Ask someone who's heard the album anything

Ask someone who's heard the album anything.

Other urls found in this thread:

youtube.com/watch?v=t_h1i-WxVUs
twitter.com/AnonBabble

rank it in terms of The Seer and To be Kind

what did he mean by this?

It's a very different album than those two, to be sure. I'd put it above To Be Kind, maybe equal to or slightly better than The Seer.

how long is it

when will it leak

Hour and 59 minutes. You can tell that from the iTunes listing already, though.

LEAK IT BITCH

No clue, probably when the CDs get sent out, unless some journalist wants to lose their job.

To clarify a bit: the album is a lot more consistent than either of the other two. The tone in general is a lot less dark than those two, and there's nothing as raw as The Apostate or Oxygen, though the second half of the title track comes close.

what is a glowing man

Apparently Michael Gira, according to his lyrics on the song. I'll leave the analysis to Sup Forums a week from now.

What about the second half specifically? I feel like the back half of the title track definitely grooves more than it hits as "raw". Gira frantically shouting "no, no, no no, no, no, No, no no, no, No, no" and the bursts of noise that compose the first half of the track are far more visceral, in my opinion. Probably the closest he comes to "losing it" in Apostate-level madness.

How did you get to listen to it?

What do you think of the Swans from before the current era?

Oh, yes, I loved that bit. Especially when he periodically switched to "yes" in the middle of the "no" section. Really, the whole extension of the Bring the Sun bit was excellent. But I still feel that the Joseph bits, specifically before he goes into his "I'm a glowing man, I am", were the most visceral he got on the album. It sounded like he was seriously tapping into something inside him that we'll never be able to fully understand, which has been the trademark of all of Swans' heaviest moments.

Advance press copy. I'm a big fan of 90s Swans (White Light and Soundtracks are 9/10 albums, and even The Burning World has its merits), and I like Filth a good amount. Still need to get into their output in between Filth and Children of God, though.

I've always been curious about advance press copies of records nowadays. I'd figure that due to the uptick in leak risks that they come very bare-bones in regards to packaging and riddled with notices of watermarks. Did your copy come with a lyric sheet or is it just a blank slip of paper with the artist/album title typed out with the disc?

That's fair enough. His voice gets pretty guttural for sure. Did you happen to see this (very relevant) excerpt from the DVD included in the bundle version?

youtube.com/watch?v=t_h1i-WxVUs

Neither, it was fully digital. They usually don't give us lyric sheets or anything, and I've never even gotten a physical promo. That's why when you read Pitchfork reviews they sometimes blatantly get lyrics wrong. Watermark notices, though? Yeah, there's a lot of those. They make it very clear that if you leak it, they will find you.

I totally forgot about that, but yes, I did see it. I pre-ordered it with The Gate so I'm very, very excited to see the concert footage.

Can't speak for the exact copy you received, but mine is void of watermarks or disclaimers entirely, audible or otherwise.

I went with the Gate as well. Pretty disappointed that the vinyl no longer comes with the DVD, but word on the streets is that they're keeping true to the track order for the LP version, which I'm excited about.

I'll probably end up ordering that CD-DVD set separately. Can't express how eager I am to watch those live performances.

I can't hear any watermarks, but I trust that they're there. Labels are usually pretty good about tweaking the audio in ways that you can't hear, but that a quick audio test would be able to detect. You might have gotten a direct CD rip, though, in which case you should consider yourself lucky. I'm content with my watermarked 320 copy until my CD comes.

wait, there are two people in this thread now with the album this early? do you know for certain your copy has no watermarks? if so, and you're totally assured of it, mind if i ask as to why you haven't leaked your copy yet?

waiting is not filled.

...what?

You're probably right. Good thing we're on the brink of having full CD rips floating around and readily available. I don't know how much time you've spent with the album, but do you have any favorite tracks or movement in a specific track?

I've had mine for about a month, and have kept it hush-hush until the last couple of weeks. I basically don't want to go down as the guy who leaked Swans' "last" album. It delivers in spades - for me - and I think it's well worth the money. I guess I just respect Gira and co. more than I care about What.cd ratio or Sup Forums glory.

The "Joseph" he sings about is something he has mentioned in interviews before. He feels that this "joseph" is an entity that speaks through him when he reaches his artistic epiphany.
He feels like it is not him that is credited for the great music he creates but this jospeh entity that uses his body as a vessel for art. Sort of like the whole preachers letting god speak through them, but with music I guess.
I haven't actually heard the song, but from what i've read about it, sounds like he is singing about the Joseph entity completely taking ahold of him. Joseph is "The Glowing Man"
If you want to find the interview, it's an interview he did during Angels of Light.

Where do you work?

Cloud of Unknowing somehow surprises me every time I listen to it. My favorite moment is when the fast and erratic drum line comes in around 3 minutes in, but pretty much every switch-up in the song makes me smile every time. Still, though, I'd have to call Frankie M my favorite track. It might be the most structurally sound long form piece they've ever made, in that it feels like a 20-minute song rather than a collection of movements. Love the female backing vocals on the track (and on the back half of The Glowing Man).

I've read those interviews before, and that's part of why I described the part of the song the way I did. As he sings about Joseph, it's almost as if you can hear Joseph speaking through him. Crazy shit.

'S'classified, my friend.

Correct. That's where the album art stems from as well, I believe.

>Joseph is cutting my arm on his bed

I know exactly what you mean. Every movement within Unknowing is so, so good. It packs way more of a punch than I first thought it did on the first listen. Especially when they find that groove; the one they used in the initial Gate trailer. Relentless but also infectious to the point where I find myself tapping my foot to the rhythm when it's not even playing.

And Frankie M. is the closest thing I can pick to a favorite track, as well. It's impossible for me to not lose my shit when the song picks back up after those female vocals.

Assuming you're familiar with Swans' back catalog, like you mentioned, does the "whistle" melody around 5:35 in Frankie M. make you think of the middle of I Was A Prisoner In Your Skull, right before the alleged FBI interrogation recording? Or am I just crazy? It was an immediate recognition for me, even if it's a bit of a reach.

Nowhere near anything music related, unfortunately. I'm grateful to have friends who trust me well enough with these kind of things, though, and that just adds more incentive to respect their wishes and keep things locked down for the time being.

I'd say that the repeated vocalizations in the background of that moment (the ones that almost sound like dog barks or something) are more reminiscent of that moment, but yeah, I hear it too. Although I associate it more with the end of the jam at the beginning of Mother of the World.

>dog barks
Oh yeah I think that bit already leaked

What was the most Death Grips-like moment on this album?

how did you hear it

fuck off

Oh, the "barks"? I guess I need to play that specific part again, because all I can recall some [or all] of the band members howling like madmen with that gloriously noisy ambiance.

Is it better than Gothicmade?

Maybe a bad description of the sound. It's part of the whole sonic landscape, but I hope that you know what I'm talking about when/if you relisten.

I don't think I can wait any longer
I know TBK inside out and its slowly starting to get tiring
I feel like a junkie but I can't listen to music atm, I need that Frankie M ffs

Important question: Are the Red rhythm thing and Black rhythm thing at all utilised in World Looks Red/Black? I'm really hyped for that song in particular.

It's New Rhythm Thing and Red Rhythm Thing.

How does the closer compare to apostate and to be kind?does it live up to those in your opinion?

Not OP, but the closer is the epitome of "short and sweet". It is nowhere near as epic as Apostate, nor does it leave you quite as speechless. It's bright, upbeat, and feels victorious... which is the perfect way to punctuate this era of Swans with a period.

given that the album is leaked except for the last two tracks, could you maybe close the deal?