Avant-garde albums have historically been pretty inaccessible to mainstream audiences. If a collection of music is too weird, a lot of listeners will dismiss it. However, I think the following three records are just a few of the more accessible albums out there in the avant-garde genre. Let’s take a look! Even if this genre isn’t your thing, you might find fresh interest in at least one of these albums.
‘Yoko Ono/Plastic Ono Band’ by Yoko Ono
This 1970 record was released alongside a similar John Lennon release. Naturally, Yoko Ono faced quite a bit of backlash around this time, following the demise of The Beatles. It was undeserved, in my opinion, and Ono had been a successful and intriguing artist for years before she began collaborating with Lennon.
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Yoko Ono/Plastic Ono Band is a fine work with that notable 1970s avant-garde vibe, and it might just transport you to a different time.
‘Medúlla’ by Björk
This writer is a bona fide Björk fanatic, and even I have historically skipped over Medúlla. Released in 2004, this avant-garde album is composed almost entirely of vocals. It’s a sharp pivot from the Icelandic icon’s previous release, Vespertine.
Medúlla is a hard album to describe. To me, it sounds ancient, pagan, and introspective in the sense that Björk seems to be channelling her ancestors. It’s a visceral album that has elements not dissimilar to what ancient peoples would likely compose “in a cave somewhere,” according to Björk herself. It’s one of her most unusual albums, but I’m personally glad I revisited it and gave it a chance.
‘Tago Mago’ by Can
This older classic is one of the most revered avant-garde albums of all time, occupying a space between blues and the bizarre. Tago Mago by Can was released in 1971 and features a unique mix of genre elements, some bordering on samba, complete with vocal screams and chaotic strings. It’s genius how the band managed to slow things down at different parts of the album in a way that sounds natural, despite the overall unnatural sonic tone of the album.
If you love Krautrock and aren’t afraid to get a little weird, this is the album for you.
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