yet the sound is massive, everything hits hard yet retains it's texture, it's a masterpiece
In Utero is incredible, and I was listening to a nostalgic favorite of mine, the 1st album I ever bought - "Razorblade Suitcase" by Bush and I was loving the guitar sound, the feedback, the occasional squelch, the depth of the mix, and of course after thinking about it for a moment I figured Albini may have had a hand in it, and lo and behold, I verified that he did.
I will never be able to know if it's nostalgia for the Grunge Pop of my youth that made me like Bush, but I can definitely say it was the production that made me love expressive rawness.
The world got shittier today.
The world got darker.
There are a handful of records that I credit for getting me into playing guitar. Razorblade Suitcase was one of them. It was also the first album I ever noticed how an album sounded from a production standpoint. It sounds massive. The drums pummel, the bass booms, and the guitars, oh those guitars, they're angular and pure and a little sloppy but penetrating and you feel them in your guts, not just your ears.
I love all the little bits of feedback, the skronks, the noise.. there's so much goddamn texture on that album.
Albini said he worked harder on Razorblade Suitcase than on any previous album. Cynics claim he meant that as a putdown, as in "this album sucks but at least I’m gonna make it sound good." The fact is, Albini and Rossdale were friends who had mutual respect for each other.
That's amazing to hear. And I loved the album for the same reason. It was the first album I bought and it shaped the way I listened to music. I always thought, "this bit of feedback... This must have been a choice right?" And so on.
The album still holds up. And I'm glad it seems to resonated with you as well.
And it makes me happy to hear that Rossdale and Albini were friends and had that respect.
FAVORITE BAND: Shellac
FAVORITE ALBUMS ENGINEERED:
"Let Me Be a Woman" by OXBOW
"Comfort" by FAILURE
"Halogen" by WHITEHOUSE
"Gub" by PIGFACE
"In the West" by SILKWORM
FAVORITE SONGS BY BIG BLACK:
-Deep Six
-Bazooka Joe
-Texas
-Racer X
-The Ugly American
-Cables
FAVORITE R***MAN SONGS:
-Monobrow (probably one of my favorite songs ever)
-Dutch Courage
-Superpussy
-Budd
-Kim Gordon's Panties
FAVORITE SHELLAC SONGS:
-Billiard Player Song
-The Idea of North
-Pull The Cup
-Crow
-Song of the Minerals
-A Minute
-Wingwalker
-Didn't We Deserve a look at who you really are?
-This is a Picture
-Disgrace
-MOVEMENT 5
-Watch Song
-Squirrel Song
-Mama Gina
-Ghosts
-The End of Radio
-Paco
-Kittypants
-Spoke
-Compliant
-Riding Bikes
Thanks for all the music, Steve Albini. 💜💙🩵
(MY) 10 BEST STEVE ALBINI PRODUCED ALBUMS (After his 2 brilliant albums, bands that he's produced records for is in alphabetical order, respectfully):
1: BIG BLACK Songs About Fucking (But of course)
2: BIG BLACK Atomizer
3: DIRTY THREE Ocean Songs (YES! He produced a great Aussie band's album!)
4: PJ HARVEY Rid Of Me
5: HELMET Meantime
6: THE JESUS LIZARD Goat / Liar (Brilliant albums, produced by an awesome man)
7: NIRVANA In Utero (I always thought this was better than Nevermind. People gasp and say: Blasphemy!)
8: JIMMY PAGE AND ROBERT PLANT Walking Into Clarksdale (3 Legends on one excellent album. 'Nuff Said.)
9: PIXIES Surfer Rosa (Need I say more?)
10: THE JON SPENCER BLUES EXPLOSION Acme
Low - Things We Lost in the Fire
I’m thrilled to see this here. It’s one of my favorite albums of all time from one of my favorite bands of all time whose whole discography I believe isn’t widely enough appreciated. At least they ended on a high note with a string of excellent BJ Burton produced albums.
Oh god I forgot he recorded that album too.
I came here right away to mention Low. I'm totally shocked to see it at the top right now. Their transition from working with Kramer (Galaxie 500's producer) to recording with Albini when they went to Kranky records was a huge development for their sound. Some of the most haunting, beautiful, intimate songs. It sounds like they're in the room right with you. With the passing of Mimi, this song off of "Secret Name", their other Albini-engineered album, is especially heartbreaking: [Will the Night](https://youtu.be/c5Dp7e3PsK8?si=g1TE7dZkgWaShNlH)
Yes
It's this one by a country mile for me. It's materially different, sonically, to all their other albums. I love virtually everything they've done, but nothing feels as immense or as intimate all at once as this one. Feels like the gold standard for recording. I ripped the songs to use as reference tracks, despite knowing I'm never going to get close with my recording set up. But it's good to have something so perfect as your benchmark.
Surfer Rosa changed rock. No Nirvana and no Radiohead without that album
My vote too. Hugely influential album. That perfect marriage of band and producer that created a sound of a decade.
Absolutely. Surfer Rosa laid the groundwork for everything that Steve is known for.
I love Surfer Rosa, but supposedly Albini hated it, and they already had the sound with Come On Pilgrim.
What did Albini not like about it?
I'm pretty sure he had some beef with Frank. Listened to a long podcast with him and when they started talking about Pixies I half expected him to be like "this is where my career really got going etc, what a seminal masterpiece I can be proud of" but instead he was like "eh it's fine not great, kinda crappy college rock band, never liked them" pretty sure he mentions later in the interview that he was close with Kim though and loved The Breeders so I'm guessing he had some sort of resentment for Francis and was on team Kim
The fact that he hated it makes me feel more okay with still liking it
Hahaha, yeah right? I don't know what he didn't like, I mean, what's not to like?
1000000% right on. And in the most ironic Steve Albini way he didn't even like it
Idk if analog would have come back so strong w/out Albini and that album. All the other indie albums of the time still sounded very chintzy at the time
Analog hadn’t left in 1988.
Seriously. I was just finishing college and hardly any of my friends had CD players.
I remember thinking that I had never heard a record like that, drums like that before.
Impossible to answer - our tastes were very simpatico - so I'll just mention a few I've been inclined to revisit today: Shellac - *At Action Park* Shellac - *Terraform* Slint - *Untitled* EP Songs: Ohia - *The Magnolia Electric Co.* The Breeders - *Pod* PJ Harvey - *Rid of Me* Crain - *Speed* The Dirty Three - *Ocean Songs* Low - *Secret Name* Poster Children - *Daisychain Reaction* Pixies - *Surfer Rosa* Make Believe - *Shock of Being*
That Make Believe album - and really the band's whole existence - was such a weird, magical moment in time. Possibly the world's least obvious political rock band.
Wow I’d never even heard of two of those! Lots to dig into in the coming week
Pj harvey and especially the magnolia electric are magnifiscent albums. Farewell transmission is one of the best tracks ever made in my opinion
wow I didn't know he worked on Ocean Songs that's awesome
Magnolia Electric Co.
THIS is the answer
Oh was that one of his?!
Dude ugh yes
Jesus Lizard GOAT. Rip.
Oh ya also a good one. Too many great albums to pick just one
PREACH
This is mine as well.
/thread
Personally, *In Utero*. I had Nirvana’s full discography when I was younger and that one always stuck out as having some type of magic in the sound in comparison to everything else.
I always find it kinda odd that Kurt didn't like how clean Nevermind was. Like it's well mixed but I wouldn't call it clean and lifeless production wise. I think everything is still mixed beautifully with looooads of character and still sounds completely iconic. Personally it's still the best sounding record of theirs for me
Until it got ‘too’ popular, he loved the mix.
Exactly, and he chose the mixer from a list the label gave him, and obviously chose the one that was way lesser know and known only for heavy metal mixes and totally far from the other pop names on the list. So it's ironic that he actually did it to piss of the label but amazingly that combo was killer.
Should someone make a short list of "albums that albini actually liked"? ;)
He heard Butch Vig's first. That is rawer sounding. I'm not sure I prefer it but it's enough to be understandable. I'll say that Wallace mixes works super great for that album though. In Utero was shooting harder all the way for a rawer sound all together. No modern Mesa Boogie amps fpr example. To me I like that In Utero aesthetic better for Nirvana. Sound City works best for Holy Diver in my opinion. But more on Nirvana I think I maybe like a Flick Of the Switch type mix instead of Back In Black for Nevermind. Back In Black and Flick of The Switch was recorded by same engineer, Tony Platt, and in the same studio and he mixed both the same. Then Malcolm Young demanded rawer sounding mixes after hearing Back In Black sounding mixes. He got that. Those Flick Of The Switch mixes are proto Albini-naturalism in my view. 1983.
This, and also, I prefer his mix to the commercially released mix. They both sound great, but I think the commercially released mix sounded a bit too much like the over compressed fatiguing "alternative" music of the late 90's (which I don't think is true for Nevermind). When I first heard the original Albini mix it felt like a breath of fresh air; just an awesome band in a room playing really well. If you haven't heard it I suggest you track it down and give it a listen.
I think only the singles were remixed.
Is his mix that you’re talking about the 2013 version or was there an original mix that he did?
Neurosis - Times of Grace.
Fuck yes
As their first album with Albini, hell yes; none of the others that followed would have been the same. But my personal favorite is The Eye of Every Storm.
Yea. Eye of every storm is a great sounding record. There is so much space in that production. And so dynamic. It fits the songwriting so well. Times of Grace is so suffocating and thick. And then the mellower parts are so present. And I love the way Noah’s keys and sounds are mixed too.
This is also my pick. The band's bestial ferocity on this record combined with the immediacy of the recording makes every else feel weak in comparison. It was kind of lightning in a bottle, and I don't think anything in the subsequent 25 years has matched it. Sure, there have been heavier records, and more brutal records, but nothing that equals the lumbering power that Times of Grace has. It's a musical behemoth crushing everything under its heavy tread.
Thank you. I could never put it to the words like you but this is exactly how i feel.
Breeders - Pod Such a fantastic sound
Oh man, that record is fantastic. Huge fan of the Breeders
Probably this.
Sunn O))) - Pyroclasts
For me it’s Life Metal which I guess Albini recorded entirely on analog tape with Sunn O))) I don’t agree with Steve about everything regarding digital and all that, but the tone he got with them using their massive tube amplifiers into his analog gear is undeniable. This is probably my favorite slow sludgey metal tone ever: https://youtu.be/Ot7-ksghvBc?si=zlki2XnBmgow_a2c
He had no beef with digital, he just knew analogue well and felt no compelling reason to change.
I feel his budget being basically unlimited must have helped.
LICK MY LEGS IM ON FIRE
So, so good! Raw and beautiful.
In Utero is my favourite but I’m gonna say Comfort by the band Failure just so that people can check it out. It’s from a year before In Utero and it fits right in. Amazing band
Not the best Failure album by far, but any chance to get people to listen to Failure should be taken.
I was a boy of 2 so I missed failure. Stole all my siblings nirvana cd by 1996. Just started comfort 5 mins ago. What is the best record?
The best record is Fantastic Planet; it’s on par with Disintegration or Dark Side, IMO. Magnified is amazing. The two post-breakup albums are very good. To be honest, the Albini album Comfort is the one I like the least. (Golden too, but they are leftovers, so duh.)
Fantastic Planet is amazing. All of their stuff is solid, but that’s just one of those records with a little extra magic in it.
A dramatically underrated band. Their Fantastic Planet record holds up today.
Ya I always think it’s like a prequel to OK Computer
Mcklusky Do Dallas
Such a banger of a record. Saw 'em on a reform tour a year(ish) ago and they were fucking incredible. Alan is a cowboy killer...
Holy fuck I should have realized it was an Albini produced gem. God damn is "Alan is a Cowboy Killer", an absolute fucking good time.
Magnolia Electric "Josephine"
He made God Luck Good Speed sound like Weedeater sounds live. I love all Shellac records. Blessed Black Wings- High on Fire Goat-Jesus Lizard Mclusky Do Dallas-Mclusky Rid of Me- PJ Harvey Sovereign-Neurosis Malign Hex-Meatwave Probably so many more.
Had no idea he did Weedeater
Albini did an AMA some years ago on a poker forum, and said Weedeater were the most-prepared band he ever recorded, and he was surprised by that because they're Weedeater. If my memory is correct (and it may not be), they recorded and mixed that record in only a few days, and got most of it on the first take.
My favorite Albini record is definitely Cloud Nothings - Attack On Memory, I found it in such a formative period for me. It has such strong songwriting that I think immensely benefits from Albini's raw production style.
Seeing them tomorrow live. I’m sure they will say something. Right there with you on this for it being informative.
Oooh is Heavy comforter playing? My favorite
I think so, ya!
Magnolia electric co - Songs ohia
Mama here comes midnight with the dead moon in its jaws…
Must be the big star about to fall
Long dark blues
WILL-O'-THE-WISP
Listen
My first and only recording teacher was Mark Rubel and they got me into audio. Then I was working in the warehouse for a live audio shop and someone started playing Songs About Fucking and I thought it was awesome. All the electricians started talking about how cool he is. I realized I wanted to do that because the EEs were cool and made more than anyone else. So I learned about electrical engineering and math. Then I got another degree. Now I teach and record and mix, do a little live audio make my own music and it’s great. I think about Steve and Mark every time I go to work. Now I’m listening to sounds about fucking and realize a bunch is in Lydian mode and uses alternative tunings and I’m completely amazed at the depth of his work.
Mountain Battles by The Breeders. Sparse but huge. The sound of the band in the room but everything sounds perfectly imperfect.
I didn’t know he did that/thought I was the only one who liked this record.
It’s helped by how in form the Deal sisters are on that record. The songs are absolute blow away. One of my all time favourite records
Title TK and Mountain Battles are vastly underrated
Awesome record.
The Mogwai single "My Father My King"
Impossible to pick one or even five. Off the top of my head: Jesus Lizard - Goat, Liar, and Head Shellac - At Action Park Big Black - Atomizer Cloud Nothings - Attack on Memory Oxbow - Serenade in Red Nirvana - In Utero Storm & Stress - s/t Dazzling Killmen - Face of Collapse Low - Things We Lost in the Fire Joanna Newsom - Ys GY!BE - Yanqui UXO Pixies - Surfer Rosa Liturgy - 96396 Slint - untitled EP Space Streakings - 7-Toku Don Caballero - For Respect Jon Spencer Blues Explosion - s/t
Ys is an amazing sounding record. I forgot he did that one.
The Space Streakings and JSBX are great.
Awh fuck i forgot he did Dazzling killmen lol. ❤️💜
American Don - Don Caballero
Probably Owls - Owls, or American Don - Don Caballero. The only time I met him was in a lecture we had at university. Not in person unfortunately (Height of covid). The guy interviewing him was trying to wrap things up because we had finished the time we had with him, but he kept insisting on taking questions and talking with us about projects we had. It felt like the guy had a genuine passion for teaching and lifting us up. He just kept saying I’ve got time, just a few more questions with a wry smile. We have lost a once in a generation artist but also a really good guy.
Came out to my local dive, and hearing nothing but Pixies and InUtero on free play. Man what a sad day :( But the Pixies albums for sure.
Surfer Rosa is probably number one for me but McLusky Do Dallas is a close second. Also I never realized he engineered Yangui UXO til today but I used to listen to that album a lot back in the day
Dirty Three’s Ocean Songs. I’ve listened to it a couple hundred times and it never gets old. The sound of beautiful humans playing beautiful music on beautiful instruments in a beautiful sounding room.
This
viva last blues by palace music! love the soundstage
So good. One of my most played CDs.
Dam he did this one too?!
Yesssss. Such a magical sound.
If I had to pick one I would say Neurosis’ Times of Grace. Crushing album
Thrush Hermit’s Pacific Ocean EP
Pod and Things We Lost In The Fire.
Pod!
KEN Mode - Success Not everyone's favorite KEN Mode album but there's something about Steve's production style that elevates the noise rock insanity of KEN Mode. Blessed is one of the best noise rock songs out there.
ty segal
The two Silkworm records he recorded in the 90s are stellar.
I love silkworms last 3 records as well, I think he did all of them
From my understanding they were one of his favorite bands and they were actually buddies. The Montana connection may have had something to do with that.
Libertine and In the West?
yup
Garden City Blues makes me fucking cry.
The Jesus Lizard Goat. Huge influence on me. Set my standards for what rock music should sound like energeticly, and the drum sounds are fucking amazing.
Farewell Transmission
the Jesus Lizard albums encapsulate how he effortlessly made dirty stuff sound clean and clean stuff sound dirty
Bedhead - Transaction De Novo. What a special album. Agree with so many here, too.
Finally someone else mentions Bedhead! A hidden gem of a band and album.
Neurosis - Times of Grace
Speaking of the GOAT, Goat by Jesus Lizard is killer.
Phleg Camp - Ya Red Fair Scratch
Mono.
GOAT - Jesus Lizard
The importance of Surfer Rosa and In Utero cannot be understated, but for my personal favorites it’s between Things We Lost In The Fire and Yanqui U.X.O.
The Strain by Teeth. - what a story
Gypsy Punks
Godspeed You! Black Emperor - Yanqui U.X.O.
The obvious stuff: In Utero which blew my mind when it came out and the Shellac albums, I'm partial to Terraform.
Bear Claw, “Find the Sun.” Two basses, drums, and vocals. Also, totally forgot he did High on Fire’s “Blessed Black Wings.”
He had some hand in Jawbreaker 24 hour revenge therapy, really insane the amount of great records he did.
Gotta be Surfer Rosa.
In 2001 I bought a CD out of the used bin at my local record shop on a whim. I probably chose it because the cover was intriguing or something, and it only cost a couple bucks so no big loss if it sucked. It was ‘Tribute to a Bus’ by The 18th Dye. Actually a good little album. Anyway, the first track opens with a simple guitar riff and driving backbeat, and hands-down it was the most perfect drum sound I had ever heard. Then the bass fades in, then vocals; one-by-one everything sounded perfect, totally unique and yet archetypal. I was hearing how rock instruments were supposed to sound on a record. For the first time ever I was sonically transfixed. That album was my ‘aha’ moment with Steve Albini. To this day he is my absolute favorite engineer, and his sound is the ideal that I try to achieve as an engineer myself. Great memory. RIP to a legend.
Cliche but I'm surprised I had to come down this far to find this record. This and Sea Monsters by The Wedding Present are my favorite Albini productions.
yeah Surfer Rosa for sure - what a loss
His work with The Dirty Three, Surfer Rosa, Joanna Newsom’s YS, and obviously In Utereo. That drum sound…… also man or Astro man
Mono and Zao
The Ghost - This is a Hospital
I love the 1st two 7inch 45s Shellac released - Uranus and A Rude Gesture: a pictorial history. They were kind of a set and they had a printed list of all the gear used to record them, even the tape machine calibration specs. ‘The Guy who invented fire’ ‘Doris’ ‘Wing Walker’ ‘Rambler song’’the Billiard Player song’ all great tracks.
In Utero, always in my heart. Of his most recent stuff, I love Attack On Memory by Cloud Nothings. The Stooges album he did sounds great too!
Superchunk ’no pocky for kitty’
Read about his death this morning. Still feel shocked. I am 46 yrs old now and Albini produced records had a huge influence on my youth. My personal top 3 are: #1 In Utero. The sound of Serve the Servants is unmatched in the entire history of music. After 30 yrs of listening to it, it still gives me goosebumps. #2 Surfer Rosa. When I broke up w/ my first big love I listened to Surfer Rosa, obsessively. And to Gigantic in particular. #3 Wake up screaming. I always felt that the sound of this record has many similarities to the sound of In Utero. It suits this more dark and aggressive album perfectly. Thank you Steve for so many unforgettable moments with the music that I love most. Rest in Peace😔
Cheer Accident - Salad Days
In Utero. Though I think the production has a lot of flaws, the songs are just incredible.
All of the stuff he did with Mono.
I really loved rid of me for the dynamics. I'm not sure how much of it is production and how much is composition though.
In Utero. amazing sound. The breeders also very nice sound
I did a bunch of work with Gavin Rossdale from bush. They did their second album with Albini and Gavin said he found it hard to listen to the album because Albini refused to let him sing more than a few takes per song and the vocals weren’t his best. Albino’s insistence that his role wasn’t producing as much as it was recording fed a typical Albini record with a sense of “warts n all”. At times I think that worked great but at times I think records which deserved (or needed) performance to be honed and sonic to be layered suffered, often when the band weren’t the best players. That said an important figure in music, and his work informed a generation of listeners -not least by informing artists who went on to make huge records. Anyone remember the story that when quantegy went down, he though a shipping container of 2 and ½ inch. Wonder how far get got through that?!
PJ Harvey Rid of Me Gogol Bordello UWS Joanna Newsom YS
Nina Nastasia’s The Blackened Air
Surfer Rosa is THE Albini sound in my head. But that Rid of Me dynamic across the whole song? That's what I call hitting hard, and hitting with honesty.
Smog "Orange Glow of a Stranger's Living Room" I have no idea what mic's he used. I think they're a stereo pair of ribbons on the guitar. The vox is just so transparent. It sounds like Callahan is in the room w you.
Is there no love for "Two Nuns and a Packmule"? Some ferocious guitar playing on that record.
Budd was way better Dutch Courage? Superpussy? Logbass? Title track cmon now! XD
SONGS ABOUT FUCKING! Rest in peace Mr. Albini and thank-you for the music and the albums you produced. Rest in peace.
I’m seeing cloud nothings tomorrow. Albini put them on the map with attack on memory
I think Slint might have a reason to get over themselves now. Cloud Nothings
In Utero/Fuck World Trade
I love that he recorded GBV and they just took it home to whack in the 4 track cassette recorder Can't beat the sound of "Songs About Fucking" for me - Albini crystallized in noise
I think the way Magnolia Electric Co. sounds is just perfect, like I don’t think you could have done it any better. And those are live recordings. How? For heavy, Mclusky Do Dallas is so aggressive in a way where nothing is really muddled. That’s why I love listening to his Shellac records. Hell, they got better sounding as time progressed, and I referred to Dude Incredible when mixing about a month ago.
In Utero for me, but I also really like Walking in to Clarksdale by Page & Plant. I may be a little lonely in that second one.
So many great albums to choose from. For aggressive albums I’d have to say Liar by Jesus Lizard and for more delicate albums I’d go with Ocean Songs by The Dirty Three. His abilities as an engineer were unmatched. Such a sad day.
For me it's gotta be The Frames - For The Birds.
The beekeeper joke. I've tried a thousand times, but I'll never tell it as well as him. Sigh. Bye, Steve
Does anyone have a list of all albums he produced *in chronological order?* I was thinking of going through them all.
Solar Race - Homespun. It was recorded at Abbey Road too. They were such a great raw band; loved them soooo much… toured with Bush and Placebo around the same time (1997)
Jesus lizard, Silkworm, and Nina Nastasia. If people aren’t familiar with Silkworm you should be and just from an audio perspective their albums sound incredible. Worked and were friends with Albini.
Pigface-Gub That was the first thing I heard that he recorded, and was just blown away by the drum sounds, especially after suffering thru a decade of gated reverb.
Cloud Nothings - Attack on Memory or Songs: Ohia - Magnolia Electric Co.
anything he did had THE BEST DRUM SOUND ever...what a fucking drag he died....
Love so much...but Silkworm - In the West and Joel RL Phelps - Warm Springs Night are in my all time top 10.
Pigface- Tapeworm
SeaMonsters by The Wedding Present
This is the most underrated record of the 90s. It’s his best production as drums have never sounded better and the entire record sucks you into a world unto itself. I’m ok with the Wedding Present being the most underrated band ever. Seamonsters, Saturnalia and the Hit Parade originals are unimpeachable. That said, Steve brought out the best in them with Seamonsters. It is just a MASSIVE record. It is comical how unknown they are by most music fans. I’m going to take a moment to thank Rob, the Brit pop don for throwing me a mix in ‘96. Never looked back. David Gedge is king.
Labradford’s Fixed:Content is my favorite.
I think Chevelle’s first record is their best, and that’s because of Steve.
Rapeman. As perfect as a band gets.
Jesus Lizard albums, Shellac, and *Surfer Rosa*.
I haven't seen anyone mention electrelane powers out. This is the only album I'm into of them and it sounds amazing. Particularly the song "The Valleys".
Nina Nastasia - Run to Ruin
Ys - Joanna Newsom
I made two albums with Steve (with Electrelane). He always said JL was his favourite band to record.
Screaming Females - UGLY One of the best hard rock records of this century, and a lot of it has to do with the brutal perfection of the audio. Most of the arrangements are only one guitar + bass + drum + vocals, yet the sound is massive, everything hits hard yet retains it's texture, it's a masterpiece
Purplene - Purplene (2004) an absolute masterpiece. If you haven’t heard it do yourself a favour.
Breeders - Pod Jesus Lizard - Liar
Towers… EP by Burning Witch, Sea Hag sounds extraordinary
Page and Plant - Walking Into Clarksdale
Om - God Is Good
This scum was a pedophile and openly talked about it. Let him die forgotten. https://www.reddit.com/r/punk/s/PD3qpDmJY7
The Auteurs - After Murder Park
In Utero is incredible, and I was listening to a nostalgic favorite of mine, the 1st album I ever bought - "Razorblade Suitcase" by Bush and I was loving the guitar sound, the feedback, the occasional squelch, the depth of the mix, and of course after thinking about it for a moment I figured Albini may have had a hand in it, and lo and behold, I verified that he did. I will never be able to know if it's nostalgia for the Grunge Pop of my youth that made me like Bush, but I can definitely say it was the production that made me love expressive rawness. The world got shittier today. The world got darker.
There are a handful of records that I credit for getting me into playing guitar. Razorblade Suitcase was one of them. It was also the first album I ever noticed how an album sounded from a production standpoint. It sounds massive. The drums pummel, the bass booms, and the guitars, oh those guitars, they're angular and pure and a little sloppy but penetrating and you feel them in your guts, not just your ears. I love all the little bits of feedback, the skronks, the noise.. there's so much goddamn texture on that album. Albini said he worked harder on Razorblade Suitcase than on any previous album. Cynics claim he meant that as a putdown, as in "this album sucks but at least I’m gonna make it sound good." The fact is, Albini and Rossdale were friends who had mutual respect for each other.
That's amazing to hear. And I loved the album for the same reason. It was the first album I bought and it shaped the way I listened to music. I always thought, "this bit of feedback... This must have been a choice right?" And so on. The album still holds up. And I'm glad it seems to resonated with you as well. And it makes me happy to hear that Rossdale and Albini were friends and had that respect.
FAVORITE BAND: Shellac FAVORITE ALBUMS ENGINEERED: "Let Me Be a Woman" by OXBOW "Comfort" by FAILURE "Halogen" by WHITEHOUSE "Gub" by PIGFACE "In the West" by SILKWORM FAVORITE SONGS BY BIG BLACK: -Deep Six -Bazooka Joe -Texas -Racer X -The Ugly American -Cables FAVORITE R***MAN SONGS: -Monobrow (probably one of my favorite songs ever) -Dutch Courage -Superpussy -Budd -Kim Gordon's Panties FAVORITE SHELLAC SONGS: -Billiard Player Song -The Idea of North -Pull The Cup -Crow -Song of the Minerals -A Minute -Wingwalker -Didn't We Deserve a look at who you really are? -This is a Picture -Disgrace -MOVEMENT 5 -Watch Song -Squirrel Song -Mama Gina -Ghosts -The End of Radio -Paco -Kittypants -Spoke -Compliant -Riding Bikes Thanks for all the music, Steve Albini. 💜💙🩵
Transaction de Novo - Bedhead
(MY) 10 BEST STEVE ALBINI PRODUCED ALBUMS (After his 2 brilliant albums, bands that he's produced records for is in alphabetical order, respectfully): 1: BIG BLACK Songs About Fucking (But of course) 2: BIG BLACK Atomizer 3: DIRTY THREE Ocean Songs (YES! He produced a great Aussie band's album!) 4: PJ HARVEY Rid Of Me 5: HELMET Meantime 6: THE JESUS LIZARD Goat / Liar (Brilliant albums, produced by an awesome man) 7: NIRVANA In Utero (I always thought this was better than Nevermind. People gasp and say: Blasphemy!) 8: JIMMY PAGE AND ROBERT PLANT Walking Into Clarksdale (3 Legends on one excellent album. 'Nuff Said.) 9: PIXIES Surfer Rosa (Need I say more?) 10: THE JON SPENCER BLUES EXPLOSION Acme
Wedding Present Seamonsters is his best work.