Counterbalance

Counterbalance No. 1: The Beach Boys’ ‘Pet Sounds’
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Counterbalance No. 1: The Beach Boys’ ‘Pet Sounds’

By
 / 3 February 2020

Ten years ago, we began presenting the beloved Counterbalance series that ran through 2016. Jason Mendelsohn and Eric Klinger debate the merits of some of the most critically-acclaimed albums of all time. We are re-running the entire series beginning today with a new entry each Monday. Enjoy.

Counterbalance: Thin Lizzy – Jailbreak
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Counterbalance: Thin Lizzy – Jailbreak

By
 / 19 February 2016
Guess who just got back today? Them wild-eyed boys that have been away. This week they're talking about the 813th most acclaimed album of all time. A 1976 classic rock mainstay is this week's Counterbalance. Spread the word around.
Counterbalance: Elvis Costello and the Attractions – Imperial Bedroom
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Counterbalance: Elvis Costello and the Attractions – Imperial Bedroom

By
 / 5 February 2016
History repeats the old conceits, the glib replies, the same defeats. Keep your finger on important issues, and keep listening to the 275th most acclaimed album of all time. A 1982 masterpiece is this week's Counterbalance.
Counterbalance: Harry Nilsson –  Nilsson Schmilsson
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Counterbalance: Harry Nilsson –  Nilsson Schmilsson

By
 / 29 January 2016
Doctor, ain't there nothing I can take? Doctor? To relieve this bellyache? A 1972 smash (however unlikely) -- and the 938th most acclaimed album of all time -- is this week's Counterbalance. Jump into the fire and join us!
Counterbalance: The xx – ‘xx’
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Counterbalance: The xx – ‘xx’

By
 / 22 January 2016
Watch things on VCRs with me and talk about big love. I think we're superstars -- or at least the xx are. A 2009 indie pop masterpiece is the focus of this week's Counterbalance.
Counterbalance: Talking Heads – Speaking in Tongues
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Counterbalance: Talking Heads – Speaking in Tongues

By
 / 15 January 2016
Put away that gun. This party's simple. We're talking about the 1137th most acclaimed album of all time. (That Talking Heads' 1983 commercial smash is this week's Counterbalance. Turn like a wheel inside a wheel.
Counterbalance: The Decemberists – The Crane Wife
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Counterbalance: The Decemberists – The Crane Wife

By
 / 8 January 2016
And I will hang my head low — as we build our homes aluminum and fill our mouths with cinnamon. By land, by sea, by dirigible, we turn our Counterbalance attention to a 2006 indie rock classic.
Counterbalance: Sam Cooke Live at the Harlem Square Club, 1963
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Counterbalance: Sam Cooke Live at the Harlem Square Club, 1963

By
 / 18 December 2015
We'll never know just what Sam Cooke would have accomplished if he had lived, but it's painfully clear that we missed out on something incredible.
Counterbalance: Tame Impala – Currents
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Counterbalance: Tame Impala – Currents

By
 / 4 December 2015
On Currents, Tame Impala hit upon a winning formula, moving seamlessly between electronic and organic, big ideas and bigger licks, pushed by an unstoppable rhythm.
Counterbalance: Johnny Cash – At Folsom Prison
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Counterbalance: Johnny Cash – At Folsom Prison

By
 / 20 November 2015
This week, we're stuck in Folsom Prison, and time keeps draggin' on. Actually it went by pretty fast as we listened to the 157th most acclaimed album of all time. Do the roots of roots music start here?
Counterbalance: Courtney Barnett – Sometime I Sit and Think, and Sometimes I Just Sit
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Counterbalance: Courtney Barnett – Sometime I Sit and Think, and Sometimes I Just Sit

By
 / 13 November 2015
Put me on a pedestal and I'll only disappoint you. The debut LP by a pop-rock wunderkind is this week's Counterbalance. She hasn't made the Great List of the most acclaimed albums of all time, but look for her next year.
Counterbalance: John Cale – Paris 1919
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Counterbalance: John Cale – Paris 1919

By
 / 6 November 2015
Welcome back to Chipping Sodbury. You can have a second chance. Counterbalance is back. To mark their return, they're looking at the 356th most acclaimed album of all time -- avant-garde pop or the poppiest avant-garde?