All Hour Cymbals

i really enjoyed the vibe of this... a bit percussion heavy with blurry vocals... i get a bit lost in the ethereal sound and had a great ride. Sunrise and 2080 are strong, though the whole album has an engaging tone.

Dreamy and edgy at the same time. To be honest, I had filed Yeasayer a little too quickly under the category of Animal Collective lookalikes just because of the bits and pieces from them I had heard up to this day, before listening to this debut. Not that I really stand corrected now: the music on *All Hour Cymbals* does suggest an AnCo lineage. Only it's a lineage that is way more streamlined and more melodic than most of the albums of that other Baltimore act. Yeasayer are also less wild and experimental than Animal Collective, in spite of the distinctive African undertones in there -- which were influencing so many American indie acts at the time. In a sense, this record is also a testimony of a time where indie buffs thought the fusion of rock and more "global" sounds were the sound of the future. Not much has since happened to make that prophecy come true, very sadly, but the intent was worthy of praise at least. And it did break ground anyway. For instance, It seems like Yeasayer's debut has unwittingly foretold the sort of sound an act such as Young Fathers would use across the pond a bit later. And if only for this they should be praised for thinking out of the box. Add the whiffs from the psychedelic seventies and the Beach Boys-like vocals over the experimental rock proceedings -- also so pivotal for Animal Collective -- and you have an excellent noughts recipe in your hands. What really linked Baltimore to the Californian beaches is to this day a mystery, but it's one that sure proved interesting, and which still sounds relevant today, at least to my ears. Is that all there is to say? No. Because, for me, what actually makes the album sound so good almost 20 years later is its obvious spontaneity, along with the incredibly soulful moments often gracing it -- best represented by highlights such as "Sunrise", "2080", "Germs" or "No Need To Worry". This here is the key ingredient that could make the LP go from "high-rated" to "highEST rated" in my own "book". The last leg of the record is admittedly a little more complacent in comparison of the energy displayed in its first half. But the overall oneiric mood in that last leg is still faithful to what the highlights set up so nicely before that. Closer *Red Cave*, for instance, is certainly one of the best psychedelic patchouli-scented jams ever recorded this side of the third millenium. Besides, the overall sound of this record is also very *organic* from beginning to end. Browsing through later Yeasayer LPs, it looks like electronic shenanigans there ruined whatever timeless aura the band had reached in their very first go at a full-length release, in spite of the many excellent songs you can find in those later albums. So even if I can't yet pretend to know everything about the band's career, as of now it looks like *All Hour Cymbals* is the one LP from Yeasayer's discography to keep here. Many thanks to the person who submitted it. It allowed me to fix a blind spot I had until today. 4/5 for the purposes of this list of essential albums. 9/10 for more general purposes (5+4) Number of albums from the original list I find relevant enough to be mandatory listens: 465 Albums from the original list I *might* include in mine later on: 288 Albums from the original list I won't include in mine: 336 ---- Number of albums from the users list I find relevant enough to be mandatory listens: 17 (including this one) Albums from the users list I *might* select for mine later on: 28 Albums from the users list I won't select for mine: 60 ---- Émile ! J'ai répondu à ton message. Regarde environ 20 reviews au dessus ! Je compte juste vérifier toutes les deux semaines environ. On est pas aux pièces, comme on dit sur le vieux continent

I submitted this one. A pick inspired by Django Django on the main list, of all things. You guys remember "Django Django" by Django Django? It was one of those entries where they were flailing for something from the 2010s and went with a random British indie group. And honestly it was pretty fine! I gave it a 4/5, but nothing from it made the cut for my highlights playlist, you know the type. The reason "Django Django" reminded me of Yeasayer, though, is that listening to it finally resolved a long-standing cliffhanger in my life. Back in 2012, I was visiting Portland, Oregon with classmates, and became obsessed with the idea of going into a music store and buying some indie music, like I'd heard about "the hipsters" doing. I picked up Yeasayer's "Fragrant World," and the clerk suggested I should check out Django Django. I then proceeded to not listen to Django Django for over 10 years, until they showed up on the albums list. And once I'd listened to it, I came away thinking "that was pretty good, and I get why that guy thought to recommend them to me, but also any of Yeasayer's first three albums could have pretty easily gone into Django Django's spot on the list." All of which to say, that was my favorite type of experience I got from the main project, and I felt like submitting Yeasayer's most consistent album to the user list was a good way to pay that forward. Breaking from the audience consensus here, I think this one opens *and* closes extremely strong, but meanders a lot in the middle. It's also interesting the number of reviews contextualizing them as part of a larger Brooklyn Indie scene—I'd just stumbled across these guys by accident, without knowing anything about that, and just kind of latched on.

I think this album petered out in the final third but overall it was super catchy and a solid art rock album. The first 3-4 songs were great.

I thought this was interesting, and very good. The album felt like a complete composition with direction and intent. I wish they'd work a little harder to make the lyrics comprehensible.

The debut album of Yeasayer consists of nice art-rock/pop songs. Their second album (Odd Blood) has more highlights, but on this album the overall quality is better. I like the way Yeasayer always finds a way to write and present a song in a way it stands out from the “normal” pop/rock format.

One of those albums where you'll be saying "This reminds me of [insert indie band here]" to yourself after every song. Vaguely Middle Eastern/South Asian sounding psychedelic rock. Kind of a mixed bag with some bangers and some total misses. Second half was better than the first. I think I enjoyed it though. Interesting choice. 3/5.

Kind of weird in an enjoyable way.

This was really interesting. Will listen again. 4 stars.

Rating: 7/10 Best songs: Wait for the summer

Likes the vatiety of instruments.

Most enjoyable

Love the world indie vibes, groovy positive listen

Really enjoyed this, never heard of them Before, but great example of modern experimental rock that is also easy listening, added to my rotation.

Eclectic, but great background music.

Mid-aughts indie

Hey, this is actually mostly pretty good.

Opens strong, pretty interesting, enjoyable album.

I liked this

I like that this is felt like it had its own identity. I don't think it always worked but it was a pleasure to listen to. My personal rating: 4/5 My rating relative to the list: 4/5 Should this have been included on the original list? No.

A great album with african harmonies, layered rhythms, and that mix of lighter and darker tones that pull you in. Songs like Wait for the Summer feel warm and expansive, while Wait for the Wintertime shows the band’s darker and uneasy side. The voice sometimes drifts in the mix and you can't understand a word anymore, and not every melody sticks long after hearing it, but there’s enough intrigue, atmosphere, and creativity here to make it a compelling listen.

I didn't find this to be especially "experimental." But it was pleasingly eclectic without feeling unfocused or like a bad pastiche of styles. I liked it. Fave Songs: 2080, Sunrise, Wait for the Summer, Germs

I added this album to my library some time ago but I don’t remember listening to this. I liked the exotic beats well enough, but nothing really jumped out and seized my attention. Not bad though.

This wasn't on Spotify in my country, and I could only find the songs "Sunrise" and "2080" on YouTube. So this is based on two songs. Kinda cool. A bit "chill" and basic, but it had a groove that worked for an early morning listen. 3/5.

Experimental rock, worldbeat, neo-psychedelia. Ni fu ni fa.

This was a pretty cool album. Very unique yet modern and artistic. Wasn’t overtly catchy with the lyrics but the instrumentals made it so. Listened to t a few times and didn’t find it to get boring. Would revisit this for a nice mix of indie art rock. 6.9/10 (nice)

The title of this album is a pun, right? All Our Symbols, since this is a religious piece? Altogether, it's easy listening. Not too much to get in the way of the tone.

4 3

A fascinating background music vibe.

Kind of airy and pseudo-Eastern sounding. Not a bad use of my time but also nothing to really grab and hold onto.

I like their first album better, but the overall sound of Yeasayer is something that I can very much relate to.

It is almost exactly what you'd expect Pitchfork to recommend in 2007. That's alright with me!

Almost felt like a classic rock album, like some 60’s type rock. Very interesting sound.

It was fine

This album is pretty cool overall. The music never wows me all that much, but the harmonies are really nice. It feels a bit uneven at times, but there are a lot of great moments 3/5

This does have the same feeling as many of the flavor-of-the-month albums that take up most of the 2000s and onwards in the 1001 Albums book. Many cool sounds though, not a bad record

Good vibes

Not the worst

Feels like a folkie Animal Collective. Ok

I think the other reviewers are right to point to the Animal collective and other Art rock albums. I like it- probably need to listen again a few times.

Different from other things out there. Enjoyed this.

This was okay, I enjoyed it but it didn't blow me away.

Left little impression on me but didn't make me angry or upset either

Meh. It's OK.

Pop un tanto indie con buenas canciones y ritmo. Le ha faltado algo más de originalidad y que me enganchase. En general, bien, aunque habría que escucharlo un poco más con atención

I don’t know what I was expecting, but I wasn’t expecting much. I was not impressed. I was not disappointed.

Lite småtrevligt album.

Started really strong, to the point that I was questioning whether I’ve been too hard on Brooklyn indie for the last 15 or 20 years. By the midway point, it started feeling less individualistic, and more like another piece of the 2000’s Brooklyn indie puzzle. Not that it’s a bad record, but it definitely carries some of the hallmarks of that scene - funky world music, electronics, sing-along vocals and Beach Boys harmonies… Guess what I’m saying is: a little bit of Brooklyn goes a long way for me

Quite eclectic.

Experimental rock, worldbeat, neo-psychedelia. Ni fu ni fa.

Some interesting textures at play on this LP, but none of them ever coalesced into something solidly catchy to hold on to. A full album of strongly rhythmic tracks like ‘Forgiveness’ would’ve rocked, but what’s presented is just too diffuse and meandering to leave much of an impact

Not bad, I appreciate the instrumental variety. Not very memorable unfortunately. 2.5/5

I had expected more.

Not my thing

I couldn’t get into this album at all. The vocals got drowned out by the music. The music itself wasn’t very interesting to me.

Not really for me.

Experimental rock, worldbeat, neo-psychedelia. No me gusta este tipo de música.

I found it very ethnic, hippie, experimental, retro... frankly, it didn't make me feel much, in fact I even forgot I was listening to most of its duration.