Can We Have a Poll Fight? - The 6ths "Wasps Nests" poll

for me this is between "san diego zoo", "falling out of love (with you)", "pillow fight" and "you can't break a broken heart". really hard choice. pretty good album.

what about stuart moxham 'yet another girl'?

Great album! Voted "San Diego Zoo"

So hard, went with Babs Manning but could've easily picked 3 or 4 others. This album is better than the successor, but "Hyacinths And Thistles" has it's moments.

"Here In My Heart"!!!

Somewhere I have the vinyl boxed set.

― Josh in Chicago, Saturday, March 19, 2011 8:12 AM (1 hour ago)

what about stuart moxham 'yet another girl'?

― keythhtyek, Saturday, March 19, 2011 8:25 AM (1 hour ago)

Yeah, you must find the box set just for that one!

(voted SDZoo tho)

Dream Hat

here in my heart.

"When I'm Out of Town" is the correct answer. Knox's performance is touching, and musically it's both droney and shimmery. There's a nice performance of it on YT by the Magnetic Fields:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xkz0UruvXSc

Personally, I'm all about "Pillow Fight," "Puerto Rican Way" and "You Can't Break a Broken Heart." But there's a lot of quality to choose from.

I'm a little surprised by how much I've come to loath SM over the years. Anyway, San Diego Zoo.

Agreed on the loathing, actually. His self-loathing always vied with contempt, but as his ego got bigger so did said contempt. Total financial and creative independence hasn't done his demeanor any favors.

Anyone heard any of the hilarious Stephin Merritt getting courted by major labels tales (perhaps c. this album)? Lots of him leaving to go to the bathroom mid meeting and never returning, or standing and leaving in the middle of a pitch.

SM is a total dick, no doubt about that. He's still incredibly talented, though. Fortunately I've been able to keep his attitude from that influencing my listening to the music.

pretty great album -- both "san diego zoo" and "falling out of love with you" are perfect songs.

i like most of these songs quite a bit. never liked the dean wareham one though, and winter in july is a bit annoying.

going for dream hat, my favourite mac vocal

chris knox would be #2

Automatic thread bump. This poll is closing tomorrow.

Gosh this is hard. Definitely think of this and Charm of the Highway Strip as the best-sounding Merritt-related records. Comes down to San Diego Zoo or Pillow Fight for me. Hmmmm.

They made sounds much like drums
I was young, you were dumb
Now you're older and I'm wiser
We design synthesizers

Automatic thread bump. This poll's results are now in.

Happy to see "All Dressed Up in Dreams" get a vote too.

there are no bad songs on this album.

does anybody know what happened to stephin merritt this century that made his schtick become so rancid? whenever i return to these early albums i am always struck by just how good they are. just the right balance of joy and wistfulness, genuine sentiment and distancing self-irony.

Well said. The second 6ths album is good as well but not at this level. After "69 Love Songs" I liked "i" and some of "Distortion" but otherwise, shtick is the right word.

The man in the forest
The dashing young florist
The nurse musclebound

surprised that San Diego Zoo ran away with this poll, I love it but I’d say the Timony, Knox, and Wareham tracks are just as good.

Robert Scott’s vocals are uncharacteristically terrible on “Heaven in a Black Leather Jacket,” which is otherwise great.

Apparently there was a music video for "San Diego Zoo": https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=u_IRXRUDgxw

You voted Dream Hat down
I shake my head about your taste
You voted Dream Hat down
Should have finished in first place

wow @ no votes for "Movies in My Head"

Just found my fake 6ths tracklist from 2009, it's still mostly possible!

Asks Asps
1. And Didn't We Have Fun (w/ Agnetha Faltskog)
2. Sunspots on the Moon (w/ Andy Bell)
3. Learning Not to Love You (w/ Daryl Hall)
4. Wish You Were Me (w/ Terence Trent D'Arby)
5. The Day of Your Ceremony (w/ Alan Sparhawk)
6. He Done Him Wrong (w/ Torquil Campbell)
7. Rainshowers (w/ Poly Styrene)
8. I Waited For You to Bring Me A Cat (w/ Satomi Matsuzaki)
9. She Asks Asps the Way to Aspen (w/ Martin Phillipps)
10. Losing Ampersands (w/ Alison Moyet)
11. Thorn In My Neck (w/ Patrick Wolf)
12. I Don't (w/ Sam Phillips)
13. Feathers (Where Your Head Should Be) (w/ Alison Shaw)
14. Museums Could Be Us (w/ Michelle Phillips)
15. Ages & Pages (w/ Steve Harley)

Weird, I had no idea that the Ayako Akashiba who sang on this was the same who did vox for (the german synth-gaze band) Guitar. I wonder how she got on SM's radar at the time? Her first band (Sunshower) is/was reasonably obscure, even in Japan.

(neither their band nor album name show up in any results on the ilx servers)

There is so much OTT reverse reverb on this I'm surprised it hasn't been retconned into the shoegaze canon.

the only Stephen Merritt project I've bothered to hold onto

what super random thread will Steve Shasta revive next

This remains my fave Merritt as well.

Oh my dear Shakey: kindly come to the NOIZE BOARD where I am drawing lines between North Macedonian choral hymns in 7/8 meter to Grateful Dead hippie jambz.

shakey . . . lives? <3

my favorite Merritt, too!

can't believe "All Dressed Up in Dreams" got ONE vote

Love this album. I could easily vote for about half the tracks.

the chord changes on “pillow fight” are otherworldly, I don’t known they move me so

I don’t known know why

https://i.discogs.com/m9a2wnQF8hw4AWz-H0K7fbFoqnblDxxVHpsZmLp4-uw/rs:fit/g:sm/q:90/h:584/w:600/czM6Ly9kaXNjb2dz/LWRhdGFiYXNlLWlt/YWdlcy9SLTQxODU5/NC0xNDQ4NDg2NTA0/LTk3NTcuanBlZw.jpeg