I love X. One of my favorite bands since I first heard back in the late 90’s. The fact that you guys who clearly listen to a ton of music are just now recently discovering them really goes to show how under appreciated they are. They deserve much more notoriety than they have. I’d really rank them among some of the all time greatest American rock bands. Maybe Stranger Things will put them on the soundtrack of the next season and they’ll finally get some love.
Wild Gift is not only my fave X album IMO, but one of the all time greatest albums of all time. It transcends the punk genre and is just a phenomenal record period.
@@vinylrichie007 The first two albums are 5 stars in my book. All great tunes and no filler just good old rock n roll with some speedy rockabilly. I prefer Wild Gift but I love the first one also. The next 2 are 4.5 stars. Then it went downhill pretty fast.
@@tntstorms7969 I agree the albums went downhill pretty fast after the fourth. They did manage to still record some great songs among the later albums. Wild Gift starts out with four great songs then I’m Coming Over. After four great songs I’m Coming Over sounds like filler. It’s Who Who You Know may not be filler but it is far from great. Back To The Base seems like filler also. The vocals are good but the music seems extremely weak in comparison. Year 1 is okay. In my opinion both sides get weaker towards the end. Some of the best songs on Wild Gift were preformed live before the debut was released.
@@vinylrichie007 I think I can't criticize the Wild Gift album because it is permanently etched in my brain. Even the weaker songs you pointed out are very short, very fast, and don't really drag the album down but actually are more of a jolt of pure punk. Try playing the song Back to the Base on guitar , it's not easy! It's Who You Know is one of my favs. To each is own. : )
I love X!!! I'm surprised there was so little exposure to this band, other than Joe. Also strange that Jason, while being the one who apparently likes them the least, was the only one who shared my personal number one album pick "More Fun in the New World."
I've been a pretty big fan of X for quite a long time. My first exposure to them was the song "Johny Hit and Run Paulene" which I heard in an old episode of a History of Rock n Roll show from the 90s. When I was in college I picked up Los Angeles and Wild Gift and played them both a ton, also got into the other earlier albums as well. The only ones I hadn't heard before this week was the stretch from Ain't Love Grand - Hey Zeus so it was cool to finally check those out. As a punk fan I appreciate that they have elements of many other styles of music and I have always appreciated their sound. It was great to really dive in and revisit everything this week and it has been cool to see the many different responses to their albums and many different rankings in the community. Even if it is a little bit painful sometimes :P. 8. Hey Zeus! - 3.5 (7.4) 7. Alphabetland - 4 (7.7) 6. See How We Are - 4 (7.9) 5. Ain’t Love Grand - 4 (8.2) 4. More Fun In the New World - 4.5 (9.2) 3. Under the Big Black Sun - 4.5 (9.3) 2. Los Angeles - 5 (9.7) 1. Wild Gift - 5 (9.8)
You are quite the fan, Vanessa! 😀My intro was when Burning House of Love was in relatively heavy MTV rotation. Made an expressway to my brain. Seems like Ray Manzarek (My Man!) was their Tony Visconti (if X were T. Rex).
X is probably the first "hey these guys aren't on the radio" band I ever knew. I've loved them for it ever since. 8. Ain't Love Grand 7. Alphabetland 6. See How We Are 5. Hey Zeus! 4. Wild Gift 3. Los Angeles 2. Under The Big Black Sun 1. More Fun In The New World
This might be the first episode with a discography I didn't have a lot of experience with already but came away eager to hear more from the enthusiasm here. You guys are on a roll. Don't let me down
Thanks for this. I'm a pretty big fan of X and do enjoy the vocal blending which works very well regardless of the technical limitations. I like the first three pretty well equally. Alphabetland is ok but I don't revisit much. I have only heard the first 5 albums and Alphabetland so can't comment on the others. Looking forward to Zevon.
If you like X, you should check out Skating Polly. They were heavily influenced by X and Exene produced their first official album. Exene also wrote some songs with them. She also appears in their documentary called Ugly Pop
I've loved X for decades, great band. Glad to see the appreciation for The Have Nots...I picture honey dripping off the neck of Billy Zoom's guitar during the solo!
My list : 8. Hey Zeus! 2.5 7. See How We Are 3 6. Alphabetland 3.5 5. Ain't Love Grand 3.5 4. More Fun in the New World 4 3. Under the Big Black Sun 4.5 2. Los Angeles 5 1. Wild Gift 5
Thanks for considering their awesome catalogue. All their records are beyond the star ratings to me, and they're awesome live, and on tour this summer! Also don't skip John Doe's solo records, esp the new one, Fables in a Foreign Land, written during the pandemic. (and one record by X's folk punk alter ego, The Knitters)
I'm only rating 6 albums, Spotify did not have the other two. I have been a fan of X since the early 80s. I read a review of More Fun in The New World, and ran right out and bought it. It was the rare review that praised an album, and I still liked it even more than the reviewer. 1. More Fun in the New World 5/5 2. Under the Big Black Sun 4.5/5 3. Los Angeles 4.5/5 4. Wild Gift 4/5 5. Ain't Love Grand 3/5 6. Alphabetland 3/5
Joe is totally on point on X. And he’s right, The Have Nots is one of the great album closers in history. Pleasantly surprised Joe liked them as much as he did Figures Kram woukd like them as well and did t seem like Jason’s cup of tea
X was inexplicably off my radar all those years ago -- and I'm an L.A. kid (South Bay). Just now getting into them. First four albums are utterly amazing, especially "Wild Gift."
Looooove me some X! 1. Wild Gift 2. More Fun in the New World 3. Under the Big Black Sun 4. Los Angeles 5. See How We Are 6. Aint Love Grand 7. Alphabetland 8. Hey Zeus
Long time X fan. It was interesting to see them reviewed by you guys that don't have the history with them that a lot of us commenters do. I first saw them live in 82. And I will see them any time I have the chance. I got to see them without Billy Zoom, and the show was still great, but missed that Billy Zoom IT factor. The first four albums are the pinnacle for me, but I also purchased and still listen to the last 4 as well. Throw in live at the Whiskey-a-Go-Go. All of those are still in my rotations today. I'm also a big fan of John Doe as a solo artist. If you haven't seen the Unheard Music you should. 8. Ain't Love Grand, Over produced, but a few good songs that sound good live. 7. Hey Zeus! Not a bad effort, just different. 6. See How We Are, 4th of July, is one of my favorites, thank you Dave Alvin. 5. Alphabetland, This was such a welcome surprise early in the pandemic. Crisp sharp songs that fit well in their catalogue. I may have it here due to nostalgia and excitement for new X after 35 years. 4. Under the Big Black Sun. These 4 are interchangeable for me. The Have Nots is an all timer for me. 3.Wild Gift, solid top to bottom, tomorrow I may have it #1. 2. More Fun in the New World, Poor Girl, I see Red, Make the Music Go Bang. 1. From the opening chord of Los Angeles I was hooked, but Johnny Hit and Run Paulene sealed the deal.
I never got around to listening to See How We Are and Hey Zeus, since they aren't streaming. But, here's my ranking for the other six. 1. Los Angeles - 5 Stars. I think this is a perfect punk album with some cool rockabilly influences. 2. Wild Gift - 4.5 Stars. Almost as good as Los Angeles, but maybe a couple tunes I'm not wild about. The opener is great though. 3. Under the Big Black Sun - 4.5 Stars. Also great. They start to get a little less punky on this one. 4. More Fun in the New World - 4 Stars. The most uneven of the Ray Manzarek era, but still pretty great. The Jerry Lee Lewis cover is awesome. 5. Ain't Love Grand - 3 Stars. Not terrible songs, but the production is really bad and dated. 6. Alphabetland - 3 Stars. Not bad, but no real memorable songs outside of the Cyrano De Berger's Back remake.
That is very close to my list except I love Wild Gift the most since it was my first X record and I played it way too much to the point I learned all the songs on guitar without any hesitation playing all the way through the album. Los Angeles is nearly perfect but I don't like the dark stuff like nausea or Ray's keyboards. See How We Are had a song or two that was OK. Hey Zues was forgettable.
Kramzer and Joe winning today for appreciating Exene's vocals. Jason, not so much. Doe and Exene's vocals together are good, sometimes even great. I like Jason's voice just fine but what sometimes comes out of his mouth makes my ears hurt.
The 1981 album - A Minute To Prey , A Second To Die by The Flesheaters is an Awesome album featuring an amazing backing band consisting of John & DJ from X & Phil & Bill from The Blasters & Steve from Los Lobos. I highly recommend seeking it out .. Imagine X with Iggy Pop on vocals.
X is good! I'm only familiar with Los Angeles and Wild Gift, which were sold on a single CD at one point. The guy who introduced them to me back in 1999 or so put a bunch of their songs on a mix tape with a lot of other punk stuff. At the time I didn't really listen to punk at all, being far more invested in the metal side of things. X had a little extra something that I could really get behind. Also those organ guest spots are so cool. I need to listen to some of those other albums.
With their last album coming out, I decided to revisit some X videos and stumbled across this. It's interesting to hear these guys talk about the music outside of its context. I do think something is lost, glaringly so when hearing the one guy sh@t on Exene. But, I enjoyed hearing what they got out of the music. For me, X helped bring punk to the suburbs. It was an arthouse version of punk. But it was part of the scene as it hit the suburbs. Exene's vocals were an important part of that punk sensibility. Unfortunately, they couldn't make a living being Rolling Stone Magazine darlings and selling out clubs. So they tried adapting to the MTV era. Which never worked. Exene ended up getting a job as a librarian. And Billy opened a repair business. Their recent music may not break much new ground (even though Exene's lyricism is remarkable), but it's nice hearing them go out on their own terms. It's nice to know some younger listeners hear some value in this music. But, at the time, when cable TV was new and I had to drive to San Francisco to escape my suburban wastescape, this music was a gift.
My X Albums ranked - # 1 Los Angeles # 2 Under The Big Black Sun # 3 Wild Gift # 4 Ain't Love Grand # 5 More Fun In The New World # 6 Alphabet Land # 7 See How We Are & # 8 Hey Zeus - What an iconic debut Los Angeles is with Ray Manzerek Producing & adding his organ on several tracks. Under The Big Black Sun is an Awesome 👌 Major label debut which is understandably the favorite of many more recent fans. Wild Gift is near perfect as well & is often paired with Los Angeles on CD 💿. Great Band 👍
I was lucky enough to grow up seeing them play all over LA and Hollywood. They were and will always be one of the definitive LA bands, John Doe met Billy Zoom through ads they both placed in the The Recycler which was a famous old LA free ads paper that we all used to buy and sell cars out of, rent apartments, find gear and other people looking for bands to join, etc. X embodied what it was to be a crusty punk rocker with a real literary bent. Seeing them live was really visceral for my teenage self at the time, I recall one specific night The Roxy Theater when they played around the time of ‘Under the Big Black Sun’ with The Plugz opening (who are also amazing, if you’ve never heard you should look for their ‘Electrify Me’ and ‘Better Luck’ Lps, they used to play with X all the time around LA early 80’s… Anyways I was really high having smoked something very strong between bands and during ‘Universal Corner’ I got up on stage to stage dive as we did back then at energetic moments in shows and just as I landed on the crowd within seconds I had a huge arm with me in a headlock being dragged out the side door of the club and booted out of the show which I wasn’t able to get back into…so sadly didn’t see that whole show. Beyond that I must say that the first four X albums are absolutely essential for me, all five star records but I’m also biased being a former Angeleno and having history with the band, of those four I can’t even say which I like the most. ‘Wild Gift’ used to be my favorite at the time of it’s release but later on I liked ‘Under the Big Black Sun’ the most and sometimes ‘Los Angeles’ has been my favorite. Also this is first time in quite awhile that I feel Kramzer is pretty spot on in getting the somewhat ‘off’ vocals and interplay btw exene and John Doe. It’s a mood, and reflective of that time living on the edge in early 80s Hollywood going to places like the Masque and the Cathay de Grande…for more insight on this check both the first ‘Decline of Western Civilization’ film as well as the amazing documentary on X ‘The Unheard Music’ which are both great and accurate timepieces. Good to see the TLM crew digging into this iconic LA band. Speaking of which, the next LA icons you guys should rank would be SPARKS…one side note…Jason should check out the X country/rockabilly side project w/ Dave Alvin, The Knitters ‘Poor Little Critter in the Road’ feel like it’d be even more in his wheelhouse
John Doe's version of Merle Haggard's "Silver Wings" is lovely. There is even a "Poor Little Critter" tribute album. Have you read "More Fun In The New World," from 2019? It's near the top of my ever growing stack of music and film books and it looks like a good one.
I know next to nothing of this band. And nothing said here is enough for that to change. I will listen to any consensus top song on tomorrow’s list, but sounds like a passable band for me. Appreciate the vid.
Imo, there are good reasons why X never "made it big" (they don't have a true radio hit, Exene Cervenka's voice is a turnoff for a lot of people) but I do think their best songs are legitimately great songs. Check my "top 10 songs" list tomorrow.
For many of us they’re also a time and a place type of band, having come of age in early 80’s LA. Had you been there at that time it would all make a lot more sense
1. Los Angeles. I kept going back and forth between this and Under The Big Black Sun, but the debut wins out. Some of my favorite X songs, and a great cover by a band I don't really like. 2. Under The Big Black Sun. Great opening and closing tracks, and you can't say enough about Billy Zoom and D. J. Bonebrake. And reading interviews with Zoom got me into Gene Vincent and Vincent's guitarist, Cliff Gallup. 3. Wild Gift. More variety in the songwriting, and if I think about it too long I might move this one up a notch. Or two. Really, this is one of those times where the albums are so good it's hard to choose. 4. More Fun In The New World. An easy number four, but still a great album. The title track has always been a favorite sing along, and I also like the Country version John and Exene did on the first Knitters album. That album also has John's lovely version of Merle Haggard's Silver Wings. 5. See How You Are. A step sideways into mid tempo heartland rock. Some good tracks, especially 4th of July, See How We Are and Surprise Surprise. Good, but missing Zoom, especially live. I saw that tour and it was just okay. 6.Alphabetland. Solid effort that I probably won't revisit too often. 7. Ain't Love Grand. Eh. Three of these songs were better done elsewhere. Love Shack and Burning House of Love were redone by The Knitters and Doe and Dave Alvin do a great Little Honey on the Border Radio soundtrack. That soundtrack is killer, by the way. 8. Hey Zeus. Not as bad as I remember, but I am starting a cd purge and this might end up at the local library fundraiser. X were a huge band among my friends, at the time, and they meant a lot to me. I was pleasantly surprised at most of the comments here...for the most part.
Been waiting a long time for this X listography. L.A.'s greatest band and easily a top 20 for me; Here we go; 8.Ain't Love Grand(1985)-The only X album I really don't like. 1.5 stars 7.Hey Zeus(1993)-meh. 2.5 stars 6.Alphabetland(2020)-good 3 stars 5.See How We Are(1987)-very good 3.5 stars 4.More Fun in the New World(1983)-excellent 4 stars 3.Los Angeles(1980)-outstanding 4.5 stars 2.Wild Gift(1981)-AOTY for me in 1981 Easily 5 stars 1.Under the Big Black Sun(1982)-AOTY in 1982 and a top 20 all time for me. Wish I could give it more than 5 stars
Under the Black Sun 5 stars (9.7) Ain’t Love Grand - 4.5 stars (8.7) Wild Gift - 4 stars (8.3) Los Angeles - 3.5 stars (7.5) See How We Are - 3 stars (6.6) More Fun in the New World - 3 stars (6.3) ALPHABETLAND - 2.5 stars (5.7) Hey Zeus - 2 stars (4.8)
Of course, Exene was famously married to Viggo Mortensen for a time, and they have a son.. And John Doe has appeared in dozens of movies over the years as a character actor. My favorite was a small role as Julianne Moore's ex-husband in "Boogie Nights".
In my assessment, I always had put this band halfway between Gun Club and Cramps, so I was quite puzzled to see them labelled as punk in so many cases...well, maybe in Hollywood...It does not matter, they were a fun band and the better when they sounded most amateurish - which spoils that I prefer their earlier records. In general, they were a step below The Blasters or The Cramps - two steps down if you take Gun Club into account as well... 8. Hey Zeus! 2,5 (Another one clattered by Tchad Blake - not that there was that much to ruin with these low point songs...) (7. not sure if this even counts) Alphabetland 3,0 (27 minutes of which the longest tune is a re-recording of a 1987 song...it was more the promise of a return that did not happen during Covid. Maybe it is still to come? The reunion of the old quartet sounded good on what little was released.) 6. Ain't Love Grand 3,0 (If Heart had these songs in the early 80s...just imagine Ann Wilson instead of Exene.) 5. See How We Are 3,0 (4th of July is a nice Blasters song, as are the first three songs in general. The rest are pop songs from a band that cannot perform them. In this context their vocals become annoying instead of the highlight.) 4. More Fun in the New World 3,5 (Rockabilly Punk with a couple of good songs but too many mainstream attempts that make their vocal limitations obvious.) 3. Los Angeles 3,5 (From the same place that spawned Eagles and this is as much punk as that other band were desperadoes - but X is way more fun to listen to.) 2. Under the Big Black Sun 4,0 (Most of the Country Punk works excellent but the missteps - like the cover song - leave a large impact on a 33 minute album. And, this came out the year when Gun Club released Miami...#38 in 1982.) 1. Wild Gift 4,0 (Probably the tightest interactions between the singers that demonstrated that as a band they were more than the sum of its parts. This is their most consistent and accomplished album, even if lacking real highlights. #25 in 1981.)
@@davidellis5141 This is a different song, just same title. They cover some old 50s song that was recorded by each and every lounge singer or orchestra back then. Not that Ultravox is any better...
Good commentary, Rox. We already exchanged notes. We are hearing them about the same but the height for me was Ain't Love Grand which was also my intro to them.
My two favorite bands in high school started with the letter "x", X And XTC. 8 Alphabetland. 7 Hey Zeus! 6 See How We Are. 5 Ain't Love Grand. 4 More Fun in the New World. 3 Los Angeles. 2 Under the Big Black Sun. 1 Wild Gift. X doesn't have a bad record, although Alphabetland is somewhat mediocre. A fan for over 40 years.......and counting........Was living in southern California and saw X a few times.. A fantastic live band also. I had a vinyl copy of More Fun signed by all the band members, and lost it!Thanks guys. Looking forward to top 10 songs.
X albums ranked 8. Ain't Love Grand! 2.5 stars 7. See How We Are 3 stars 6. Alphabetland 3 stars 5. Hey Zeus! 3.5 stars 4. Wild Gift 3.5 stars 3. More Fun in the New World 3.5 stars 2. Under the Big Black Sun 3.5 stars 1. Los Angeles 4 stars
I found out about them because the version of “Wild Thing” used in the “Major League” movies (probs my favorite movies of all time) is the “X” version, a banger of a rendition might I add
"Welcome to another episode of Jason Doesn't Like Women Singers Unless They Sing Country" Not far off. Expected this type of reaction from Jason. Glad to see Kram and Joe are on board. 1. Under the Big Black Sun (4.75/5) 2. Wild Gift (4.75/5) 3. Los Angeles (4.25/5 - I appreciate it more for what it was in the context of the times than I do an album on its on.) 4. More Fun in the New World (4/5) I flip flop on my favorite two albums by them depending on the day. I don't really care for the albums as a whole after that point. Some good songs here or there, but nothing I wouldn't listen to outside of an Apple Music Essentials playlist. Maybe I should revisit See How We Are. Kram's review is not exactly how I remember it, but he made it sound fantastic. Exene is fantastic. The interplay between her and John Doe on the first 4 albums is something special.
@@TheDigitalGramophone Excellent top 3 first albums & I admit in my comment .. that Under .. is probably the best now but absolutely Los Angeles was epic in 1980. Captured the city perfectly. Mets are not rolling over going to be a great race for bye & home field. Yankees still can't beat Astros ..
My list would be closest to Kramzer. Seen the band three times (and John Doe solo). I agree with Jason, though, that the New York Dolls did better reunion albums.
My X album ranking 8. Hey Zeus ! 2.5 stars 7. Alphabetland 2.5 stars 6. Ain’t Love Grand 2.5 stars 5. See How We Are 3 stars 4. Under the Big Black Sun 3 stars 3. More Fun in the New World 3.5 stars 2. Wild Gift 4 stars 1. Los Angeles 4 stars
First found X on Decline of Western Civilization. They were the best band from the first wave of west coast punk by a good distance. Distinct sound and seedy lyrics. First four albums with Manzarek are excellent and I rank them in order of release.
A documentary that I suggest that X was in as well as Black Flag Circle Jerks Catholic Discipline and Fear very pivotal punk bands. Decline of Western Civilization. Everyone has heard The Doors Soul Kitchen which they covered off the album Los Angeles.
1. Wild Gift, 2. LA, 3. Under the Big Black Sun, 4. More Fun in the New World, 5. Ain't Love Grand, 6. See How We Are, 7. Alphabetland, 8. Hey Zeus! -- Wild Gift perfect album.
I bought “See How We Are” on CD when it was first released. Understand that CDs were just starting to move into the realm of affordability but still higher priced than the more dominant cassette. Vinyl was slipping quickly. The guy working the register at Sam Goody said to me flippantly “Oh, X on compact disc”. That prick.
X Album Ranking: #8 Ain't Love Grand [1985] (6.5) ⭐⭐⭐ #7 Hey Zeus! [1993] (7.0) ⭐⭐⭐½ #6 More Fun In The New World [1983] (7.5) ⭐⭐⭐½ [N/A] Poor Little Critter On The Road (The Knitters) [1985] (7.8) ⭐⭐⭐½ #5 See How We Are [1987] (7.8) ⭐⭐⭐⭐ [N/A] The Modern Sounds of The Knitters [2005] (8.0)⭐⭐⭐⭐ #4 Los Angeles [1980] (8.2) ⭐⭐⭐⭐ #3 Alphabetland [2020] (8.5) ⭐⭐⭐⭐ #2 Under the Big Black Sun [1982] (8.6) ⭐⭐⭐⭐ #1 Wild Gift [1981] (9.2) ⭐⭐⭐⭐½
X, is a band. Wild Gift- 3.5 (~7) Los Angeles- 3.5 (~6.5) They're fine, but yeah just don't completely understand what elevated this particular band for the critics. Doesn't seem like they've caught on too much in the grand scheme of things. But I'm glad some folks like 'em. I just wasn't personally motivated to look into the others after hearing the first two.
X is a cornerstone of the LA punk scene, and I appreciate the musicianship of the entire band. in defense of Exene Cervenka: technically, she's no Edith Piaf, but for dynamics and emotive delivery, she's really good. and the duo of Exene and John Doe is pretty spectacular imo. she reminds me a bit of Poly Styrene from (here's a coincidence) X-Ray Spex. both have limited range and don't always hit the right note but both are masters of expression. another fun thing about X: Billy Zoom had the greatest guitar stance ever! in their heyday, he always had a grin on his face.
If Exene sounded more like the way you describe her I probably wouldn’t have a problem with her. I just didn’t pick up on much of that energy you’re talking about. Not only is she often out of key I felt like she often sounded bored and like she was reading the words of a page. If you’re going to get by without vocal chops you’d better be wild AF and I didn’t think she did enough.
@@TastesLikeMusic I guess we just hear her differently, but I respect that you're not buying the hype of Exene. my only hope of conveying that wild energy to you might be for you to watch them live-not in person, I mean like on Decline of Western Civilization, for instance.
So much of one's opinion on music comes from experiences. There's no replacement for hearing something when it came out when you were young. Reviewing albums that were released 40 years ago as an adult is no replacement for having an emotional attachement.
They are a punk band. Punk was not limited to a musical sound until the hardcore fascists got hold of it. Punk was more about an attitude towards musicmaking, and with that in mind I think X was definitely punk for their time.
They certainly were stars of the Los Angeles punk scene of the late seventies, well documented in " The Decline Of Western Civilization " movie. They also were right up there with The Dead Kennedys and The Avengers in the San Francisco scene. The fact that Ray Manzarek wanted to produce their first four albums speaks wonders. Clearly, the Americana and poetry blended with Xs' Ramonsian intensity.
1. Wild Gift 5* 2. Los Angeles 5* 3. Under the Big Black Sun 4.5* 4. More Fun in the New World 4* 5. Ain't Love Grand 3.5* 6. Smoke & Fiction 3* 7. Alphabetland 3* 8. See How We Are 3* 9. Hey Zeus! 2.5*
I love Los Angeles, think it's one of the best early punk albums, and remember being underwhelmed by the handful of their later albums that I listened to when I was a teenager. Should probably give them another chance now that I'm old and more into boring music.
8. Ain't Love Grand! (1985) 2/5 7. See How We Are (1987) 2.5/5 6. Alphabetland (2020) 2.5/5 5. Wild Gift (1981) 3/5 4. Los Angeles (1980) 3/5 3. Hey Zeus! (1993) 3/5 2. More Fun In The New World (1983) 3.5/5 1. Under The Big Black Sun (1982) 4/5
To me, it's the way John Doe and Exene's voices blend together in these fucked up, skewed harmonies that define the sound of the band. It's the X sound. I don't even know why you'd listen to this band if you don't like Exene's singing.
Heard the first 5 albums in the 80s, picked up the first two around 1983 because of all the buzz. Never been a huge punk fan, more selective in my appreciation. X is not a band that will be in danger of cracking my list of favorite artists. Their albums probably all fall in the 2.0 to 3.5 stars range. My rankings are not in line with the fan vote. 8. Hey Zeus ! 7. Los Angeles 6. Wild Gift 5. Alphabetland 4. See How We Are 3. Under The Big Black Sun 2. More Fun In The New World 1. Ain't Love Grand
@@davidellis5141 @David Ellis ... Great stuff. I also have a lot of love for Gun Club, Hickoids, and Tex and the Horseheads, especially that first album. 🐴
@@davidellis5141 I got that EP when it came out, but it's been years since I've heard it. And now that you mention it... Man! I need to hear "That's What You Always Say" immediately. 🤠
Awesome band! 8. Hey Zeus! (1993) ★★★½ 7. Ain't Love Grand (1985) ★★★½ 6. See How We Are (1987) ★★★★ 5. Alphabetland (2020) ★★★★ 4. Los Angeles (1980) ★★★★½ 3. Wild Gift (1981) ★★★★½ 2. Under the Big Black Sun (1982) ★★★★★ 1. More Fun in the New World (1983) ★★★★★ ★★★★★ - Masterpiece ★★★★½ - Really great ★★★★ - Great ★★★½ - Really good ★★★ - Good ★★½ - OK ★★ - Bad ★½ - Really bad ★ - Awful ½ - The worst
1. Los Angeles (1980) 4.5/5 2. More Fun in the New World (1983) 4.5/5 3. Wild Gift (1981) 4/5 4. Under the Big Black Sun (1982) 4/5 5. Ain't Love Grand! (1985) 3.5/5 6. ALPHABETLAND (2020) 3/5 7. See How We Are (1987) 2.5/5 8. Hey Zeus! (1993) 2.5/5 CHRONOLOGICAL ORDER: 4.5 Los Angeles (1980) 4.0 Wild Gift (1981) 4.0 Under the Big Black Sun (1982) 4.5 More Fun in the New World (1983) 3.5 Ain't Love Grand! (1985) 2.5 See How We Are (1987) 2.5 Hey Zeus! (1993) 3.0 ALPHABETLAND (2020) X's influences are so diverse (surf music, rockabilly, '60s pop, country, R&B) it's easy to forget they're categorized as a punk band. Although, their 1980 debut is certainly one of the great punk albums. It has so much energy and personality- just an irresistible record. The bare-knuckles follow-up, Wild Gift, isn't quite as consistent but still features a couple-four of their most striking moments. For 1982's Under the Big Black Sun they signed to a major label and doubled-down on their country influences. Their 4th studio release, More Fun in the New World, is just that- I don't know if I've heard a band have more fun than X seem to be having on this album. (I also find it to be their most tuneful LP.) 1985's Ain't Love Grand takes on characteristics of typical 1980s production and is generally less inspired than its predecessors. X's guitar player (Billy Zoom) quit shortly thereafter and the music definitely suffered as a result. By 1987's See How We Are, the punk elements are almost completely gone and they start sounding like a pretty mainstream pop-rock act. Hey Zeus! tries to reclaim their hard rocking identity but comes up decidedly short. Their 2020 comeback LP, Alphabetland is quite respectable considering they hadn't made an album in more than a quarter century. X probably deserves to be more famous than they are- they just never managed to find that one bona fide hit song that would've supercharged their career. Exene Cervenka's voice might also have something to do with it. Her slightly out of key singing can take some getting used to. Vocally, they're at their best when Cervenka and John Doe share lead singing duties (especially when they trade off call-and-response style.) X is not an all-time top 100 artist for me but I think their music is consistently x-cellent. A candidate for best "flying under the radar" band of the 1980s. MY RATING SYSTEM: 5.0 = major classic (consistently great *and* stratospheric highs) 4.5 = minor classic (consistently great *or* stratospheric highs, but not both) 4.0 = great (a clear majority is worth revisiting and it's an essential record for this artist/style - passes my "it'll make a fan out of someone who's new to this artist" test) 3.5 = seriously good (at least half is worth revisiting) 3.0 = nominally good (less than half is worth revisiting) 2.5 = decent (competent but uninspired - not worth revisiting) 2.0 = poor (difficult listen) 1.5 = awful (can't finish it) 1.0 = historically awful (musical apocalypse) * "Consistently" does not mean "flawlessly." I allow for a few duds if the rest of the songs are good enough. "Stratospheric highs" refer to albums that are either extremely influential or feature iconic songs. (Albums that I consider to be "perfect" can also reach 5 stars, even without containing iconic songs.) * I don't go below 1 star because once I'm in the realm of the truly terrible I don't care to differentiate anymore. * Anything I rate 3.5 stars or higher is an album I'm enthusiastic about and would likely revisit at some point.
Wild Gift obviously has more rockabilly, or roots influence if you will then Los Angeles. Some Other Time swaggers along at a tempo not strolled on the first. Nasuea is slower, rest are faster. Beyond and Back I wish the average punk song has as much going for itnas.this song. Even the mosy stripped down tracks Im coming over year one back 2 the base are diverse and catchy while once over twice ahd hiuse i call home have layers that leave tears like an onion
I like all of their albums including Smoke And Fiction which just came out. Impossible for me as a fan from the very start to pick a favorite but Ain’t Love Grand is my least favorite. It’s just OK.
Los Angeles is the best. 2-Under The Big Black Sun 3-Wild Gift 4-More Fun In The New World 5-See How We Are 6-Alphabetland 7-Ain’t Love Grand 8-Hey Zeus
The lead song of Hey Zeus is a classic. Reminds me of an old flame. So it is my number#1 Viva la Palestine 🇵🇸❤️✌️🕊️. May peace and freeedom prevail on this Earth 🌎🌍
Not to sound like a jerk, but if only one of you knows much about X you shouldn't be ranking their albums. I heard the first 5 and here is how I rank them - 1. More fun in the new world. 2. Under the big black sun. 3. Los Angeles. 4. Wild Gift. 5. Ain't love grand.
@@TastesLikeMusic I've listened to their albums many times so any list I give is just my particular taste. There's no right or wrong. But obviously someone giving a list if they have only heard 3 songs is silly.
I think Ain't Love Grand is their worst album. I'm not a fan of the production and the songs sound repetitive. I do agree that Los Angeles isn't their best (I think Under the Big Black Sun is)
I really want to see Jason make some Trump debate faces when he disagrees with the other two. Edit - Never mind. I just got further in and Kramz is basically doing it. 😂
08) Los Angeles (1980) 2.5/5 07) Wild Gift (1981) 3/5 06) Under the Big Black Sun (1982) 3.25/5 05) Ain't Love Grand! (1985) 3.25/5 04) Alphabetland (2020) 3.75/5 03) See How We Are (1987) 4/5 02) Hey Zeus! (1993) 4/5 01) More Fun in the New World (1983) 4.5/5 Chronological Order: 1980 - 2.50 Los Angeles 1981 - 3.00 Wild Gift 1982 - 3.25 Under the Big Black Sun 1983 - 4.50 More Fun in the New World 1985 - 3.25 Ain't Love Grand! 1987 - 4.00 See How We Are 1993 - 4.00 Hey Zeus! 2020 - 3.75 Alphabetland Ratings Scale: 0 stars - irredeemably terrible/insultingly bad/the worst .5 stars - terrible 1 star - bad 1.5 stars - pretty bad 2 stars - fair 2.5 stars - meh 2.75 stars - "It's OK, but quit playing it." 3 stars - OK/decent 3.25 stars - pretty good 3.5 stars - good 4 stars - very good 4.5 stars - excellent 5 stars - gold leeches on my arm notes - * I never got into X. What little I heard didn't turn me on enough to buy an album or pursue them further. But I really dug this listening experience. Their rockabilly cowpunk style is great and supercool. * I'm sure my ratings and rankings will seem off kilter to the typical X fan. The main reason I have their earliest albums rated low is Exene Cervenka's voice. Especially on the first two albums, I find it to be shrill and flat. Most of her singing here is borderline monotone. But she does start to improve on Black Sun, and by the 4th album, she's improved enough to be tolerable. Although she never becomes a great singer to my ears, her vocals are serviceable from this point on for the most part. John Doe is a good singer. Good enough at least, although he sings offkey sometimes too. Still, he sounds good, and I think his vocals improved as time went on as well. * This is punk rock and it's not necessarily meant to be pretty, so I can understand why many have no issues with their "less-than-perfect" vocals. * I do love the rockabilly punk thing on the debut which might have been my favorite album if the vocals didn't irk me so much. "The Unheard Music" is the standout song on this one with its bad ass beat/riff. * Ray Manzarek produced their first four albums and occasionally made some great contributions on organ. * Their lyrics tend to be rather lazy and nonsensical. For example, the song "When Our Love Passed Out on the Couch" has the line, "I hate that I need to know what you do/ When our love passed out on the couch" which just sounds weird. The tenses don't match - this kind of thing is typical with X lyrics. They did get better in the lyric department though over time. * Sometimes my ears would perk up when a song would come on with noticeably better songwriting and it would turn out to be a cover (but not "Soul Kitchen" - that one rocks but the vocals are terribly monotone). * As mentioned before, Exene's vocals are not quite so shrill on Under the Big Black Sun. There's definite improvement here. Doe sings on "Blue Spark," a bad ass tune. The last two songs on the album are the first "great" songs I encountered. * The opening song on More Fun in the New World is not catchy, but the rest of the album is pretty great. There's more of a Country influence here. The second side is the strongest. * Ain't Love Grand! finds the band shifting toward a more conventional rock/alt-rock sound. The first side is very good, but the second is significantly weaker. The band claims to not like this one, especially the production. * X brings back their classic sound on several See How We Are tracks, and when they do, the songs are great. There are a few less-than-great tracks in the mix though. "You" sounds like X doing pop. "Cyrano de Bergerac's Back" is something different. It totally rocks and the drums are killer. * I expected Hey Zeus! (which I think is a play on the Spanish pronunciation of "Jesus") to be weak based on what I read about it but it's surprisingly strong. It's more of an alternative rock album. Only "Everybody" sounds weak and forced. The opener "Someone's Watching" has an ominous tone. There's lots of good vocal melodies throughout. "Country at War" really cooks. They should have kept the tape rolling at the end of that song - they were onto something. * See How We Are and Hey Zeus! are neck and neck but I gave the advantage to Hey Zeus! because while there are higher highs on See How We Are, Hey Zeus! is the most consistently good album between them. * Many moons later, their recent 2020 comeback album does a good job of recapturing the punk spirit of their early albums, thanks in part to songs they salvaged from those times. A totally respectable return. * Cheers mates!!!!!!!!!!
We agree on More Fun in the New World, but not on much else. I can see how some people would find X to be one of those "I can't get past the bad vocals" bands. Cervenka's voice doesn't bother me so much, though, so it didn't kill my star ratings.
@@179rich Maybe a little. Still, you'd expect a professional singer to eventually get to the point where they could be on-pitch consistently. I don't think she ever got there.
Maybe they should do a list of the best reunion albums of all-time. But I would agree that they tend to be far lesser than the group’s heyday in most instances.
I love X. One of my favorite bands since I first heard back in the late 90’s. The fact that you guys who clearly listen to a ton of music are just now recently discovering them really goes to show how under appreciated they are. They deserve much more notoriety than they have. I’d really rank them among some of the all time greatest American rock bands. Maybe Stranger Things will put them on the soundtrack of the next season and they’ll finally get some love.
The intro to Decline of Western Civilization is the definition of punk. Bodies slamming together while "Nausea" is blasting in the background.
Wild Gift is not only my fave X album IMO, but one of the all time greatest albums of all time. It transcends the punk genre and is just a phenomenal record period.
I love Wild Gift but it has a couple of filler songs and some of the best songs are holdovers from the first album.
@@vinylrichie007 The first two albums are 5 stars in my book. All great tunes and no filler just good old rock n roll with some speedy rockabilly. I prefer Wild Gift but I love the first one also. The next 2 are 4.5 stars. Then it went downhill pretty fast.
@@tntstorms7969 I agree the albums went downhill pretty fast after the fourth. They did manage to still record some great songs among the later albums. Wild Gift starts out with four great songs then I’m Coming Over. After four great songs I’m Coming Over sounds like filler. It’s Who Who You Know may not be filler but it is far from great. Back To The Base seems like filler also. The vocals are good but the music seems extremely weak in comparison. Year 1 is okay. In my opinion both sides get weaker towards the end. Some of the best songs on Wild Gift were preformed live before the debut was released.
@@vinylrichie007 I think I can't criticize the Wild Gift album because it is permanently etched in my brain. Even the weaker songs you pointed out are very short, very fast, and don't really drag the album down but actually are more of a jolt of pure punk. Try playing the song Back to the Base on guitar , it's not easy! It's Who You Know is one of my favs. To each is own. : )
@@tntstorms7969 Like I said in my original comment, “I love Wild Gift.” I think the first album had a much bigger impact when released.
I love X!!! I'm surprised there was so little exposure to this band, other than Joe. Also strange that Jason, while being the one who apparently likes them the least, was the only one who shared my personal number one album pick "More Fun in the New World."
I've been a pretty big fan of X for quite a long time. My first exposure to them was the song "Johny Hit and Run Paulene" which I heard in an old episode of a History of Rock n Roll show from the 90s. When I was in college I picked up Los Angeles and Wild Gift and played them both a ton, also got into the other earlier albums as well. The only ones I hadn't heard before this week was the stretch from Ain't Love Grand - Hey Zeus so it was cool to finally check those out. As a punk fan I appreciate that they have elements of many other styles of music and I have always appreciated their sound. It was great to really dive in and revisit everything this week and it has been cool to see the many different responses to their albums and many different rankings in the community. Even if it is a little bit painful sometimes :P.
8. Hey Zeus! - 3.5 (7.4)
7. Alphabetland - 4 (7.7)
6. See How We Are - 4 (7.9)
5. Ain’t Love Grand - 4 (8.2)
4. More Fun In the New World - 4.5 (9.2)
3. Under the Big Black Sun - 4.5 (9.3)
2. Los Angeles - 5 (9.7)
1. Wild Gift - 5 (9.8)
You are quite the fan, Vanessa! 😀My intro was when Burning House of Love was in relatively heavy MTV rotation. Made an expressway to my brain. Seems like Ray Manzarek (My Man!) was their Tony Visconti (if X were T. Rex).
@@NaughtyVampireGod I was actually unfamiliar with that song before this week but it's a great single!
@@Vanessa.P Hey! And the video is available on YT in low-res glory. 🙃
@@Vanessa.P Interested to see your top songs list. i
@@NaughtyVampireGod I'm interested to see yours too! :)
X is probably the first "hey these guys aren't on the radio" band I ever knew. I've loved them for it ever since.
8. Ain't Love Grand
7. Alphabetland
6. See How We Are
5. Hey Zeus!
4. Wild Gift
3. Los Angeles
2. Under The Big Black Sun
1. More Fun In The New World
"Hey, I can't find nothing on the radio
Ah, yo turn to that station"
This might be the first episode with a discography I didn't have a lot of experience with already but came away eager to hear more from the enthusiasm here. You guys are on a roll. Don't let me down
Thanks for this. I'm a pretty big fan of X and do enjoy the vocal blending which works very well regardless of the technical limitations. I like the first three pretty well equally. Alphabetland is ok but I don't revisit much. I have only heard the first 5 albums and Alphabetland so can't comment on the others.
Looking forward to Zevon.
Very interesting discussion. I don't know much about X but good to learn and try new music. Great stuff as always.
Hey, Barry. Sorry for my knee jerk comment. Entirely uncalled for. Yes, highly recommend a sampling for them. Fantastic discography.
@@toddhill7483 No, you were right. My comment was stupid and I apologise. Enjoy the music and the channel.
If you like X, you should check out Skating Polly. They were heavily influenced by X and Exene produced their first official album. Exene also wrote some songs with them. She also appears in their documentary called Ugly Pop
Nice to see Skating Polly get mentioned. Good stuff.
I've loved X for decades, great band. Glad to see the appreciation for The Have Nots...I picture honey dripping off the neck of Billy Zoom's guitar during the solo!
Enjoyed the video. I have only "X Los Angeles" and "Wild Gift", but will certainly add "Under the Big Black Sun".
My list :
8. Hey Zeus! 2.5
7. See How We Are 3
6. Alphabetland 3.5
5. Ain't Love Grand 3.5
4. More Fun in the New World 4
3. Under the Big Black Sun 4.5
2. Los Angeles 5
1. Wild Gift 5
Great commentary guys. Thank you
Thanks for considering their awesome catalogue. All their records are beyond the star ratings to me, and they're awesome live, and on tour this summer! Also don't skip John Doe's solo records, esp the new one, Fables in a Foreign Land, written during the pandemic. (and one record by X's folk punk alter ego, The Knitters)
I'm only rating 6 albums, Spotify did not have the other two. I have been a fan of X since the early 80s. I read a review of More Fun in The New World, and ran right out and bought it. It was the rare review that praised an album, and I still liked it even more than the reviewer.
1. More Fun in the New World 5/5
2. Under the Big Black Sun 4.5/5
3. Los Angeles 4.5/5
4. Wild Gift 4/5
5. Ain't Love Grand 3/5
6. Alphabetland 3/5
Joe is totally on point on X. And he’s right, The Have Nots is one of the great album closers in history. Pleasantly surprised Joe liked them as much as he did Figures Kram woukd like them as well and did t seem like Jason’s cup of tea
The Have Nots will indeed be mentioned in my top 10 X songs list.
X was inexplicably off my radar all those years ago -- and I'm an L.A. kid (South Bay). Just now getting into them. First four albums are utterly amazing, especially "Wild Gift."
The first three are brilliant. Wild Gift is my go-to. 🎱
Yes.
Joe is right on with that assessment of the debut. Well done sir!
Looooove me some X!
1. Wild Gift
2. More Fun in the New World
3. Under the Big Black Sun
4. Los Angeles
5. See How We Are
6. Aint Love Grand
7. Alphabetland
8. Hey Zeus
Long time X fan. It was interesting to see them reviewed by you guys that don't have the history with them that a lot of us commenters do. I first saw them live in 82. And I will see them any time I have the chance. I got to see them without Billy Zoom, and the show was still great, but missed that Billy Zoom IT factor. The first four albums are the pinnacle for me, but I also purchased and still listen to the last 4 as well. Throw in live at the Whiskey-a-Go-Go. All of those are still in my rotations today. I'm also a big fan of John Doe as a solo artist. If you haven't seen the Unheard Music you should.
8. Ain't Love Grand, Over produced, but a few good songs that sound good live.
7. Hey Zeus! Not a bad effort, just different.
6. See How We Are, 4th of July, is one of my favorites, thank you Dave Alvin.
5. Alphabetland, This was such a welcome surprise early in the pandemic. Crisp sharp songs that fit well in their catalogue. I may have it here due to nostalgia and excitement for new X after 35 years.
4. Under the Big Black Sun. These 4 are interchangeable for me. The Have Nots is an all timer for me.
3.Wild Gift, solid top to bottom, tomorrow I may have it #1.
2. More Fun in the New World, Poor Girl, I see Red, Make the Music Go Bang.
1. From the opening chord of Los Angeles I was hooked, but Johnny Hit and Run Paulene sealed the deal.
I never got around to listening to See How We Are and Hey Zeus, since they aren't streaming. But, here's my ranking for the other six.
1. Los Angeles - 5 Stars. I think this is a perfect punk album with some cool rockabilly influences.
2. Wild Gift - 4.5 Stars. Almost as good as Los Angeles, but maybe a couple tunes I'm not wild about. The opener is great though.
3. Under the Big Black Sun - 4.5 Stars. Also great. They start to get a little less punky on this one.
4. More Fun in the New World - 4 Stars. The most uneven of the Ray Manzarek era, but still pretty great. The Jerry Lee Lewis cover is awesome.
5. Ain't Love Grand - 3 Stars. Not terrible songs, but the production is really bad and dated.
6. Alphabetland - 3 Stars. Not bad, but no real memorable songs outside of the Cyrano De Berger's Back remake.
That is very close to my list except I love Wild Gift the most since it was my first X record and I played it way too much to the point I learned all the songs on guitar without any hesitation playing all the way through the album. Los Angeles is nearly perfect but I don't like the dark stuff like nausea or Ray's keyboards. See How We Are had a song or two that was OK. Hey Zues was forgettable.
Kramzer and Joe winning today for appreciating Exene's vocals. Jason, not so much. Doe and Exene's vocals together are good, sometimes even great. I like Jason's voice just fine but what sometimes comes out of his mouth makes my ears hurt.
The 1981 album - A Minute To Prey , A Second To Die by The Flesheaters is an Awesome album featuring an amazing backing band consisting of John & DJ from X & Phil & Bill from The Blasters & Steve from Los Lobos. I highly recommend seeking it out .. Imagine X with Iggy Pop on vocals.
The perfect soundtrack for hypnotizing chickens. 🤠
01 Under The Big Black Sun
02 Los Angeles
03 Wild Gift
04 More Fun In The New World
05 See How We Are
06 Ain’t Love Grand
07 Alphabetland
08 Hey Zeus!
X is good! I'm only familiar with Los Angeles and Wild Gift, which were sold on a single CD at one point. The guy who introduced them to me back in 1999 or so put a bunch of their songs on a mix tape with a lot of other punk stuff. At the time I didn't really listen to punk at all, being far more invested in the metal side of things. X had a little extra something that I could really get behind. Also those organ guest spots are so cool. I need to listen to some of those other albums.
Yes indeed, first 2 albums absolute classics. I'm sure you'll like their other albums as well.
John Doe played a proper scuzz nugget very well in one of the greatest movies ever made: Roadhouse!
He’s in my all time favorite flick too: Boogie Nights.
@Adam P Ah yes. It's been a while since I have seen Boogie Nights. Does JD play Julianne Moore's (ex) husband in it?
@@mattymac1399 he does.
X is a great band.....when you gonna do a Cramps countdown?
With their last album coming out, I decided to revisit some X videos and stumbled across this. It's interesting to hear these guys talk about the music outside of its context. I do think something is lost, glaringly so when hearing the one guy sh@t on Exene. But, I enjoyed hearing what they got out of the music.
For me, X helped bring punk to the suburbs. It was an arthouse version of punk. But it was part of the scene as it hit the suburbs. Exene's vocals were an important part of that punk sensibility. Unfortunately, they couldn't make a living being Rolling Stone Magazine darlings and selling out clubs. So they tried adapting to the MTV era. Which never worked. Exene ended up getting a job as a librarian. And Billy opened a repair business. Their recent music may not break much new ground (even though Exene's lyricism is remarkable), but it's nice hearing them go out on their own terms. It's nice to know some younger listeners hear some value in this music. But, at the time, when cable TV was new and I had to drive to San Francisco to escape my suburban wastescape, this music was a gift.
My X Albums ranked - # 1 Los Angeles # 2 Under The Big Black Sun # 3 Wild Gift # 4 Ain't Love Grand # 5 More Fun In The New World # 6 Alphabet Land # 7 See How We Are & # 8 Hey Zeus - What an iconic debut Los Angeles is with Ray Manzerek Producing & adding his organ on several tracks. Under The Big Black Sun is an Awesome 👌 Major label debut which is understandably the favorite of many more recent fans. Wild Gift is near perfect as well & is often paired with Los Angeles on CD 💿. Great Band 👍
I've only heard los angeles
I was lucky enough to grow up seeing them play all over LA and Hollywood. They were and will always be one of the definitive LA bands, John Doe met Billy Zoom through ads they both placed in the The Recycler which was a famous old LA free ads paper that we all used to buy and sell cars out of, rent apartments, find gear and other people looking for bands to join, etc. X embodied what it was to be a crusty punk rocker with a real literary bent. Seeing them live was really visceral for my teenage self at the time, I recall one specific night The Roxy Theater when they played around the time of ‘Under the Big Black Sun’ with The Plugz opening (who are also amazing, if you’ve never heard you should look for their ‘Electrify Me’ and ‘Better Luck’ Lps, they used to play with X all the time around LA early 80’s…
Anyways I was really high having smoked something very strong between bands and during ‘Universal Corner’ I got up on stage to stage dive as we did back then at energetic moments in shows and just as I landed on the crowd within seconds I had a huge arm with me in a headlock being dragged out the side door of the club and booted out of the show which I wasn’t able to get back into…so sadly didn’t see that whole show. Beyond that I must say that the first four X albums are absolutely essential for me, all five star records but I’m also biased being a former Angeleno and having history with the band, of those four I can’t even say which I like the most. ‘Wild Gift’ used to be my favorite at the time of it’s release but later on I liked ‘Under the Big Black Sun’ the most and sometimes ‘Los Angeles’ has been my favorite. Also this is first time in quite awhile that I feel Kramzer is pretty spot on in getting the somewhat ‘off’ vocals and interplay btw exene and John Doe. It’s a mood, and reflective of that time living on the edge in early 80s Hollywood going to places like the Masque and the Cathay de Grande…for more insight on this check both the first ‘Decline of Western Civilization’ film as well as the amazing documentary on X ‘The Unheard Music’ which are both great and accurate timepieces. Good to see the TLM crew digging into this iconic LA band.
Speaking of which, the next LA icons you guys should rank would be SPARKS…one side note…Jason should check out the X country/rockabilly side project w/ Dave Alvin, The Knitters ‘Poor Little Critter in the Road’ feel like it’d be even more in his wheelhouse
John Doe's version of Merle Haggard's "Silver Wings" is lovely. There is even a "Poor Little Critter" tribute album. Have you read "More Fun In The New World," from 2019? It's near the top of my ever growing stack of music and film books and it looks like a good one.
@@johnlefsky8731 have not read yet no but I plan on it before long
I know next to nothing of this band. And nothing said here is enough for that to change. I will listen to any consensus top song on tomorrow’s list, but sounds like a passable band for me. Appreciate the vid.
Imo, there are good reasons why X never "made it big" (they don't have a true radio hit, Exene Cervenka's voice is a turnoff for a lot of people) but I do think their best songs are legitimately great songs. Check my "top 10 songs" list tomorrow.
@@AbbeyRoadkill1 Lookin forward to that, Whammy.
For many of us they’re also a time and a place type of band, having come of age in early 80’s LA. Had you been there at that time it would all make a lot more sense
1. Los Angeles. I kept going back and forth between this and Under The Big Black Sun, but the debut wins out. Some of my favorite X songs, and a great cover by a band I don't really like.
2. Under The Big Black Sun. Great opening and closing tracks, and you can't say enough about Billy Zoom and D. J. Bonebrake. And reading interviews with Zoom got me into Gene Vincent and Vincent's guitarist, Cliff Gallup.
3. Wild Gift. More variety in the songwriting, and if I think about it too long I might move this one up a notch. Or two. Really, this is one of those times where the albums are so good it's hard to choose.
4. More Fun In The New World. An easy number four, but still a great album. The title track has always been a favorite sing along, and I also like the Country version John and Exene did on the first Knitters album. That album also has John's lovely version of Merle Haggard's Silver Wings.
5. See How You Are. A step sideways into mid tempo heartland rock. Some good tracks, especially 4th of July, See How We Are and Surprise Surprise. Good, but missing Zoom, especially live. I saw that tour and it was just okay.
6.Alphabetland. Solid effort that I probably won't revisit too often.
7. Ain't Love Grand. Eh. Three of these songs were better done elsewhere. Love Shack and Burning House of Love were redone by The Knitters and Doe and Dave Alvin do a great Little Honey on the Border Radio soundtrack. That soundtrack is killer, by the way.
8. Hey Zeus. Not as bad as I remember, but I am starting a cd purge and this might end up at the local library fundraiser.
X were a huge band among my friends, at the time, and they meant a lot to me. I was pleasantly surprised at most of the comments here...for the most part.
Been waiting a long time for this X listography. L.A.'s greatest band and easily a top 20 for me; Here we go;
8.Ain't Love Grand(1985)-The only X album I really don't like. 1.5 stars
7.Hey Zeus(1993)-meh. 2.5 stars
6.Alphabetland(2020)-good 3 stars
5.See How We Are(1987)-very good 3.5 stars
4.More Fun in the New World(1983)-excellent 4 stars
3.Los Angeles(1980)-outstanding 4.5 stars
2.Wild Gift(1981)-AOTY for me in 1981 Easily 5 stars
1.Under the Big Black Sun(1982)-AOTY in 1982 and a top 20 all time for me. Wish I could give it more than 5 stars
Under the Black Sun 5 stars (9.7)
Ain’t Love Grand - 4.5 stars (8.7)
Wild Gift - 4 stars (8.3)
Los Angeles - 3.5 stars (7.5)
See How We Are - 3 stars (6.6)
More Fun in the New World - 3 stars (6.3)
ALPHABETLAND - 2.5 stars (5.7)
Hey Zeus - 2 stars (4.8)
I’ve only heard of them because they would play on the GTA V Radio
Of course, Exene was famously married to Viggo Mortensen for a time, and they have a son..
And John Doe has appeared in dozens of movies over the years as a character actor. My favorite was a small role as Julianne Moore's ex-husband in "Boogie Nights".
In my assessment, I always had put this band halfway between Gun Club and Cramps, so I was quite puzzled to see them labelled as punk in so many cases...well, maybe in Hollywood...It does not matter, they were a fun band and the better when they sounded most amateurish - which spoils that I prefer their earlier records. In general, they were a step below The Blasters or The Cramps - two steps down if you take Gun Club into account as well...
8. Hey Zeus! 2,5 (Another one clattered by Tchad Blake - not that there was that much to ruin with these low point songs...)
(7. not sure if this even counts) Alphabetland 3,0 (27 minutes of which the longest tune is a re-recording of a 1987 song...it was more the promise of a return that did not happen during Covid. Maybe it is still to come? The reunion of the old quartet sounded good on what little was released.)
6. Ain't Love Grand 3,0 (If Heart had these songs in the early 80s...just imagine Ann Wilson instead of Exene.)
5. See How We Are 3,0 (4th of July is a nice Blasters song, as are the first three songs in general. The rest are pop songs from a band that cannot perform them. In this context their vocals become annoying instead of the highlight.)
4. More Fun in the New World 3,5 (Rockabilly Punk with a couple of good songs but too many mainstream attempts that make their vocal limitations obvious.)
3. Los Angeles 3,5 (From the same place that spawned Eagles and this is as much punk as that other band were desperadoes - but X is way more fun to listen to.)
2. Under the Big Black Sun 4,0 (Most of the Country Punk works excellent but the missteps - like the cover song - leave a large impact on a 33 minute album. And, this came out the year when Gun Club released Miami...#38 in 1982.)
1. Wild Gift 4,0 (Probably the tightest interactions between the singers that demonstrated that as a band they were more than the sum of its parts. This is their most consistent and accomplished album, even if lacking real highlights. #25 in 1981.)
Of course you don’t like Dancing With Tears in my Eyes… - Joe
@@TastesLikeMusic One of the best Midge Ure Ultravox Era songs. I prefer the first 3 albums with John Foxx.
@@davidellis5141 This is a different song, just same title. They cover some old 50s song that was recorded by each and every lounge singer or orchestra back then. Not that Ultravox is any better...
Good commentary, Rox. We already exchanged notes. We are hearing them about the same but the height for me was Ain't Love Grand which was also my intro to them.
@@NaughtyVampireGod Ain't Love Grand is by far the worst one If that's your favorite you probably don't really like them,which is totally cool
My two favorite bands in high school started with the letter "x", X And XTC. 8 Alphabetland. 7 Hey Zeus! 6 See How We Are. 5 Ain't Love Grand. 4 More Fun in the New World. 3 Los Angeles. 2 Under the Big Black Sun. 1 Wild Gift. X doesn't have a bad record, although Alphabetland is somewhat mediocre. A fan for over 40 years.......and counting........Was living in southern California and saw X a few times.. A fantastic live band also. I had a vinyl copy of More Fun signed by all the band members, and lost it!Thanks guys. Looking forward to top 10 songs.
Also love XTC! Second favorite band after the Beatles. And now I'm getting into X.
Under the Big Black Sun for me moves up because the moving lyrics more than make up for the slight reduced punch of the sound
Do The Grateful Dead
X albums ranked
8. Ain't Love Grand! 2.5 stars
7. See How We Are 3 stars
6. Alphabetland 3 stars
5. Hey Zeus! 3.5 stars
4. Wild Gift 3.5 stars
3. More Fun in the New World 3.5 stars
2. Under the Big Black Sun 3.5 stars
1. Los Angeles 4 stars
I found out about them because the version of “Wild Thing” used in the “Major League” movies (probs my favorite movies of all time) is the “X” version, a banger of a rendition might I add
OT: The 80's were the Golden Age of Baseball Movies: The Natural; Bull Durham; Field of Dreams; Eight Men Out; Major League.
@@NaughtyVampireGod you forgot Squeeze Play which is also a Troma movie
@@japanesehercules hmm . . from 79 and tbh wouldn't put a troma movie on any classic list
LOL, Kramz reaction to Jason giving the #1 album 3.5 stars.
"Welcome to another episode of Jason Doesn't Like Women Singers Unless They Sing Country" Not far off. Expected this type of reaction from Jason. Glad to see Kram and Joe are on board.
1. Under the Big Black Sun (4.75/5)
2. Wild Gift (4.75/5)
3. Los Angeles (4.25/5 - I appreciate it more for what it was in the context of the times than I do an album on its on.)
4. More Fun in the New World (4/5)
I flip flop on my favorite two albums by them depending on the day.
I don't really care for the albums as a whole after that point. Some good songs here or there, but nothing I wouldn't listen to outside of an Apple Music Essentials playlist. Maybe I should revisit See How We Are. Kram's review is not exactly how I remember it, but he made it sound fantastic.
Exene is fantastic. The interplay between her and John Doe on the first 4 albums is something special.
Exene is not fantastic. Not even close.
@@TastesLikeMusic 🤣
@@TheDigitalGramophone Excellent top 3 first albums & I admit in my comment .. that Under .. is probably the best now but absolutely Los Angeles was epic in 1980. Captured the city perfectly. Mets are not rolling over going to be a great race for bye & home field. Yankees still can't beat Astros ..
@@TastesLikeMusic Yeah, it's kinda shocking how many people aren't put off by her offkey singing.
@@davidellis5141 Yeah, average start to the second half for the Bravos.
My list would be closest to Kramzer. Seen the band three times (and John Doe solo). I agree with Jason, though, that the New York Dolls did better reunion albums.
My X album ranking
8. Hey Zeus ! 2.5 stars
7. Alphabetland 2.5 stars
6. Ain’t Love Grand 2.5 stars
5. See How We Are 3 stars
4. Under the Big Black Sun 3 stars
3. More Fun in the New World 3.5 stars
2. Wild Gift 4 stars
1. Los Angeles 4 stars
First found X on Decline of Western Civilization. They were the best band from the first wave of west coast punk by a good distance. Distinct sound and seedy lyrics. First four albums with Manzarek are excellent and I rank them in order of release.
A documentary that I suggest that X was in as well as Black Flag Circle Jerks Catholic Discipline and Fear very pivotal punk bands. Decline of Western Civilization. Everyone has heard The Doors Soul Kitchen which they covered off the album Los Angeles.
1. Wild Gift, 2. LA, 3. Under the Big Black Sun, 4. More Fun in the New World, 5. Ain't Love Grand, 6. See How We Are, 7. Alphabetland, 8. Hey Zeus! -- Wild Gift perfect album.
I bought “See How We Are” on CD when it was first released. Understand that CDs were just starting to move into the realm of affordability but still higher priced than the more dominant cassette. Vinyl was slipping quickly. The guy working the register at Sam Goody said to me flippantly “Oh, X on compact disc”. That prick.
X Album Ranking:
#8 Ain't Love Grand [1985] (6.5) ⭐⭐⭐
#7 Hey Zeus! [1993] (7.0) ⭐⭐⭐½
#6 More Fun In The New World [1983] (7.5) ⭐⭐⭐½
[N/A] Poor Little Critter On The Road (The Knitters) [1985] (7.8) ⭐⭐⭐½
#5 See How We Are [1987] (7.8) ⭐⭐⭐⭐
[N/A] The Modern Sounds of The Knitters [2005] (8.0)⭐⭐⭐⭐
#4 Los Angeles [1980] (8.2) ⭐⭐⭐⭐
#3 Alphabetland [2020] (8.5) ⭐⭐⭐⭐
#2 Under the Big Black Sun [1982] (8.6) ⭐⭐⭐⭐
#1 Wild Gift [1981] (9.2) ⭐⭐⭐⭐½
X, is a band.
Wild Gift- 3.5 (~7)
Los Angeles- 3.5 (~6.5)
They're fine, but yeah just don't completely understand what elevated this particular band for the critics. Doesn't seem like they've caught on too much in the grand scheme of things. But I'm glad some folks like 'em. I just wasn't personally motivated to look into the others after hearing the first two.
X is a cornerstone of the LA punk scene, and I appreciate the musicianship of the entire band. in defense of Exene Cervenka: technically, she's no Edith Piaf, but for dynamics and emotive delivery, she's really good. and the duo of Exene and John Doe is pretty spectacular imo. she reminds me a bit of Poly Styrene from (here's a coincidence) X-Ray Spex. both have limited range and don't always hit the right note but both are masters of expression. another fun thing about X: Billy Zoom had the greatest guitar stance ever! in their heyday, he always had a grin on his face.
If Exene sounded more like the way you describe her I probably wouldn’t have a problem with her. I just didn’t pick up on much of that energy you’re talking about. Not only is she often out of key I felt like she often sounded bored and like she was reading the words of a page. If you’re going to get by without vocal chops you’d better be wild AF and I didn’t think she did enough.
@@TastesLikeMusic I guess we just hear her differently, but I respect that you're not buying the hype of Exene. my only hope of conveying that wild energy to you might be for you to watch them live-not in person, I mean like on Decline of Western Civilization, for instance.
So much of one's opinion on music comes from experiences. There's no replacement for hearing something when it came out when you were young. Reviewing albums that were released 40 years ago as an adult is no replacement for having an emotional attachement.
It’s much less biased for sure.
Los Angeles is a top 20 album for me. Need to hear more.
What are you waiting for???? - Joe
I was afraid of being disappointed but I think I’ll get on it.
They are a punk band. Punk was not limited to a musical sound until the hardcore fascists got hold of it. Punk was more about an attitude towards musicmaking, and with that in mind I think X was definitely punk for their time.
Agreed, its the attitude that defines them as punk.
They certainly were stars of the Los Angeles punk scene of the late seventies, well documented in " The Decline Of Western Civilization " movie. They also were right up there with The Dead Kennedys and The Avengers in the San Francisco scene. The fact that Ray Manzarek wanted to produce their first four albums speaks wonders. Clearly, the Americana and poetry blended with Xs' Ramonsian intensity.
1. Wild Gift 5*
2. Los Angeles 5*
3. Under the Big Black Sun 4.5*
4. More Fun in the New World 4*
5. Ain't Love Grand 3.5*
6. Smoke & Fiction 3*
7. Alphabetland 3*
8. See How We Are 3*
9. Hey Zeus! 2.5*
When’s the next Songs of the Year?
Next week
A Walk 🚶♂️ Off Homerun for # 99 Aaron Judge ! All Rise 🔨 ! DA Yankees .. Win 😎
I love Los Angeles, think it's one of the best early punk albums, and remember being underwhelmed by the handful of their later albums that I listened to when I was a teenager. Should probably give them another chance now that I'm old and more into boring music.
Boring music! Woo!
1. Under The Big Black Sun 2. More Fun In The New World 3. Wild Gift 4. Los Angeles 5. See How We Are 6. Alphabetland 7. Hey Zeus 8. Ain't Love Grand
My second favorite band that starts with an X!
X-Ray Spex?
XTC
Right, nobody has ever been better than Xhol Caravan in the last 50 years....
@@NaughtyVampireGod they might be #3 if I’d ever heard them 😁
@@NaughtyVampireGod Oh Bondage Up Yours !! 🎷
1 More Fun in the New World
2 Los Angeles
3 Under the Big Black Sun
4 Wild Gift
5 Ain’t Love Grand
6 Alphabetland
7 See How We Are
8 Hey Zeus
8. Ain't Love Grand! (1985) 2/5
7. See How We Are (1987) 2.5/5
6. Alphabetland (2020) 2.5/5
5. Wild Gift (1981) 3/5
4. Los Angeles (1980) 3/5
3. Hey Zeus! (1993) 3/5
2. More Fun In The New World (1983) 3.5/5
1. Under The Big Black Sun (1982) 4/5
To me, it's the way John Doe and Exene's voices blend together in these fucked up, skewed harmonies that define the sound of the band. It's the X sound. I don't even know why you'd listen to this band if you don't like Exene's singing.
Heard the first 5 albums in the 80s, picked up the first two around 1983 because of all the buzz. Never been a huge punk fan, more selective in my appreciation. X is not a band that will be in danger of cracking my list of favorite artists. Their albums probably all fall in the 2.0 to 3.5 stars range. My rankings are not in line with the fan vote.
8. Hey Zeus !
7. Los Angeles
6. Wild Gift
5. Alphabetland
4. See How We Are
3. Under The Big Black Sun
2. More Fun In The New World
1. Ain't Love Grand
XRT played some of their songs but there is nothing I remember now.
In the time it takes has a Johnny Cash June Carter duet feel.
Americana Punk🤘
Check out Rank & File album from 1982 which was also on Slash ( like X ) early .. Americana album from former punkers.
@@davidellis5141 @David Ellis ... Great stuff. I also have a lot of love for Gun Club, Hickoids, and Tex and the Horseheads, especially that first album. 🐴
@@jukeboxcowboy I really liked The Dream Syndicate Days Of Wine & Roses album & the EP before it.
@@davidellis5141 I got that EP when it came out, but it's been years since I've heard it. And now that you mention it... Man! I need to hear "That's What You Always Say" immediately. 🤠
@@jukeboxcowboy Nice Bass 🔊 by Kendra Smith.
Need smashing pumpkins week!
Awesome band!
8. Hey Zeus! (1993) ★★★½
7. Ain't Love Grand (1985) ★★★½
6. See How We Are (1987) ★★★★
5. Alphabetland (2020) ★★★★
4. Los Angeles (1980) ★★★★½
3. Wild Gift (1981) ★★★★½
2. Under the Big Black Sun (1982) ★★★★★
1. More Fun in the New World (1983) ★★★★★
★★★★★ - Masterpiece
★★★★½ - Really great
★★★★ - Great
★★★½ - Really good
★★★ - Good
★★½ - OK
★★ - Bad
★½ - Really bad
★ - Awful
½ - The worst
I think Jason likes Hey Zeus because the cover looks like a Dinosaur Jr album!
Facts.
Just saw this band in concert
1. Los Angeles (1980) 4.5/5
2. More Fun in the New World (1983) 4.5/5
3. Wild Gift (1981) 4/5
4. Under the Big Black Sun (1982) 4/5
5. Ain't Love Grand! (1985) 3.5/5
6. ALPHABETLAND (2020) 3/5
7. See How We Are (1987) 2.5/5
8. Hey Zeus! (1993) 2.5/5
CHRONOLOGICAL ORDER:
4.5 Los Angeles (1980)
4.0 Wild Gift (1981)
4.0 Under the Big Black Sun (1982)
4.5 More Fun in the New World (1983)
3.5 Ain't Love Grand! (1985)
2.5 See How We Are (1987)
2.5 Hey Zeus! (1993)
3.0 ALPHABETLAND (2020)
X's influences are so diverse (surf music, rockabilly, '60s pop, country, R&B) it's easy to forget they're categorized as a punk band. Although, their 1980 debut is certainly one of the great punk albums. It has so much energy and personality- just an irresistible record. The bare-knuckles follow-up, Wild Gift, isn't quite as consistent but still features a couple-four of their most striking moments. For 1982's Under the Big Black Sun they signed to a major label and doubled-down on their country influences. Their 4th studio release, More Fun in the New World, is just that- I don't know if I've heard a band have more fun than X seem to be having on this album. (I also find it to be their most tuneful LP.) 1985's Ain't Love Grand takes on characteristics of typical 1980s production and is generally less inspired than its predecessors. X's guitar player (Billy Zoom) quit shortly thereafter and the music definitely suffered as a result. By 1987's See How We Are, the punk elements are almost completely gone and they start sounding like a pretty mainstream pop-rock act. Hey Zeus! tries to reclaim their hard rocking identity but comes up decidedly short. Their 2020 comeback LP, Alphabetland is quite respectable considering they hadn't made an album in more than a quarter century. X probably deserves to be more famous than they are- they just never managed to find that one bona fide hit song that would've supercharged their career. Exene Cervenka's voice might also have something to do with it. Her slightly out of key singing can take some getting used to. Vocally, they're at their best when Cervenka and John Doe share lead singing duties (especially when they trade off call-and-response style.) X is not an all-time top 100 artist for me but I think their music is consistently x-cellent. A candidate for best "flying under the radar" band of the 1980s.
MY RATING SYSTEM:
5.0 = major classic (consistently great *and* stratospheric highs)
4.5 = minor classic (consistently great *or* stratospheric highs, but not both)
4.0 = great (a clear majority is worth revisiting and it's an essential record for this artist/style - passes my "it'll make a fan out of someone who's new to this artist" test)
3.5 = seriously good (at least half is worth revisiting)
3.0 = nominally good (less than half is worth revisiting)
2.5 = decent (competent but uninspired - not worth revisiting)
2.0 = poor (difficult listen)
1.5 = awful (can't finish it)
1.0 = historically awful (musical apocalypse)
* "Consistently" does not mean "flawlessly." I allow for a few duds if the rest of the songs are good enough. "Stratospheric highs" refer to albums that are either extremely influential or feature iconic songs. (Albums that I consider to be "perfect" can also reach 5 stars, even without containing iconic songs.)
* I don't go below 1 star because once I'm in the realm of the truly terrible I don't care to differentiate anymore.
* Anything I rate 3.5 stars or higher is an album I'm enthusiastic about and would likely revisit at some point.
Pretty surprising that 2 out of 3 of you were not familiar with X.
punktry?
Punkabilly?
Counk
Punkabilly definitely should have caught on.
Cowpunk?
@@Vanessa.P Jason mentioned cowpunk, I think. There is also the dreaded Y'allternative.
Ryan and Joe get it. Jason, not so much. Oh, well, it's all subjective.
Didn’t mention Let the music go bang. This track was very punk.
Next band: WIRE
Next band: WARREN ZEVON (see description above) 😀
154 my favourite Wire album.
@@davidellis5141 same here!
@@paulayers1111 same here
That would be something to see and a potentially difficult discography to rank. Like David, (and others here)I would put 154 at the very top.
Wild Gift obviously has more rockabilly, or roots influence if you will then Los Angeles. Some Other Time swaggers along at a tempo not strolled on the first. Nasuea is slower, rest are faster. Beyond and Back I wish the average punk song has as much going for itnas.this song. Even the mosy stripped down tracks Im coming over year one back 2 the base are diverse and catchy while once over twice ahd hiuse i call home have layers that leave tears like an onion
I like all of their albums including Smoke And Fiction which just came out. Impossible for me as a fan from the very start to pick a favorite but Ain’t Love Grand is my least favorite. It’s just OK.
X were 100% a Punk band. Punk was not a one trick pony. There were all types of styles in Punk.
Los Angeles is the best.
2-Under The Big Black Sun
3-Wild Gift
4-More Fun In The New World
5-See How We Are
6-Alphabetland
7-Ain’t Love Grand
8-Hey Zeus
Joe at 47:20 "A great song about heroine addiction...just so much fun" ....the song...the song I guess, not the topic.
Yes
Sarcasm
There's NO WAY Los Angeles is 7th. It's a masterpiece.
Yeah, that's a ridiculous ranking.
The lead song of Hey Zeus is a classic. Reminds me of an old flame. So it is my number#1 Viva la Palestine 🇵🇸❤️✌️🕊️. May peace and freeedom prevail on this Earth 🌎🌍
🇮🇱💪🇮🇱under a black sun my #1
X rated…careful with that algorithm Eugene
heh heh heh . . . one of those bands that are annoying to research on line b/c of all the other stuff you get
Los Angeles, More Fun in the New World, and Under the Big Black Sun are classics. Never liked Wild Gift compared to these three.
Not to sound like a jerk, but if only one of you knows much about X you shouldn't be ranking their albums. I heard the first 5 and here is how I rank them -
1. More fun in the new world.
2. Under the big black sun.
3. Los Angeles.
4. Wild Gift.
5. Ain't love grand.
If that’s your ranking, sounds like you shouldn’t be ranking them either. - Joe
@@TastesLikeMusic I've listened to their albums many times so any list I give is just my particular taste. There's no right or wrong. But obviously someone giving a list if they have only heard 3 songs is silly.
Turn your lights on Kramzer! You seem sleepy! lol
Really higghhhhh
I think Ain't Love Grand is their worst album. I'm not a fan of the production and the songs sound repetitive. I do agree that Los Angeles isn't their best (I think Under the Big Black Sun is)
Exene is an acquired taste for sure, but I love her unique voice.
I really want to see Jason make some Trump debate faces when he disagrees with the other two.
Edit - Never mind. I just got further in and Kramz is basically doing it. 😂
The critics loved them. The public, not so much. Mostly because tbh they kinda sucked. Bad vocals, lack of hooks.
America didn’t really get into punk until Green Day. - Joe
@@TastesLikeMusic And that's really pop punk . . . 🙃
Wild Gift is more Hilly Punk.
08) Los Angeles (1980) 2.5/5
07) Wild Gift (1981) 3/5
06) Under the Big Black Sun (1982) 3.25/5
05) Ain't Love Grand! (1985) 3.25/5
04) Alphabetland (2020) 3.75/5
03) See How We Are (1987) 4/5
02) Hey Zeus! (1993) 4/5
01) More Fun in the New World (1983) 4.5/5
Chronological Order:
1980 - 2.50 Los Angeles
1981 - 3.00 Wild Gift
1982 - 3.25 Under the Big Black Sun
1983 - 4.50 More Fun in the New World
1985 - 3.25 Ain't Love Grand!
1987 - 4.00 See How We Are
1993 - 4.00 Hey Zeus!
2020 - 3.75 Alphabetland
Ratings Scale:
0 stars - irredeemably terrible/insultingly bad/the worst
.5 stars - terrible
1 star - bad
1.5 stars - pretty bad
2 stars - fair
2.5 stars - meh
2.75 stars - "It's OK, but quit playing it."
3 stars - OK/decent
3.25 stars - pretty good
3.5 stars - good
4 stars - very good
4.5 stars - excellent
5 stars - gold leeches on my arm
notes -
* I never got into X. What little I heard didn't turn me on enough to buy an album or pursue them further. But I really dug this listening experience. Their rockabilly cowpunk style is great and supercool.
* I'm sure my ratings and rankings will seem off kilter to the typical X fan. The main reason I have their earliest albums rated low is Exene Cervenka's voice. Especially on the first two albums, I find it to be shrill and flat. Most of her singing here is borderline monotone. But she does start to improve on Black Sun, and by the 4th album, she's improved enough to be tolerable. Although she never becomes a great singer to my ears, her vocals are serviceable from this point on for the most part. John Doe is a good singer. Good enough at least, although he sings offkey sometimes too. Still, he sounds good, and I think his vocals improved as time went on as well.
* This is punk rock and it's not necessarily meant to be pretty, so I can understand why many have no issues with their "less-than-perfect" vocals.
* I do love the rockabilly punk thing on the debut which might have been my favorite album if the vocals didn't irk me so much. "The Unheard Music" is the standout song on this one with its bad ass beat/riff.
* Ray Manzarek produced their first four albums and occasionally made some great contributions on organ.
* Their lyrics tend to be rather lazy and nonsensical. For example, the song "When Our Love Passed Out on the Couch" has the line, "I hate that I need to know what you do/ When our love passed out on the couch" which just sounds weird. The tenses don't match - this kind of thing is typical with X lyrics. They did get better in the lyric department though over time.
* Sometimes my ears would perk up when a song would come on with noticeably better songwriting and it would turn out to be a cover (but not "Soul Kitchen" - that one rocks but the vocals are terribly monotone).
* As mentioned before, Exene's vocals are not quite so shrill on Under the Big Black Sun. There's definite improvement here. Doe sings on "Blue Spark," a bad ass tune. The last two songs on the album are the first "great" songs I encountered.
* The opening song on More Fun in the New World is not catchy, but the rest of the album is pretty great. There's more of a Country influence here. The second side is the strongest.
* Ain't Love Grand! finds the band shifting toward a more conventional rock/alt-rock sound. The first side is very good, but the second is significantly weaker. The band claims to not like this one, especially the production.
* X brings back their classic sound on several See How We Are tracks, and when they do, the songs are great. There are a few less-than-great tracks in the mix though. "You" sounds like X doing pop. "Cyrano de Bergerac's Back" is something different. It totally rocks and the drums are killer.
* I expected Hey Zeus! (which I think is a play on the Spanish pronunciation of "Jesus") to be weak based on what I read about it but it's surprisingly strong. It's more of an alternative rock album. Only "Everybody" sounds weak and forced. The opener "Someone's Watching" has an ominous tone. There's lots of good vocal melodies throughout. "Country at War" really cooks. They should have kept the tape rolling at the end of that song - they were onto something.
* See How We Are and Hey Zeus! are neck and neck but I gave the advantage to Hey Zeus! because while there are higher highs on See How We Are, Hey Zeus! is the most consistently good album between them.
* Many moons later, their recent 2020 comeback album does a good job of recapturing the punk spirit of their early albums, thanks in part to songs they salvaged from those times. A totally respectable return.
* Cheers mates!!!!!!!!!!
We agree on More Fun in the New World, but not on much else. I can see how some people would find X to be one of those "I can't get past the bad vocals" bands. Cervenka's voice doesn't bother me so much, though, so it didn't kill my star ratings.
@@AbbeyRoadkill1 Yeah, Jason's got my back on Exene's vocals. We have the same number 1 as well.
@@179rich I have to admit I expected her singing to improve as the discography went on, but it really didn't.
@@AbbeyRoadkill1 I thought it did, but only to the point of "tolerable."
@@179rich Maybe a little. Still, you'd expect a professional singer to eventually get to the point where they could be on-pitch consistently. I don't think she ever got there.
Jason never likes the reunion albums lol. I think he's prejudiced against them.
Well most are dissappointments and lead to nothing. The big exception (for me) was Suede.
Dinosaur jr has some great ones
Maybe they should do a list of the best reunion albums of all-time. But I would agree that they tend to be far lesser than the group’s heyday in most instances.
Also, weird week to accuse me of reunion album bigotry when Alphabetland pretty clearly sucks.
@@TastesLikeMusic Jason - Is that you? (Dino Jr) Congrats on the move, btw.
Blink 182 ranking next
Probably not!
@@TastesLikeMusic 😭😭
🤮
@@adamp2029 go listen to Justin biber
@@alexadams7771 🤮🤮🤮
Ok boomers 😂