STACK #232 February 2024

MUSIC FEATURE

There’s nothing quite like taking home some fresh vinyl and putting it on the turntable for the first time. It’s a total experience. Each month we pull together a collection of reissues, JB-exclusives, or just straight-up classic long players to add to any burgeoning collection. Words Zoë Radas, Paul Jones

DR. DRE 2001 (1999) When it comes to the cornerstones of a hip-hop record collection, alongside every The Marshall Mathers LP, Ready to Die, Illmatic, and Straight Outta Compton should be a copy of 2001 . Dre

overcame a string of personal challenges to pull 2001 together, including the death of his brother through gun violence. Building on his trademark G-Funk sound, he assembled a dream team of artists to help hone its creation. Eminem, Nate Dogg, Hittman, Snoop Dogg, and many others would put their mark on the album. Still D.R.E, The Next Episode, Forgot About Dre, and The Watcher are not just great songs, they’re some of the best of Dre’s career. 2001 is an essential listen for any fan of hip-hop. TOP TRACK: Still D.R.E FAST FACT: Such was the anticipation for 2001 that it sold an incredible 500,000 copies in the first week!

MY CHEMICAL ROMANCE THREE CHEERS FOR SWEET REVENGE (2004) With an opening one-two of Helena and Give ’Em Hell Kid , you could be forgiven for expecting the tempo to draw breath and take stock. But no, Three Cheers for Sweet Revenge is an exceptional unrelenting assault of melodic punk. Having Motörhead

CHART Vinyl

You don’t actually have to have seen Disney’s blockbuster 2013 computer-animated film Frozen to be smitten with its most recognisable song, Let it Go . Though the multi-award winning track arrives at a specific and pivotal point in the movie – Queen Elsa expressing unbridled joy in her newfound freedom – its potent message of relief and self-reliance has seen the song become almost totally uncoupled from the film. That’s the power of husband-and wife songwriting team Robert Lopez and Kristen Anderson-Lopez, whose eight original songs for Frozen appear on this special vinyl release along with a reprise of For the First Time in Forever , and popstar Demi Lovato’s reimagined version of Let it Go . This is the perfect record to producer Howard Benson at the desk undoubtedly provides the necessary propellent – the production here is top shelf. The sophomore album delivers banger after banger, including the popular I’m Not Okay (I Promise) and Ghost of You , with themes of love, loss and murder providing a compelling narrative that implores the listener to follow. Three Cheers has proved to be a hugely influential long player. TOP TRACK: Ghost of You. FAST FACT: The 1928 René Magritte painting, “The Lovers” inspired the album cover art.

RED HOT CHILI PEPPERS CALIFORNICATION (1999)

When the delicate and bittersweet opening riff of Scar Tissue came floating off the fingers of John Frusciente in May of ’99, it wasn’t just die hard Chili Peppers fans who were intrigued. The LA funk rock brats had always been capable of heartbreaking gems (see 1995’s My Friends and 1991’s Under the Bridge ) but Californication – which saw Frusciante return to the fold after an eight-year sit-out – revealed a serious maturation for the flamboyant four-piece. It was a move away from psychedelia and towards melodic rock, and offered examinations of drug addiction ( Scar Tissue ) post-addict life ( Otherside ,) and as its crown jewel, expertly-rhymed metaphors for America’s seedy underbelly (the title track). It wasn’t all maudlin – take a geez at chaotic second single Around the World , which features some ripping work by Frusciante – but Californication ultimately cemented Red Hot Chili Peppers as a band who could just as easily make you ponder life’s tragedies as make you want to flail around in absurd joy. TOP TRACK: Scar Tissue FAST FACT: Anthony Kiedis’ gobbledygook scat in Around the World ’s last chorus was originally just a place-filler while he tried to think of other lyrics, but drummer Flea’s young daughter convinced the group to keep it in.

1. TAYLOR SWIFT 1989 (Taylor’s Version) 2. TAYLOR SWIFT Midnights 3. TAYLOR SWIFT Speak Now (Taylor’s Version) 4. ARCTIC MONKEYS AM 5. BRING ME THE HORIZON Sempiternal 6. THE WEEKND The Highlights 7. VARIOUS

FROZEN: THE SONGS (2023) ZOETROPE VINYL

Guardians of the Galaxy: Awesome Mix Vol. 2

8. TYLER, THE CREATOR

get your kids learning about how to handle and care for vinyl, not to mention seeing them mesmerised by the zoetrope effects of its disc art. But it’s also a fantastically enjoyable collection of very moving songs, for showtune appreciators of any age. TOP TRACK: Do You Want to Build a Snowman? FAST FACT: When Let it Go won the Academy Award for Best Original Song in 2014, Robert Lopez became the youngest person to ever have achieved an EGOT (a win at all four of the major American entertainment awards, being the Emmys, Grammys, Oscars and Tonys).

Call Me If You Get Lost

9. PINK FLOYD The Dark Side of the Moon 10. EVANESCANCE Fallen

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