Album Review: LCD Soundsystem - This is Happening

Scott led us into the neon‑lit, genre‑bending world of LCD Soundsystem with this month’s pick, This Is Happening — an album born from James Murphy’s insistence that it would be the band’s grand farewell. Whether or not that retirement stuck, the mythology around the record shaped how each of us approached it: as a supposed final statement from a restless, self‑aware creator who blurred the lines between punk, dance music, and art‑school irony.

Across the episode, we wrestle with the album’s contradictions — its meticulous production paired with intentional imperfections, its dance‑floor pulse wrapped in deadpan wit, its sprawling track lengths that test patience as much as they reward immersion. We trace the fingerprints of Bowie, Talking Heads, and the downtown New York scene, while also confronting our own generational biases and blind spots around electronic music.

This Is Happening sparked one of our most aligned discussions yet, but alignment doesn’t mean agreement. Did the album’s hypnotic repetition pull us in or push us away? Did Murphy’s self‑deprecating humor charm us or keep us at a distance? And did living with the record for a month change how we think about dance‑punk, electronica, or even the idea of a “final” album?

Tune in to hear where we landed — and why this one surprised all of us in different ways.

Scores

⭐ Scott C

Recommend: 4
Influence: 3
Overall: 2.5

⭐ Alan

Recommend: 4
Influence: 2
Overall: 3

⭐ Darren

Recommend: 4
Influence: 4
Overall: 4

⭐ Scott G

Recommend: 3
Influence: 2
Overall: 3

Transcript

SPEAKER_00 0:02

Welcome to the Sonic Collective, a music podcast that explores a different album of musical concept music, diving deep into its history, context, and impact on the music industry. Join our hosts, Alan Scott Scott, and Darren Scott at WaitMe Scott as they share their thoughts, insights, and personal connections to the music, inviting you, the listeners, to discover new perspectives and appreciation for some of the greatest albums in music of all time.

SPEAKER_02 0:31

Hello everyone. Welcome back to the Sonic Collective. I'm Scott G, and as usual, I'm joined by my fellow collectivists Scott C, Darren, and Alan. It was my turn to pick the album we'd review again, and I chose This Is Happening by LCD Sound System, uh released in 2010. I know Darren always has a lot of information on albums for us, so I won't go too deep at the start. Like I said before, I'd picked this one mostly on the mythology that was built around it, uh, both in the moment it was recorded and as time went on around it. Apparently, it was lead uh singer James Murphy. He was very adamant that this was going to be the band's final album. Spoiler, it wasn't. Uh, but it was written and produced with that in mind, and I think it uh it really shows. And I'm not the most well-versed in electronic music, I'll just go with that, particularly once we get past the early 90s, you know. So I figured, what the heck? Let's give it a go. We're supposed to get out of our comfort zone here and try different things. And uh I have thoughts. But as usual, before we get into mine, I love to hear what the rest of the guys thought. So I'm gonna pass the mic to the other Scott to kick us off. What did you think?

SPEAKER_01 1:50

Thanks, Scott. You know, this might be a band that I've heard about the most and feel familiar with without ever having heard a song. I've known the name of this band for probably a decade, and I've heard them referenced on countless TV shows and movies, and I almost feel like I know them, but I realized I don't I really don't think I've ever heard a song. I've probably heard something in a TV show and I didn't know it. But I've can't name me a song, and I went into a completely blind, and it wasn't what I thought it was gonna be. So then I've been trying to figure out like what did I think they were gonna sound like or or be. And maybe it's kind of like I was thinking something along the lines of Florence and the machine, like some rockish, you know, vibes with some poppy synth in there. I knew there was synth involved. Um but yeah, I I really went into it blind, but thinking maybe they're a bit more pop-end with a bit more rock. So it was it was a big surprise to listen to this. And I gotta say, I don't think this is like anything I've actually ever listened to either. It it is so different. And I felt the entire time I was listening to it like it was an experiment or it was a project, or you know, if an adult collective went to Japan and all embarked upon their own personal musical art project, that this was an art project or something. Because it it didn't it never sounded to me like a typical album. There was so much going on in it. And and some of it I liked and some of it I didn't, and some of it I'm still trying to make sense of. Um I'm the guy I was talking about the length of albums, but at 80 minutes long, I did find it was a little challenging this month to get through it any more than three times. So I did get through it three times, but I mean you gotta have a big chunk of time to really achieve that. So a few songs. Uh All I Want, I mean, it's reasonably groovy, and right away I heard Heroes by David Bowie. And I and I don't know if if it's a ripoff, or I guess everything now like is gonna sound like something, but immediately I think that's the first song. I'm like, oh, this kind of reminds me of Heroes by David Bowie. And then can change, like I was kind of it was it was kind of funky, and immediately I had a picture of working at Lloyd's uh recreation in Calgary, roller skating. I don't know why, but every time I heard can change, I just wanted to lace up some skates and and go for it. I thought uh you wanted a hit was kind of funny. A just the name of it's very, very neat. Um and again, it this to me was like an art installation or a song or sound that would be in the back of while looking at an art exhibit. I mean, it seems deliberately out of tune at points, and there's really weird keyboards. I kept thinking of RadioShaft keyboards back as a kid and some of the sounds some of those made. Um if there was a song, I mean, that I really liked the best, although I'll say I don't think at this point there's anything on here that jumps out or is gonna make my playlist. But pow wow, I mean it was it's pretty out there. It's it's long, it's almost like a 12-inch uh single remix that they used to do back in the day when I was a DJ. Uh the lyrics are kind of fun. You know, we have a black president, you don't give us your drugs. So so this would be my my favorite. And then what's also funny about saying a song sounds like another song, and this one to me almost sounds more you know, it's almost a cover, is someone's calling at the end immediately remind me of nightclubbing by Iggy Pop. Like, immediately, and every time I've heard it, I'm like, this is just like nightclubbing, which then is weird because Bowie helped produce some of Iggy Pop's stuff, and the the reference earlier to um the Bowie song is around the exact same time of nightclubbing was made. So I'm like, huh, both of those songs come from the exact same time period from two artists that used to kind of work together. So I I don't know if it's just me or there are those influences. I actually rarely read up on these just to I don't want to bias myself. Um yeah, so look, I'm I I think this is one for me. Uh I don't quite get it. I I I'm not so sure I'm smart enough. I really do view it as art. And I think beyond the three listens, I probably have to really probably smoke a big fat joint. I have to sit down and not move or be doing anything else and really, really listen to it. Because I think this might be one of those that again I don't get right away, and after maybe five to ten listens, I'm gonna start picking up on it. It's gonna start meaning more and growing on me. So it it's absolutely not what I expected at all. Again, I keep saying installation art, experimental art. It really strikes me more that way. And I and I think because that's not my my usual jam, it's just gonna take more to digest. So yeah, very interesting. Don't love it, but super glad uh I got to it. Um, you know what? I'm gonna Alan put his hand up, so over to Alan.

SPEAKER_03 6:35

Scott, I think this might be the closest you and I have ever been on our our thoughts. You it's like you're looking at my script here. Um I too had uh never really experienced L C D sound system, though for whatever reason, I thought maybe the name sounded really familiar. So um last last episode when uh Scott Gregory was saying we were going to be reviewing L C D Sound System in my head for whatever reason. I had it I had it that it was like this top 40s electro house pop act or something. Like I'm sure I've heard of them, I'm sure you know I've I've listened to their song on the radio a thousand times, and I'll know it when I hear it. Um and that was not the case. Instead, I was greeted to some flavor of self-aware indie hipster punk rock EDM thing. Um, and this whole month I've been trying to find a better way to properly define the style of this music, and I keep falling short. Um you know, I'm I'm a fan of music that blurs the line between genres, so for me that's not really a problem. However, I will say this is going to be a nuanced review for me, because right off the top, I will be honest and say, I don't think that this is happening really hits the mark for me. At least not as it pertains to my personal taste. However, I do have a ton of respect for LCD sound system and in particular a certain Mr. James Murphy. So, first let me jump into what I liked about it. This is happening is primarily the work of one man, James Murphy. And when you look at the personnel and credentials for the album, it's blatantly clear that he is the driving force here. He is credited on the writing, the performance, the production, and the mixing of the album. The list reads really long. He's like the main vocalist, he plays the drums, the guitars, the pianos, a wide variety of different synthesizers and percussive instruments, and he knows his way around a mixing board. So clearly this guy has chops, and I respect the hell out of that. Um not too dissimilar to what Dave Grohl or Trent Reznor did with early Foo Fighters or Nine Inch Nails albums, respectively. It's that sort of DIY polymath musician approach to music production, and I have always been super drawn to that. I think it's really cool, if only from an aspirational perspective. It's like these guys turn the studio itself into an instrument. And uh yeah, just just really, really awesome to hear all of the stuff that one man can achieve. Sonically, everything sounds really neat and tidy and well produced. And Scott, as you said, like at times it sounds deliberately imperfect, but to my ear, it never sounded bad or off or sloppy. And so that demonstrates you know a pretty good grasp on the production side of things. And I love how percussive a lot of these tracks are too. LCD sound system emphasizes rhythmic minimalism over melody, and they craft songs that are fun and danceable, if at times pretty repetitive, and they sort of like take on this slow evolution over time. And I kept drawing parallels back to the talking heads for some of those reasons. And both groups are also led by these sort of like nervous intellectual type of frontmen, and like the talking heads, there is just a bit of weirdness to the songs, which brings me to the part that didn't really land for me with this album. I could never quite figure out where it fell on the spectrum of like how seriously I should take it. And don't get me wrong, I love a good novelty act. I chose the Lonely Island as one of my guilty pleasures when we did that episode about guilty pleasures a few months ago, right? But to my sensibilities, LCD sound system exists kind of in this like strange, less definable space. Like the songs never take a fully earnest tone. The music gestures an irony, but it never like quite embraces it. The lyrics are at times pretty funny, but they're not necessarily trying to deliver any sort of punchline. Like L C D sound system is not a novelty act, but the album made it never made it clear to me that um it it wanted to be taken seriously. And so that uncertainty kind of kept me at arm's length a bit. And I'm sure there are people out there who are probably fans of this band who are like screaming that that is the entire point. Maybe like who knows? I don't know, maybe it's lost on me. Um, and the only other thing I'll mention, you know, Scott, you said it as well. Like, we have all gone on the record over the years expressing that we prefer songs to be kind of on the shorter end, you know, like four or five minutes in length is sort of like the upper limit there. There are 11 tracks on this album, and they have a runtime of the album has a runtime of an hour and 20 minutes, which means the mathematical average length of each song is like seven minutes and eighteen seconds, and that is a lot of time. And like couple that with what I mentioned earlier, these guys rely on repetition and like slowly evolving the sound of a song over time. So you're gonna hear like the same four or eight or twelve bars kind of looped over and over, and like some effects thrown in, or you know, little Casio sounding synths kind of overlaid that maybe change with filters and pitches and things like that. And I just found that it I kind of grew tired after a while. Like I found this one a bit of a slog to kind of sit through and listen from start to back. Um, you know, because it's a long album and it it kind of starts to sound the same after an hour and 20 minutes. So um I felt like it it kind of detracted from me being able to enjoy the listening experience a little bit. Um no songs really stood out to me as being like really, really great or really, really bad. So, you know, I guess that's that's also something, right? Um the song Drunk Girls I thought was pretty fun. I kept kind of going back to that one because the lyrics were a bit silly. And it had like this cake vibe, like it kind of reminded me of short skirt, long jacket. If you know the the song I'm talking about. And pow pow, also also fun, like fun lyrics, like you mentioned. Um the song Home had some pretty neat sounding synths. Those those tracks kind of stood out to me, but yeah, I wouldn't say I loved any of them. Um so yeah, this overall this was a really interesting pick, and I'm glad to have been exposed to LCD sound system. I'm not sure I would go back and revisit the full album in that context. Maybe I might pick a song or two here or there and sprinkle it into a playlist, but like I don't know, man, to be honest, none of these tracks on the album are really the kind of stuff that I play for funsies. Like, they just don't move me one way or the other cathartically, and that's not a knock against LCD. That's just kind of how musical subjectivity works. So, yeah. Over to you, Darren.

SPEAKER_00 14:03

Thanks, guys. I share a lot of the same uh opinion, especially in the beginning. Um, you know, first of all, we get a month to listen to these, which was great. I didn't know a little bit about LCD Sound System. I even checked it out. I have a couple playlists, and there's one, I think I had five songs on it. But they were kind of from various albums. Actually, none from this album. This is happening. But I I did know about them a bit. One of my good friend's uh wife, who's actually considerably younger than him and me, but uh I remember her pointing me to this band. It's a millennial band, absolutely. Um, the 30s uh somethings now, uh into their probably early 40s now. Millennial's getting old now, too. God damn, we're getting old. But uh yeah, now like really it was their generation, but they put it on. Um and I tried to listen to a few things before, didn't quite get it. And I gotta admit, when I first the first listened through this, I I I had similar feel feelings to you guys as well. But I I did find it very interesting. But I mean this album, it did get a Grammy nomination, by the way. It was their third album. Uh, it did not win, but got a nomination. Uh first top 10 album for them. Uh Scott G already alluded to it, but uh this was supposed to be their departure. Uh and uh really I I one thing I I loved and I I found out pretty quick, and I love it because I'm old and I'm a music nut as well. But James Murphy is like literally two months and seven days younger than me. We're the exact same age. So he's 57 now. So uh not a not a young guy. So, you know, considering it's a millennial album, he's actually uh a well-seasoned Gen Xer like myself. So had been around a while. So he uh kind of cut his teeth and spent a lot of years like honing his craft. And Alan, you alluded to that. I think and in general, a lot of these things we review, we may not love them, but we respect them as musicians and uh how talented they are. Uh but I, you know, the more I listened to it, the more it grew on me, to be honest. Um, you know, I mentioned I kind of missed them at the time, but you know, now that I got a bit into it, I I kind of started to view it as a more mature approach to electronica. Like if you think like of produced, let's just call it produced music, uh, you can go the crazy pop route where everything's just like perfect, and we all know where that is now. And not even hip-hop so much, but if you think just like all the produced and obviously heavy and the electronic and the and the effects and everything like that, uh that's one way it went. The other way it went is DJ culture, uh, you know, where you're getting into all these DJ and rave type uh music and fun and you know, great at hockey games. And you know, I missed that, I gotta say, I missed that too. Uh I can listen to that music in small doses. I don't mind it. It obviously it's good to bop to and stuff, but uh not a rave guy, even though I love dancing. I damn, I do it all the time. But um, but I actually started to respect more and more that it wasn't any of that, it was something completely different. And even when I, if you go on Wikipedia, the first thing it says is dance punk revival, which I I I thought that was hilarious. Like what a weird category to put it in, but uh I I don't mind it in a way. I guess it was just something different. So being my age, and he cited uh influences from the B-52s, Yes, uh Can The Fall, who I'm not that familiar with that band, uh, OMD, Bronsky Beat, The Smiths, and of course Bowie. Uh Scott, that was absolutely a ripoff song. He wasn't gonna put it on the album because he thought he's he literally made it because he loved Bowie so much. He's like, I'm gonna do something in that style. And he developed that song, and it sounds very similar to Heroes, has a similar kind of background rhythm and you know production to it. So it was intentional in a way. He made it his own. It's not exactly the same, but it's very close. But I think in the end he left it, and actually it's it's a good song. And I think anybody that loves Boy would be like, oh yeah, I I really hear it there. Um, so I I like that being an older guy that this is where his influenced uh influences came from. Uh the album was also compared to early works of Brian Eno, who Scott Coates picked and we reviewed, uh, and The Talking Heads, and we've also uh did done Stop Making Sense as well. So you can see, and one thing about that is it's a cohesive, full experience. And he did design this album to be an experience. Now, some may find it easier to believe that than others, but it is designed to be played in order, and it was kind of to take you through this whole experience. And he said there's this always background, dance-focused kind of beat, but it's just different, it's just a bit off. And uh, Scott and Alan, you both mentioned it that you thought, like, you know, it sounded like old keyboards or that it was just slightly off. It 100% was. I guess he literally did that intentionally. He would leave in static, he was playing with loops and they would go out of phase, but he would leave them. He left the imperfections. And actually, that kind of drew me in when I learned that. I thought that was cool because I know there's a famous quote from uh Tom Petty saying, music isn't supposed to be perfect. It's supposed to be, you know, just somebody playing and it has little nuances and it's slightly off. And he also messed with timing, where it's like sometimes the tempo slows up and and slows down. It's very subtle, but it just may adds to that imperfect imperfections of the album, which kind of just adds to its character. So it's it's not that deep, but it is, it's he it's done intentional, and I kind of like that he did that. He gave it a little more humanity and let's call it Gen X old guy approach, instead of like, I'm just gonna be the DJ guy that presses a button or something like that, or a pop star and make it out perfect. He kind of made it his own. So I get that punk analogy in there. So I started to respect it more and more, and it is one of the albums, and I'll encourage the listeners like if you're not sure, listen to listen to it a few times, especially this album. The more I did, the more it grew on me. Uh, another thing, he was a DJ, like a nightclub DJ. And at my age, like I do it in my basement now, but I guess he literally used to do that. So he used that uh experience and really weaved it in. And again, how he structured the album, he tried to do it like he would be doing a DJ set at a club he used to work at. So I like that. As for the songs, and we didn't cover it yet. I think um Scott G mentioned it when he uh did the choosing of it, but uh Dance Yourself uh it was is such a cool song, and it starts like super low, and you're just listening there, and I'm sure every, you know, if you don't know it, just listen to it and you know, just put the volume wherever you think it is, but oh my god, and then it just like all of a sudden, about a minute in, it just hits and it's like twice the volume. And I'm like, I thought that was such a cool, like, who's kidding who? It's a gimmick or a trick, but like he fucking got it because it was like boom, like the song kicks in, and you're like, yeah, like it was just a really good tune. Uh, he is self-deprecating. Uh, he also was very burnt out at this time. He was sick of working with labels. It's funny, uh, like if we go back and cover old artists of the 60s, 70s, or even today, all of them are saying the same thing. It is brutal to work with labels, all brutal. Uh, so he I think a lot of the lyrics are driven to this. Like, you wanted a hit and it just like it's hilarious. And it it is the most generic, like boom, cack, boom, crack, boom, crack. Like when he gets the beat going, it just like if you could just like, oh yeah, well, I'll just put in the uh the standard like make a hit pop song beat. But these lyrics over it were very clever. Um, I I like that the you know, again, drunk girls, pretty funny. I guess there was flack, like we shouldn't be making fun of drunk girls. It wasn't even that. I guess they hired the chef, a woman that would kind of bring them drinks and food and snacks and stuff, and they'd be drinking and being idiots all the time. She's like, You're acting like a bunch of drunk girls, and that's where it came from, like this woman that was just serving them. So it wasn't a uh nod. Oh. Although who cares? Like everybody knows what drunk girls or idiots sound like, so it's just hilarious. But um I like that, it just adds more personality to it. Uh, you know, and really uh in general, I just I I really liked it. I I think it grew on me more and more. We'll get into it tomorrow when we get to the scores. But Scott, we're gonna throw it back to you. You chose this, you didn't know them super well yourself. So, what did you think?

SPEAKER_02 22:23

Yeah, I I honestly went in. I I literally knew nothing about this band. I just fell on them through the research that I was doing, trying to find different stuff. Uh and I'm shocked. Like I've had to cross out half my notes because I don't want to be repetitive. And and I think we're very instinct, and maybe it's because we're men of a certain age and disposition musically. Uh but uh yeah, like I really liked James Murphy's vocals. Alan, we're on the same wavelength here too. That uh I think he's got like a David Byrne uh from Talking Heads vibe for me, right? He's just a little off the beaten path uh mentally and vocally, right? It feels like, but in an interesting way, right? Like I think you really see uh his voice just really matches the music, if that makes sense, you know, like the music that he's making behind his vocals, it just meshes well, and uh you feel his personality inside of it, and and it's really great. And I too read that the album was deeply influenced by Bowie's Berlin trilogy era, and you can totally feel like talking heads, uh Bowie, all of those different bands. I I didn't see the B-52s uh part, and so that makes sense too, with some of these tracks and just that kind of funky, fun side of it as well, too. He's clearly enjoying himself as he's making this album. I think I honestly believe when he went in that it wasn't uh a Swan Song album just for the publicity. I I think he really went in with a little less pressure, uh a little mentally resolved and had some fun and did some interesting things because what the hell, there's no tomorrow, right? And so uh it it really sounded great. And I was relying on Alan in particular to like to let me know where this stands with its contemporaries in in the genre, the dance stuff, because I'm completely oblivious to that stuff, and I know Alan's got a bit more experience, so he's you're an elder millennial, aren't you? Yeah, I am like your wheelhouse like uh chronologically, I guess, right?

SPEAKER_03 24:38

Yeah, yeah. Well, and I I don't have an answer to that because like I don't know who his contemporaries will be. I've never really been into electronic music that much, especially not in 2010. So because I was kind of asking that same question throughout the month, like who who do these guys sound like? And they kind of like it.

SPEAKER_02 24:58

Yeah, I couldn't put anything from that time frame, I couldn't really put them in. And you know, I I did recognize a lot of old gear in the mix here, right? Because I listened to a lot of electronica from the 80s up into the 90s, and I'm like, I've heard, you know, these these synths before, I've heard these beats, and and I like it, right? It it was retro in a way for for me. Uh but kind of going off of what some of you guys said too, it felt safe. You know, like I didn't feel challenged a huge amount by this, uh which in w on one level is nice, right? Like I don't know if I necessarily want to be just grinding my way through an album every time, especially if it's I gotta tell you, I don't have the highest opinion of dance music musically, right? Like I think it's you're supposed to dance to it, and I don't think there's generally supposed to be a lot more depth to it than that. And maybe there is, right? And I think when we talked about the lyrics here, that's something that surprised me, Murphy's lyrics, because uh it is witty. There there is some depth to it, and in a way that didn't really detract from the style of the music, as far as I was concerned. So it was good. But I I like the blemishes too. Like now that you call it attention to it there, Darren, you know, like I I think of albums where you can hear, like say on guitars, right? Where you can see the hear them moving through the frets and things like that. And it's something that I really like on live albums where it just doesn't sound like the studio and you there's uh a little bit of dirtiness to it, right? I and yeah, as as I think back on on this album, I I think I appreciated that too. Although I didn't call it out until in my notes until you mentioned it. And then I was like, yeah, totally, actually, yeah. Um yeah, lyrically I enjoyed it. Sonically from the the music, I enjoyed it. It I mean, we mentioned uh these got multiple albums, it didn't win a Grammy. They they got nominated a whole bunch. Ironically, they didn't win one until they came back, they had retired apparently, and then came back in 2018 and won with one there. But it did get nominated. Like I don't know how I didn't hear of this band be beforehand, because I still think I listened to the Grammys and paid attention to them at that point, but um it totally fell off for me. Uh and I really enjoyed a couple of the tracks on here. Like I'm in the pow camp. I really love the old school feel to it, right? It had that rolling bongo beat. Um, I'll call them like Bern-esque vocals, and you know it had these really interesting, chaotic background vocals going on as well, too, where they're jumping in. Uh, that was likely my favorite track of the album. And I also like drunk girls, it was chaotic, it was fun. You know, I I think you could throw this on uh at any party, really, or at a wedding. Um I was thinking it pairs up more with like pulp or blur, though, when we were talking about the influences, like and maybe that's just the 90s kid in me that that's coming out there, right? But but that's kind of the family that I would throw in. Although when you mentioned cake, cake makes sense too. Uh but probably more closer to their cover of War Pigs, I think, than long long skirt, short jacket. So, or short skirt, long jacket. Um sorry. Uh but you know what? The one that really caught me was the OU Christmas blues. I don't know why, but I I it's weird, but I had this thing for like quirky Christmas songs, right? Like The Fairy Tale of New York by the Pogues is a big one for me, The Little Drum Machine Boy by Beck, uh, Don't Shoot Me Santa by the killers. Like this is gonna go on the playlist, right? Because I I and I don't know why you picked that as your last song on your last album, but there it was. And the first time I heard it, I'm like, what is this? And um, and I really enjoyed it. And I think that's overall what I think of the album in general is I just really enjoyed it um for what it is. I don't know if it necessarily inspired me. Oh, I can get into that a little bit later, but you know, it it's a snapshot for me. I don't think it's gonna pull me into EDM in any single way, but I too am glad to have gone back in time and and listened to to this. I was a little reluctant. I didn't put a huge amount of research into it because I didn't want to scare myself out of picking it. Uh but in the end, I'm glad I'm glad I did. Yeah. Scott, you want to kick us off for scores?

SPEAKER_01 29:44

Yeah, sure. I really, really enjoyed listening to all of you share your feelings about it. And you mentioned an awful lot of things, so once you said it, I'm like, oh yeah, that's right. Oh, that's right. And this is, I think, definitely the most aligned album we've all ever listened to, right? So again, I'm trying to figure out like how, like a lot of you, how did I never listen to this band? Because he's clearly respected in the music base. And I now think I've seen him in at least one Dave Grohl created documentary, like when they go through musicians talking about something, he's in there. I've seen him in other musical talks. So he's clearly respected, but just an absolute gap in my musical knowledge, which means we're doing exactly what we're supposed to as a as a music group. So thank you, Scott, for picking this. Um, it is a double album, right? 80 Minutes to mention again. So you're actually listening to a double album. Uh Alan, thanks for running the math on the song, Seven Minutes Plus. Like that gets into the category of Metallica's first five albums. I think all their songs were generally over seven minutes, but I agree it got a little repetitive at sometimes. Like they weren't complex keyboard beats or loops, and at times it got downright a bit irritating. But man, your mention of talking heads nailed it. I think that's exactly the gap I was trying to try to fill. It's like you got a quirky artistic guy that turns out some banger radio hits, but also a lot of stuff that the rest of us aren't really going to get. Cake, also another fantastic comparison. And Darren, you mentioned Eno, and Eno worked with Iggy and uh and Bowie during the Berlin year. So, hey, I feel a little smart that I wasn't entirely off thinking some of that sounded like David Bowie. And I still think that last song sounds exactly like uh nightclubbing. So you you said it, um, Alan. Like I'm not sure how serious to take this. What is it meant to be? Um it's definitely art. I still don't quite get it, but that's okay. It stretched me. I'm glad I listened to it. And I'm gonna commit myself to again uh indulging a bit and listening to it to a couple times, maybe in a hammock. Because I think it might grow on me. So recommend I'll give it a four because it's clearly different, it's clearly interesting. Um it was well received. Influence, a three, an overall two and a half. Because I mean I am not going back to any singles, I'm not rushing back, but very, very glad to have had the experience. Um over to you, Alan.

SPEAKER_03 32:02

Yeah, thanks guys. This one was really interesting to listen to. Um, I'm gonna put it down to the Mandela effect for why we all felt like maybe we'd heard of them before and didn't. Um this, yeah, you know, like this album didn't personally appeal to me or my musical tastes very much, but like I said off the top, I really respect what they were doing, what they were trying to do, and how they approached the production, especially. I've always geeked out on on like the production side of things and like the work done in the studios. And James Murphy is just undeniably talented for everything he's done. Um Scott Gregor, you nailed it. There were a lot of like really retro synths involved. I didn't bother like writing them down, so I can't remember them anymore, but for sure, like he was pulling out synths that were developed like in the late 70s, early 80s, like Kurtzweil stuff. Um and so yeah, for me, like really the standout of this album is not so much any one particular track, it's the production itself. Um and through all of its calculated imperfections, I still don't quite know how to classify it because it doesn't really fit into any box very neatly. It's like, is it EDM or is it alternative punk rock? Like, I don't know. Uh, and that's okay because I think music that doesn't fit neatly into a box is usually the most interesting stuff. Um so as far as recommendations, if you are a Talking Heads fan, this one might appeal to you. And actually, I did already recommend it to a friend of mine who enjoys the Talking Heads. Uh, and she replied back that she's she's got a couple of songs from this album on a playlist. So that's cool. Additionally, this might appeal to you if um, you know, if you're into the bedroom producer stuff or DIY musician production, whatever, like I am. Like there's there's definitely something to to take a look at here. So I'm giving this a four out of five for recommendation. As far as influence goes, I wouldn't say that it influenced my personal tastes all that much, and I don't think I'll actively be, you know, hunting for another album or song from L C D sound system anytime soon. So I can only give it a two out of five. And overall, I'm gonna split the difference with a three out of five because to me there was nothing particularly wrong about this album, but there really wasn't anything that had me wanting to come back and hear more of it. So uh a perfectly interesting and cool album, and I'm really glad that you chose it so that we could, you know, kind of experience L C D sound system together and generate this cool conversation. Over to you, Darren.

SPEAKER_00 34:53

Thanks. Uh yeah, you mentioned earlier about it being repetitive. Apparently, uh, when they released the album, there was a sticker on it that said may contain com repetitive lyrics and monotonous vocals or something like that. It was like, again, he I think he's quite self-deprecating and uh and he was known for not being confident and uh at this time struggling with if he wanted to continue, obviously because they weren't going to. But I always like to give a nod to the full band. Yes, he it was kind of not quite maybe a Foo Fighters deal, but like where Dave Roll did it all, but he did a lot, but he does have a band that's with him. Uh, I'm gonna name them all, and I don't think they were all necessarily on this album, but uh Nancy Wang uh is that female voice you always hear, and she does synth, keyboards, vocals. Uh we got Pat Mahoney on drums, Tyler Pope on bass, guitar, and synth as well. Al Doyle, not to be confused with Alan Doyle from Great Big C, but uh guitar synth percussion, and uh Corey uh Ritchie, synthesizer piano percussion. So a lot of similar things and sounds, but uh yeah, kudos to them. I would love to see them live. It sounds pretty interesting. Apparently, you recorded Dance Yourself Last because it was the hardest vocally, uh, and he knew once he did it, his voice was gonna be uh a total mess. And I mean, Alan, you're you're the singer in the group, but apparently that song is very hard to sing, and he's yelling at a lot of points and uh a lot of strain on him. But uh, you know, the more and more I listened to it, the more I got into it. But uh, you know, overall, I'm gonna make it easy. I'm actually fours across the board on this. And even though it didn't necessarily influence me so much, I actually really appreciate like I like I said, the nod. It wasn't uh rave music, it wasn't pop music, it was something new in the middle, and uh, and I really appreciated that. And again, I recommend like listen to it a few times. And Scott, you said too, yeah, smoke a joint, do whatever you gotta do to relax and uh listen to it a few more. I'd I'd recommend that to anybody because it's just it's an interesting uh format uh in this electronica, you know, punk weird thing, or like uh dance punk revival. I don't even know what the revival part means, but yeah, so all fours for me. But uh Scott uh Gregory.

SPEAKER_02 36:55

Yeah, overall, um very polished, you know, the clean vocals, it's great music, great backing vocals. Uh I found it very accessible, especially the beats. Uh, you know, they hearken back to a simpler musical time. Uh I could hear so many of the songs I enjoyed growing up, you know, in individual beats. Uh, and yet it is something completely new and uh and just playful with what's come before, and I think uh charted a path for a lot of musicians going forward. Uh and uh again, people in the audience who listen to that, uh feel free to uh write into our socials and let us know if this is your thing because this is a little bit out of our box. So if you're like this is like the mouth of the river for everything that I loved from the you know the tens and the twenties, we would love to to hear that. Uh but overall I I did like it, it had its own flair. Uh it didn't really spark a mad rush for me to get into electronic music, though, right? I think I will go sift through their full catalog because I think they have something interesting. And if they in their other albums continue to kind of tease back to the music that uh I enjoyed before, uh and maybe even recognize a little of it uh that followed, you know, that was inspired by it, then then maybe there'll be some cemented spots in my playlist for them. I don't think I will go back and listen to this album as a whole too many times in the the near future, right? But but I was impressed by it. I think uh Murphy's managed to turn me into a fan of L C D, if not electronic music in general. So recommend. I'm gonna say if you like uh electronic music, it's a four. I'm gonna come in at a three on that front, and as an influence as a two. But I don't think that's a knock against the album. That as Alan was alluding to before, there's very much personal taste that's uh coloring my scores on here. I don't want it to be a knock on the artistry uh of the entire band. Uh as Darren said, there's more than one name on this album. Um I I really think anyone listening should check it out. And if you're especially into dance music, then you'll probably rate it a lot higher than than I did, for sure. And I encourage you to do so. Like the critical lists. Um I just had them uh scroll by me here. Uh Pace Magazine ranked them number one for the 50 best albums of 2010. Pitchfork rank them number two, Rolling Stone ranked them number three for albums of 2010. So clearly a lot of critical acclaim from people who probably know a lot more about this genre of music than than I do. So, and maybe that's what happens when you record in Rick Rubin's mansion. We'll find out. Um, so yeah, that puts a wrap on this one. I know Darren, you're next up. So if you want to let us know what you've got in the can, uh we can start listening.

SPEAKER_00 40:04

Thank you, Mr. Gregory. Great pick with LCD sound system. Really like that uh pick. Interesting. You know, hadn't given them the time. So uh speaking of time, I've lived in Alberta since 1990, and just this past few days, I finally ventured into Saskatchewan. I went to Regina first, Joe, for my distillery, and it was the first time I'd ever been there. But one thing I know about Saskatchewan, and I always like to feature Canadians when I can, is that a great new modern country artist that is now really taking off across the world, but already big here in Canada, is Coulter Wall. Uh, I bought one of his albums many years ago. I actually saw him very young at a Stampede Party here in Calgary that was put on by Village Brewery and another great local artist to Calgary, Michael Bernard Fitzgerald, had known Coulter Wall and brought him to Calgary for the show. Uh I thought he was super cool. He has a very unique voice. At the time, he was this kind of young Scragley kid. I think he's like 31 now. This must have been 10 years ago or more. Uh and but he got up on the stage and he had like the deepest, coolest country voice I had heard in a long time. I meant to have an album, so I'm not picking that one. The one I'm gonna pick, I thought, why not? It start at the beginning. So I'm gonna pick Coulter Wall's debut album, self-titled Culture Wall. Uh, this guy is from Saskatchewan, a Canadian legend in the making, and I hope you all enjoy him. This month's pick for May 2026 is Culter Wall's self-titled album. Thanks, guys, and back to you, Scott.

SPEAKER_02 41:42

Wow, that that that's an actually surprising pick there, Darren. Very surprised. Surprised me as usual. I'm uh I'm really gonna dig into this one. It's really caught my my fancy. So, with that, we'll call this month a wrap. Uh, stay tuned for Darren's pick. Hit us on all of the Sonic Collective socials. Uh, and until we get back together next month, stay healthy, stay happy, and uh take care. Yep.

SPEAKER_00 42:14

Hey, thanks for joining us on the Sonic Collective, where we've explored the music, the history, and the impact of some of the greatest albums of all time. We hope you've enjoyed our discussions and gained new insights and appreciation for the music you and we love. Join us next month for another exciting album. And until then, keep listening to the