I mean it’s pretty common practice to put what you think your biggest hit will be from track 2-4 somewhere. Openers usually get bigger on their own just from it being the first thing you hear. Cant name very many albums at all where the opener is one of the least popular songs unless it’s just an intro thing.
Nah, it's the exact opposite.
Track 2 needs to be *slightly* better than track 1.
There's no reference for the first song. But the second determines whether or not you even continue listening.
This thread is such a circlejerk. Has anyone here actually written and recorded albums? It is (or should be) an opus with its own logic - only a hack is slotting the “best” song in a given position.
Correct. Having seen my best friend through the full development of [an album](https://open.spotify.com/album/6rOYzQX6abzp699c7Lqsjr?si=FNH_2ME_R6yYfG8QBcAAow), any one song on it could be the best. They all have meaning and they all fit. Granted, not everyone takes album assembly so seriously—but they should.
Bit of a more obscure pick, but “Timely!!” by Anri.
Cat’s Eye - New Take is a strong song, but it’s a so-so opener, in large part due to it being a complete remake/overhaul of one of Anri’s older songs that doesn’t really fit in with the rest of the album. By contrast, Windy Summer is a certified BANGER, and it fits/sets up the themes/vibes/aesthetic way better than Cat’s Eye could ever dream of.
That being said, there’s a part of me feels like Cat’s Eye is a bit *unintentionally* underwhelming compared to Windy Summer; The echoing end of Cat’s Eye is very clearly meant to naturally sequence into the opening instrumental of Windy Summer. As such, I have a crackpot theory that Cat’s Eye was included to set up false expectations for the listener, only for Windy Summer to completely catch the listener off guard and subvert those expectations.
Knower's "Knower Forever" (meh orchestral instrumental leads to "I'm the President")
"The Miseducation of Lauryn Hill" (sketch leads to "Lost Ones")
Liz Phair's "Whip-Smart" ("Chopsticks" is okay, "Supernova" is great)
Funnily enough the first 3 songs on that album are actually my least favourites, solely because of the high-pitched noises present on all of them. They’re still great songs, I think it’s an autism-related sensory issue haha.
I really love the rest of the album tho
omggg twinsies! although it’s so interesting how we experience those sensory issues differently, Classical has so many sounds that bother me but it’s your fav song on the album!
as you could probably guess i’m defs a Mary Boone, Connect, Hope, Prep-School Gangsters etc. kinda girl
What's that the first or second track is best? See I love burn the witch but daydreaming I don't like as much. It is very good I think those noises at the end of the song put me off a bit lol
How to leave town by csh, love beast monster thing but not a huge fan of the ending of dramamine and feel like that song doesnt fit the vibe of the ablum
"Is This It?" maybe. The title track is fine, and I wouldn't know where to place it if not as the opener, but it pales in comparison to "The Modern Age".
Aphex Twin - Syro
Kicks off with Minipops which is a decent lil' pop tune, but then dives right into XMAS_EVET10, a ten minute opus that showcases Richard at his best. It's got intricate liquid basslines, stunning analog pads, funky breakbeats played by a MIDI-controlled robot drumkit, and of course the trademark Aphex lush haunting melodies.
ATCQ “We Got It From Here…”
I don’t mean to diss “The Space Program” here at all, it’s a great opener and makes its own excellent statement - just a musically less sharply defined one than “We The People”
Important Message: The Wonky Angle is mega based.
I'm kind of going with albums that I feel like the second track is when they really start/the 2nd track could probably work better as an opener (but not always), so not really that I think that the opener isn't as good as the second track.
Radiohead - OK Computer (I really wish the album started with Paranoid Android's beeps), and maybe A Moon Shaped Pool
Nas - Illmatic (I get the first track, but the second one is kind of the real start, you know what I mean? Obviously I don't mean that it would work better if the 2nd one was the opener or that the opening isn't that good, it's great, I can't imagine it being different)
Justice - Hyperdrama
C418 - 148
I love Highway To Hell (the album) but Girls Got Rhythm is the most fire song I’ve heard from their discography. An insanely good impression was left on me by that song, frfr. Yeah.
White pony. feiticeira is a great song, but I’ve always felt that it’s kind of a “just ok” opener. It’s followed by Digital Bath, which is easily one of Deftones’ best songs
Who cares whether the first or second track is the highlight?
Traditionally, big singles have often been strategically placed as the first or second track, none of these is better than the other imho.
"Historically, thy second track it must knock
Think Praise Chorus, Monkey Wrench, or The Trio's Cop" - Say Anything, On Cum (track 2 of "...Is Comitted")
kind of a bad album, but Best Buds by Mom Jeans fits this perfectly. the first track is like the lowest energy song on the album, and the second track is the best song on the album overall.
Untitled is one of the best album openers ever. As a musician, to write a song that simple but that badass will forever be a goal of mine. Obstacle 1 is great, of course, but I wouldn't open the album with anything other than Untitled
I mean it’s pretty common practice to put what you think your biggest hit will be from track 2-4 somewhere. Openers usually get bigger on their own just from it being the first thing you hear. Cant name very many albums at all where the opener is one of the least popular songs unless it’s just an intro thing.
Sherane is one of the least popular songs on GKMC, no?
There’s 1
which I get but also it’s so friggin good. I guess it’s tough to replay a song that ends as abruptly as Sherane does
Eh, a lot of albums have specific intros that are definite skips
I said unless it’s an intro thing
Why do you need the best song first? Ease into it, set the vibe
I’m not really saying the opener should be the best track, I’m just saying some albums have forgettable openers that make track 2 shine all the more.
The Colour and The Shape fits. But I do love the opener.
Radiohead Amnesiac with Pyramid Song but I wouldn’t want it as opener, packt is a great opener for it
Same with Paranoid Android - significantly better song but not suited for an intro
No such thing as a significantly better song than Airbag.
Airbag has some of my favourite lyrics on the album, but other than that it didn’t really do it for me
Get off my case
I’m a reasonable man
Killing In The Name is better than Bombtrack and Bombtrack ain't suffering shit.
Idk man bombtrack verses are amazing i prefer it to killing in the name for sure
Nah, it's the exact opposite. Track 2 needs to be *slightly* better than track 1. There's no reference for the first song. But the second determines whether or not you even continue listening.
This thread is such a circlejerk. Has anyone here actually written and recorded albums? It is (or should be) an opus with its own logic - only a hack is slotting the “best” song in a given position.
Correct. Having seen my best friend through the full development of [an album](https://open.spotify.com/album/6rOYzQX6abzp699c7Lqsjr?si=FNH_2ME_R6yYfG8QBcAAow), any one song on it could be the best. They all have meaning and they all fit. Granted, not everyone takes album assembly so seriously—but they should.
Virtue by The Voidz. QYURRYUS would have been a much more fitting introduction to the album than Leave It in My Dreams.
*Mezcal Head* by Swervedriver. “For Seeking Heat” is a great opener, but “Duel” is one of my favorite songs ever.
They’re both such bangers that I was sold on the album after just those tracks.
and then “Blowin’ Cool”?! Come on! 🏆
Classic album!
Bit of a more obscure pick, but “Timely!!” by Anri. Cat’s Eye - New Take is a strong song, but it’s a so-so opener, in large part due to it being a complete remake/overhaul of one of Anri’s older songs that doesn’t really fit in with the rest of the album. By contrast, Windy Summer is a certified BANGER, and it fits/sets up the themes/vibes/aesthetic way better than Cat’s Eye could ever dream of. That being said, there’s a part of me feels like Cat’s Eye is a bit *unintentionally* underwhelming compared to Windy Summer; The echoing end of Cat’s Eye is very clearly meant to naturally sequence into the opening instrumental of Windy Summer. As such, I have a crackpot theory that Cat’s Eye was included to set up false expectations for the listener, only for Windy Summer to completely catch the listener off guard and subvert those expectations.
Love to see that album talked about :).
I just absolute loathe it when track 2 is an interlude. I come across more albums that have weak track 2s.
The Infamous Prelude a good one. great track overall as well
Knower's "Knower Forever" (meh orchestral instrumental leads to "I'm the President") "The Miseducation of Lauryn Hill" (sketch leads to "Lost Ones") Liz Phair's "Whip-Smart" ("Chopsticks" is okay, "Supernova" is great)
The sketch is cute though! It fits in with the rest of the sketches
I hardly come across people talking about knower on the internet. Let Go is such a fire album
Dopethrone. Vinum Sabbathi is a good song but Funeralopolis is one of the greatest songs ever imo.
Blur’s Parklife album. It starts out with the biggest hit of the album, Girls & Boys, but track 2, Tracy Jacks, def has opener energy.
Flying Beagle
Run the jewels 2
imo Fraility - Jane Remover
Immediately thought of twin fantasy
Help! by The Beatles is the opposite of this where the second to last track is Yesterday and it should've been the closer over Dizzy Miss Lizzy
Vampire Weekend - Only God Was Above Us Ice Cream Piano is just okay. Classical is absolutely outstanding and the best track of the album by far.
Funnily enough the first 3 songs on that album are actually my least favourites, solely because of the high-pitched noises present on all of them. They’re still great songs, I think it’s an autism-related sensory issue haha. I really love the rest of the album tho
That’s so funny cause the same thing happened to me! I have the same sensory issues lol. That’s why I don’t like ice cream piano.
omggg twinsies! although it’s so interesting how we experience those sensory issues differently, Classical has so many sounds that bother me but it’s your fav song on the album! as you could probably guess i’m defs a Mary Boone, Connect, Hope, Prep-School Gangsters etc. kinda girl
Run The Jewels 3 They tried to repeat the start of 2 but Jeopardy is awesome while Down kinda sucks
A Moon Shaped Pool
What's that the first or second track is best? See I love burn the witch but daydreaming I don't like as much. It is very good I think those noises at the end of the song put me off a bit lol
How to leave town by csh, love beast monster thing but not a huge fan of the ending of dramamine and feel like that song doesnt fit the vibe of the ablum
Track 1 sets the atmosphere, track 2 is usually what sells you on the album on first listen
Life Is Good. Loco-Motive is one of the best tracks on that album
1989 by Taylor Swift, Blank Space is great while Welcome to New York is very meh
Radiohead - OK Computer, with Paranoid Android
"Is This It?" maybe. The title track is fine, and I wouldn't know where to place it if not as the opener, but it pales in comparison to "The Modern Age".
i dont think is this it is a weaker track but i think the modern age would be a better opener
Fiona Apple’s When the Pawn. To your love is fantastic, although On the Bound is great too
Too many albums to name 😭
Ride the lightning
Holy Diver by Dio having Stand up and Shout as the opener instead of the title track
Aphex Twin - Syro Kicks off with Minipops which is a decent lil' pop tune, but then dives right into XMAS_EVET10, a ten minute opus that showcases Richard at his best. It's got intricate liquid basslines, stunning analog pads, funky breakbeats played by a MIDI-controlled robot drumkit, and of course the trademark Aphex lush haunting melodies.
Clarity - Jimmy Eat World While Table For Glasses is a beautiful song in itself Lucky Denver Mint goes hard
ATCQ “We Got It From Here…” I don’t mean to diss “The Space Program” here at all, it’s a great opener and makes its own excellent statement - just a musically less sharply defined one than “We The People”
Important Message: The Wonky Angle is mega based. I'm kind of going with albums that I feel like the second track is when they really start/the 2nd track could probably work better as an opener (but not always), so not really that I think that the opener isn't as good as the second track. Radiohead - OK Computer (I really wish the album started with Paranoid Android's beeps), and maybe A Moon Shaped Pool Nas - Illmatic (I get the first track, but the second one is kind of the real start, you know what I mean? Obviously I don't mean that it would work better if the 2nd one was the opener or that the opening isn't that good, it's great, I can't imagine it being different) Justice - Hyperdrama C418 - 148
I love Highway To Hell (the album) but Girls Got Rhythm is the most fire song I’ve heard from their discography. An insanely good impression was left on me by that song, frfr. Yeah.
Not an Exit by Truth Club. “I Know There Is” is a weak opener and “Student Housing“ is such a great song, so making that the opener would be so good
White pony. feiticeira is a great song, but I’ve always felt that it’s kind of a “just ok” opener. It’s followed by Digital Bath, which is easily one of Deftones’ best songs
pink tape and eternal atake
Who cares whether the first or second track is the highlight? Traditionally, big singles have often been strategically placed as the first or second track, none of these is better than the other imho.
Crosseyed and painless is better than born under punches from talking heads remain in light. But it’s razor thin, both are great songs.
"Historically, thy second track it must knock Think Praise Chorus, Monkey Wrench, or The Trio's Cop" - Say Anything, On Cum (track 2 of "...Is Comitted")
2014 Forest Hills Drive
Atrocity exhibition - Danny Brown
IMO: Boris - Pink Death Grips - The Money Store Nine Inch Nails - The Fragile
Don't hurt me but freewheelin' Bob dylan, the white album, abbey road, and imagine all suffer from this in my opinion
dear prudence as the opener would be quite odd
Hard disagree, those soft guitars make for a beautiful, wacky start to an equally beautiful and wacky record. But to each their own!
yep, personally i find the transition to back in the ussr to dear prudence to be important to the experience
I thought this was a given nowadays. Usually when checking out a new album, and by usually I mean always, I'll start at track 2
kind of a bad album, but Best Buds by Mom Jeans fits this perfectly. the first track is like the lowest energy song on the album, and the second track is the best song on the album overall.
Interpol's first album, the first song is great, but the second song is Obstacle 1
Untitled is one of the best album openers ever. As a musician, to write a song that simple but that badass will forever be a goal of mine. Obstacle 1 is great, of course, but I wouldn't open the album with anything other than Untitled
Now Antics, however, is a different story
I like Next Exit as an intro
Untitled is peak idk what you mean It feels like sun rise if it was a song
Blonde. Been almost a decade and I still can’t get into Nikes.