On this episode of Vinyl Verdict, Bell, Jamie and Plouffe listen to Bell's next pick, My Morning Jacket's "Evil Urges". Released in 2008, the album was the fifth studio recording from the band, and represented a shift in their sound. Jim James, the frontman for the band said that they were trying to achieve a sound more akin to what they sound like in concert. Reviews for this new album were mixed, with some reviewers noting that the change in sound would squander the goodwill the band had garne...
Oct 29, 2023•38 min•Season 2Ep. 9
On this episode of Vinyl Verdict, Bell, Jamie and Plouffe are joined by special guest Dan Besser. Like previous guests, Dan is both a friend and a coworker! Today, Dan brought with him Lorn's "Ask the Dust", the second album from the artist, released in 2012. If you've followed Dan's streams on Twitch (@BuhDan on there), you'll know that Dan likes songs with synths and sometimes dark lyrics -- two things "Ask the Dust" has. What will the boys ask of the dust? Will Dan be back for more? Come alon...
Oct 22, 2023•51 min•Season 2Ep. 8
On this episode of Vinyl Verdict, Bell, Jamie and Plouffe listen to Plouffe's next pick, Arctic Monkey's "AM". Their fifth studio album, it was released in September 2013, and the album was an immediate hit for the band. Six singles were release from the album, with most of them charting well in both UK, where the Arctic Monkeys are based, and internationally. "AM" has remained on the charts in countries such as Australia, Denmark and the Netherlands in the ten years since release, a huge feat. ...
Oct 15, 2023•40 min•Season 2Ep. 7
On this episode of Vinyl Verdict, Bell, Jamie and Plouffe listen to Jamie's next pick, Crosby, Stills, Nash and Young's "Deja Vu" . Released in 1970, the album was one of the first albums released by a rock supergroup. David Crosby had previously been the guitarist in the band The Byrds, Stephen Stills and Neil Young had both been guitarists in the band Buffalo Springfield, and Graham Nash had been the lead singer of The Hollies. As a trio, CSN released their debut album in 1969, to immediate su...
Oct 08, 2023•42 min•Season 2Ep. 6
Hey it's your buddy Jamie with a Content Warning: every song on this album has been flagged by Spotify/Apple Music as 'explicit'. The lyrics and song titles may be offensive to you. Maybe sit this one out if you listen with your kids. On this episode of Vinyl Verdict, Bell, Jamie and Plouffe listen to Bell's next pick, Machine Girl's "U-Void Synthesizer". The fifth studio album from the duo of Matt Stephenson and Sean Kelly, it has been variously described as fitting the genres of Hardcore, Grin...
Oct 01, 2023•33 min•Season 2Ep. 5
On this special episode of Vinyl Verdict, Bell and Plouffe have teamed up to pick two albums from Jamie's collection! Bell's pick is the Electric Light Orchestra's " A New World Record", their sixth, and perhaps most successful album, released in 1976. This album spawned four hit singles - Do Ya, Livin' Thing, Telephone Line, and Rockaria! and went to number one here in Canada. A fun record incorporating elements of orchestral accompaniment, the 70s rock sound and opera, critics enjoyed the nods...
Sep 23, 2023•1 hr 3 min•Season 2Ep. 4
On this episode of Vinyl Verdict, Bell, Jamie and Plouffe listen to Plouffe's next pick, Marcy Playground's Marcy Playground . Released in February 1997, the album went nowhere until the single, Sex and Candy was released as a radio single in September. The immediate success of the single led to the album being re-released in October 1997. As a single, Sex and Candy went to #1 on the Modern Rock chart for 15 weeks. In addition, it went to #8 on the Billboard Hot 100, while over here in Canada, i...
Sep 16, 2023•40 min•Season 2Ep. 3
On this episode of Vinyl Verdict, Bell, Jamie and Plouffe listen to Jamie’s next pick, Genesis’ The Lamb Lies Down on Broadway. Their sixth album, it marks the end of the period where Peter Gabriel was the lead singer. The album features a winding story of a boy named Rael, living in New York who experiences miraculous and bizarre events. Upon release, the reviews were mixed, but it was and remains popular among Genesis fans. Will the epic length of the album cause an irreparable rift in the pod...
Sep 09, 2023•49 min•Season 2Ep. 2
Welcome back! We're happy to have you along for season 2! On this episode of Vinyl Verdict, Bell, Jamie and Plouffe, listen to Bell's next pick, Prozzak's Hot Show . Like Gorillaz, Prozzak is a virtual band, consisting of two characters - Simon and Milo. In reality, Prozzak consists of the Canadian duo Jay Levine and James Bryan McCollum, previously of the group The Philosopher Kings. Levine and McCollum started Prozzak after needing a way to hash out their differences musically, eventually pres...
Sep 02, 2023•46 min•Season 2Ep. 1
After a long summer, Vinyl Verdict will be returning from our break with season 2 on September 2nd! Our first two episodes will be Bell's pick Hot Show by Prozzak, and Jamie's pick The Lamb Lies Down on Broadway by Genesis. Thank you so much for tuning in, we can't wait to talk soon! Also: Make sure to check out vinylverdict.com where we'll be updating it with our reviews from Season 1!
Aug 27, 2023•43 sec
On this episode of Vinyl Verdict, the boys look back on our first year as a podcast! Were the ratings too harsh on some records? Too fair on others? What did we do well, what are we going to work on for next season? Will Jamie continue rating albums out of absurd numbers? All of these things will be answered! While this is our year end podcast, we're coming back with more Vinyl Verdict in August. So come along with us to look at the year that was and then come back for the year that will be!...
Jul 08, 2023•48 min•Season 1Ep. 55
On this episode of Vinyl Verdict, Bell, Jamie and Plouffe, listen to Plouffe's next pick, Rage Against the Machine's The Battle of Los Angeles. Their third, and final album of original material, The Battle of Los Angeles was released in 1999 to critical and commercial success. Critics cited the lyrics and innovative guitar playing of Tom Morello as high points of the album. The album debuted at #1 on the Billboard 200, and was nominated for Best Rock Album at the 43rd Grammy Awards. On the 2003 ...
Jul 01, 2023•43 min•Season 1Ep. 54
On this episode of Vinyl Verdict, Bell, Jamie and Plouffe, listen to Jamie's next pick, Billy Joel's The Stranger . Released in 1977, The Stranger was a Hail Mary from Billy Joel to save his recording contract with Columbia. After his inexplicable rise to fame with Piano Man in 1973, his subsequent releases were lukewarmly received by both critics and the general public. Searching for a solution, he turned to his touring band and veteran producer Phil Ramone to cut this album in little over a mo...
Jun 26, 2023•34 min•Season 1Ep. 53
On this episode of Vinyl Verdict, Bell, Jamie and Plouffe, listen to Bell's next pick SZA's CTRL. Her debut studio album, it was released to widespread critical acclaim, with multiple reviewers citing its writing and SZA's singing as high points. In 2020, Rolling Stone pegged it as the number 472 of the 500 Greatest Albums of all Time. At the 2018 Grammy Awards, SZA received a nomination for Best New Artist and the album itself received four nominations. Like Begonia's Fear, which we have covere...
Jun 17, 2023•38 min•Season 1Ep. 52
On this special episode of Vinyl Verdict, Plouffe and Jamie have teamed up to pick two albums from Bell's collection! Jamie picks Leon Bridges' Coming Home and Plouffe picks Muse's Black Holes and Revelations . The two albums could not be more different! Coming Home, released in 2015, is a soul album with a throwback sound that would not be out of place on the radio of the late 50s and early 60s. His retro style and smooth sound is reminiscent of Sam Cooke, who we previously covered on the Our F...
Jun 10, 2023•58 min•Season 1Ep. 51
On this episode of Vinyl Verdict, Bell, Jamie and Plouffe, listen to Plouffe's next pick, Skinshape's Arrogance is the Death of Men . His sixth album in five years, and second of 2020, Arrogance is the Death of Men is a quick trek through a jazzy psychedelic sound with a distinct v i b e. While relatively unknown, Skinshape is the stage name of Will Dorey, previously of the band Palace, where he played bass. On this album, he plays most of the instruments, but is joined occasionally by other mus...
Jun 04, 2023•33 min•Season 1Ep. 50
On this episode of Vinyl Verdict, Bell, Jamie and Plouffe, listen to Jamie's next pick, Death From Above 1979's - You're a Woman, I'm a Machine. Released in 2004, the album was recorded by the Canadian duo of Jesse F. Keeler on bass and Sebastien Grainger on drums and vocals. Genre-wise, this album was described as 'dance-punk', a genre combining the sound of post-punk, with a beat you could dance to if you wanted to. Despite being relatively unknown outside of Canada, Death From Above 1979 has ...
May 28, 2023•37 min•Season 1Ep. 49
On this episode of Vinyl Verdict, Bell, Jamie and Plouffe, listen to Bell's next pick, Nick Hakim's WILL THIS MAKE ME GOOD. Released in 2020, it is his second studio album. The album touches upon issues such as climate change, the use of medication in children and the loss of friends. Hakim judiciously layers different sounds throughout the album, often as if the album is in multiple genres at the same time. Critically, the album received better than average reviews, with some reviews praising i...
May 21, 2023•36 min•Season 1Ep. 48
On this special episode of Vinyl Verdict, Plouffe, Bell and Jamie discuss albums released in their birth year. Up first is Bell's pick, Nas' Illmatic from 1994. His debut album, it was released to universal acclaim among critics, and has been hailed as a landmark in hip hop. Next, is Plouffe's pick, The Traveling Wilburys' The Traveling Wilburys Vol. 3, from 1990. A supergroup featuring the likes of Tom Petty, Jeff Lynne, Bob Dylan, George Harrison and prior to his death in 1988,Roy Orbison, the...
May 14, 2023•1 hr 22 min•Season 1Ep. 47
On this episode of Vinyl Verdict, Bell, Jamie and Plouffe, listen to Plouffe's next pick, System of a Down's Toxicity. Released in 2001, Toxicity was their breakthrough album and contained four successful singles. The album that spans both the nu-metal and alternative metal genres, and also contains elements of jazz, folk, Armenian and Greek music. Two singles from the album - Aerials and Chop Suey! - were nominated for the Grammy award for Best Hard Rock and Best Metal Performance, respectively...
May 06, 2023•51 min•Season 1Ep. 46
On this episode of Vinyl Verdict, Bell, Jamie and Plouffe, listen to Jamie's next pick, Pink Floyd's Wish You Were Here . Released in 1975, Wish You Were Here was the follow up album to 1973's Dark Side of the Moon , the band's big breakout album. While less commercially successful than Dark Side of the Moon, the album has been warmly received retrospectively, having been named both the #4 progressive rock album and variously the 209th, 211th and 264th greatest album of all time by Rolling Stone...
Apr 30, 2023•49 min•Season 1Ep. 45
On this episode of Vinyl Verdict, Bell, Jamie and Plouffe, listen to Bell's next pick, The Barenaked Ladies' Gordon . Their debut album, Gordon was produced after the band won a contest with a $100,000 prize at the Toronto radio station, CFNY. Gordon was released in 1992 and sold 80,000 copies in its first 24 hours of release, and then proceeded to chart in Canada for 8 consecutive weeks. Consisting of 14 tracks - 6 of which had appeared in forms on their previous demo tapes, reviewers described...
Apr 23, 2023•58 min•Season 1Ep. 44
On this episode of Vinyl Verdict, Bell, Jamie and Plouffe, are joined by Luke Lafreniere to talk about his pick, Tiger Army's self titled debut album. Released in 1999, Tiger Army comes in at a brisk 32 minutes, 33 if you round up. At the time of recording, the only actual member of Tiger Army was Nick 13, the alias of Kearney Nick Jones, the only constant member of the band through its 27 year existence. Nick 13 was joined in the studio by Rob Peltier on bass (originally from the band The Quake...
Apr 15, 2023•56 min•Season 1Ep. 43
On this episode of Vinyl Verdict, Bell, Jamie and Plouffe, listen to Plouffe's next pick, DANGERDOOM's The Mouse and the Mask . Released in 2005, this was the only full length album released by the duo of producer Danger Mouse and rapper MF DOOM. Consisting of fourteen tracks that are interspersed with clips from Adult Swim shows such as Perfect Hair Forever, Aqua Teen Hunger Force, Harvey Birdman: Attorney At Law and Space Ghost: Coast to Coast, the album stands as a tribute to a particular per...
Apr 09, 2023•41 min•Season 1Ep. 42
On this episode of Vinyl Verdict, Bell, Jamie and Plouffe listen to Jamie's next pick, David Bowie's The Rise and Fall of Ziggy Stardust and the Spiders from Mars. His fifth studio album, this was his breakout album in both the US and UK, catapulting him to stardom. Initially giving it a lukewarm review, Rolling Stone later named the album number 6 on their list of the 100 Best Albums of the Last 20 Years in 1987 and later named it the 35th (later 40th) best on their 500 Greatest Albums of All T...
Apr 02, 2023•39 min•Season 1Ep. 41
On this episode of Vinyl Verdict, Bell, Jamie and Plouffe listen to Bell's next pick, Woodkid's The Golden Age . Snippets of the album were teased in singles from 2011, 2012 and 2013, with the final release coming in February 2013. The single Run Boy Run has been used in over 80 advertisements, movie trailers, films and TV shows, and its music video was nominated for Best Short Form Music Video at the 2013 Grammy Awards. Most reviewers agreed that the music feels powerful, expansive and had exce...
Mar 25, 2023•42 min•Season 1Ep. 40
On this special episode of Vinyl Verdict, Bell and Jamie have teamed up to pick two albums from Plouffe's collection! Bell picks Summer Salt's Happy Camper, their album from 2018. Jamie picks Primus' Frizzle Fry, released in 1990. The albums could not be more polar opposite! Will this be a rare occasion where the whole crew likes albums that Plouffe owns? Will we say Primus Sucks multiple times this episode? Come along and find out!
Mar 18, 2023•1 hr 2 min•Season 1Ep. 39
Quick content warning: Plouffe notes at the beginning of the episode that the lyrical content of the album features talk of sexual assault and suicide. On this episode of Vinyl Verdict, Bell, Jamie and Plouffe listen to Plouffe's next pick, The Distillers Coral Fang . Their third studio album, and only major label release, Coral Fang came out in 2003 to positive critical reviews. Stradling the line between punk and grunge music, the album produced three singles, two of which charted. The tour su...
Mar 12, 2023•39 min•Season 1Ep. 38
On this episode of Vinyl Verdict, Bell, Jamie and Plouffe listen to Jamie's next pick, S U R V I V E's MNQ026 ( HD015 for the vinyl release). S U R V I V E is a electronic band from Austin, Texas, formed in 2009. Two of their members, Michael Stein and Kyle Dixon went on to do the soundtrack score for the Netflix series Stranger Things . Completely instrumental, MNQ026 is made up of two parts spooky ambient sounds, one part space robot jams. Jamie has frequently teased the Vinyl Verdict crew abo...
Mar 05, 2023•32 min•Season 1Ep. 37
On this episode of Vinyl Verdict, Bell, Jamie and Plouffe listen to Bell's next pick, MGMTs Little Dark Age. Released in 2018, it is the band's fourth studio album. After their second and third albums were released to lukewarm receptions, the band took some time off and came back with the single for the track Little Dark Age in October 2017, releasing further singles up until the release of the album in 2018. The band stated that the album title was a response to the political and social climate...
Feb 26, 2023•31 min•Season 1Ep. 36
