Is this the first thread on Cluas with pictures? Congratulations on a small bit of history.

I think the one album that has had a greater influence than anything else is U2 - Actung Baby, not just it's sound, but it's attitude, it was just such and adventurous, exciting and tongue in cheek record for a mainstream band. It's subversive in the best possible way, by putting something a little avant-garde into millions of homes. I reckon this album had more of an impact on the world than any of Bonos political preaching before or since. Artists are not politicians, those that try to be, underestimate art.

I hope that works!

Wilco's Being There... made me realise that country did not equal Philomena Begley. Probably the most influential record of recent times?

Yank Crime by Drive Like Jehu, and Trout Mask Replica by Captain Beefheart

Jehu were the ultimate 90's hardcore band, from San Diego with Speedo, who you might know better as the Rocket From The Crypt singer, playing the most astonishing guitar I've heard, it was incredibly important to me. Wonderful music.

Bizarrely, despite the album being 13 years old, HMV had a ton of copies in their recommended section on Grafton St. Do yourselves a favour and go pick up a copy!

I could write an essay on this topic but choosing just 5, I'd go for:

The Bends - Radiohead (and later Kid A)

Up The Bracket - The Libertines

In the Aeroplane Over the Sea - Neutral Milk Hotel

Oh, Inverted World - The Shins

Curtains - John Frusciante

In no particular order:






and on a side note, I nicked my Cluas handle from this one (Schneider TM and KPT.michi.gan)

the wedding present/ george best

my c86 gateway drug

Yeah, I'd agree with Achtung Baby. I think that was the very first album I ever bought, so that was bound to have an effect on me. Fine album it was.

A big influence on my tastes is 'Blues and Roots' by Charles Mingus. Particularly Wednesday Night Prayer Meeting. Its proved to me that jazz could be fun and wild. Its big band jazz, but there's blues and gospel and a bit of rock & roll in there too, and then Mingus himself howling in the background. Amazing record. I've bought a good few jazz albums since then but nothing fires me up like that one.

early albums i bought which really affected my tastes (i.e. turned me over to indie from U2 / simple minds hell) were bizarro by the wedding present, substance by new order and joy division and doolittle by pixies... then i kinda got a bit more arty in the early nineties with albums like slint's spiderland...

...then i gave up on music and really got back into great music on the back of bonnie prince billy's 'i see a darkness'...

so those six are probably the most influential on my tastes...

'Brains' by The Jimmy Cake or 'thirtysixstrings' by The Redneck Manifesto. I'm not sure which one I bought first but those albums showed me there was amazing music out there that I was completely ignorant of. No Disco was probably responsible for me hearing about those albums in the first place.

Mogwai - Happy Songs for Happy People (or maybe EP+6)

I'll think of more later.

John Fahey - The transfiguration of Blind Joe Death, my introduction to the world of Fahey.

Strangelove - Love and Other Demons, One of the few English bands who weren't too cool to rock.

Red House Painters - Retrospective, first RHP album I bought, incredibly important to me.

The Auteurs - New Wave, Classic literate pop songwriting. Still great 15 years (?) later.

Elliott Smith - XO, gives singer-songwriters a good name

Nirvana - Nevermind, bit of a cliché I suppose, but a hugely important record. So heavy.....all you can say is it rocked.

Calexico - Hot Rail, I listened to this album solid for about a year. Then I had to take a break.

Jayhawks - Hollywood Town Hall, got me into country rock, alt country, whatever you want to call it.

House of Love - A spy in the house of love, takes me back to teenageland.

Buffalo Tom - Let me come over, Another teenage favorite. Sometimes they were average but not on this album.

Kyuss - Blues for the Red Sun, Mind Expanding, led me to Welcome to Sky Valley, forget QOTSA, this wipes the floor with them....

AC/DC - Highway to hell, probably one of the first rock albums I heard. Older brother has this on vinyl. Finally got it on CD recently. Even better than I remembered.

Blue Aeroplanes - Friend Lover Plane 2, I was already a fan when I found this in a bargain bin. Excellent compilation. You can have 3 guitarists in your band!

Was trying to cast my mind back to think what got me into Electro specifically as opposed to dance music in general and it has to be this:


This Saint Etienne compilation (around 1996, towards the end of the gloomy grunge era) confirmed for me that you didn't need guitars or be in a "rock" band to make truly great music. I've been a fan ever since

Nirvana - Nevermind (which led me to everything from The Pixies to Leonard Cohen)
Radish - Restraining Bolt (which led me to Ash, and any youthful rock band)
MC Solaar - Qui Sème le Vent Récolte le Tempo (which led me to Nas, Jay Z, Aesop Rock etc)
Hole - Pretty On The Inside (which led me to more riot grrrl stuff, and basically any female fronted band since)
Simon & Garfunkel - Central Park Concert (which led me to any singer songwriter)
The Clash - London Calling (which led me to punk and ska)
Third Eye Foundation - Little Lost Soul (which led to me everything from anything Matt Elliot and his associates made to dub step)
The Prodigy - Experience (which led me to techno)

For me,

Yellow Nozzles- Jim (Read here to find out - http://blog.myspace.com/index.cfm?fuseaction=blog.view&friendID=54239541&blogID=112439662&MyToken=3954481b-ea09-4145-ae0d-9c7b2ddee0ce)

Bjork- Debut (The soundtrack to my Leaving Cert year and her finest record.)

Pearl Jam - Ten (My College security blanket, equipped with the right grain of check shirt and scuffed Docs, Dundalk became Seattle for one great year. I also had a horrendous centre parting and a 'carpet' jacket)

A House - I am the Greatest - (I discovered it in 1994 and then furiously sought out everything they ever released. The beginning of an obsession. And the title track is the best song ever written)

The Prayerboat - Polichinelle (Documented one of my worst break ups, I once ate 13 packs of Meanies whilst listening to it, and cried sad, pickled oniony tears. Still a travesty how it didn't go global)

Kraftwerk - Trans Europe Express (Sweeping electronic wake up call to a handsome young man (me) who thought that rock and roll was the be all.. Now, if it doesn't have bleeps and Bips, I'm binning it. The start of another obsession)

The Strokes - Is this is (I started DJing in Doyles when this came out and it documents a very decadent, rock and roll time in my life ie, I slept in my own filth regularly)

Great album, although I reckon Homogenic was excellent too, not as welcoming, but still just as great in its own way.

"Crooked Rain" Crooked Rain by Pavement(not my favorite pavement album but like most people its the one that got me into them)

"Washing Machine" by Sonic Youth(most true sonic youth fans hate this one i love it)

"Disintigration" by the Cure( great)

"MY Pain and Sadness is more Painful and Sad than yours" by Mclusky (one of the wittiest albums ever made)

"Blue Sunshine" by the Glove (had to order this one in cos it was quite rare, now u can buy it in HMV meh. Its great."

"Tubular bells" by Mike Oldfield (im sure this a very cliched album to pick. I didnt even like it the first time i heard it. But its great studying music due its 45 minutes in length. Play it as you study and take a 15 minute break everytime it finishes. Not that i listen to it or study nemore. Im talking leaving cert kinda thing.)

"On Avery Island" by Neutral Milk Hotel(genius)

"Electro-Pura" by Yo la Tengo (the album that introduced me to my favorite song "tom courtenay")

I really wanna stop now but ive got more.

"Loveless" by My Bloody Valentine. (invented a genre, possibly my favorite genre, so kinda have to include it. Gets better as it ages. Still cant believe an Irish band could come up with this)

"Mule Variations" by Tom Waits( The album that got me into Tom Waits)

okay thats enuff

but yeah there they are

I imagine Ride, Spacemen 3, the Cocteau Twins, Jesus and Mary Chain, etc. might have a thing or two to say about that claim

I like Washing Machine too, not their best album by a long shot, but still Sonic Youth, so I like it.