What is the best album opener ever?

[rodox_head]

Other contenders:

Living In The Plastic Age by The Buggles
Not only is it one of the best album openers, it could be seen as a great opening to the whole decade of the '80s given the album's almost melancholic thematic journey through the advancement of technology and rise in superficiality. The echoing synthetic wails and chirping alarm followed by the chugging synth gives off the feeling of waking up into a completely new world

Planet Claire - The B-52's
The morse code transmission with the Peter Gunn theme playing throughout evoking an image of a '50s/'60s beach romp scene, Fred Schneider's peculiar vocals about a mysterious alien girl, it's like getting an invite to their own party planet.

Lost Carol - Silent Hill 3 OST
It's only a short 37 second intro, but McGlynn's bellowing vocalizing leading into the opening riffs to "You're Not Here" and its lyrics longing for someone that isn't there anymore works so damn well. Yamaoka stated that when compiling the OST he wanted it to be like an actual album rather than just the tracks playing in order they appear in game and he definitely made the right choice with Lost Carol as the opener, as well as shortening it from its original 2 minute run time. As much as I love "Tender Sugar" and "Theme of Laura", this is my choice for best SH soundtrack opening.

The Smashing Pumpkins - Mellon Collie and the Infinite Sadness

I feel ashamed I forgot about that one, and if we include "Tonight, Tonight" with it then it's no question.

We must not forget about how good of an opening "Where Boys Fear To Thread" followed by "Bodies" is too, how an album has TWO great openings is beyond me.

It's also contender for best closing track. Listening to Beautiful - Farewell and Goodnight is comparable to listening to Dawn Chorus - Corsair/Magic Window IMO. As dorky as this may sound, the piano that comes in towards the middle of Farewell & Goodnight reminds me of the feeling of first hearing Dearly Beloved play at the end of Kingdom Hearts 1 and 2 when I was a kid.

[Wildfire]

Faith No More, The Real Thing, opening with From Out Of Nowhere. Incredible energy from the get go.

[Samplehunter]

The more i listen to it, the more I'm convinced that it must be this one:

[Remulo]

Faith No More, The Real Thing, opening with From Out Of Nowhere. Incredible energy from the get go.

Yeaaaah, I definetly agree on that one! Faith No More has always had some amazing openings to their albums, setting the entire mood for the rest of the journey.

[Quadrivium]

The Rainbow as an opener to Talk Talk’s Spirit of Eden gets my vote

[EHL]

just one of many many many

[Orbited insanitarium]

Mercury Rev - Holes (from "Deserter's Songs")

Emotional slow-burn. I don't play it often, but when I do, it just grabs you. Extraordinary song (and album)

[gestell]

Just Like Honey
Only Shallow
The Headmaster Ritual
Mysterons
A Sort of Homecoming
Caribou
Dael
Levitation

[jcnporter]

[fujee]

I've always liked Untitled by Interpol.

[rodox_head]

I think I gotta give some love to "Like Eating Glass" by Bloc Party. The buildup before the lyrics come in is mesmerizing and it makes such a good warm up to "Helicopter".

[Josh]

Old Man Gloom -- Seminar III Zozobra

The entire album is only one track, but I still think it qualifies.

[Josh]

I also wanted to post Acid Bath's "Paegan Love Song", but there's no YT vid.

[Orbited insanitarium]

The Magician - Andy Shauf


The whole record The Party is up to this standard. Unique songwriter.

[jcnporter]

[rodox_head]

The more i listen to it, the more I'm convinced that it must be this one:

I've been recently binging a lot of FLA and came back to this thread to mention this but forgot it was already mentioned.

Much like another favorite opener of mine, "Bust A Move" by Infected Mushroom, it sets the bar almost too high for the rest of the album.

[funnnnpng]

Love this one. The ~2 1/2 min feedback loop at the start is almost like a test. The average punk / rock fan wants action immediately. If someone like that can get through it, they'll be rewarded with an hour of pure rock brilliance. If they can't, so be it. I like how that works.

[Jonse]

I take you where you want to go,
I give you all you need to know.
I drag you down, I use you up,
It's Machine + Soul by Gary Numan, obviously.

What's that Muse song? That one is a close second.

[rodox_head]

I take you where you want to go,
I give you all you need to know.
I drag you down, I use you up,
It's Machine + Soul by Gary Numan, obviously.

What's that Muse song? That one is a close second.

That was Soft Cell ya dilbertt, not Mr. Newman's magnum opus.

[Orbited insanitarium]

I take you where you want to go,
I give you all you need to know.
I drag you down, I use you up,
It's Machine + Soul by Gary Numan, obviously.

What's that Muse song? That one is a close second.

That was Soft Cell ya dilbertt, not Mr. Newman's magnum opus.

Riffing off of this, Frustration isn't my favourite off of Non-Stop Erotic Caberet by any means (sex dwarf anyone?) but it's a respectable opener, I'm really drawn the the theatrical sardonic tone of Marc on that one.

Away with your posts so far, Roundabout will spit on em with 1972's saliva.

Yes - Roundabout