The 20 Loudest Albums Of All Time
Knee-jerk reaction for indie kids is to equate "loud" with "sludgy rock guitars," and so it is in Q mag's list for the 20 loudest records in the history of mankind (or at least, since 1967). But hey it's nice to see Aphex Twin and even Public Enemy thrown in there with the mandatory Sunn0))) and Big Black drops. Have a look see...
20. Velvet Underground - White Light/White Heat (Verve, 1967)
19. AC/DC - Back In Black (Columbia, 1980)
18. Sunn0))) - White (Southern Lord, 2006)
17. Jimi Hendrix - Are You Experienced? (Track, 1967)
16. Aphex Twin - I Care Because You Do (Warp, 1995)
15. Black Flag - Damaged (SST, 1981)
14. The Birthday Party - Prayers On Fire (4AD, 1981)
13. Motorhead - No Sleep Til Hammersmith (Bronze, 1981)
12. Led Zeppelin - Led Zeppelin (Atlantic, 1969)
11. Neil Young – Arc Weld (Reprise, 1991)
10. Sex Pistols - Never Mind The Bollocks (Virgin, 1977)What, no Spinal Tap? Don't they go to 11?
09. Atari Teenage Riot – The Future Of War (DHR, 1997)
08. My Bloody Valentine - Isn’t Anything (Creation, 1988)
07. Napalm Death - Scum (Earache, 1987)
06. The Who - Live At Leeds (Track, 1970)
05. Big Black - Songs About Fucking (Touch And Go, 1987)
04. The Jesus And Mary Chain - Psychocandy (Blanco Y Negro, 1986)
03. Public Enemy - It Takes A Nation Of Millions To Hold Us Back (Def Jam, 1988)
02. Slayer - Reign In Blood (Def Jam, 1986)
01. The Stooges - Funhouse (Elektra, 1970)
Posted at 5:48 PM in Shit List
erm, doesn't it depend how loud you listen to them?
at a low enough volume even death metal sounds ambient.
Posted by: the idiot at June 28, 2007 6:16 PM | ReplyScore = 0
long live Napalm Death
Posted by: ernie at June 28, 2007 6:29 PM | ReplyScore = 0
kill 'm all.
Posted by: dustin at June 28, 2007 6:40 PM | ReplyScore = 0
I can't endorse this list. Any list of decibel daring discs would have to include "Three Dollar Bill Y'All" to have any credibility among the leading music critics.
Posted by: #1 Blogger at June 28, 2007 7:08 PM | ReplyScore = 0
erm, doesn't it depend how loud you listen to them?
^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^
The answer to your question is "no."
Posted by: D. at June 28, 2007 7:09 PM | ReplyScore = 0
Velvets should be up a bit higher...
Posted by: d at June 28, 2007 7:21 PM | ReplyScore = 0
yes, it does depend on how loudly you listen to them. replace "loudest" with "noisiest" and it makes more sense.
Posted by: sas at June 28, 2007 7:36 PM | ReplyScore = 0
can we all just agree that no one gives a good god damn about these lists? they get more and more irrelevant with every post. at this rate we will soon see a list of rock stars arranged in order of their largest shits.
Posted by: vinnie at June 28, 2007 7:40 PM | ReplyScore = 0
"...they get more and more irrelevant with every post. at this rate we will soon see a list of rock stars arranged in order of their largest shits."
Corgan's is three versions long, by the way.
Posted by: Dw Dunphy at June 28, 2007 7:52 PM | ReplyDwD
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How the hell is Guitar Wolf "Jet Generation" not on that list? It really is the loudest fucking album ever.
Posted by: Nathan at June 28, 2007 7:53 PM | ReplyScore = 0
What? No NIN?
Posted by: Rochelle Nikita at June 28, 2007 8:06 PM | ReplyScore = 0
Raw Power is whole lot louder than Fun House.
Posted by: karl at June 28, 2007 8:25 PM | ReplyScore = 0
Cannot believe I'm looking at My Bloody Valentine on this list. Get these guys Favourite Worst Nightmare.
Posted by: Finchmeister at June 28, 2007 8:51 PM | ReplyScore = 0
Oasis's Be Here Now is also pretty damn loud - dozens upon dozens of layers of guitars, all mixed well into the reds...
Posted by: Thierry at June 28, 2007 8:52 PM | ReplyScore = 0
May I submit Primal Scream - XTRMNTR to the voting board. Thank you.
Posted by: David McCaffredy at June 28, 2007 9:02 PM | ReplyScore = 0
the SSD "get it away" 12in should be on there...and i agree that the Iggy remix of "raw power" is certainly louder than "funhouse". interesting list...what are the criteria?
Posted by: karl wolff at June 28, 2007 10:06 PM | ReplyScore = 0
Yeah, for one, listening to Psychocandy has always hurt a little bit more than listening to Fun House (both are increedible.)
And yeah, Iggy's mix of raw power is ten times louder than Fun House, plus White Light/White Heat should be higher than something like Live at Leeds, but it's not a horrible list.
Posted by: Anthony at June 28, 2007 10:13 PM | ReplyScore = 0
Oh, and I second what Nathan said, Jet Generation is fucking loud.
Posted by: Anthony at June 28, 2007 10:14 PM | ReplyScore = 0
Here's the criteria: Editor: "Hmmm, look at all the bloody pages I've got to fill this month.... Nigel, tell Clive to turn down the stereo, it's too loud.... I AM A GENIUS! with graphics that'll fill at least two pages.
Posted by: Biff Beta at June 28, 2007 10:18 PM | ReplyScore = 0
Paranoid & Sunburnt by Skunk Anansie... hell, anything by Skunk Anansie.
Posted by: Blu at June 28, 2007 10:55 PM | ReplyScore = 0
Kinda expected to see some Sonic Youth or Wire on there myself...
Posted by: hm at June 28, 2007 11:30 PM | ReplyScore = 0
isn't RHCP's californication supposed to be one of the loudest albums ever?
Posted by: matt P at June 28, 2007 11:36 PM | Replyi guess they're going with consistantly punishingly loud..
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I remember reading somewhere the last Killers' record was one of the loudest ever mixed.
Posted by: jonsnow at June 28, 2007 11:54 PM | ReplyScore = 0
No Brainiac, Six Finger Satellite, Jesus Lizard, or Locust? Of course, Songs About Fucking is a great choice, but I might have to say that Fear of a Black Planet is louder/noisier than Nation of Millions.
For the record, the loudest, rattlingest, stereo shakingest album I've ever heard is In the Aeroplane Over the Sea. On max volume, that thing is ungodly loud, but great regardless. And if we're going by sheer pain, shouldn't Metal Machine Music be an obvious #1?
Posted by: fido at June 29, 2007 12:15 AM | ReplyScore = 0
No Sonic Youth? W - T - F ?!!!!!!!!!!
Posted by: b.LOUD at June 29, 2007 12:32 AM | ReplyI agree with fido ^ about Lou Reed's Metal Machine Metal. If the CIA is reading this, use that as your method of torture. I personally think that Every Time I Die's "Gutter Phenomenon" is the loudest album I've listened to in guite some time
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Oh yeah, from my limited understanding of that list's criteria, I think Surfer Rosa deserves a spot on there.
Quietest Album of All Time: I See a Darkness. On my old computer, each song took me a few seconds to know it had started.
Posted by: fido at June 29, 2007 12:32 AM | ReplyScore = 0
No MC5, no Blue Cheer, No Lou Reed Metal...
Posted by: dudeasincool at June 29, 2007 1:05 AM | ReplyScore = 0
C'MON! Bad Penny? L Dopa? Precious Thing? Ergot? Songs About Fucking is WAAAAY number one. And the Bulldozer EP and Two Nuns and a Pack Mule are close runners up.
Loudest mix: Source Tags and Codes. I've never heard anything louder than that.
Posted by: The Real Steve Albini (Not Really) at June 29, 2007 1:15 AM | ReplyScore = 0
THIS LIST SUCKS
Posted by: Greg at June 29, 2007 1:38 AM | ReplyScore = 0
i agree californication is one loudly mastered album. but listen to that and listen to live at leeds. live at leeds sounds loud, no matter what volume it's at.
Posted by: brent at June 29, 2007 1:49 AM | ReplyScore = 0
Led Zeppelin 1 sure is a loud album, if a 15 watt fender practice amp is loud. Seriously.. what record player was used for this survey. Zep 2 is twice as loud and EVERYONE knows it.
Posted by: Sexy Results at June 29, 2007 3:36 AM | ReplyScore = 0
Celine Dion
At any volume, it's way too loud.
Posted by: Joseph at June 29, 2007 5:21 AM | ReplyScore = 0
i think NOXAGT should be on there
Posted by: clay loudermilk at June 29, 2007 6:09 AM | ReplyScore = 0
there's a teengenerate record that claimed to be the loudest record ever. it sounded horrible, and of course loud.
Posted by: rastafarianlibrarian at June 29, 2007 7:56 AM | ReplyScore = 0
If they were smart this list would only go to 11.
Why?
Because it's one louder.
Posted by: kc at June 29, 2007 8:23 AM | ReplyScore = 0
MEATLOAF
Posted by: valido at June 29, 2007 8:30 AM | ReplyScore = 0
Yes, what Nathan said. Guitar Wolf's Jet Generation is pure heat. That was the first album I thought of when I saw this list. It's a shame Q went with the cool albums rather than albums that deserve to be there.
Maybe it's something about Japan, because High Rise could easily be on this list, too.
Posted by: Glenn at June 29, 2007 9:03 AM | ReplyScore = 0
I was thinking the same thing as clay loudermilk; NOXAGT should be on the list. Also missing Lily Allen.
Posted by: elk at June 29, 2007 9:39 AM | ReplyScore = 0
Erm, aren't Manowar the loudest band on the planet? Or at least they held the world record for being the loudest live band. Also, their last album is actually punishingly loud. Although, it's to be expected when it's the first concept album in a series of concept albums about Odin, the Norse God of War. It's so ostentatious in fact, that the sleeve notes are written in Norse. But yeah, Manowar are phenomenally loud.
Posted by: Neilo at June 29, 2007 9:40 AM | ReplyScore = 0
LIGHTNING BOLT???!!!!! MINOR THREAT???!!!!
Posted by: tmy at June 29, 2007 10:19 AM | ReplyScore = 0
The word your looking for is MINISTRY. Christ, 3 or 4 guitars, 2 drums, countless fuzz keyboards.....AJ screaming his ass off. Check out the live version of STIGMATA. Loudest thing ever.
Posted by: Scott at June 29, 2007 10:21 AM | ReplyScore = 0
HA! immediately upon reading the headline of the post i thought Raw Power...then i saw Iggy at #1 for the wrong album! raw power is WAY louder than Funhouse! THEN i saw that someone else already said that! here here!
Posted by: ev at June 29, 2007 10:23 AM | ReplyScore = 0
Psssh. Ministry can't bring noise like the way superior Touch & Go industrial bands of Ministry's heyday could. Watered down crap. It's like saying that the Mars Volta should be on there. If any loud industrial dance band deserves to be on here it's KMFDM.
Oh yeah, forgot Lightning Bolt. As for Japanese bands, anything by Boris?
Posted by: fido at June 29, 2007 10:50 AM | ReplyScore = 0
i think this may be the stupidest rock-oriented list i've ever seen. white light/white heat? even if you crank your stereo to the max that album can't go above about 10 dbs. who things KMFDM is louder than Ministry? um, noo. and 'loveless' is much, much louder than 'isn't anything'. its not even close. the loudest album i know of is husker du's 'new day rising'.
Posted by: benj at June 29, 2007 11:02 AM | ReplyScore = 0
Where is Venom on the list?
Posted by: Todd at June 29, 2007 11:35 AM | ReplyScore = 0
Lightning Bolt? Wolf Eyes? Tony Conrad? Merzbow?!?!?!?!?!?!?!??!
Posted by: Patrick at June 29, 2007 11:38 AM | ReplyScore = 0
yeah. no locust, no list.
Posted by: the backdoor to this country is the independent truck at June 29, 2007 11:39 AM | ReplyScore = 0
I have to say, Mogwai's live album is pretty fucking unbearably loud.
Posted by: d at June 29, 2007 11:41 AM | ReplyScore = 0
word, what's been said above: you guys need to hear Guitar Wolf's Jet Generation. It's some fuckin loud lock and loll.
Posted by: Roman at June 29, 2007 12:24 PM | ReplyScore = 0
now is the perfect time for a reference to The Loud Family,,,, so i'm ganna say 'days for days' but that is open to argument, huh, isn't it, right? huh, right? oh you look terrific.
Posted by: calebs at June 29, 2007 12:51 PM | ReplyScore = 0
Will Haven's Carpe Diem
Posted by: c at June 29, 2007 12:51 PM | ReplyScore = 0
What about Master of Puppets or Mastodon? certainly louder than "Are you experienced." this list is on my shit list now
Posted by: matt at June 29, 2007 2:09 PM | ReplyScore = 0
What about Master of Puppets or Mastodon? certainly louder than "Are you experienced." this list is on my shit list now
Posted by: matt at June 29, 2007 2:30 PM | ReplyScore = 0
No (early) Swans?! Unlistenable... but loud.
Posted by: drewo at June 29, 2007 2:56 PM | ReplyScore = 0
I think that stuff like Metal Machine Music or early Swans is too artsy for a list like this. I think what this list considers loud includes an inherently "badass" quality, which is why stuff like Merzbow or Sonic Youth's really loud (early) stuff isn't included. But if that's the case, the absence of bands like Mastodon and Guitar Wolf is perplexing. It's not like this list is too hip for the former, at least.
Posted by: Noiseland Arcade at June 29, 2007 4:38 PM | ReplyScore = 0
So Blue Cheer, once called "The World's Loudest Band," don't even make the top 20? Uh. That's bullshit.
Posted by: the management at June 29, 2007 5:04 PM | ReplyScore = 0
Zeppelin's first is not loud. I demand it be stricken and replaced by Sepultura's "Roots".
DwD
Posted by: Dw Dunphy at June 29, 2007 5:11 PM | ReplyScore = 0
i agree with everyone who's wondering why the hell there's no lightning bolt on this list. and donde esta "blue cathedral" by comets on fire and "jane doe" by converge? this is a pretty weak list, if you ask me, even if it includes both "songs about fucking" and that neil young noise album no one ever remembers. other than that, to quote jack black in high fidelity, very PUSSY!
Posted by: Liam at June 30, 2007 11:51 PM | ReplyScore = 0
Madonna "Confessions on a Dance Floor"
Posted by: Drew at July 1, 2007 1:43 PM | ReplyScore = 0
The loudest album I've ever heard is Peaches' Teaches of Peaches.
I used to go to a local bar and every time someone playes a track from that on the jukebox it was 3x louder than anything else.
Of course this is just basic recording math: it's stripped down to vocal, percussion and one or two synth lines so they're all turned up. Also Elastica's debut basically holds maximum EQ throughout the majority of the record. just sayin'
Posted by: Michael at July 2, 2007 1:10 PM | ReplyScore = 0
haven't you heard young team then?
Posted by: gareth at July 2, 2007 10:05 PM | ReplyScore = 0
Melvins are very loud live.
Posted by: Sarah at July 3, 2007 6:08 PM | ReplyScore = 0
"The Woods" by Sleater-Kinney
Posted by: Jared at July 3, 2007 9:43 PM | ReplyScore = 0
"Fun House" deserves its No.1 rating. Nothing has touched it, although I agree with some reviews regarding the remixed brutality of "Raw Power". Other albums missing from the list are:-
Posted by: Rob J at July 5, 2007 4:35 PM | ReplySwans' terrifying "Children Of God" which is the aural equivalent of "Saw", and Chrome's "Half Machine Lip Moves". Since these albums are long deleted, noise fans have missed two unholy treats. It should come as no surprise that both groups were influenced by The Stooges.
However, there is one album which is readily available that should be on the list, notably
Henry Rollins' "End Of Silence". By the way, Henry was talking about "Fun House" back in 1985......
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MELVINS, TAD, Ministry, Hank Williams III
Posted by: hank'smom at July 5, 2007 4:54 PM | ReplyScore = 0
We all know what they're getting at with choices such as MBV and Aphex Twin... but, really? If we're going simply for "loud", this list should be dominated by Pantera and Metallica and Mastodon and buttloads of Scandinavian death metal...
Posted by: dirtyharold at July 5, 2007 10:45 PM | ReplyScore = 0
"can we all just agree that no one gives a good god damn about these lists? they get more and more irrelevant with every post. at this rate we will soon see a list of rock stars arranged in order of their largest shits." -from some guy up near the top
the point of these lists is to get people interested in music they've never listened to. which is what makes it so dissapointing that no one can manufacture decent lists that get people interested in the right music.
Posted by: michael at July 25, 2007 3:22 PM | ReplyScore = 0
erm....... METALLICA SHOULD BE ON THE TOP LIST CAUSE THEY MADE ONE OF THE LOUDEST ALBUMS....
C'mon We all gotta love Metallica a bit... Do some research on METALLICA then you will know what album is there loudest :P
METALLICA RULES
Posted by: Zach at August 3, 2007 1:46 PM | ReplyScore = 0
KISS MY ASS: LONDON cyber-cafe:
Posted by: david miedzianik at May 7, 2008 6:55 AM | ReplyScore = 0