Greatest Tracks
I think there's at least as many ways to answer this question as there have been lineups of the band.
I really admire Eldritch and I think that as an artist he's genuinely a visionary (as in, each record or "thing" the Sisters have done gives the impression of being a discrete artistic project driven by a cohesive vision), but the thing I always loved about the Sisters is that it's not just one band with a changing lineup; it's a bunch of different bands that have to figure out how to interpret what came before them and what they propose to add to the story.
The band is bigger than Eldritch (and I think he admits as much) even if it couldn't continue without him. That seems to be the rather grandiose overall point in a way.
That means it's hard for me to pick the greatest tracks because the songs written for FALAA (for example) don't exist anymore - they've been transformed by every lineup since, to the point that hearing them on record now gives the impression that you're hearing but one fraction of something altogether bigger. Everything on Floodland was transformed when the band pivoted to live-only, because none of it was written for that purpose. Everything on Vision Thing is both a new direction and the band stripped back to fundamental principles.
I struggle with the "favourite song" question because the songs are all still alive and breathing, and growing and changing.
With that poncy disclaimer out of the way, I'll give you songs that may or may not end up as the greatest, but which resonate for a particular reason.
-Flood II (I just like the wounded quality of the lyrics and keyboard melody)
-When You Don't See Me (yes I know people compare it to Dio but I love Dio)
-We Are The Same Susanne (there seems to be a general principle in the Sisters that a song should be built using relatively simple constituent parts in order to create a complex effect, and this song exemplifies that)
-I Was Wrong (something about the vocal dynamics hits home for me; it seems very controlled. Everytime it feels like it should go big, it doesn't)
-Marian (I generally don't disagree with Eldritch's assessment of Hussey's approach to songwriting - they seem polar opposites in terms of what they consider important - so I'm fascinated by these moments where you can plainly see see how each found the other useful)
-Slept (mainly for Adam's spaghetti western guitar riff)
-I Will Call You (I just like the weirdness of it, and I think Ben's affection for classic hard rock has brought a lot of great "big choruses" to the Sisters and it'd be wrong not to call that out)
So there you go.
I really admire Eldritch and I think that as an artist he's genuinely a visionary (as in, each record or "thing" the Sisters have done gives the impression of being a discrete artistic project driven by a cohesive vision), but the thing I always loved about the Sisters is that it's not just one band with a changing lineup; it's a bunch of different bands that have to figure out how to interpret what came before them and what they propose to add to the story.
The band is bigger than Eldritch (and I think he admits as much) even if it couldn't continue without him. That seems to be the rather grandiose overall point in a way.
That means it's hard for me to pick the greatest tracks because the songs written for FALAA (for example) don't exist anymore - they've been transformed by every lineup since, to the point that hearing them on record now gives the impression that you're hearing but one fraction of something altogether bigger. Everything on Floodland was transformed when the band pivoted to live-only, because none of it was written for that purpose. Everything on Vision Thing is both a new direction and the band stripped back to fundamental principles.
I struggle with the "favourite song" question because the songs are all still alive and breathing, and growing and changing.
With that poncy disclaimer out of the way, I'll give you songs that may or may not end up as the greatest, but which resonate for a particular reason.
-Flood II (I just like the wounded quality of the lyrics and keyboard melody)
-When You Don't See Me (yes I know people compare it to Dio but I love Dio)
-We Are The Same Susanne (there seems to be a general principle in the Sisters that a song should be built using relatively simple constituent parts in order to create a complex effect, and this song exemplifies that)
-I Was Wrong (something about the vocal dynamics hits home for me; it seems very controlled. Everytime it feels like it should go big, it doesn't)
-Marian (I generally don't disagree with Eldritch's assessment of Hussey's approach to songwriting - they seem polar opposites in terms of what they consider important - so I'm fascinated by these moments where you can plainly see see how each found the other useful)
-Slept (mainly for Adam's spaghetti western guitar riff)
-I Will Call You (I just like the weirdness of it, and I think Ben's affection for classic hard rock has brought a lot of great "big choruses" to the Sisters and it'd be wrong not to call that out)
So there you go.
Hi Fallon.
You know, you don’t get to be a multi-millionaire rock star by being an idiot. In fact, very few people ever get the chance to breathe such rarified air. Like you, I admire Eldritch’s lyrics with their layered approach. Have you noticed what passes as a “hit” song for most artists lately? Time to toss out the earbuds. These days, like the melodies, the lyrics are equally deficient: “Ooo baby baby… ba-baby baby…” God. It had to have taken less than one brain cell to write that. And sure, the Sisters could likely go on forever. Just hand the reins over to an AI, if things get so desperate. Each new lineup of the Sisters allows for a chance to interpret the music in new and very interesting ways, though. For me, the songs generally fall into two camps: the loud bombastic ones and the quiet emotional ones. It can be hard to choose. As for Hussey’s lyrics, well, let’s be generous: he tries.
You know, you don’t get to be a multi-millionaire rock star by being an idiot. In fact, very few people ever get the chance to breathe such rarified air. Like you, I admire Eldritch’s lyrics with their layered approach. Have you noticed what passes as a “hit” song for most artists lately? Time to toss out the earbuds. These days, like the melodies, the lyrics are equally deficient: “Ooo baby baby… ba-baby baby…” God. It had to have taken less than one brain cell to write that. And sure, the Sisters could likely go on forever. Just hand the reins over to an AI, if things get so desperate. Each new lineup of the Sisters allows for a chance to interpret the music in new and very interesting ways, though. For me, the songs generally fall into two camps: the loud bombastic ones and the quiet emotional ones. It can be hard to choose. As for Hussey’s lyrics, well, let’s be generous: he tries.
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Damaged+Done
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Andrenochrome really is something though isn't it? Like f**k. And it is a b-side!? Although to Body Electric so we in hair splitting territory.
Amphetamine Logic.
Eyes of Caligula.
On The Wire
Summer.
On The Beach.
You Could Be The One (obviously)
Amphetamine Logic.
Eyes of Caligula.
On The Wire
Summer.
On The Beach.
You Could Be The One (obviously)
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eastmidswhizzkid
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everything except "Come Together" & "Arms".
Well I was handsome and I was strong
And I knew the words to every song.
"Did my singing please you?"
"No! The words you sang were wrong!"
And I knew the words to every song.
"Did my singing please you?"
"No! The words you sang were wrong!"
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eastmidswhizzkid
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I bought both Rainbow In The Dark (Holy Diver album) and When You Dont See Me (Vision Thing) on the day of their release. first thought was "OK The Sisters are doing their metal album now.." Everbody was to be fair. The Cult had done Electric, Ministry did Psalm 69. Second thought was "Thats "Rainbow In The Dark"."
I am also a massive Dio fan -the band yes but specifiacally Ronnie James Dio . no coincidence that at age 12 both Von and I had the same favourite album in Rainbow Rising. Still my favourite album of all-time today.
Well I was handsome and I was strong
And I knew the words to every song.
"Did my singing please you?"
"No! The words you sang were wrong!"
And I knew the words to every song.
"Did my singing please you?"
"No! The words you sang were wrong!"
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LyanvisAberrant
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Genuinely curious, what don't you enjoy about come together, Lee?
xA man with a fictitious grin pondered the terrain in which he flooded with anguish, for this is England. The lion cannot be tamed, this is the game.
I believe Eldritch has debunked the Rainbow thing recently but that's a fact I choose to ignore.eastmidswhizzkid wrote: ↑16 Oct 2023, 19:01I bought both Rainbow In The Dark (Holy Diver album) and When You Dont See Me (Vision Thing) on the day of their release. first thought was "OK The Sisters are doing their metal album now.." Everbody was to be fair. The Cult had done Electric, Ministry did Psalm 69. Second thought was "Thats "Rainbow In The Dark"."
I am also a massive Dio fan -the band yes but specifiacally Ronnie James Dio . no coincidence that at age 12 both Von and I had the same favourite album in Rainbow Rising. Still my favourite album of all-time today.
But Ronnie, eh? What a guy. Met him once, very briefly, and he acted like I was his oldest friend.
If the Sisters make records for a "hard world you can get by in", RJD made records for a world in which you're always allowed to belong.
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eastmidswhizzkid
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Absolutely! An example to all of how to treat your fans as the most special partner in the fan/artist relationship. He genuinely loved & appreciated his fans and the effort and money and love they put in. I was never lucky enough to meet him as such but I got to see Dio play live 3 times in 1983 and 1984. theres a sounboard recording of one of them from Leicester where i'm from that has been much bootlegged professionally. my mum and I had spent the previous week painting a huge "Dio" logo on this massive bedsheet to be hung from the balcony at this gig. it turned out to be the only one there and on the concert recording when Ronnie has the house lights turned up so he can see the audience you can clearly hear him saying "Thank you for that, its lovely!" to us!Fallon wrote: ↑17 Oct 2023, 10:08I believe Eldritch has debunked the Rainbow thing recently but that's a fact I choose to ignore.eastmidswhizzkid wrote: ↑16 Oct 2023, 19:01I bought both Rainbow In The Dark (Holy Diver album) and When You Dont See Me (Vision Thing) on the day of their release. first thought was "OK The Sisters are doing their metal album now.." Everbody was to be fair. The Cult had done Electric, Ministry did Psalm 69. Second thought was "Thats "Rainbow In The Dark"."
I am also a massive Dio fan -the band yes but specifiacally Ronnie James Dio . no coincidence that at age 12 both Von and I had the same favourite album in Rainbow Rising. Still my favourite album of all-time today.
But Ronnie, eh? What a guy. Met him once, very briefly, and he acted like I was his oldest friend.
If the Sisters make records for a "hard world you can get by in", RJD made records for a world in which you're always allowed to belong.
RJD was the first one of my heroes to die that i cried like a baby when heard. RIP Ronnie.
Well I was handsome and I was strong
And I knew the words to every song.
"Did my singing please you?"
"No! The words you sang were wrong!"
And I knew the words to every song.
"Did my singing please you?"
"No! The words you sang were wrong!"
-
eastmidswhizzkid
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Thats a good question actually. I guess it just doesnt sound like The Sisters to me. Cant give a better answer than that off the top of my head.LyanvisAberrant wrote: ↑17 Oct 2023, 09:46Genuinely curious, what don't you enjoy about come together, Lee?
Well I was handsome and I was strong
And I knew the words to every song.
"Did my singing please you?"
"No! The words you sang were wrong!"
And I knew the words to every song.
"Did my singing please you?"
"No! The words you sang were wrong!"
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sultan2075
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I have to admit it's actually one of my favorites from what I think of as the Optimistic-About-a-Record Era. I know it'll probably never be dragged out again, but I'd love to hear them give it a thrashing now and then.eastmidswhizzkid wrote: ↑17 Oct 2023, 10:48Thats a good question actually. I guess it just doesnt sound like The Sisters to me. Cant give a better answer than that off the top of my head.LyanvisAberrant wrote: ↑17 Oct 2023, 09:46Genuinely curious, what don't you enjoy about come together, Lee?
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The most successful tyranny is not the one that uses force to assure uniformity but the one that removes the awareness of other possibilities, that makes it seem inconceivable that other ways are viable, that removes the sense that there is an outside.
The most successful tyranny is not the one that uses force to assure uniformity but the one that removes the awareness of other possibilities, that makes it seem inconceivable that other ways are viable, that removes the sense that there is an outside.
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LyanvisAberrant
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Their only song in a shuffle beat? Hahaeastmidswhizzkid wrote: ↑17 Oct 2023, 10:48Thats a good question actually. I guess it just doesnt sound like The Sisters to me. Cant give a better answer than that off the top of my head.LyanvisAberrant wrote: ↑17 Oct 2023, 09:46Genuinely curious, what don't you enjoy about come together, Lee?
A man with a fictitious grin pondered the terrain in which he flooded with anguish, for this is England. The lion cannot be tamed, this is the game.