COS I'M COOLER THAN A POLLER BEAR'S TOENAILS — Outkast artist poll

https://www.morrisonhotelgallery.com/images/medium/Outkast_BW_InCar.jpg

Rank your TOP 25 TRACKS and TOP 5 ALBUMS and send your ballots to popthelevels at gmail dot com. Ballots due Saturday June 7 (by the next morning)

-I was thinking about including any callabo track that features BOTH dre and big boi for the tracks poll but how do we feel about this? So like Intrntl PLyrs Anthm, Neck Uv Da Woods and Bkack Ice would count. Should this just be a side poll?

-Let's separate Speakerbox and Love Below for the albums poll and also include Sir Luscious Left Foot?

Other thoughts welcome.

I think collabo tracks with Dre and Big Boi should count in the main tracks poll. Also, great thread name.

Yeah after thinking about a little deeper those tracks may dominate too much.

yeah i think group collabs like IPA should def be part of the main poll. those tracks were usually credited as "featuring Outkast" anyway.

this'll be interesting. how much of Idlewild will place lol

zerrrrrro

Not that I think it will be a serious contender, but will Dangerous Lies and Vicious Rumors will also be included in the albums poll?

I be on it, straight up on it

haha totally forgot that existed no joke xp. idk sure

(never listened to it in full)

was listening to Sir Lucious Left Foot the other day - there's some annoying details on it but it holds up pretty well for the most part. I still laugh at the David Blaine.

I like that album.

i feel like if we're doing Big Boi's albums (plus the Outkast album that is essentially 2 solo albums) we may as well do any feature by either of them, but i understand not including those and won't force the issue too much.

I'm fine with excluding Big Boi's solo albums, actually. And I think an individual features side poll would be awesome. But I don't know if I support the idea of, like, "What a Job" showing up in the Outkast poll.

Sir Lucious is so good, it really makes Dangerous Lies even more painful in comparison

Also I fear that IPA will end up, like, #3 or something. And much as I love that song, I still consider it a UGK song first and foremost. So I guess I'm cool with any decision regarding features. Guess I've probably expressed my opinion on the issue enough here, I'll bow out until we start posting "nominations"

there's no nomination period, though; just make a ballot and send it in

yeah use this thread to discuss the stuff in the OP and also to big up tracks you think might get slept on/personal classics/album cuts etc.

I've created a spotify playlist with eligible tracks and will create a youtube playlist with the missing tracks here soon:
http://open.spotify.com/user/theshipment/playlist/7zng377brSNiBYtqV1AmzS

Anybody who doesn't vote "Bowtie" number one ain't about that life.

Woah, short window! I mean, far less stuff to revisit (or visit--I just finally listened to the debut album for the first time in anticipation of this poll) than with Dylan, but I'm given very little time to overthink this one.

yeah sorry trying to wrap it up before I go out of town on the 16th but this is waaaaaaay less to tackle than Dylan, no?

yeah I don't think this catalog is particularly difficult

Bowtie is cool but prob not making my ballot.

what's the ruling on tracks from "Even in Darkness..."

cuz CROOKED BOOTY

25 sounds like a lot, but I just made a preliminary list of 40 and I'm having trouble imagining what I'll eventually cut out.

But yeah, six studio albums is very manageable, even with dozens of great songs.

EID is a tough one xp.

having a hard time deciding on what to include/exclude tbf. I kinda like the idea of the track (outside of their own discography) having to include both artists. So only 'Trans DF Express' would be eligible from EID.

Ive always thought of spkrbx/lvblw as an outkast project cos of how it was released so tracks on either of those would be eligible as well even if both aren't included.

ah right Crooked Booty is just Andre. Well I would still vote for Trans DF Express in any event.

this'll be interesting. how much of Idlewild will place lol

― Οὖτις, Wednesday, May 28, 2014 12:31 PM (2 hours ago) Bookmark Flag Post Permalink

zerrrrrro

― Spottie, Wednesday, May 28, 2014 12:38 PM (2 hours ago) Bookmark Flag Post Permalink

"Hollywood Divorce" is the shit tho

Was just messing, there are def a handful of tracks I like on it (including HD).

haha wtf is this Lenny Kravitz song they did

man remembering how much I love 13th Floor/Growing Old, too bad it has that stupid "sodomites get all the rights line"

so far I have one song from the Love Below and almost the entirety of Stankonia. wha happen Andre...

yeah

here is the youtube playlist of features

http://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLsgWSBJgsjUEyCSA-7sJg7pDFuOmKQTPI

this'll be interesting. how much of Idlewild will place lol

― Οὖτις, Wednesday, May 28, 2014 12:31 PM (2 hours ago) Bookmark Flag Post Permalink

zerrrrrro

― Spottie, Wednesday, May 28, 2014 12:38 PM (2 hours ago) Bookmark Flag Post Permalink

"Hollywood Divorce" is the shit tho

― ςὖτ ιτ Οὖτ (some dude),

Morris Brown and The Train both great too.

biggest problem with Idlewild is the closing stretch IMO, otherwise there's some good stuff there

For your consideraton:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qPLNQFOzknE

not always sure how I feel about all the sung hooks on the Big Boi tracks tbh

Whole run from Mighty O to In Your Dreams is pretty good actually, with the exception of the annoying Life is a Musical.

I have never really listened to their first or last albums. I guess I should do that

You havent heard southernplayalistic?

I don't own it. I know the songs that were on that greatest hits thing with the Whole World but never bothered to get around to buying the whole thing

oh man. yeah def get on it.

Don't forget about the Big Boi featuring Andre tracks:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4FUPPurcasM

and:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=to2rbcCVXv4

huh I thought Royal Flush was actually credited to Outkast...? weird

I'm calling it now - My Favorite Things at #1

good call, royal flush is on spotify, added the other one to the youtube playlist

good call to voodoo chili, not to 'my favorite things' winning ;)

Royal Flush is on my ballot

man listening to all this is reminding me how exciting these guys were at their peak, how great it was to have a rap act with such a wide, colorful palette both musically and lyrically also be absolutely massive pop stars. They seem like the genre's last gasp in that respect.

otm. aquemini was such a landmark album

trying to save most of my praise for the countdown

I have never really listened to their first or last albums. I guess I should do that

^

I started with Aquemini/Stankonia and worked outwards, but ATLiens and SB/TLB didn't hold a candle to those two, so I never heard the first and last albums. Time to remedy this.

i hadnt listened to the first 2 in forever, so happy 4 this poll

ATLiens is my 2nd favorite album of all time. you crazy vinnie

Another thing you forget about Outkast: so many skits. So many great songs that you can't put on playlists because of silliness at the beginning or end.

Really? Stankonia is loaded with skits, though most if not all of them are of them are standalone tracks, iirc. But the other ones don't really have that many, right?

I kinda like their skits tbh. pimp trick gangsta click is funny

Yeah, I co-sign that. Don't really love the Stankonia skits, but I like the ones on Aquemini and "Welcome to Atlanta" on Southernplayalistic is awesome

re:Aquemini I do kinda hate when skits aren't separated into their own tracks, that should be a requirement

+ it makes it weird for jukeboxing you know

I also don't mind rap album skits in general, which I guess is worth noting.

skits are the worst

Interspersing your songs with comedic skits has a certain vaudeville quality that I can appreciate.

skits are the worst

― °ㅇ๐ْ ° (gr8080), Thursday, May 29, 2014 2:06 PM (32 minutes ago) Bookmark Flag Post Permalink

Maybe funny once or twice but there are only a handful of skits I remember to this day and they are all on 36 Chambers or Doggystyle

yeah I got some last words

fuck all y'all

but seriously, there are good skits and bad skits and most are of the latter variety. it is weird how they came to be such a predominant trope in the genre, I kinda assume nobody does this anymore now that the age of CDs is over...

or because everyone realized it was a terrible idea

I never really cared that much at the time.

i feel like skits peaked sometime in the late '90s and for a few years into the 2000s they remained this bogeyman of 'why rap albums aren't good/consistent' even after they fell out of favor. feels like a lot of current mixtapes and albums still do intro and/or outro skits but more than that you just get in occasional albums like Kendrick and YG.

I remember "no skits!" being supposedly a plus in favor of Kanye's Graduation but me and old roommate got some good lols out of the first School Spirit skit so they can't be all bad

yeah the multitude of skits on Kanye's first 2 albums stuck out all the more because, Speakerboxx/The Love Blow aside, there weren't a lot of big albums with multiple skits in that era

how many times did the Batmobile catch a flat?

Let me add that I enjoy skits when they have a clear concept that they execute, like Wu-Tang skits, skits that move a story along like Kendrick and YG, or the $20 Sack Pyramid. They also tend to be a lot better when they're written by actual comedians (Eddie griffin did most of Dre's if I recall).

Feel like $20 Sack Pyramid plays a big role in the preponderance of skits, in that lots of people found it actually funny, and how massive The Chronic was.

$20 Sack Pyramid was a total bite/homage to Three Feet High's game show though

yeah, for sure. Three Feet High is definitely the originator, didn't want to take anything away from that.

just feel like i can imagine a world where three feet high still has the skits, and then rap albums generally don't for the next decade. Can't necessarily imagine the same thing without The Chronic, though I don't really have any evidence outside of a very generalized feeling.

I wonder what that shit would soooooooooound like

Damn. Stankonia itself could pretty much be my ballot.

Wow, blown away how polished the debut album is. Some of the quirkier elements of their music aren't there yet, but I don't hear much about this album, wasn't expecting it to be this strong. There's a few songs that'll make my ballot for sure. Planning to relisten to ATLiens to make sure it gets a fair shake too, Spottie

Really is a sharp debut.

Some of the quirkier elements of their music aren't there yet

Funky Ride begs to differ! http://youtu.be/_QwJdAi7yjw great trunk rattler too. Turn that up loud, ride out to that funkadelic-esque coda. Sublime stuff.

Git Up Git Out is gonna be in my top five for sure. Cee Lo verse is all time.

Stoked for this. Gonna fess up right now though; Hey Ya will prob be top 3 on my ballot

Likewise. Sometimes the most obvious answer is also the correct one, ya know.

The first time I heard that song on the album I remember thinking "what a cute little Frank Black-inspired album track". Dumbfounded that it became as big as it did - it's a good song, but I didn't realize it had mass appeal.

HA, Hey Ya is NOT making my ballot.

every Speakerboxxx/Love Below single is fantastic

I knew "Hey Ya" was gonna be massive when an indie club full of whites shouted ICE COLD in November '03.

I was never big on it but the more distance I get from the Love Below the more it seems like such a massive fumble. Hey Ya is amazing tho.

oh yeah, as an artistic whole The Love Below is massively flawed but Speakerboxxx more than makes up for it IMO

what I'm really saying is that I really love "The Rooster" and hope it goes top 10

Agree about Speakerboxxx/Love Below singles. "Roses" is corny, but I still know all the words, and "Prototype" and "GhettoMuzick" are vastly underrated. I might sneak one onto my ballot, but it would be hard for me to imagine any other non-Hey Ya SB/TLB tracks making it over their peak-era tracks.

Except for "Bowtie," obviously which is top 10

"Bowie" and "Rooster" and "Flip Flop Rock" (despite one of the first in an unending series of lame Jay verses) are amazing.

er "Bowtie." Would love an Outkast song named "Bowie" though.

"Bowtie", "The Rooster", "Church", "Unhappy", "Tomb of the Boom"... Speakerboxxx has some great stuff on it IMO

Listening to "Jazzy Belle" now – first time since '03 or '04 probably – I forgot how intense their quiet songs were.

it's def the superior half, the first four you cite are my faves probably (not so big on Tomb of the Boom or Flip Flop Rock - that lame Jay-Z refrain drives me nuts)

xp

besides we don't need FFR when we've got THROW YOUR FUCKIN NECK OUT

Speakerboxxx def superior to TLB, which is admittedly a bit of a slog. "Knowing" is as ballot-worthy as anything suggested so far, imo.

Still can't stand "Roses."

smells like poopoo iirc

Speakerboxxx sags some in the middle IMO, opens and closes strong tho

God I hate "Roses". Doesn't help that I am forced to ponder the smell of shit while listening to it

though i've cooled on it over the years, i still enjoy the love below as its own weird-messy thing, separate from outkast. speakerboxxx doesn't require that kind of isolation.

"roses" is both great and awful, good summary of TLB as a whole. also like "spread", "prototype", "hey ya!" (of course), "she's alive", "dracula's wedding", the last 3.

hate "Hey Ya," hate "Roses," will prob be almost entirely avoiding the biggest singles on my ballot tbh

Attaboy

Any ballot without "Rosa Parks" on it should be disqualified.

Outkast one of the very few acts where ignoring most of the big hits makes zero sense to me.

I'll def be voting for some of them but I love their deeper cuts just as much if not more.

Did we all remember the single version of Da Art Of Storytellin with the Slick Rick Verse and the accompanying video? I remember seeing that on MTV2 or w/e and feeling totally screwed cos my cd was without the verse. Looking at it now he delivers a preeeeeeetty gross verse and I'm glad the song I know and love is without it.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CZJGMzAZkxI

Cool interview with Rico Wade of Organized Noize
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jbgviKB1uI8

and essential reading here
http://clatl.com/atlanta/the-making-of-outkasts-aquemini/Content?oid=1552576&showFullText=true

I was out tonight and "Ghettomuzik" dropped and ppl went kinda nuts

"Prototype" probly the stayer on TLB, not gonna front on "Hey Ya" but nobody ever needs to hear that again, always had a soft spot for "A Life in the Day of" tbh, "Rooster" clearly way superior to all 3

Any ballot without "Rosa Parks" on it should be disqualified.

also OTM

I was out tonight and "Ghettomuzik" dropped and ppl went kinda nuts

ppl otm

*harmonica solo*

always had a soft spot for "A Life in the Day of" tbh

On my shortlist, though I wonder if it's just because it's so refreshing to hear Dre rap after an album of his singing

that is def part of it

but it also has a bit of a "What a Job" vibe i think

re: "What a Job," a month ago I was thinking about doing a poll of songs in which Andre's verse is about a conversation he has with someone else. I feel like that' something he does a lot that I don't hear as often from other rappers.

$20 Sack Pyramid was a total bite/homage to Three Feet High's game show though

― rage against martin sheen (sic), Friday, May 30, 2014 12:30 PM (5 days ago) Bookmark Flag Post Permalink

yeah, for sure. Three Feet High is definitely the originator, didn't want to take anything away from that.

― intheblanks, Friday, May 30, 2014 12:43 PM (5 days ago) Bookmark Flag Post Permalink$20 Sack Pyramid was a total bite/homage to Three Feet High's game show though

― rage against martin sheen (sic), Friday, May 30, 2014 12:30 PM

yeah, for sure. Three Feet High is definitely the originator, didn't want to take anything away from that.

― intheblanks, Friday, May 30, 2014 12:43 PM

3 Feet High ---> $20 Sack Pyramid

Sa Prize pt 2 ---> A Prince Among Thieves

If anyone is interested I put all the eligible tracks (sans skits) on a google spreadsheet so you can c/p from there or just see them all in one place
https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/1Ymsz_BxWBD_jJMvdCTHZZQjckK_oODVwvszEFwigDoE/edit?usp=sharing

Thanks, that's helpful. Need "Royal Flush" and "Looking for Ya" on there too

So to clarify, Big Boi's solo stuff, or other artists' tracks featuring only one member are disallowed?

Yeah

Will add those in soon vinny, thanks

list is missing "The Whole World" no? will be on my ballot

I'll get that on there too

I guess I shouldn't vote for "Where Are My Panties"

hahaha yes you should

aces

smh

Lemme know if anything else is missing from the list.

Everyone should vote for "Knowing."

Seconded.

and "Ova du Wudz."

"Knowing" thirded.

I've enjoyed rediscovering their catalog like I didn't with Dylan. Anybody still disappointed with Stankonia? From 1994 through Aquemini they moved from strength to strength. Stankonia sounds like a holding pattern: tentative, overlong.

uh waht

overlength is one of those things that doesn't bother me about an album if the highlights are high enough which they are on Stankonia

I'm still back on "tentative"

these days my favorite track on Stankonia is "Humble Mumble."

Anybody still disappointed with Stankonia?

people were disappointed in it? seems like their high point to me, almost all of its tracks are on my ballot

If anything Stankonia has gained steam for me. Humble Mumble is def getting my vote, probably highly placed too. Slum Beautiful is somewhat of a personal classic for me too.

HA HA HA HA We Luv Deez Hoes

people were disappointed in it? seems like their high point to me, almost all of its tracks are on my ballot

― Οὖτις,

I've gotten the sense here and elsewhere in the last 10 years that Aquemini was the better album.

these days my favorite track on Stankonia is "Humble Mumble."

― guess that bundt gettin eaten (Alfred, Lord Sotosyn)

Always has been mine. Only serious contender is BOB.

Aquemini def more highly regarded amongst old 'Kast fans but Stankonia isn't looked down on or anything

first 4 albums are a tossup, wouldn't be mad at any of them winning. but if anything else infiltrates the those in the top 4 placement I would be perplexed.

Yeah, I'm more surprised by it being called tentative than overlong. Definitely the beats they were creating and/or selecting are as risky and out there as anything they ever did, and it has some of the best, most confident verses they ever laid down.

Just posting to ensure we're all voting for Crumblin' Erb, right?

see also Hootie Hoo and Slump

I'd always thought of Stankonia as a tier below Aquemini and ATLiens, but it's the one I've returned to the most during my listening for this poll. A few songs that I've previously overlooked will make the ballot. I totally forgot that Gangsta Boo had a verse on "I'll Call Before I Come"! The version of Stankonia that I have on my iTunes doesn't list featured artists.

gangsta boo's verse is the best one on the song

hmmm "Humble Mumble" I always thought was a weakpoint of Stankonia, dope 'Dre verse but the beat's pretty light & iirc the ending goes on way too long

"Red Velvet"/"Gangsta Shit" is my fave one-two punch on that album

^ yes but it had been a while since listening to Stankonia in its entirety that I only really remembered the beat and the chorus.

xps Crumblin' Erb is a straight-up classic of the genre.

^ My first comment was a response to Οὖτις

hmmm "Humble Mumble" I always thought was a weakpoint of Stankonia

whoa. beat is amazing when it finally kicks in. so much detail.

that coda is awesome too!

idk this poll may be weirder than anticipated.

"Snappin' and Trappin'" always felt like Stankonia's sole dud to me. Still my favourite of their albums, though I'd be lying if I said that the length doesn't make me antsy.

ok wait I'm confused do I need to take the Lucious Left Foot songs off my ballot

i revisited all of the records earlier this year and stankonia ended up being my favorite and idk if i can even come up with a material reason why. love how it turns totally into sludgy funk at the end though.

This ballot has been unexpectedly torturous. Right now, Mrs. Jackson, Slump, Ain't No Thang, Southernplayalistic and The Whole World are sitting outside my ballot, which is crazy.

xp to Shakey. yeah sorry those are out, got tired of wrestling with what to do and just made the choice to exclude those. idk probably shoulda polled what should or shouldn't be included

when Erykah Badu enters "Humble Mumble" it's a real shaft-of-sunlight moment.

Stankonia's my fave too, feel like I like late-era OutKast better than most people tho. 'Dre's peak as a rapper imo

confession: I don't like 'The Whole World'

I've never been into show-tune Outkast much.

nova otm. Revising Stankonia a couple of years ago and was just totally blown away by 'Dre throughout that record

I could listen to his "Gangsta Shit" verse repeatedly for hours.

I was not be a fan of Stankonia, and re-listening to it today I remember why: it's a fundamentally challenging album, and not nearly as immediate as you'd think, considering the huge hits and the high intensity electro vibe. Tons of great stuff on there, but it's def not the same beast as Aquemini where everything from HO, BS to Storytellin pt 2 gels together like the best album you ever heard

I like Stankonia more now than I did at the time. The "high intensity electro vibe" (something I didn't have much understanding of during my most rockist period when I hadn't gotten into synth-based dance music at all, and especially coming off an album as warm and organic as Aquemini) is totally key and what makes it distinctive from any album they'd done previously.

Also anyone who disses "Humble Mumble" or "Snappin' and Trappin'" (STILL the hardest Killer Mike moment ever? EASTER EGG RAGGA DUDE????) should have their hand chopped off.

I was surprised by my wife saying that Snappin and Trappin was her favorite

btw never speaking to anyone again if they don't vote for "Cruisin' in the ATL"

I like "Snappin'," do I just get some of my fingers chopped off

idk I can't really bring myself to vote for anything that's 20 seconds long

lowkey "We Luv Deez Hoez" is my favorite on Stankonia

^^ for a while it was mine too

I think Stankonia might have the most songs on my ballot even tho I prefer Aquemini and ATLiens as albums, so many completely outlandish tracks on that album

I can see that. Really gonna have a hard time finding space for anything post Stankonia. Maybe a couple.

I was surprised by my wife saying that Snappin and Trappin was her favorite

― Οὖτις, Wednesday, June 4, 2014 1:22 PM (48 minutes ago) Bookmark Flag Post Permalink

awesome

this is updated with guest spots now too

https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/1Ymsz_BxWBD_jJMvdCTHZZQjckK_oODVwvszEFwigDoE/edit?usp=sharing

Toying w the idea of voting Kim & Cookie, which is great. Hopefully I have room

First verse of Snappin and Trappin is classic (Killer Mike otm), but the hook is comparatively weak and honestly I usually skip the last verse altogether.

kinda love this pseudo outkast collab:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6u1Ps6ZlDxA&feature=kp

Classic track for sure. Just missed out since Dre didn't feature despite it being credited to 'Outkast'. Weird cos he is in the video and even drops a "yee yeeeeah"

oh man I'd forgotten about this:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hspbNJFxESE

in terms of ordering this is the most tortured ballot i've ever made

how am i supposed to decide which tracks on atliens are better than other tracks on atliens

synthesizerrrrrr

digital goodtime

Yeah I feel like ATLiens may take my #1 album spot but not represent as well as expected on individual tracks.

Love ATLiens though, I just think of the whole thing as a piece.

na na na nine in my hands, ounce in my crotch, diggin the scene with that gangtsa slouch mmmmmmmmmmhhhmmmmmm

^^^ so fun to sing in the car, with people watching you

Aquemini is so low key but it's a pretty perfect song. The beat has all these eery noises sliding around in the background, love when the beat comes back at the end too, perfectly placed horn stab.

Live from home of the brave with dirty dollars
And beauty parlors, and baby bottles and bowling ball Impalas
And street scholars, that's majoring in culinary arts
You know how to work bread, cheese and dough
From scratch but see the catch is you can get caught
Know what ya sellin' what you bought so cut that big talk

The horn blast that starts Big Boi's second verse on Aquemini is one of the most exhilarating musical moments in their catalog

Was worried when I read through the thread because no one had mentioned Aquemini (the track). It's such a standout track for me, especially Andre.. Anyway, I have always compared Aquemini and ATLiens, arguably my two favorite Outkast albums, and I feel that Aquemini comes out on top? Even though ATLiens has so many great tracks I dont think it works that well as an album, perhaps because of how smooth Aquemini is (i feel the overall production is just better, maybe?). Very excited for this poll though, agree that all four albums are worthy of #1 spot. This is what makes lurking ILX great :)

i feel the exact opposite, i think atliens works better as an album bc the mood is so consistent and subterranean

Quit lurking, submit a ballot and join in!

Agree with Brad but it's close.

imo Aquemini is perfect besides Skew It On The Bar.. I feel interrupted by some of the tracks on ATL like Wheelz Of Steel and Jazzy Belle, maybe even the chorus on ATLiens? Dunno, maybe its just me..

def just you haha. crazy talk.

Just to be clear, I do like ATLiens a LOT :D

mmm. i guess i gotta think about this.

@video2000 those are 4 of the very best tracks on those albums!

reminder: "church"

I relistened to ATLiens (the album), still don't really get it. It's like Aquemini but I don't dig the hooks nearly as much. Heh "Wheelz of Steel" and "Jazzy Belle" are the only tracks on it that may make my ballot

How many ballots so far, Spottie?

@intheblanks That's insane :D ! I prefer Elevators and Millenium, the first that come to mind.. Always had the impression that many Outkast fans have different fave tracks; it's just such a great catalogue because of their consistency (v impressive considering all the stuff they have done). I don't think I have enjoyed this many albums over and over from any other hip hop act?

Wu-Tang's their only competition in that respect, but there are so many more of those guys its not really a fair comparison

For me Gang Starr and UGK are in that category too, but imo the first four Outkast albums comprises the greatest streak of albums ever in any genre.

PE's first four go toe to toe w just about anything, tribe came close

limiting this to groups/duos narrows the field considerably, since so many groups implode(d)

I smell a side poll

gonna rumble through all these over the next day or two

for four LP streaks of astonishment, i think of prince, stevie, outkast, tom waits

How many ballots so far, Spottie?

― nova ydal (Drugs A. Money), Thursday, June 5, 2014 12:21 PM (59 minutes ago) Bookmark Flag Post Permalink

Um only two so far (just got the 2nd, thx DL).

But it's a tight deadline.

will def vote, just having trouble ordering things in a coherent way

four LP streaks of astonishment

oh there's plenty in other genres, I was thinking of rap specifically

god knows why i love "stankonia (stanklove)" so much but i do, groove so nasty

so many good songs here... think i'm gonna have to just go with impulse rather than thinking about it

Spottieottiedopaliscious feels like the best song in the world some days

marinate on that for awhile

obv best song ever

Relistening to ATLiens: one of the great things about it is that sort of semi-motif of willing to stop a song without warning--obv the gunshot at the end of Two Dope Boyz but also the way Ova Da Wudz cuts off halfway through Boi's second verse, not even going through the hook one more time, just listening to the beat for almost a full minute. Just incredibly ominous...

Just voted, tried to limit it to maximum five songs per LP but Aquemini is too good.

I'm at 27 and i just don't know what to cut...

some are personal, some are obvious. it's interesting to me what sets off memory with these; the weird plodding funk jams and club bangers seem to have the most impact

and anything that features goodie mob

jesus did i just cut jazzy belle owch

I don't have to tell everyone to vote for "Gasoline Dreams," do I?

my least favorite song on the album

iirc everyone likes the taste, so no

xp I suppose

i have a few that i imagine I'll be the only person repping for.
Millennium among them.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wG6seogAnFo

my least favorite song on the album

― Οὖτις, T

awright awright awright awright awright

That doesnt mean I think its bad fwiw

least fav on Stankonia is def "?"

gah, haven't even started (re)listening. got a project for the next couple days...

I'll accept ballots up until Sunday after dinner time so like 10-11 pm eastern time.

I'll be putting Millennium on my ballot too forks. Such a great song.

i don't mind "?"... would maybe suggest toilet tisha as the worst track on stankonia but it's still pretty good

Pretty sure "Toilet Tisha" and "?" will both make my ballot.

I love Stankonia deeply, but imo it has both higher highs and lower lows than than the 3 other classic Outkast albums. I like "Toilet Tisha," but don't have as much time for "?," or "Xplosion."

Staankonia peters out after "Toilet Tisha" imo

Staaaankonia. Stankonia*

Xplosion is awesome wtf

yeah i thought "wtf" but tbh i just can't be amazed

tho tbf B-Real probly got the best verse on there so maybe it shdn't make the list

also while i'm on please make sure y'all vote for "2 Dope Boys in a Cadillac"

^^^

If it wasnt so close to an artist poll I'd do a TS: Outkast's Xplosive vs. Dre's Xplosive poll thread

*Dre's Xxplosive

Dre's Xxplosive has Nate Dogg's greatest verse, so it wins by default.

i have a few that i imagine I'll be the only person repping for.

me and "mainstream"

least fav on Stankonia is def "?"

aw rev i fucking love ?

idk if it'll make my ballot though

I think Return of the G has one of my favorite Andre 3000 verses..

bitches & switches & hoes & clothes & weed
let's talk about time travelin' rhyme javelin
somethin' mind unravelin' GET DOWN!

This should place high right?

re: idlewild i love "the train" and "hollywood divorce" and i'm pretty sure neither will make my ballot

sorry idlewild

'mainstream' is on my short list, brad.

Return of the G is the first Kast song I fell in love with. Ranking it high

gangtsaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaa
oooooooooooooOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO

OTM

yo big boi what's up with andre?
is he in a cult? is he on drugs? is he gay?

wow so this whole exercise has made me reevaluate stankonia. still think it's great but definitely have it a step below atliens and aquemini.

everyone's voting for Black Ice, right?

y'know I left that off. There are other Outkast/GMob collabs that I like better but they don't feature both guys. Was sad not to be able to vote for Killer Mike's "A.D.I.D.A.S." for similar reasons.

Mr DJ production on that Black Ice beat is so good with the guitar harmonics. Andre's verse too

Friends, Romans, countrymen lend me yo' eardrums
It was a beautiful day off in the neighborhood
Yellows and greens and blues and browns
and greys and hues that ooze beneath dilapidated woods

"Black Ice" is more a great Gipp song than a great Outkast song. Both members feel fairly incidental to it.

Maybe, both had 16 bars tho, not chump change by any stretch.

Sure, but neither of them make the song like Gipp does.

sent my ballot

full of regrets

it's one of my fav Dre verses xp

ballot sent

rankings are p arbitrary tbh the quality level is just so consistent

xp I like him better on "Thought Process" as far as Goodie colabs go

Ballot currently at 29 tracks.

Today's rediscovery: "Spread"

^ so good

It also just occurred to me that while I've always thought of The Love Below as the weaker half of that double album, and still pretty much do, it is basically a really good 90s Prince record.

like hell

more like a bad 90s prince record

I really feel less and less generous to it as time goes on tbh. I've said this before but every song goes on for roughly an extra minute or more than it should - he ran out of ideas but not tape, so everything just gets pointlessly stretched out oh hey let's just repeat this chorus for a 5th time, fuck it how about a 6th time oh hey are we recording my adlibs? urgh fuck you

it is about 33% of a good 90s prince record and the other % some other record that isn't as good

but that's true of most 90s prince records too

7 ballots (not including mine) so far so keep em coming! Linking the google doc again.

https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/1Ymsz_BxWBD_jJMvdCTHZZQjckK_oODVwvszEFwigDoE/edit#gid=0

It also just occurred to me that while I've always thought of The Love Below as the weaker half of that double album, and still pretty much do, it is basically a really good 90s Prince record.

― Funk autocorrect (cryptosicko),

GTFO! The first half of the first Emancipation disc >>>>>>>>>>>>>>>> The Love Below

*half

The problem with Dre is approaching TLB as if he were mid eighties Prince recording in a late nineties studio.

so i can't vote for kryptonite in this?

at least half of the time i try to listen to Outkast i am just not in the mood for it. fortunately, though, this weekend i seem to be in the perfect mood for it.

i keep trying to listen to outkast but winding up w pluto

hey Spottie, can you add "Neck Uv Da Woods" to the playlist of eligible tracks? it's on Spotify. and a lock for my top 5, don't want other people to forget about it.

fuck it, i'll post the video too

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TurpygxuGyc

definitely voted for "neck uv da woods" and u should too

Yah will add it tonight when I get home not sure how I forgot that one. Getting a vote from me

Neck uv da woods is amazing. How did I not hear it before?

neck ov da woodz was in my top fifty or so but there are just too few spaces

I bought 'The Wood' soundtrack just for that song.

just checked and neck uv da woods is already on there:

http://i61.tinypic.com/10mpzkj.jpg

i would put sole sunday on before neck

okay will i be the only person to list.... SYNTHESIZER?
secretly great song imo

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MkivGULndck

secretly?

easily my favorite song on aquemini

i've never heard anyone else rep for synthesizer!

Was my 2nd or 3rd favorite song on there for a long time when I first got it.

On my ballot

someone answer my question about "kryptonite"

and "shutterbug" for that matter

Oh sorry yeah those are out.

I'd vote for "Kryptonite"

but those are my 2 fav outkast tracks :-(

I'm sorry i probably made the wrong choice

submitting my 2 song ballot now

voting "synthesizer" for sure

just checked and neck uv da woods is already on there:

http://i61.tinypic.com/10mpzkj.jpg

― Strictly EZ Snappin' Nhex (Spottie), Saturday, June 7, 2014 12:44 AM (8 hours ago) Bookmark Flag Post Permalink

i meant your Spotify playlist, hadn't looked at the spreadsheet

how do we feel about "Funkin' Around"? Sounds pretty fresh this a.m.

it's very good, nearly made my ballot

sent!

Aaaand sent!

Spottie, are you gonna send verification emails? Sorry if this was already covered above...

Got it! And Alfred's. Been sending verifications yes. Also added that to spotify, sd

but those are my 2 fav outkast tracks :-(
― °ㅇ๐ْ ° (gr8080), Saturday, June 7, 2014

but if this ever changin' world in which we're livin' makes you give in and cry
i be on that kryptonite

lol

i may put every full-length song from Southernplayalistic on my ballot. listening this weekend is really cementing my opinion that their music suffered more and more over time as Andre's bad ideas slowly swallowed them whole.

i wouldn't go quite that far, i'll probably have southernplayalistic fourth for albums (though it's a contender for third, something i never would've imagined until recently). stankonia still sounds great to me but alot of what sounded exciting, breathtaking, risk taking at the time now sound like bad ideas that are about to get alot worse. atliens-aquemini definitely the peak, atliens my fave and i think their best but if someone asked me the first outkast album to get, the 'quintessential' one of whatever i'd pick aquemini. this track feels like it makes alot of what they were going for on the next two albums redundant or overkill, ended up surprisingly high on my ballot -

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VbSGAk6d6bU&feature=kp

i don't know if everyone's forgotten this track or if it never had much impact outside of georgia but i loved this so damn much at the time

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=poGBJr7h1sc

I'm gonna give it another shot but Southernplayalistic doesn't do much for me (one song made my ballot).

"Watch For The Hook" was definitely on Rap City every day for like 6 months back in the day. don't think it ever really impacted radio up here, though.

i got

spcm - 4
atl - 7
aq - 6
stk - 5
sb - 3
tlb - 0
id - 0

Neck uv da Woods is one of the few times I've thought Big Bio clearly outrapped Andre

yeah his verse on that kills

I think that happens more often than that. Two big ones that come to mind are "ATLiens" (the track) and "So Fresh, So Clean."

Lol Big Bio lol cell phones

balls really otm above.

Feel like there should have been a side poll for best Andre 3000 video outfit. Probably would have been a landslide for the shoulder pads/furry pants/pith helmet from the "Rosa Parks" clip.

Haha would be a great side poll for sure.

""Watch For The Hook" was definitely on Rap City every day for like 6 months back in the day. don't think it ever really impacted radio up here, though."

Yep bought east points greatest hits cos of that song. Used to buy a lot of CDs based on the strength of one track. Pretty cool album tho.

listening this weekend is really cementing my opinion that their music suffered more and more over time as Andre's bad ideas slowly swallowed them whole.

― some dude, Saturday, June 7, 2014 1:24 PM Bookmark

oh wow you haven't reverted to type this hard in a minute

Yeah, that's crazy

title track is top 5 though

I am (shamefully) listening to SPCM for the first time rn. I feel a little weird puttin tons of stuff from it on there but the signature songs (Aint No Thang, Players Ball, Git Up Get Out) are dead certs for my vote

don't be ashamed. great songs.

beyond title track, idgi

but my fondest memories of outkast are my big brother picking me up from 8th grade football and playing aquemini on the ride home. It was the best music I had ever heard.

Some of it still is

One of my favourite Dre verses on this:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lIDKZSF6y8k

Oh shit, only just noticed voting is closed.

Nah extended it until about 12 hours from now! Still time.

oh wow you haven't reverted to type this hard in a minute

― uppers epilepsy sh@kedown (The Reverend), Sunday, June 8, 2014 12:01 AM (12 hours ago) Bookmark Flag Post Permalink

Yeah, that's crazy

― sufi john paxson (Sufjan Grafton), Sunday, June 8, 2014 1:26 AM (11 hours ago) Bookmark Flag Post Permalink

yeah ::shrug:: a lot of the 3000 wackiness people love just bugs the shit out of me. i like when he's just a rapper with a lot of personality and interesting flows.

Just voted. Didn't have time to listen to the non album tracks, but at least have heard all the albums now

goddamn "Red Velvet" is a masterpiece

yep

hope it places high

Here here

Ballots due by after the Heat/Spurs game, is that it?

Yup that'll be it. Probably start compiling within an hour after that ends. I'll update everyone as the time gets closer but that would be the earliest.

Cot damn thought we had til the 16th

Only started listening since 1

Luckily I have Stankonia more or less committed to memory so I won't need to spend that much time on it, and fuck everything that came after

1 PM

So glad the Snoop Dogg remix of So Fresh & So Clean is on here

When I first heard it on the And1 Mixtape I went crazy

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=91qwlyVsOl0#t=193

Whoa did stet lowkey implement https embedding

^ starts at 3:12

"Land Of A Million Drums" ain't even on Spottie's spreadsheet, but fuck it i'm semi-trolling with it on my ballot

i love "land of a million drums"

didn't vote for it though

red velvet was one of the cuts i made that kind of broke my heart

regret not voting for "claimin' true"

I forgot about "Land of a Million Drums."

Me too! Just added to the spreadsheet but I'm sure it won't make the cut.

Dunno if I stated this already but if anyone wants to change their ballot you can up until the cutoff. I haven't plugged anything in yet.

I won't put you through the trouble. The only track I regret forgetting is "The Train.

No ties huh. How am I gonna pick a #1

just voted!

Southernplayalistic: 9
ATLiens: 3
Aquemini: 5
Stankonia: 2
Speakerboxxx/The Love Below: 1
Idlewild: 1
non-album: 4

I think I voted for the right song #1 but I'm mad at myself for not voting my #2 my #1

I have the email open in Gmail there's still time to switch

Fuck it

nice got em/

Also for clarity, speakerboxx and love below are separated for the albums poll. So for people that wrote speakerboxx make sure you meant that cos if you meant love below or both then its gonna go to the wrong place. Email me back if you anyone wants to change it.

voded. some real half an ass ranking, but i'm happy with the final cut.

plus sent an update re the bit abt separating spkrbxxx & TLB. how many votes you end up getting?

Something over 20 so far. Will give anyone another hour or so that wants it. Rev? Jord?

nice! i got 21 ballots for the Jay-Z poll, 19 for Neptunes and 36 for Timbaland, so you'll probably end up somewhere in the middle of that curve.

pleasantly surprised after such a poor showing for Kellz

ah yeah, wow, that got only 15. on the bright side, the turnout for your Wu Tang poll will definitely be huge.

hoping so! that one will take some work and have tons of side poll options

yeah...i'd like to put another rap or contemporary R&B poll on the queue since right now all that's left is Wu and Badu, but i dunno what would even get a good turnout. Kanye, Beyonce/DC, maybe Biggie.

kanye would get a lot but Im tired of talking/hearing about him tbf. DITC would be awesome but probably not get enough turnout.

SPLAY 4
ATLNZ 5
AQMNI 4
STNKO 6
SPKRX 3
LVBLW 3

lmao at SPLAY and STNKO

yeah i have terminal Kanye fatigue and would personally not volunteer to run that poll, just saying it would prob get a good number of ballots.

alright 17 MORE MINUTES IF YOU WANT TO VOTE!

Did rev ever get a ballot in?

oops I forgot to vote in this

Didn't get one from rev xp. Gonna be starting this in a few hours. Got a couple meetings then should be good to go.

OLD SCHOOL PLAYERS TO NEW SCHOOL POLLS — Outkast artist poll RESULTS