They Were Wrong, So We Drowned

1001albumsgenerator.com users when they have to listen to something more mentally stimulating than 60s pop rock: 🤮😡😭🤬 I jest, I goof - love you guys - but come on, you gotta admit that this is pretty damn cool. Give it a fair shot. Imagine a bunch of nasty ass green witches having a dance party while listening to this for proper enjoyment. Incredibly pretentious, but I think that makes it more fun. I really appreciate how every song sounds like a completely distinct assault on my ears (in a good way), I never felt bored listening to this. "If Your a Wizard Then Why Do You Wear Glasses?" uses the wrong form of Your/You're though. See me after class. Fuck it, 5/5. I don't remember the last time I had this much fun listening to an album from this list.

Absolute hot garbage. I have no fuckin idea why you ‘need’ to listen to this album before you die other than to realize music this bad does indeed, actually exist.

This album is a huge miss from the editors. It’s not critically acclaimed or well-received, not at all popular, alternates between boring and flat-out bad, and it’s not even significant outside of a creepy pasta mentioned on the Wikipedia article for this album. I read the creepy pasta and even that was garbage. Maybe they should’ve instituted a 5 or 10 year buffer on new music before putting an album on the list just to stop something like this from happening. 3/10

Dreading this as soon as the genre was "noise rock" I'm sure it's arty and influential to someone. But as a listen it's unbearable for more than 10 seconds at a time. 1

Got really excited when I saw the really bad reviews. Most of the time what is really out there for others is right up my alley and it certainly was. As a lover of noise rock and experimental music this was a really nice find for sure.

Kinda like NIN if they were weird and goofy. I liked it! Don't know when I'd put it back on, so it gets a 3 instead of a 4. Hey, at least it isn't more post punk from the UK.

I do like the theme and approach of this LP but it feels all a bit forced. I think something more melodic here and there would be the proper contrast to the ever-droning sound. It is the same problem for all LPs of this sort: It is just too much in the same direction.

Does not deserve all of these hateful reviews. I thought it was interesting.

Not in my edition of the book! 2004. 1 star. Pretentious, irritating, pointless noise. WTF is this shit doing this list, and who selected it?

Oof. Yeah, no way am I making it through all of this. Just fartin' around on the web and I see that Spin magazine gave this album an F and called it "unlistenable." Whoever that brave journalist is and where ever you are... I salute you.

I am enjoying this record more that I think I should be. The first track is more of a test than I would have used, but a) I wasn't consulted, and b) it is a pretty good primer for what is about to come. Something that interests me in noise rock is that I typically use music to separate myself from the chaotic racket of life. Rarely does that noise create anything resembling music, but occasionally the thunk of an air conditioner does match up with the splat of a dripping sink. So I appreciate it when a band chooses to focus on wrangling the chaos into art. I still don't think I will spend much time thinking about this in the future.

1 because I'm feeling generous.

Instant hate.

If a Hangover had a soundtrack. Truly horrible noises.

It’s kind of impressive that this can be released and end up on a list of 1001 albums you must listen to before you die

I’m sure I’m being contrarian by giving this 5, but I don’t care.

As per usual, another one of these super low rated records that is actually nowhere near as bad as people/reviewers on this site would have you think. An album inspired by German witchcraft, it’s dense and foreboding, part Residents, part Throbbing Gristle, so it’s as out there as you would expect it to be, but although grim in parts, it’s not without (dark) humour. Whilst I will probably never ever seek this out again after I’m done with it here, ‘They Were Wrong, So We Drowned’ is still an interesting if abrasive listen, and I would much rather be exposed to stuff like this, then say for example, yet another one of the many boring, shitty indie albums that I’ve had to endure so far through my 1001 albums journey.

not a sing along in the car album is it.

Awful but I've heard worse on this list

[shakes head] Fucking Brooklyn.

I'm generally enthusiastic with the stuff more outcast, experimental and noisy, but I can't see why this one is interesting or good. Nice try, tho.

Idk, I feel I should like this more than I do. There are some cool punchier tracks here, but there’s just too much aimless noise that makes the album feel bloated, and this brand of post-punk just really isn’t my thing. 2.5/5

There’s good news and bad news about this album. The good news is that it is not a Prog rock album from the 70s for a change. The bad news is, it is this album. I don’t really know what to say beyond that. Maybe I am lacking in musical sophistication, but I do not know why this album is one that I needed to hear before I died.

Starts of really promising, experimental for sure. It has its lengths in sections (as is often the case with this kind of music imo), but still around 1000x more interesting and varied than all the 60s-rock/pop boringness. Would give like 3-4 stars, as I can't really pinpoint the replay value just yet and there could be more dynamic (even when it's loud and noisy it feels kind of held back), but then I remembered I've given way worse (especially way more boring and uninspired) albums 3 stars, so this gets 5.

Well this certainly gave me a WTF moment shortly into the first song… what kind of slog is this?! And then… click… something about sitting alone in the dark in a cabin listening to cleverly titled songs about brooms and witches… I’ve been known to embrace wackadoo music… this is pretty out there… do I really like this? Yes, I think I do. Do I expect to play this in the company of anyone else I know? Perhaps at a Halloween party? Even then I’d expect this musical selection to be quickly vetoed. I’ve listened to this a few times now and I keep thinking about this. I have subsequently discovered from Wikipedia that this was recorded in a cabin in the woods… strange coincidence… Crazy original. Crazy good. Crazy! Favorite songs: They Don’t Want Your Corn, They Want Your Kids and There’s Always Room On The Broom

Liars at their peak before they go out the window with "Drum's Not Dead." They strike a decent balance between noise and rock. I like they way they start the album with the buzz of an amp that has an attached cord being touched to metal in a melodic/rhythmic way. Would make a good soundtrack to a horror movie.

A nice departure from the usual fare, into that dark alley of noise music. Decades after the Throbbing Gristle album we had, but just as abrasive and to me, even darker. Somehow I've developed a taste for this kind of evil music, more than I have for metal. And this one is pretty good if you ask me, though it lacks a bit of bite. As usual, a few good songs I'll keep, but I wish it went a little harder. For reference, I'm always comparing albums like these to Pharmakon, specifically her album Bestial Burden. That one is absolutely a "must hear before you die." This one? I'm not so sure. But I had a good time. Favorite tracks: If You're a Wizard, Read the Book that Wrote Itself, Flow My Tears the Spider Said. Album art: Really, really love this cover. Bizarre embroidered image, looks to be an eagle with an ocean and lightning below, and a volcano behind? Then some other freaky things like a hanging man and a skull. The font is wicked, everything about this cover is awesome to me. 3.5/5

I like Liars, I am not shocked other people do not like Liars. 3/5

This was fine. I cannot say I found this to be anything special, although more listens may change my mind.

They Were Wrong, So We Drowned Never heard of this, but Liars is such a generic mid 2000s indie band name I assumed it would be something akin to Hard-Fi or Reverend & The Makers or any other mid-tier band of that period. I really loved the concept of witchcraft and witch trials etc, but I found it struggles to create much atmosphere or ambiance to evoke that. I now understand they are an experimental noise rock band, so a creepy folk feel is not in their wheelhouse, and the slightly awkward nature of the songs is what they are going for, but I think it does need some gentleness and melody to balance the experimental elements of their music and reflect the themes they are writing about. On the occasion it does work it’s decent, when the droning and rhythm sync and the keyboards bring some life, like on They Don’t Want Your Corn, They Want Your Kids and when the tribal rhythms create some spookiness on Read the Book That Wrote Itself, or when they deliver a suitable spectral feel on Flow My Tears the Spider Said, but too often its horizontal banging repetitiveness drags and the songs feel much longer than their run times. Conceptually it's great, but musically it too infrequently delivers on that concept and consequently it’s difficult to sustain much interest. I had thought it may be a grower, but I didn’t feel much closer to it by the end of the third listen, and I started to get the sense that it’s not as smart or as challenging as it believes it is. It’s not unlistenable, and I’m all for people going off into weird corners and making esoteric and idiosyncratic music, but I feels this isn't that great an example of that, and even though I like the concept that’s not enough to make want to come back to it, so it lands as a solid 2. 🧹🧹 Playlist submission: They Don’t Want Your Corn, They Want Your Kids

Pretentious noise bullshit. 2 stars.

Dreadful!

Yeah, this is bad

I first listened to this in a busy natatorium where I couldn't hear a lot of detail, and I tolerated it more than hated it. I revisited later to see if my first impression was good, and friend, it was not. This album sucks.

I couldn't listen to this, I tried to be objective, but this is just noise. I did not like it at all

Complètement assumé, sans justification ; solennel, ne laisse pas de répit. J'aime les titres des pièces, j'aime l'atmosphère pesante et sombre, toutefois sans éclats

Love this album. It’s like the soundtrack from a yet to be made Robert Eggers film about two villages at war over accusations of witchcraft, failed crops and general weirdness in the 17th Century. Wish they’d done a 20th anniversary tour of this album as would be absolute mayhem. The album is 4/5 but the brilliant song titles give it and extra half mark and another extra half mark to juice the score.

this is awesome and i think everyone who disagrees is lame

earlier this week i contracted some sort of condition that leaves a constant smell in my nose that i feel everywhere i go but no one else does. it is not a good smell, almost like cheap paint. it's not unbearable and it's usually not very strong but sometimes it flares up and i can feel every note of it. i thought it would be cool to make music that sounds like that smell but unfortunately i am not a musician so i can not make that. turns out 20 years ago someone captured exactly what i was thinking of. this album is almost comforting in how constantly unpleasant it is. spectacular work, as of publishing this review I've listened to this album 4 times. top 5 lowest rated albums on the site? nooo, no no no.

it's not even that good but i love u liars

Never heard (of) them before, only two of Liars' members in Beck's Record Club cover of INXS' "Kick", as I've just found out. I'm glad I do now. Hear it. Easily the most I Listened To With Ongoing Interest And Curiosity the generator has given me in the past 12 days. Abrasive, nervous, but without the edgelord attitude of being intentionally annoying. Not to my ears, at least. Sometimes like if Portishead's "Third" and gritty, noisy Sonic Youth had a baby. This is cracking. Love the drums. I have a long evening walk scheduled today, looking forward to putting this on again. "Rating 2.06", lol, you people.

I'm glad 1001 albums recommended this, otherwise this would have never been on my radar. Never heard of this band or album until now but it is great. Experimental noise rock, driving beats, some catchy songs in there. Refreshing after having to hear so much Boomer crap. You can only take so much Eagles, Bad Company, Aerosmith tripe. "They Were Wrong, So we Drowned" is a fucking fresh breath of air.

Weird and unique, I really enjoyed this one. I get why not everyone would like it, but this sort of experimental stuff is right up my alley.

this one was awesome. of course it got removed

Yes, it's pretentious noisey bullshit. I'm pretentious and love noise. 5/5.

Hyped to get Liars! Bummed that this is their only album on this list. Either way, super fun, weird, creative, experimental album. Love their work!

Not for me

Huh. I was worried that this one would be a total torturous chore when I saw that it was noise rock. Got even more worried when I saw the average rating of 2.22 stars. But in the end I actually kind of enjoyed it. Yeah it's unhinged, avant-garde, noisy and haunting. It even feels quite tribal and definitely gives the atmosphere of a ritual sacrifice. The dance-punk element is there though, in enough measure to make this whole thing somewhat danceable. No doubt that it verges on aurally torturous at times, but maybe I'm just turning into a masochist? All I'm saying is if I'm in a situation where I'm about to be sacrificed, I'd ask for the murderous cult to put this on. It's approaching halloween so maybe I'm just in the mood for some spooky shit. Either way I enjoyed this and I think I could vibe with this again. Favourite: There's Always Room on the Broom

I absolutely loved the first two-thirds of this. Fuzzy, screechy, whiny against some totally danceable grooves. The last few tracks lost my interest but I was captivated by most of it. Yes!

Woah, based on the name and album art I did not expect such an experimental/dissonant sound. This is generally in my wheelhouse of musical pleasures so I'm down with it. Never knew the band so glad to broaden my knowledge. Crazy industrial-like drums with artsy vocal trappings, a combo I haven't heard much. Definitely propelled to a professional level with the production, which elevates it from indie-artsy-trappings to something a bit more grand. I'm into it, definitely gonna explore further. I should listen to listen to more noise-rock. Definitely not for everyone though.

I never heard this before. I like it. It's fascinating. Weird. Not really songs. It was over before I understood what the hell I was listening to. Favorite song: they don't want your corn, they want your kids.

This is noise but really good noise

This is #day89 of my #1001albumsyoumusthearbeforeyoudie challenge, and... something wicked this way comes, right? To me, Angus Andrew is one of those visionaries able to create the weirdest of shit and make you drown in it. The band took a turn in 2014 with the release of Mess, and what we’re hearing here is more in line with their early work—raw, experimental, and post-punk-ish. It’s like The Doors filtered through the lens of Joy Division. A comparison is a bit off, but there’s certainly a haunting, ritualistic quality to this album (I've heard it's a concept record about witches). Is this a "must-listen before you die", though? It’s a challenging listen, no doubt. But it's also an album that keeps you hooked. I get to believe that sometimes music is all about disruption and/or making you feel uneasy. And in that respect, They Were Wrong, So We Drowned absolutely succeeds. After reading the reviews, I'd even bump my score up a bit. This is a 4 out of 5. Looking forward to #day90.

Another noise and chaotic album, revolving pretty closely to hardcore universe. Fortunately, that's what I actually like, so Liars is now on my list of bands that I will thoroughly listen to in the future. As of right now it's just a four, but I reckon after few more tries this will be a very strong five.

Of all Liars albums, why this one? At their most 00's pretentious here. Liars flippin rule though. Guy who wrote this book gets one cool point back. Bound to lose it again very soon via some mediocre British wank.

Well, this was surprising. I really dug this album. It reminded me of Death from Above 1979. Personal enjoyment: 4/5 Relevance to this list: 2/5

Had to listen multiple times to make sure I don't just like it because it's different Really the liked ZX Spectrum noises in There's Always Room on the Broom, vibed to the second half of Flow My Tears the Spider Said. And the sound in general was just pleasant to me

Cool

I completely missed Liars the first time around. I heard people talking about them constantly but I never took the time to check them out. I truly regret that. What a weird, fantastic album.

Fuck the system. You guys are a bunch of pussys who don't like anything "different". The amount of hate this album receives is unnecessary. Be real. It's not that bad. It's angsty. The lyrics are fun. It talks about witches. What more do you want? Is it the best thing I've listened to? No, but it's not hot garbage. If it didn't get such bad ratings, I would probably give it a 3, but just for the hell of it, I'm giving it a 4. Maybe that'll improve it's rating a tad.

Well this is shaping up to be some dark avant-garde shit. Broken Witch is formed around an amplifier buzz and breakbeat percussion. The song is way more enjoyable than that description should imply. Love the lugubrious underworld hip-hop vibe of We Fenced Other Gardens. They Don't Want Your Corn is a quick detour into dance-electro-pop similar in tone to some LCD Soundsystem and The Juan MacLean. Vocals feel like they are being delivered from someone sprawled out on a sofa in between hits of a cigarette. Read The Book That Wrote Itself reminds me of something horrorcore group Clipping would rap over -- deeply unsettling. This was eclectic and strange, but it kept my attention and I enjoyed more than I didn't. Soft 4 / 5.

I know most people hate this - but I was into it. Noise Post Punk just checks some boxes for me.

Okay yeah, don't remember how I discovered these guys, I think Sisterworld was the first I heard, and I LOVED IT, LOVE THIS TOO. noise, weirdo discordia, out of tune growling, bring it in heavy and hard, it makes me feel goooood

Ok, so here's the thing. This isn't "normal" music. This isn't bass, guitar, drums, vocals, 1-4-5, play rock blues until you die. This album represents thought, composition, direction. This album is a *choice*. I respect that.

Yay

This was a challenging, technical album that definitely took a lot of skill to pull off. It sounds very ahead of it's time: I hear some examples of sounds that would pop up later on Radiohead albums. I've gone back several times and have gone between a 2 and a 4. Given the aforementioned skill and some fun hooks that keep me coming back, this is a 3.5/5 -> 4/5

A polarizing album that garnered poor reviews from Spin and Rolling Stone. And perhaps for good reason! Liars is particularly skilled at maintaining space in their songs, only to go full-tilt minutes later. And my god is it weird. I don't know how to explain it, Liars is just skilled at staying outside of genre conventions. I would best compare them to This Heat, which I enjoyed thoroughly, so let's say I enjoyed this thoroughly.

I wasn't familiar with early Liars but it's amazing

I saw noise rock in the description and my heart sank, but a listen was a different story. This is much more post rock than noise rock with a sound that gives itself time and space to develope. More of a large abstract painting than a photo realistic scene but very much enjoyable.

Noise rock isn't my thing but this album is much more listenable than I was anticipating.

BEST SONGS: - Steam Rose from the Lifeless Cloak - We Fenced Other Gardens With the Bones of Our Own

Best wel goed, lekker als geheel album, en klinkt heel invloedrijk. Net aan 4 sterren

Experimental and funky and interesting, which is more than I can say for a lot of the white british shit on this list. Not always a great album, but better than average. 4/5

Weird, cool, clangy. Stretching the boundaries of what music can be, and yet clear and coherent of thought at the same time. Surprising and rewarding.

Surprised and thrilled that Liars are on this list. I would not expect that based on a lot of the stuff included on here. Not my favorite album from them (Drums Not Dead!!), but an excellent album, and a nice change of pace from the norm here with something challenging.

hullu mutta nerokas... aivan kahjo päästä mutta luovuus virtsaa ulos korvista... saksalaiset folk tarinat kerrottu tyylillä eksperimentaalinen tekno electronica kraftverkki saksanpaimenkoira musiikkilla... pähkähullut paskiaiset.. ei ollenkaan pretentious, kyllä, heillä on paljon musiikillista lahjaa.. neroja... eivät huonoja artisteja jotka tiedon ja taidon puutteen takia tekee eksperimentaalista randomia paskaa vaan NEROJA!!! ja lyriikat... absurd... heh... NEROKKAITA.... konseptuaalisuus unohtunut ehkä muutamilta, mutta ei näiltä, ei näiltä mussukoilta... we fenced

Interesting but jarring snd abrasive, not an easy listen (not really one to sing along to), but there's wit and fun concealed within and I liked it. Drown me if you like but different isn't bad.

Maybe it's because I'm getting to the end of this challenge but this was great. It wasn't another endless boring 90s Britpop that all sound the same. It was trying sound different and it did and I loved it for that. I wouldn't reach for it to listen to all the time, but when I want something different I'll go to this. The song titles are also wild which I love.

I feel like such a contrarian, but it’s nice to listen to an album that sounds like nothing else I’ve heard before.

pretty great actually. really interesting shit going on here

This is definitely not the kind of music I listen to, but it was so unique and very well done for the genre it is. There is a lot of tension and humanity in this album in the weirdest way possible, so I can appreciate the art

An absolute trip. Not my type of music at all but it was so fun to listen to and figure out. For the type of music it was intended to be, it was very well done. Extremely unique and interesting, although it tended to kinda be earrape a lot of the way through. A lot of the drumlines were really cool, and many of tue musical elements meshed well despite the grungy instrumentation. 4/5 because i love how insane and cool it is. I also love that it tells a story of forest witches at a witch party

What a strange listen! Usually, noise rock tends to have no soul, but this was a welcome exception.

yeahhhhhhhhhhhh

Pleasant surprise!

Not sure if I enjoyed it, but very interesting in a good way! 4*

This is dope, I'm familiar with Mess, a later one of there albums, this one is a bit more rough and organic.

Pretty good sound. It grew on me

I enjoyed the horse song and I liked that it was only 40 minutes long, overall quite fun

Something interesting about this one. It is different, but I like it. 3.75

I no longer want to be a man, I want to be a horse. I get it dude, I get it. Yea, some may write this off as noisy nonsense but not this fucking guy, I eat this shit up. Yea, you may not toss it on for a party but there’s something really interesting about the sludgy industrial songs they’re putting out here. Pulling from the past with their own indie dance post punk sound to it. I’m not gonna claim that I fully get it but confusion can be fun. 4 stars

Krass. Herausfordernd. Künstlerisch bewertet sehr cool. Aber schwer zu hören …

Raw, sharp, and intriguing, this album showcases a possible scenario for punk rebellion. It features interesting songs with peculiar production that will keep you wondering what's next. I did not have "Liars" under my radar. Thanks for the recommendation. It's a nice addition to my playlist.

I must be in a weird mood, cause I actually enjoyed this.

This felt familiar, and I was surprised that I hadn't heard this band before. Enjoyed it.

Really solid album. I love the dark atmosphere these guys created through much of the album. I love the noisier elements and the variety of genres included on this record. Don't really have a lot to say about it other than the vocals can be a little one note but it does fit the over all aesthetic of the album

My initial thought during the first track was 'oh no, not sure I can manage this today', but I stuck with it and I'm glad I did. Quite weird and reminded me of some Flying Lotus, Melt Banana and even Radiohead in places. This is sort of thing that can sound fantastic when you are in the mood for it or horrendous when you're not.

Interesting - a bit of a psychedelic indie thing going on. The production is gorgeous and the mood eerie and dark-ish with a little mischief. I am not sure it's a record I am foreseeing I'd return to frequently, but I think this merits more than a couple of listens to really get to the meat of it. Also - it doesn't overstay it's welcome.

I wasn’t sure what to expect from this album and was skeptical after the first couple of songs, but the album did grow on me a bit. It is certainly not for everyone as it has a highly conceptual story line and is essentially a noise rock album. I enjoyed the various textures especially the rumbly synth sounds which were about a decade ahead of their widespread use in rock.

Not a noisy as the reviews led me to believe and no way this deserves to be in the bottom 10. It’s surprisingly groovy in places and has a really cool industrial vibe that is somewhat reminiscent of Nine Inch Nails. Would much rather listen to this again than a lot of the boring one hit wonder 50s and 80s trash on this list