Best LP openers and closers

[muad'nin]

Had a poke around for a thread similar to this, but came up blanks…

So, here we go!

These are not necessarily the best songs ever written, or even your favourite songs by these artists. But, for you they work as tracks that, in context, fit perfectly on their respective albums as opening and closing tracks.

As of today, here are mine.

Opener -
The Cure - Plainsong (from “Disintegration”, 1989)

https://youtu.be/vb59lMEtHL4

Closer -
The Beatles - Tomorrow Never Knows (from “Revolver”, 1966)

https://youtu.be/pHNbHn3i9S4

[Erneuert]

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fhCLalLXHP4 (https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=fhCLalLXHP4)

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PMAB3r6EjcM (https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=PMAB3r6EjcM)

[burnmotherfucker!]

Open

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pHs9aEXGKPg

Close

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-YgPCpwSEU0

[neorev]

Opener

https://youtu.be/R89kJJ4OeEA

Closer

https://youtu.be/POcypMLbufw

[shade]

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-6R7BknRFCU


https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qJUz1yit8Us

Since just picking one each is hard enough but I don't want to flood this thread I'll also throw in a 28 minute opener and closer:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YtEASOty_gs

[muad'nin]

Opener

https://youtu.be/R89kJJ4OeEA

Great call! After ‘Firestarter’ and ‘Breathe’ came out prior to the LP, there was so much buzz about that album. And then the opening loop of ‘SMBU’ hits when the album finally comes out and it’s like a statement of intent for what’s to follow. It doesn’t set the template (there isn’t one on that LP), but it sets the aesthetic perfectly. Album defining, for sure.

[neorev]

Great call! After ‘Firestarter’ and ‘Breathe’ came out prior to the LP, there was so much buzz about that album. And then the opening loop of ‘SMBU’ hits when the album finally comes out and it’s like a statement of intent for what’s to follow. It doesn’t set the template (the isn’t one on that LP), but it sets the aesthetic perfectly. Album defining, for sure.

I heard Breathe and Firestarter a billion times before the album eventually dropped. Firestarter came out over a year before the album release and Breathe was several months before the album release. These days, I hate now with many bands, the first singles are literally the first tracks of the album. The Prodigy did this will their last 3 albums, they would drop tracks 1 and 2 ahead of their release. It kinda ruins the mystique of hearing an album for the first time when you've already played tracks 1 and 2 to death before it finally arrives. That mystique is gone. Luckily, with The Fat Of The Land, track 1 was an unknown (unless you saw them live beforehand). Breathe and Firestarter were already massive singles, played a ton all over. But when that opening riff of Smack My Bitch Up kicks in, and you have no clue what's about to happen, and that bass hits... adrenaline pumping. You're ready to take on the world when that track kicks in. One of the best opening tracks ever.

[piggy]

I had a really hard time choosing my very faves, so I chose a couple that are a bit unexpected...

OPENER (Brian Eno, "No One Receiving")

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eYDBTYfn9D8

CLOSER (The The, "Lonely Planet")

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=weK9lVErAiw

[caca]

Top of my head:

Opener:

https://youtu.be/hTWKbfoikeg


Closer:

https://youtu.be/auKzbyefy0c

[BRoswell]

Two that come to mind right now...

Opener:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6GmYsHZjTPk


Closer:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4Gi3WKu5IvY

[Erneuert]

Open

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pHs9aEXGKPg

Close

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-YgPCpwSEU0

First one says video unavailable.

Great choice with Clean. Higher Love is just as good.

[burnmotherfucker!]

First one says video unavailable.

Great choice with Clean. Higher Love is just as good.

Hmm, it still plays on my browser. My opening choice was One Hundred Years by The Cure from Pornography.

And this probably belongs over in the controversial thread but Songs of Faith and devotion just never clicked with me, I like Condemnation and the rest of it is just...ok to me. Whereas Black Celebration, Music for the Masses, and Violator is one of the best three album runs in history.

[burnmotherfucker!]

Closer:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4Gi3WKu5IvY

Such a great track. I don't think I've really seen anyone talk about it but it's very underrated, as is the album.

Anyway, here's my round 2

Opener

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=66A_3uwuZ_I

Closer

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SOgVoxqKU7U

[Erneuert]

Hmm, it still plays on my browser. My opening choice was One Hundred Years by The Cure from Pornography.

And this probably belongs over in the controversial thread but Songs of Faith and devotion just never clicked with me, I like Condemnation and the rest of it is just...ok to me. Whereas Black Celebration, Music for the Masses, and Violator is one of the best three album runs in history.

In that case, let’s also add (by The Cure) the aptly titled “Open” and “End”. lol

[burnmotherfucker!]

In that case, let’s also add (by The Cure) the aptly titled “Open” and “End”. lol

Yeah, and I mean if we're going that route we may as well mention the perfect opening/closing track from Faith. The Holy Hour/Faith.

I would say that The Cure are experts at openers and closers, but I think what it comes down to is they are just great at making albums in general.

[neorev]

Opener

https://youtu.be/Inke9ToHaQI

Closer

https://youtu.be/pMxcgw1_Ejg

[neorev]

Opener

https://youtu.be/elNMcRiX1OU

Closer

https://youtu.be/v8f8WQ85Qb0

[neorev]

Opener

https://youtu.be/LdqzOldqRxo

Closer

https://youtu.be/8miMg3xBN2s

[brotha52]

https://youtu.be/sJDDNyGBsw8

https://youtu.be/vZhAizAIR2E

[Soma]

Opener:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6GmYsHZjTPk

The last song on Speaking In Tongues is another classic banger:


https://youtu.be/fsccjsW8bSY

[eversonpoe]

i feel like i made a thread like this a long time ago but i love talking about stuff like this so i don't ever care haha. sorry i'm gonna list a lot ¯\_(ツ)_/¯

openers:

nin • somewhat damaged
king crimson • 21st century schizoid man / red
low • amazing grace / monkey
big black delta • put the gun on the floor
telefon tel aviv • fahrenheit fair enough / the birds
can • paperhouse
circa survive • holding someone's hair back
converge • first light/last night (they count as one song)
the cure • the kiss
david bowie • blackstar
deftones • hexagram
imperial triumphant • swarming opulence
interpol • pioneer to the falls
jimmy eat world • bleed american / futures
judas priest • sinner
mastodon • oblivion
pj harvey • rid of me
qotsa • keep your eyes peeled
tori amos • precious things (live version on "to venus and back")
young widows • young rivers
pan•sonic • rähinä (mayhem i)

closers:

frank zappa • the gumbo variations
fever ray • coconut
can • spoon
the cinematic orchestra • everyday
cocteau twins • musette and drums
nine inch nails • ripe (with decay)
the cure • sinking
daughters • the unattractive, portable head
dead can dance • how fortunate the man with none
dillinger escape plan • mouth of ghosts
isis • threshold of transformation
COIL • going up
pj harvey • ecstasy
poison the well • the first day of my second life
young widows • in and out of youth
mogwai • mogwai fear satan
king crimson • larks' tongues in aspic, part ii

[armogi]

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Xxt5IhEehME


https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CH9Td4dSSzE

[use you up]

Start,
Power Of Independent Trucking-Big Black
Stigmata/Thieves/NWO-Ministry
Mr Self Destruct-NIN
Resist-FLA
Rodent-Skinny Puppy

End,
Sorrow-Pink Floyd
Indoctrination-Dead Can Dance
Dagger-Slowdive
Faith-The Cure
40-U2

[Self.Destructive.Pattern]

Great thread... My picks are already changing more than my Deftones album rankings.
Opener

https://youtu.be/xNZ6bkpxSAc

Closer

https://youtu.be/eQK7KSTQfaw

Opener honorable mentions:
The Verve - Bitter Sweet Symphony
Radiohead - Everything in its Right Place


Closer honorable mentions:
NIN - Hurt
Jimmy Eat World - 23
Thursday - Stay True

[elevenism]

Opener:

https://youtu.be/auLBLk4ibAk

I mean, that intro: BWOOooooooooowwww.

And then, closer:


https://youtu.be/CMV4dl-x0Tc

This one is pretty much a lullaby. It's just this beautiful, hypnotic melody that gets softer and softer, until you can barley hear it, and you might fall asleep. I think that's part of the point of the track.

[Erneuert]

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uDpzZzWJC_0 (https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=uDpzZzWJC_0)

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Mz1n0dp9vKo (https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=Mz1n0dp9vKo)

[burnmotherfucker!]

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EBAzlNJonO8

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sE1Zcngd3VA

[muad'nin]

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sE1Zcngd3VA

YES! This works on multiple levels ever so well. As a closer to “Blackstar”, it’s reflective and melancholic and a perfect note on which to end the LP. As a cap to a career it’s … just sublime. Its reference to/sample of ‘A New Career In A New Town’ surely is a certain thematic knowing nod to his mortality and … what he might be doing when he gets there.

Brilliant choice.

[brotha52]

https://youtu.be/WxL1rw6cw-E

https://youtu.be/P6qz5iiM68c

[Erneuert]

Just noticed MrLobster bumped the tweaker thread and remembered what an amazing closer this is. Her voice is goosebumpy.

”Oh, god… who are they?”


https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zjGlZYP5hmM (https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=zjGlZYP5hmM)

[Erneuert]

Cinematic outro.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uFrldNl6jq8 (https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=uFrldNl6jq8)

[eachpassingphase]

NIN has a ton of excellent openers and closers. So I'll exclude those from this list because they would take up half of it.

Best Openers:
"The Suburbs" - Arcade Fire
"Rich" - The Yeah Yeah Yeahs
"Dog Days are Over" - Florence + the Machine

Best Closers
"I Know the End" - Phoebe Bridgers
"Road to Joy" - Bright Eyes
"Motion Picture Soundtrack" - Radiohead
"Something in the Way" - Nirvana

[henryeatscereal]

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mrojrDCI02k


https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DVQ3-Xe_suY

[Archive_Reports]

Album sequencing has always been huge for me and I used to spend an obscene amount of time in the late 90s / early 00s creating mix CDs and tracking them just so. While these may not be my favorites for openers or closers, they were some of the first that popped into my head.

OPENERS
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3jfvUqSiyrA

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KaDgnRmKR3A

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3KZy9IJ3yrU

CLOSERS
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=P2IFWZnlayw

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KMSyFS2RUtY

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9lUATAJFP3Y

[Jinsai]

Prick self titled, Communique/Makebelieve

Everything about those two songs is perfect

[burnmotherfucker!]

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kFWlIH4VpXY

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6kQaghZZEzI

[r_z]

Some great openers as they represent some sort of mission statement for what's to follow on their respective albums, as opposed to a "this is one of my favorite albums and here are its opener and closer" answer:


https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nRLOf3bSlVs


https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JrZ2tqWo6zo


https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=i8cshTD5qhA


https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=V5dEDBqK7o8


https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=E86gWQs-ios


https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cy7NHHHRPzo


https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EzHxVDjg6qc


https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=j_XZxfzVmzg

[Reznor2112]

FAVORITE OPENERS:


https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7BTtBrto__U


https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ETv_-_jAgYA

FAVORITE CLOSERS:


https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dtxkpM51ntE
(yes this is the closer, 'Horse' was a hidden track originally and doesn't count)


https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=C9FrfhXxMsU


https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fmFCUiC5uqA

[burnmotherfucker!]

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bzdw1MVJQME

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vb7htoJAK7g

[elevenism]

Some great openers as they represent some sort of mission statement for what's to follow on their respective albums, as opposed to a "this is one of my favorite albums and here are its opener and closer" answer

Except..., with all due respect, I don't think that's what most of us were doing, here.
No offense.

But, this is an NIN forum. And, how many people have listed NIN songs?

[elevenism]

FAVORITE OPENERS:


https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7BTtBrto__U



Oh, dear god. You sure can't go wrong with that one. I'll see it, though, and, as we sit in the same ballpark, I'll raise you a
https://youtu.be/Vf8jvSPA3XQ

[muad'nin]

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bzdw1MVJQME

Oh boy, what a brilliant pick. As an opener, this works ever so well in giving the listener a taste of the controlled chaos that’s to follow. It’s almost a primer for the album as a whole; “Get through these six minutes unscathed and you might just have what it takes to make it to the end of this beast.”

[bobbie solo]

one of the hardest intros ever. A bajillion hardcore bands have stolen this formula ever since, and if you've ever seen JJ do this with his Cro-Mags or anyone else cover it, you know the reaction it gets:


https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=f7eIQBCii_E&ab_channel=HARDCOREWORLDWIDEHA RDCOREWORLDWIDEVerified


https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QV_vySQT9B4&ab_channel=hate5six


https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oV6U8oIKlsI&t=0s&ab_channel=hate5sixhate5s ix

[elevenism]

Opener:

https://youtu.be/6S20mJvr4vs

This is a big ass cinematic style, mostly instrumental intro that starts out sounding a LOT like the intro to Geogaddi, and does an amazing job of setting the tone for this concept album.
It let's you know that this is "Igor's" story, with the samples repeating "he's coming," "Igor," and "I got my eyes open" in a way that sounds almost like a rhythm instrument.
Plus, it's just SO fucking groovy.

Closer:


https://youtu.be/Gb76TgCUqAY

And after all the drama of the story, we have this lovely, orgasmic, vulnerable, old school blues song, with Tyler screaming his heart out.

This is the best album I've heard in a LONG time. The production and story and personality and just, individuality of this thing are unreal. I never expected such genius, heartfelt work out of my favorite "alternative/punk" rapper, but, he apparently had it in him.

[burnmotherfucker!]

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LRhRNgqPlyk

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6MS-JqECvf4

[BRoswell]

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_hZCsgcKa-g


https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tiGHFXFUzRs

[Jon]

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HT_Zs5FKDZE


https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gI1wK508370

[eversonpoe]

BRoswell & Jon those are SUCH good selections

[BRoswell]

@BRoswell (https://www.echoingthesound.org/community/member.php?u=219) & @Jon (https://www.echoingthesound.org/community/member.php?u=457) those are SUCH good selections

Thanks! The first actually inspired the second since Low has been covering "Me And Your Mama" on their recent livestreams.

[piggy]

OK, two more...

OPENER
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QhTR2fKO6-c

CLOSER
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=18d_pLKgMoY

[muad'nin]

CLOSER
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=18d_pLKgMoY

Oh my. That voice. Garson’s piano. What a stunning closer.

[eversonpoe]

Thanks! The first actually inspired the second since Low has been covering "Me And Your Mama" on their recent livestreams.

WHAT!?!?!? i've gotta hear that, holy shit.

another couple from me

opener:
sons of magdalene • hold on hold still for a second
glassjaw • black nurse
boy harsher • lust

closer:
sons of magdalene • crows on the eaves of my father's house
glassjaw • daytona white
boy harsher • spell

[neorev]

OPENER

https://youtu.be/kD7EyT0xaQQ

CLOSER*

https://youtu.be/Dllh13XpE4k
* I also chose the same album's opening track as the perfect opener ��

[neorev]

OPENER

https://youtu.be/WxL1rw6cw-E

CLOSER

https://youtu.be/23lAWm2venM

[Erneuert]

OPENER

https://youtu.be/WxL1rw6cw-E

CLOSER

https://youtu.be/23lAWm2venM

I’ll add a similar awesome closer.

Interesting coincidence: Mark Bell produced the album that Björk song is from, as well as this:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jmY_MiJ1hAY (https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=jmY_MiJ1hAY)

[neorev]

I’ll add a similar awesome closer.

Interesting coincidence: Mark Bell produced the album that Björk song is from, as well as this:

https://media4.giphy.com/media/11LbwKX02dszWU/giphy.gif

[burnmotherfucker!]

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=h1GjPTxqy7k

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4rWsvW14u9o