This wild movie is apparently the first ever “ramen Western,” a subgenre I had never heard of before. It’s hard to come up with words to describe this film.
Tag: 1985
Idi i smotri [Come and See] (1985, Elem Klimov)
This is a vivid, gorgeously shot Soviet war film that often feels like a horror film. It’s certainly a unique experience and its third act is pretty hard to watch.
Wizards of the Lost Kingdom (1985, Héctor Olivera, Alan Holleb)
This is a terrible fantasy film with slight more of a budget than you might expect and some credible costuming for a terrible film. It’s basically a fully ’80s fantasy film, with way less of a budget, and where a ton of the cast are dubbed because I guess they were speaking Spanish?
Fine Young Cannibals (1985)
This is a perfectly fine ’80s soul record. Fine, just fine.
Carnivore (1985)
This is a hilariously over-the-top thrash metal record that both manages to be one of the more diverse albums in the genre (at least for the era) and also definitely feels like it was at least a little bit influential on the kind of insanity (lyrical but also musical) that came after.
Radio (1985) by LL Cool J
Early albums in the history of a genre always sound primitive in retrospect. But, for someone like me, who listens to a lot of old music, they don’t always sound dated. For me, this is true of genres I really like. I understand how primitive early rock and roll, or folk rock, or psychedelia, or …
In My Head (1985) by Black Flag
I guess there was a point in my life where I could have become a big Black Flag fan and become interested in the little stylistic changes they made throughout there career. But that point was a while ago and, instead, I found other things that suited my desire for noisy music.
Spreading the Disease (1985) by Anthrax
I have both come to Anthrax backwards – having heard a later record before this one – and come to Anthrax last among the Big 4. That makes it harder to appreciate them. But worse, I’ve been listening to Seven Churches, a way more brutal, way more innovative metal record, released the same month as …
Hunting High and Low (1985) by a-ha
It’s hard to imagine that anyone who was born between 1965 and, say, 1995, has never heard “Take on Me”. Not only is an ear worm but it has that incredible video, which meant that it got played so much more than it otherwise wood during the heyday of music videos (which corresponds with the …
Seven Churches (1985) by Possessed
One of the conventional narratives about the invention of death metal is that it is so named because of the band Death, who supposedly pioneered the genre. Now, there were other bands in other places that also either claim credit or have been retroactively given credit, but Death’s claim is pretty good simply because they …
What Does Anything Mean? Basically (1980) by The Chameleons
I sort of don’t know why I ended up listening to this. It seemed to have pretty positive reviews and they released so few records, I guess I figured I had to listen to this if I was ever going to listen to any Chameleons record. So here we are.
Flip Your Wig (1985) by Hüsker Dü
Time can really change perception, especially when it comes to cultural artifacts. I have read online abbout how this is one of Hüsker’s great albums, perhaps even their best. But I don’t hear it. I don’t know if that’s because I haven’t sat down and listened to New Day Rising recently or whether it’s because …
Hounds of Love (1985) by Kate Bush
Though I have yet to listen to every one of her albums, this strikes me as her most ambitious album, at least to date. Recording a side-long suite of songs is borderline prog rock (and would actually be, I guess, if the music was a little more connected).
The Head on the Door (1985) by The Cure
My general appreciation of The Cure keeps running into problems. The problem is that I had their singles collections for years and listened to them fairly regularly but didn’t get around to their albums until recently. And now I listen to them haphazardly: one from the early ’80s here, one from the mid ’80s there, …
Heart (1985)
All I know of Heart is their ’70s hits, which used to get played on classic rock radio a lot. (I don’t know if they still are.) I’ve heard most (all?) of these hits but I had no idea that they were Heart, in part because they sound so different, and in part because I …
Rites of Spring (1985)
This is some fast, noisy rock music that’s clearly too damn melodic to be properly considered hardcore, but arguably not musically diverse enough to properly be considered part of the emerging genre of post hardcore. (Consider Minutemen or Husker Du, who were both doing way weirder things musically at this very moment.)
Fear and Whiskey (1985) by Mekons
This record is credited by many as the birth of alt country. (Funnily enough, a record by an American band released exactly five years later is also credited as the birth of alt country…) I’m not sure that’s true for more than a few reasons, but it’s still a remarkably unique post punk record, especially …
Theatre of Pain (1985) by Mötley Crüe
They often say familiarity breeds contempt. But with albums and me it’s the opposite: familiarity breeds acceptance. The first time I listened to this album I thought it was awful. Just awful. I’m on listen #3 now and I can no longer muster up my hatred. I don’t think it’s good but what the melodies …
Killing Is My Business…And Business Is Good (1985) by Megadeth
The Bach-inspired opening of this record gave me high hopes that I would be listening to something in the real of Celtic Frost in terms of its willingness to break from the conventions of thrash. Alas, it is the only sign that Mustaine has music ambitions beyond what I think of as Megadeth’s sound. (I …
Little Creatures (1985) Talking Heads
Talk about a left turn.
The Dream of the Blue Turtles (1985) by Sting
Sting’s songwriting grew leaps and bounds while The Police were together. But what grew more was his musical palette, as the police moved from a band that played one style of music (essentially poppy art punk-reggae) to a variety of styles. The Police basically never really got along with each other but, at some point, …
Low-Life (1985) by New Order
I generally don’t like and don’t get the gradual drift tin dance music of so many of the trailblazers and followers of the initial wave of post punk. It doesn’t make much sense to me to be excited by the possibilities of punk, and want to expand it, and then to decide that what you …
Bonded by Blood (1985) by Exodus
This album is supposed to be a great what-if of metal: what if Exodus’ debut album had been released right after it was recorded, just a little bit after Ride the Lightning. Would everyone remember this band differently? As a pioneer, as one of the Big 4 thrash metal bands, rather than a follower?
Around the World in a Day (1985) by Prince and The Revolution
I suspect the degree to which I like this album is heavily influenced by the narrative around it, and my lack of engagement with that narrative. Prince is a known iconoclast when I’m listening to this record for the first time. He’s done things such as change his stage name and fail to release completed …
Hell Awaits (1985) by Slayer
So I’ve never heard their debut, only later records, so I don’t know how this compares to that record, but I read that it is significantly better (more ambitious, louder, more professional), etc. Even without hearing the debut, those descriptions make sense, because this is a crazy pummeling record, especially given that it’s 1985.
Up on the Sun (1985) by Meat Puppets
The more that I listen to the Meat Puppets the more it feels like they are one of the foundational bands of American alternative rock, setting the template for what was acceptable. When I was young and first encountering alternative, it felt like the diversity was baked in but original. The more I listen to …
Night Time (1985) by Killing Joke
Why is it that all industrial bands eventually embrace dance music? (Or, at the very least, danceability?)
No Jacket Required (1985) by Phil Collins
The more I listen to Phil Collins’ solo work – and, to a lesser extent, post-Gabriel Genesis – the more I have come to respect him, both as a performer and, especially, as a songwriter songwriter. His sense of melody is really strong and his lyrics are definitely above average. I know from Genesis that …
Whitney Houston (1985)
I read somewhere that this album was the best selling album by a woman in history. (At the time, obviously.) I don’t know whether or not that’s true but it is the best selling debut album of all time and has sold 22 million copies. Why?
Meat is Murder (1985) by The Smiths
One of two things is happening: either I am slowly – slowly – getting so inured to The Smiths that I no longer hate their guts – or I have listened to enough of the British music of the 1980s to finally understand why people thought they were such a big deal. I still don’t …