Since I Left You

Have you ever been completely enamored by something and marveled at the thought of how it was executed? Think of your favorite sports figure showing their prowess in their sport as they show why they are elite or an artist that paints an incredibly detailed piece from a blank canvas with only their imagination as inspiration. Their hard work starts to unveil as their skill is shown to the public for entertainment and/or critique. When I was younger displays like those gave off a magical vibe that I always wanted to recreate, but as I have grown older the magic slowly turned into admiration of their work. I have many artists that I feel this way about in the realm of music, but there is one piece of work that has stood out most to me over the years that I cannot stop clamoring over. 

The Avalanches are an Australian based electronic music group that formed in 1997. They started out as a local punk rock group playing at local clubs and bars and never found an identity until they played an opening act for the Jon Spencer Blues Explosion. After they signed to a record label, they set out to start on their most ambitious project in an area that they had not recorded in before. The group bought vinyl records of every genre and era by the cart and listened to them extensively trying to find unique and intriguing bits of music and sounds. Their idea was to create an album using only samples from other records/movies/shows to create one of their own. Everything from reggae tunes to 1970's pop hits to Canadian stand-up comedy shows. The group claims that there are over 3500 total samples in the entire album titled, Since I Left You.

I highly encourage anyone and everyone to listen to this album IN FULL and in one session. I can almost guarantee that the first listen will leave a bad taste in one's mouth but if you let it sit for a couple days or a week and revisit the album it might start to make more sense. There are some very jarring moments in the album that create a very odd feeling in the album and that may put many people off, however, I believe that these moments are offset by very clear and beautiful sections where the different samples match up perfectly. For example: the track "Two Hearts in 3/4 Time" starts off with a very dysfunctional bit of spoken banter followed by a loud and energetic set of group chants before transitioning into a beautiful, melodic waltz-esque section all within the span of 45 seconds. That passage highlights what I think makes this album wonderful; it offers so many different sounds and styles. One of my favorite passages is the transition from the end of the track "Close to You" into the track "Diners Only" when the group of women start conversing among themselves. "Suzie? Suzie? Suzie, he's looking at you!" That passage manages to bring joy to my face every time I hear it as it seems as though the women are real. Another aspect that I love is how energetic the album can be at times. The opening track, "Since I Left You", is a very upbeat and joyous song that is very reminiscent of a Jackson 5 single in their prime. The child-like vocals create a very vibrant sound that is accompanied perfectly by the keyboard and drums. The song seamlessly transitions into "Stay Another Season" which adds an addicting bass line to the already vibrant sound and it transitions to club feel at a very popular joint that is living. With moments like these, it is very apparent that every single sample was thought about and perfected. 

 I could write an essay on all of the different moments in this album that I love, but I'll save you the drivel. This album has been on many "Top-100" lists of the early 2000's including, but not limited to: Pitchfork's Top 100, Number 10 in the book "The 100 Best Australian Albums", and hip-hop artist ?uestlove has placed it in his personal top 10. With all this press, I find it a bit strange that in the Midwest region of the United States I find it hard to find people that have even heard of such an album. It could be due to the age of the album, it is quickly approaching 14 years of age. It could also be that it was originally slated for an Australian only release and never gained enough traction to make a mark in the states. In the end, I suppose that is not entirely too important because I believe the album speaks for itself. 

If I have managed to capture your attention about the album, I highly recommend doing some research on the different samples they used and where they originated. I've linked two examples below and the channel has a few more examples for some of the samples that were used.

This is one of my two most cherished albums that have had a real impact on how I view music production (the other being Daft Punk's Discovery) and the more I delve into their inception and how they were created, the more enamored I am by them. What this group did with this album recalls the same "magic" feelings I had about my favorite stars as a kid.