New Fan Looking for Some Album Advice

[Travis]

Hello,

I saw Underworld earlier in the year at the All Points West Festival in New Jersey and I wanted to pick up an album or two. However as I look through their wikipedia page it seems that they have released a ton of material and in different stages of the band.

I'm looking for advice from the Underworld fans. Is there a 'definitive' Underworld LP? Is there a consensus 'best' album? Any help is appreciated and thank you for your time.

Travis

[testudo]

Many will say the debut, Dubnobasswithmyheadman and others will say, Second Toughtest in the Infants.

I say Beaucoup Fish... just so you aren't too overwhelmed by the older stuff

[potatobroth]

Hi Travis, and welcome. I too was at that show.

Their first album as Underworld the way you know them is called Dubnobasswithmyheadman. Its a solid beginning and one that will always be dear to me as the album that got me hooked. Not sure how it will sound to someone new to the band though -- maybe a bit outdated but most likely not. The beginning is never a bad place to start, imo. That said...

I'd say Beaucoup Fish would be a pretty good entry point as I know a lot of people that listened to that one first. Its an album that spans a lot of styles and has quite a few heavy-hitters on it. They played three songs from this album at the All Points show: King of Snake, Jumbo and Moaner; Moaner closed out the set.

Having been a fan for a long time, I find myself listening to Oblivion With Bells, their recent album, the most these days. At All Points, they played 2 or 3 tracks from this one.

Each of their other major releases has points of interest that could be THE one that you fall in love with though. Its hard to know what one person might like over another.

[holden]

Hi and welcome!
You're bound to get a bunch of opinions on which is the "best" Underworld album - they all have their high points, but i dunno if there's a definitive record.
As an introduction to various parts of their career, maybe check out their compilation "Underworld 1992-2002", a 2-CD.
Or, to prep you for the live experience, get "Everything,Everything", the live album from 1999. Sure, they have two more receond studio records since then, and lots of newer tracks, but you'll get a great impression of the improvization, energy and mixing of the live show.

[Travis]

All of this is really good info thank you. I definetely agree that it is fun to start at the beginning. I'm 28 but my friend who's in his early 40's has been sending me boxes of LPs that he's got duplicates to. All of a sudden I've been exposed to the intial efforts of DEVO, Talking Heads, R.E.M. just to name a few and it's really interesting to see how they started off and follow their progression. More often than you would think I've found many bands initial efforts to be their most accessible (and even most enjoyable).

As far as compilations...I just can't get there. I have trouble listening to greatest hits albums or anything like that. One of the things I enjoy most about albums is how you can really get a feel for the mood and stylistic creativity of a band at a given time period. That is all obviously lost on compilations. I understand why they work for many but it's not my thing.

So Oblivion With Bells is a good album? I heard somewhere that it wasn't as preferred as previous efforts but if it's a good listen I'm pretty sure I can get that on LP (which is what I would prefer).

Thanks again.

[joethelion]

yea - I am also not a fan of compilations ... well some can be good (like when you can have the rare occurrence of finding a band that releases a legitimate, definitive singles collection & some genre-specific ones can be nice... but I digress)

yea - "Dubno..." or "Second Toughest..." are probably going to be considered to be their best/strongest albums, but in all honesty I would really recommend starting with "Beaucoup Fish"

I say that b/c "dubno" can be a little dated in some ways (I think it's waaaay too quiet) and is more proggy than their other albums (I'm not saying that second comment necessarily as 'negative')

and STITI is probably their most "drum and bass"-esque album of theirs and has a more 96/97 vibe about it

Whereas BF has a nice variety amongst sounds... you get a little sampling of their more 'dance' tracks, some definite ambient pieces, some downtempo, more dn'b type stuff... etc etc

I would NOT start with "A Hundred Days Off" - taken as a whole (like including b-sides) it's a nice 'era' of UW... but it really sounds more like a "transition" album than anything (like not quite as sophisticated as "Oblivion with Bells", doesn't quite have as much "ooomph" as "Beaucoup Fish") but it definitely has some really strong tracks (Two Months off & Leutin)

Oblivion with Bells is great... but it's also definitely a more 'chill' album

[qirex]

Beaucoup Fish


...definitely. Then just start from the beginning (1992, dubnobass...) and work your way to 2008.

Oblivion with bells however, is becoming my favorite release. (which was once held by Beaucoup Fish)

[IsiliRunite]

is it possible to mix out the "quiet" of Dubno?

I'd say STITI while not sober, Beacoup while sober.

[khouri]

Travis -

I too was at that show, so I'm relieved Underworld managed to pick up some new fans like yourself despite the circumstances. Underworld were typically brilliant, but that crowd was absolute crap. I've never seen so many people stand so perfectly still. Probably didn't help that Underworld played while the sun was still out, but I was stunned nevertheless. They played what are arguably some of the best dance tracks ever and those Radiohead fans took a nap!

ANYWAY

Start with Oblivion With Bells and then work your way backwards to the RiverRun EPs and so on. Skip A Hundred Days Off and come back to it when you're done with everything else.

[lloyd]

Just stick with Karl's advice, buy everything,everything,everything,everything,everyt hing...