The Favorite Fives blog series continued today with Motionless In White guitarist Ricky Olson sharing his five favorite complete albums. Check out Rick’y list below!
AFI – Sing The Sorrow
This is one of the first bands that really changed how I looked and felt about music. Up until this point I thought about music as an escape or a way to provoke emotion. But, it never really occurred to me that music could tell a story in the same way a novel can. The elegance of this album, portraying the cycle of reincarnation is truly a masterpiece— The out of place song titles and the secret track. The way the album ends the same way it starts. It’s an absolutely beautiful way for an album as a whole to echo the tone and theme read between the lines. If you’ve ever wanted to know what it feels like to live, die and be reborn, to me, this album is the embodiment of that process.
HIM – Screamworks: Love In Theory And Practice
Anyone that closely follows the band, and myself, knows that I’ve been a die-hard HIM fan since I was about thirteen. I have absolutely adored every single song and album that the band has ever created. That being said I have to pick their album Screamworks: Love In Theory And Practice because, even though I can listen to every one of their albums from front to back, this album is the most melodic and catchy. The lyrics are clever and obscure. While all of their albums are dark and dreary, the juxtaposition of upbeat instrumentals with gloomy lyrical content and melodies feels haunting. I’m not sure I know how else to describe it. But, because of that, it is one of my favorites.
It Dies Today – The Caitiff Choir
The Caitiff Choir was my first introduction to music that could be heavy as well as melodic and powerful. Before this I had never heard music blend the two things and I was absolutely blown away. This is still one of the albums that continues to shape how I look at and write heavy music. If it wasn’t for this band and this album, I don’t know I would be where I’m at today.
Eighteen Visions – Obsession
This album is a reiteration of how I feel about It Dies Today. I heard this album shortly after The Caitiff Choir and again, this one just helped shape how I felt about how music should be written and played. It’s an awesome blend of heavy vs melody, and without this band and their aesthetic, I would not have become the musician and person I am currently.
Bring Me the Horizon – Sempiternal
Sempiternal is a bit of a wild card for me. I was a huge BMTH fan growing up, even from their first album. I sort of strayed away after I felt like they were pulling away from their roots. When I heard this album, I felt the same way listening to it as I do about AFI’s Sing the Sorrow, which is strange considering that they’re completely different genres of music. There’s something about the tone and euphoria that the album evokes that I can’t explain. I love when music has a message, and this album, to me, speaks a lot about religion and how people perceive and portray god, and what comes next. This is an album that I think perfectly blends electronic elements into heavy music— this is what genre bending should look like at the most professional level. Even today, BMTH have been pioneers of continuing to push the boundaries of where the line can be drawn. A lot of people give them shit for that, but I think it’s incredible. For these reasons they, and this album, have earned a spot on my list.
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