The Album Review Club - Week #147 - (page 1942) - Blonde On Blonde - Bob Dylan

[Saddleworth2]

I understand where you're coming from with this and personally it's been interesting to compare this week's pick with last week's.

But I think we have to accept that a thread like this is going to have all sorts of cognitive biases on show and rosy retrospection and a kind of primacy bias will be two of the most prevalent. We pretty much actively encourage people to do this by asking them to nominate albums that 'mean' something to them.

To me that's why this thread is more interesting than say working through Larkin's list. It's people putting stuff in the context of their lives, that's where the interest lies.

If the price I have to pay for that is that everyone displays a load of biases that mean they are regularly wrong about stuff, then I'm willing to forgive them their wrongness for the other things that it brings to the thread :-)

But the proposer doesn’t get to score. So in some cases their bias is shared by others.

 

[RobMCFC]

You and me both. Folk toss 8s around like confetti. There is no way that album should be top ten. An eight should be a damn near perfect album. One that is in your top 20 all time favourites.

All my top 20 albums would be 10s - given that 1-10 covers every album ever recorded in the history of music, it’s not unreasonable to have a good number that are max scores. 10 doesn’t mean perfect. To me it means above a certain threshold.

 

[threespires]

All my top 20 albums would be 10s - given that 1-10 covers every album ever recorded in the history of music, it’s not unreasonable to have a good number that are max scores. 10 doesn’t mean perfect. To me it means above a certain threshold.

For me 10 means there's nothing I would change about it. That doesn't necessarily mean it's perfect but that even it's imperfections are part of the charm. Think I've just gone full Swiss Tony...a beautiful album is like a beautiful woman,,,,

 

[BimboBob]

All my top 20 albums would be 10s - given that 1-10 covers every album ever recorded in the history of music, it’s not unreasonable to have a good number that are max scores. 10 doesn’t mean perfect. To me it means above a certain threshold.

10 to me means perfection. I have a few 9's in my favourites but I don't think I could score any a 10.

 

[Saddleworth2]

All my top 20 albums would be 10s - given that 1-10 covers every album ever recorded in the history of music, it’s not unreasonable to have a good number that are max scores. 10 doesn’t mean perfect. To me it means above a certain threshold.

I can’t think of more than 4 or 5 albums I would give a ten to. In fact I will have to think hard to name three.

 

[LGWIO]

I can’t think of more than 4 or 5 albums I would give a ten to. In fact I will have to think hard to name three.

The Bends, OK Computer & Popped In Souled Out?

Dave Hill?

Cheeky fucker.

Edit: And more to the point, how the fuck did you find out that I dress like that at the weekends?

It was the references to molecules and mosh pits that made me think you had to have a huge forehead

 

[OB1]

All my top 20 albums would be 10s - given that 1-10 covers every album ever recorded in the history of music, it’s not unreasonable to have a good number that are max scores. 10 doesn’t mean perfect. To me it means above a certain threshold.

Yeah, I’m with you. Perfect doesn’t exist so reserving 10 for that would be pointless. Quite a lot of ranking systems go for stars with 5 stars the top score and a 10 for me is a 5 star album, if that makes sense.

 

[Coatigan]

10 to me means perfection. I have a few 9's in my favourites but I don't think I could score any a 10.

To me, it is not about perfection, or unskippable songs, musical excellence etc. It is purely how much an album moves me, and based on entirely how/what it makes me feel.

I can’t think of more than 4 or 5 albums I would give a ten to. In fact I will have to think hard to name three.

I'm the same. Any more than that, and a 10 is no longer a 10, it loses its meaning. Too many 10s, none are really 10s, imo. By my own metric above, I should say.

 

[Saddleworth2]

A normal distribution curve would see 20% of scores 1-3, 60% 4-7, 20% 8-10.

In fact if you look at the 130 albums rated all but 1 fall in the 4-7 bracket. It’s clear we are loathe to score too high or low.

 

[Saddleworth2]

If I scored an album 10. These would be the ones:

Yes- Close to the Edge
Beach Boys - Pet Sounds
Kate Bush - The Hounds of Love
David Bowie - Hunky Dory

On a different day my score might change or I might include The Doors -The Doors. Lots more would be 9s.