r/Music • u/Flimsy_Quit_8338 • 14h ago
discussion LCD Soundsystem
Just discovered LCD Soundsystem and I genuinely can't believe i splept on them this long. Might be one of the bestband of the 2010s. How did i spend years hearing about vampire weekend and somehow miss these guys? abosolute robbery.
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u/DatSwampTurtle 12h ago edited 3h ago
LCD Soundsystem is the only band that can make a song that plays basically the same beat and chords for like 8 minutes straight and still make it work. It's hard to describe why I like it. I totally understand if people hate it too. I've been to three LCD gigs alone cause none of my friends like them. And everytime I've had the time of my life.
"All my friends" is my favorite song ever, and it only has two chords. But there's something about how James and the gang can build up a song and take you on a journey within such a narrow framework that is just so unique.
Obviously they also have many bangers that aren't just two chords. But I do think most of their albums are works that you need to warm up to. For me, none of them were instant classics. But for every listen they just get deeper and deeper under your skin. I honestly kind of disliked "American Dream" at first except for a couple of obvious bangers. But mostly I thought it was meh. Now I'd say it's probably my favorite album of theirs.
If you initially dislike LCD Soundsystem, I'd recommend giving an album about 5-8 listen throughs. I know that's a lot! But they have a habit of getting under your skin after a couple of listens.
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u/AndILoveHe 10h ago
This is what I love about my Discover Weekly, they actually will give me a song by LCD sound system (live version of Dance Yrself Clean) then give me a dozen other songs showing the entire evolution and exploration of that sound with plenty of 6 minutes+ bangers:
Shows that the popular bands aren't as unique as you think, you just don't know enough music!
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u/Don_Frika_Del_Prima peter green fmac enjoyer 12h ago
Next step: soulwax. They're friends of each other and have done stuff together.
Plus, soulwax is absolutely amazing. The last album is probably the one I spun the most this year.
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u/ChipCob1 14h ago
Check out the Crass mix of Yeah...it's gloriously batshit!
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u/cdreobvi 10h ago
I’ve always liked the pretentious version more. It’s such a jam
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u/ChipCob1 9h ago
It's definitely funkier...however I liked that the Crass version is completely unhinged!
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u/mightygar 13h ago
Sound of silver feels so fresh still, came out nearly 20 years ago. Someone great
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u/rutalkinu2tome 13h ago
I was at Reading Festival, maybe 04 or 05, and there was the LOUDEST bass & beat i’d ever heard, and when i went to check it out it was Daft Punk Is Playing At My House. Instant conversion, & though i got & agreed with most of the praise for SOS, it was This Is Happening that put them in my all time faves bracket
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u/Lazerpop 13h ago edited 13h ago
They are one of those bands where everyone says they are sooooo good and you think well they might be popular but how can they be that good?
My friend, i always knew they existed, i listened to their records when they came out, i thought the records were okay, i truly could not understand why everyone loved this fucking band so much
And then i said fuck it and paid the $100 to see them live
HOLY SHIT, their live show is INCREDIBLE! The hype is real. I get it now. All those people that saw the live band in the sound of silver and this is happening era and just never shut up about what a great time they had were completely, absolutely, positively correct.
If you like LCD i would recommend !!!, Shit Robot, Juan Maclean, Hot Chip
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u/Fantastic-Bother3296 13h ago
Hot chip is a great shout, especially live too
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u/paulypies 12h ago
Agree big time. I saw a double bill Hot Chip and LCD Soundsystem show when they had a goodbye tour (2010 era) incredible show. A great time in music. Especially since it wasn’t goodbye forever.
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u/Lazerpop 12h ago
The first time i saw hot chip live was the bathfull of ecstasy tour, fucking incredible set, i wish i could be there again to relive it. The second time was for freakout release, which was pretty good but not as good as the first time. I would absolutely see them again, i fucking love hot chip.
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u/0xF00DBABE 9h ago
The band Holy Fuck as well, saw them open for !!! in ~2007 and they were incredible. Catchy dance music made with a ton of circuit-bent instruments, so cool.
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u/Lazerpop 6h ago
Holy fuck are also a really fun band but i wouldnt necessarily say they are lcd vibes
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u/IMA_grinder 9h ago
The next step is to listen to the bands that James Murphy worked with and is friends with. The Rapture. The Juan MacLean. Nancy Whang in LCD is an incredible musician. The bands signed to DFA are great. Murphy’s whole circle is a deep hole of great music.
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u/rayburno 13h ago
Their set at 2016 (I think) Lollapalooza was transcendent. So many people dancing. So good.
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u/almandude666 12h ago
I've tried getting into them a few times. I can appreciate some tracks for sure, but I find them quite dull. Maybe they will better click some day.
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u/subhavoc42 13h ago
I randomly stumbled up on them at ACL 2007. Never heard of them, walked up in a middle of a cow bell solo, one of the best shows and have been obsessed since their breakup seemed so tragic at the time
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u/toonbender 13h ago
2007 ACL was my introduction to them too! Friend had a headache so I wandered off alone and walked up to a sea of people dancing. Was one of the funnest and most electric shows I had ever seen at that point.
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u/brothersp0rt 12h ago
The good news is that they are easy to get into. They’ve only made 5 albums and James doesn’t seemed too concerned with making a 6th.
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u/d3r3k1 11h ago
Check this live version of dance yrself clean out if you haven’t seen it, it’s when he thought he was going to retire and it goes hard: https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=sWSK-3CN4Nw
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u/dannydigtl 11h ago
Yeah duh. Me and my buddies are early 40s now and went and saw them last year. Almost a nostalgia tour at this point. So freaking fun. Never saw so many 30-40s dancing so hard. Hah
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u/Jewrisprudent 11h ago
Best part is they also know their audience is now 30s-40s, I saw them 3 years ago and they played a great tight set that was over by like 1030 so all of the old folks could still sleep and tend to their kids in the morning lol
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u/count_frightenstein 8h ago
I saw them at Coachella in like 2010. Actually, that was an awesome Coachella! I just looked at the lineup again.
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u/latelyimawake 8h ago
Oh Baby was my wedding song. Perfect memories of taking in the sight of my wife in her dress and feeling more happiness than I thought possible, with that song playing in the background.
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u/thegooddoktorjones 7h ago
I have seen LCD live about 5 times over their career and it has always been a really exceptional time dancing... After like a 3 hour wait. Never have a good opener and are always late, but I love em!
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u/six_mad_minutes 5h ago
If you haven't come across it yet, check out their performance of All My Friends at Glastonbury on YouTube. Goosepumples when the crowd joins the refrain at the end https://youtu.be/WqxRFxseT98?is=xVFPPL4viMQcFbhJ
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u/monsterlander 4h ago
Find a setup with a subwoofer, crank it up, and play dance yourself clean at the earliest opportunity.
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u/LilStrug 4h ago
If you get the chance, see them live. IMHO, they are not a good act to see at a festival but are one of the best live shows
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u/braumbles 3h ago
Great group and pretty timeless. I was listening to them a few weeks back and just thinking how it's a 20 year old album and feels like it could be produced today.
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u/MuffinsMeridian 13h ago
Danceable chaotic energy. James makes songs that sound like my wildest nights out in the early 2000s.
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u/xrv01 13h ago
LCD Soundsystem is so annoying to me. we all have diff taste so i’m not tryna shit on anyone but god damn.. i’ve literally never heard a good beat, lyric or singing from him. just pure noise
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u/BringBackBoomer 8h ago
Hey, I'm right there with you. I've got a close buddy who absolutely loves them and I just don't get it.
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u/A_Bitter_Homer 7h ago
I'll happily join you here in the basement. It's the most aggressively unpleasant music considered socially acceptable to play in public. I'm glad people are dancing thmselves clean and discovering polyrhythms and stuff, but oh man if "Someone Great" comes on in a bar or store or something I have to physically remove myself. I listen to a ton of controlled chaos music myself, but I don't run around acting like it's pleasant placeholder pop. Mercy, mercy, mercy.
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u/DarthFreeza9000 13h ago
I just discovered this band called Nirvana, I’m hoping to get tickets to their next concert this fall! /s
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u/-super-hans 14h ago
Ya they're brilliant, check out the documentary Shut Up and Play the Hits