ISO music recommendations (Steely Dan, Sondre Lerche, Steven Wilson)...

December 21, 2020 10:38 AM

My music collection needs some new blood. I like literate, inventive pop music and quality songcraft. I would love your recommendations (non-English language especially), special snowflakes inside. Algorithms often fail where my tastes are concerned.

I love:
Sondre Lerche
Steely Dan
Jump Little Children
Soda Stereo
Paul Simon's Graceland
Steven Wilson/Porcupine Tree
Opeth
Stars
Rush
Jazzanova
Dream Theater (first 3 or 4 albums, before they became cliche)
Dismemberment Plan

I tend to favor music that is not immediately predictable, rich harmonies, intelligent lyrics. I'm especially interested in finding more of this from non-English language sources. If someone can point me to the Steely Dan of Bulgaria, or the Paul Simon of Israel, I would certainly be interested.

I don't care about artist image, nor the era of the music. Hit me with your best recommendations.

PS Bandcamp or YouTube links preferred, F*ck Spotify.

posted by 4midori to Media & Arts (31 answers total)

May I suggest Fountains of Wayne (especially Welcome Interstate Managers), Grizzly Bear, Stereolab
posted by sydnius at 10:44 AM on December 21, 2020 [2 favorites]

Monkey House is the Canadian Steely Dan (latter period rather than early to mid period). They can veer very close to copycat/rip-off territory, so although they meet most of your criteria, you might think "I didn't know that Donald Fagen put out a new album— why isn't he singing?"
posted by jonathanhughes at 10:57 AM on December 21, 2020

I was just listening to an old Zhang Chu song, The Ant. It's helpful to read the Wikipedia entry. You have to really poke around online to find anything else about him in English even though, of course, he's a huge figure in China. I like a lot of mainland Chinese rock/indie from that era, but maybe I like his music most.
posted by Frowner at 10:58 AM on December 21, 2020

The Roches: amazing harmonies, literate, inventive, sometimes humorous, feminist.

The Hammond Song

Mr. Sellack

Losing True

Pretty and High
posted by FencingGal at 11:01 AM on December 21, 2020 [1 favorite]

Maybe Sylvan Esso? Here's one that sounds like it hits your criteria--there's lots more, too.
posted by Sublimity at 11:03 AM on December 21, 2020

Maybe you'd enjoy some China Crisis, a British pop group of the '80s that was founded by guys who love Steely Dan. Walter Becker actually produced their a couple of their albums.

If you like Porcupine Tree and Steven Wilson, have you heard his other projects, No-Man and Blackfield?

Maybe you'd like some David Sylvian too.

In the '90s there was a record label called Magna Carta that focused on prog and prog metal, a lot of which was heavily influenced by Dream Theater (and other prog metal bands like Queensrÿche). I remember enjoying listening to Shadow Gallery, Enchant, and Dali's Dilemma. Hey, actually, looks like they're still around in some form: https://magnacartarecords.bandcamp.com/

Hm, Atticus Fault perhaps?
posted by kindall at 11:10 AM on December 21, 2020

You might enjoy Hawkwind.
posted by furnace.heart at 11:32 AM on December 21, 2020 [2 favorites]

You might like Camera Obscura and Belle and Sebastian. Maybe this is predictable, but also Wilco?
posted by urbanlenny at 11:42 AM on December 21, 2020 [1 favorite]

Oops also maybe Whitney, who are heavily influenced by the type of music you list.
posted by urbanlenny at 11:43 AM on December 21, 2020 [1 favorite]

Andrew Bird hits that note for me; you might also enjoy checking out Thomas Dolby's Golden Age of Wireless and The Flat Earth albums from the early to mid 80s.

Maybe also the band Elbow?
posted by sencha at 11:46 AM on December 21, 2020 [1 favorite]

How about some Sufjan Stevens? Illinois seems in line with your tastes; I don't know his newer stuff as well.
posted by underthehat at 11:48 AM on December 21, 2020 [2 favorites]

Sencha just reminded me of another thanks to their recommendation of Andrew Bird: Kishi Bashi. He is SO interesting and talented. He also puts on the besssssssst live shows (if we can ever have live shows again) .
posted by urbanlenny at 11:52 AM on December 21, 2020 [1 favorite]

I put up a post here on MetaFilter last year about a site named "Albums I Wish Existed."

Albums I Wish Existed A web site jam packed with albums that could have been made, perhaps should have been made, and now they are made, by a man who just seems to be doing what he can to make the world a better place for those of us who love music.

Very possible you'll find albums which make your heart merry. Also he links to other web sites doing pretty much the same thing, so you've now got access to hundreds of records, many by bands or musicians you really love. I've found lots of great music on this site, my hope for you is that you do also.
posted by dancestoblue at 11:52 AM on December 21, 2020

Try Hayelala, an Israeli folk band with jazzy/folk influences.

And do you know about Ted Leo and Aimee Mann's collaboration, The Both? They released one precious gem of an album and I have been waiting in eager anticipation for their sophomore effort.
posted by missmobtown at 11:59 AM on December 21, 2020 [1 favorite]

Calexico
Nouvelle Vague
Pizzicato Five
Father John Misty
Aimee Mann
Muse
Arcade Fire
First Aid Kit
Electric Light Orchestra
Eliot Smith
Elvis Costello
Joe Jackson
February
The Gaslight Anthem
The Hold Steady
Jellyfish
Jenny and Johnny
Jonatha Brooke
The Mountain Goats
October Project
Old 97's
Rufus Wainwright
Saint Etienne
Sigur Ros
Stella Donnelly
The Smiths
Sufjan Stevens
Yo La Tengo
posted by willnot at 12:05 PM on December 21, 2020 [3 favorites]

I'm not 100% sure about this recommendation, but you might like Gesu no Kiwami Otome based on your Sondre Lerche pick. Also maybe Daði Freyr.
posted by thebots at 12:24 PM on December 21, 2020 [1 favorite]

Oh yeah, and Taiwanese band Sunset Rollercoaster.
posted by thebots at 12:28 PM on December 21, 2020

If you like Soda Stereo, you might like:

Charly García
Fito Páez
Luis Alberto Spinetta
Los Enanitos Verdes
G.I.T.
Fabiana Cantilo
Andrés Calamaro
Virus
Héroes del Silencio
La Ley

If you dig that kind of Latin American Rock in general, you might want to watch "Break it All", a documentary on netflix about the music and its relationship to the politics in L.A. the last few decades.
posted by signal at 1:41 PM on December 21, 2020 [1 favorite]

If you like rock en espanol I recommend Aterciopelados.

A few videos:
Bolero Falaz
Baracunata
El Album
posted by ralan at 2:09 PM on December 21, 2020

This is Cerati (Soda Stereo) and Andrea Echeverri (Aterciopelados) singing La Ciudad de la Furia.
posted by signal at 2:12 PM on December 21, 2020

I'd say that Shiina Ringo's Kalk Samen Kuri no Hana fits your description, as does Andrea Laszlo de Simone's Uomo Donna, and My Brightest Diamond's All Things Will Unwind.

And Sing to God by Cardiacs.

And XTC. I'm surprised no one's mentioned XTC.
posted by Grangousier at 2:32 PM on December 21, 2020 [1 favorite]

Laura Nyro had those complex songs.
posted by ovvl at 2:38 PM on December 21, 2020

HARU NEMURI「kick in the world」
posted by signal at 2:44 PM on December 21, 2020

(non-English language especially)

Dungen have never disappointed my ears. I don't know who I'd compare them to. Best just to explore a few options.

Mina Damer Och Fasaner
Panda (live on Conan -- 2005)
Live on KEXP

posted by philip-random at 3:05 PM on December 21, 2020 [1 favorite]

Oh my goodness you need to check out Vulfpeck. Steely Dan is a huge influence of theirs and they have recorded with Bernard Purdie (SD drummer). Most of their songs are instrumental or in English and I wouldn't call them "intelligent" - but I think other than that it fits the bill perfectly.

Some of my favorites:

1612
Birds of a Feather
Dean Town

This entire live album they recorded at Madison Square Garden last year
posted by rossination at 5:03 PM on December 21, 2020 [1 favorite]

This may not count since it's mostly instrumental w driving piano (+ some wordless singing) and is categorized as jazz, but I feel like Tigran Hamasayan's music is worth checking out given your other likes. I was listening to his recent album the other day and my partner commented on the prog jams.
posted by mandymanwasregistered at 5:20 PM on December 21, 2020 [1 favorite]

I haven't listened to enough Steely Dan to confirm this (and I feel like I should but so far just haven't gotten around to it) but my sense is that Destroyer has a lot of the same smooth sharpness. And based on a lot of your other criteria I'm giving Destroyer a strong recommend. Good starting points are Kaputt, Destroyer's Rubies, and maybe the most recent one (Have We Met) (links are to representative tracks from each album, "Savage Night at the Opera," "Watercolors into the Ocean," and "It Just Doesn't Happen" respectively).

Os Mutantes also seems like something you might find interesting. Here's "Adeus Maria Fulo."
posted by implied_otter at 8:48 PM on December 21, 2020

Bent Knee is incomparable: Catch Light, Being Human, Hold Me In, more
The Pineapple Thief's new album is great: Driving Like Maniacs, Demons
posted by prinado at 9:51 PM on December 21, 2020 [1 favorite]

For the DreamTheater side: The Mars Volta who were previously parts of At The Drive In.

Also: Flaming Lips, Future Islands, Death Cab for Cutie / The Postal Service.
posted by k3ninho at 1:56 AM on December 22, 2020

I'm currently listening to my favourite Divine Comedy album - 2000's out-of-character Regeneration - and I'd recommend them/him, too, especially the magnificent first flush - Liberation, Promenade, Casanova, Fin de Siècle, Regeneration.
posted by Grangousier at 7:11 AM on December 22, 2020

Response by poster: This is awesome, thanks everyone! Now I've got a great list to work through.
posted by 4midori at 6:33 PM on December 22, 2020