/mu/sings — Chapter 0
What is /mu/-core?
That’s easy! /mu/-core is a… huh… well, it’s not a genre of music, since the projects included in them are usually attributed to their own genres, from folk to post-rock. It’s not a subgenre either. I suppose one would call it a paragenre, encompassing all the wobbly air they worship over on 4chan’s /mu/ forum (for those of you that don’t know, 4chan is one of the internet’s oldest and most storied message board hosts, with /mu/ being the subsection dedicated specifically to discussing music).
But, over the years, the term has outgrown its home in the back of an internet alley and acquired a coherent identity of its own. It’s intricate; dark at times and soaring at others; edgy, yet hopeful; and all very unmistakably internet-age relevant, even those albums originally released in the 60s :). I, myself, am unfamiliar with the vast majority of these works, coming from a primarily prog-rock background (an entirely different flavour of geek).
This changes now. I am announcing that I have taken on a quest, a pilgrimage of these supposed masterpieces, and will be putting them all to a taste-test. The following lists depicts the albums I have chosen to subject myself to in the coming weeks or months, and the order in which I plan on doing it:
[The # symbol marks albums I have already heard and am using as landmarks]
- LIFT YOUR SKINNY FISTS LIKE ANTENNAS TO HEAVEN by Godspeed You! Black Emperor #
- LONG SEASON by Fishmans
- THE GLOW PT. 2 by The Microphones
- IN THE AEROPLANE OVER THE SEA by Neutral Milk Hotel
- LADIES AND GENTLEMEN WE ARE FLOATING IN SPACE by Spiritualized
- LOVELESS by My Bloody Valentine
- SELECTED AMBIENT WORKS 85–92 by Aphex Twin
- MARQUEE MOON by Television
- ÁGAETIS BYRJUN by Sigur Rós
- REMAIN IN LIGHT by Talking Heads #
- SPIDERLAND by Splint
- HOMOGENIC by Bjork
- DEATHCONSCIOUSNESS by Have A Nice Life
- MERRYWEATHER POST PAVILLION by Animal Collective
- THE DISINTEGRATION LOOPS I by William Basinski
- LAUGHING STOCK by Talk Talk
- SOUNDTRACKS FOR THE BLIND by Swans
- TROUT MASK REPLICA by Captain Beefheart & His Magic Band
- IN THE COURT OF THE CRIMSON KING by King Crimson #
I myself have no idea how this will go yet. Maybe this will be the story of me redefining my taste in music from the ground up, or perhaps it will mostly devolve into dumbfounded head-scratching. Whatever my thoughts end up being, I’m sharing them with you anyway, because community is a large part of why humans enjoy music so much. If this ends up inspiring anyone else to widen their own musical horizons and explore genres outside of their comfort zone, it’ll have been a success!
If you have suggestions, thoughts, or other contributions, come join the discussion in TheWeeklyAlbum’s Discord server: https://discord.gg/cyFSxhkKAb
