Louisville Magazine is Louisville's city magazine, covering Louisville people, lifestyles, politics, sports, restaurants, entertainment and homes. Includes a monthly calendar of events.
Issue link: https://loumag.epubxp.com/i/214077
SLINT INTRO It began as a selfsh project, really, because we were simply curious: Who are the all-time great Louisville bands? My Morning Jacket (pictured left) — OK, sure. But who else? Any that would surprise us? Who from the legendary local punk scene of the '70s and '80s? And what about current groups? And those Hill sisters — you know, the women who wrote "Happy Birthday to You"? So, then, a list. Lists can be fun. The top 25 Louisville bands of all time. Here's how it worked: We had each of our 19 expert panelists (see page 51) rank the best (her or his favorite, the most infuential or important, whatever) Louisville bands and musicians from No. 1 to No. 25, in order. (We also asked for some song and album recommendations.) A frstplace vote equaled 25 points, followed by 24 for second and so on. Winner? Most points. (Ties went to the name mentioned by more panelists.) A strong Louisville connection was the only requirement. Like being born here, if nothing else. (Here's looking at you, Lionel Hampton.) We tend to get carried away with these kinds of things. So get ready for an encore because we actually carried the rankings through the top 40, plus tossed in another 24 names that got respectable point totals. It's OK to put your lighter in the air. Plug into the amp. Little bit of feedback. Look at that crowd. A one. Two. One, two, three, four…. — Josh Moss 1. 3. (394 total points) L&N; (1998) My Morning Jacket Z (2005) "One Big Holiday" "Off the Record" "Victory Dance" "Within the last decade, no band has represented our city with such ferociousness and dedication. And they made it the old-fashioned way, by writing some songs, getting in a van and playing to as many ears as they could. I think the band penetrated a lot of different genres and showed its versatility on its two most recent albums, Evil Urges and Circuital. The production and sound of those two really get to me. 'Touch Me I'm Going to Scream, Pt. 2,' off Evil Urges, continues to build and reaches a climax of 'Stairway to Heaven' proportions." — Hunter Embry 2. Slint (296) Spiderland (1991) "Good Morning, Captain" "Nosferatu Man" "Kent" "After the grandstanding of the '70s and pop blowout of the '80s, bands like Slint were starting to take rock in an entirely new direction. Due to its precision and lack of hooks, we called it math rock." — Kyle Meredith Tim Krekel (254) "Here Ever After" "Everything's Gonna Be Alright" "Perfect World" "He was the true defnition of a great singer/songwriter, incredibly wellrespected nationally as well as locally, and one hell of a guitar player to boot. Tim is my all-time favorite artist from Louisville. Dear friend, too. To me, Tim was always in his prime, even when he knew his life was drawing to a way-tooearly close." — John Timmons 4. Will Oldham/ Bonnie "Prince" Billy (214) I See a Darkness (1999) "I See a Darkness" "Hard Life" "I Am Goodbye" "Will Oldham is a great mystery in folk music, as well as one of the most respected and praised songwriters. Johnny Cash covered him, and he's been name-checked by just about anyone who has held an acoustic guitar. You'll never fnd a by-the-book formula in any of his songs, and just when you think you've fgured him out, his next release takes you somewhere completely different." — Meredith 12.13 LOUISVILLE MAGAZINE 49