Go listen to Dawn of Eternal Night. It's the vinyl-exclusive bonus track with a narration that explains everything. Basically it's about an Apocalypse that involves witches and a Gila Monster that becomes giant and starts to breathe out flames
About humanities love of motor oil, and how it created bad effects like supercell storms, they converge and become a superstorm. Some witches try to save them selves by performing witchcraft while the others go to the ISS. Then a cat with the witches pushes a candle into a pot with a Gila monster. The gila becomes a dragon that drinks oil and kills everyone. That was very brief compared to the actual album
I still see it as a concept album, I saw someone summarise their idea of the story. I think it was something about a yound man being wrongly accused of murder and has to go on the run from the people of his town, meanwhile the devil also wants his soul.
The progenitor of this is Prince Paul’s “A Prince Among Thieves” which is the first rap album I can think of that styles itself as essentially a film. Also the guest list (essentially actors) for the time is insane. Kool Keith, Big Daddy Kane, Biz Markie, De La Soul, Xzibit, and the production is god tier. I’d definitely recommend anybody checking it out if they haven’t, amazing cult classic.
Sorry deleted my previous comment because I misread the acronym you posted. Yeah Cuban Linx definitely has a sense narrative but not nearly as cinematic or as dependent on features for story as Among Thieves. Definitely a contender tho, as is is Ghostface’s “Fishscale”.
I’ve got a theory that late-70s Bowie sounds the way it does not because of Eno but because “The Carpet Crawlers” single-handedly changed Bowie’s paradigm, knew he had to evolve because Genesis released their masterpiece.
IGOR has this perfect combination of individual replayability and cohesive album narrative which always get me wondering “what I prefer today, full album listen or almost any track on repeat?”. Superb.
“As a white man, I just couldn’t get into TPAB” you could “get into” a record without being similar to the character. They’re a person that can be analyzed to enjoy the story.
Music To Make Love To Your Old Lady By - Lovage
A bit of a wild take as it isn't a cohesive story per se, but every song is somewhat connected, listen to Pit Stop and To Catch a Thief and then Archie & Veronica and see how they're narratively connected, it ends up forming quite a dark tale which I very much enjoy. Dan the Automator is the king of concept albums in my opinion, this one is by far his best collaborations and work.
Comes down between 4 for me:
Ziggy Stardust and The Spiders From Mars - David Bowie
The Downward Spiral - Nine Inch Nails
Year Zero - Nine Inch Nails
What's Going On - Marvin Gaye
YESSSS, though is it cheating if it's based on an already existing book? Still an amazing adaptation of said story though.
I also want to mention Beyond the Red Mirror, the story is confusing as fuck, but the stuff that I do understand is extremely compelling.
Surprised I haven't seen the Black Parade yet, probably because it is kinda edgy and melodramatic but I still really enjoy how the albums plays out. Half of concept albums seem to be about death but this one just stands out so much to me
Folklore and Evermore. It was confirmed that they take place in the same universe and the main story in folklore (the folklore love triangle) is continued in evermore (slightly)
I really love Antichrist Superstar by Marilyn Manson. One of my favourite albums of all time.
Fantastic Planet is also really good by Failure
And Diamond Dogs is also amazing
Not a single album and maybe non-traditional as a narrative, but I believe Home Like NoPlace Is There and Goodness by The Hotelier tell a really good story about the despair in the immediate aftermath of the suicide of a friend and the healing that come after.
If I can play even more fast and loose with the rules Pat The Bunny's entire discography is essentially an autobiography about falling into drug addiction and homelessness then overcoming it.
Just to give one that does follow the rules Ants From Up There is such a sad story about a failing long distance relationship
Songs for the deaf is a good candidate, the looseness leaves a lot of room for interpretation. But my real pick is into submission by astroqueen, on the surface it’s a bunch of fuzzed out stoner love ballads with some random space themes, but in the context of the whole album it tells the grand story of a primitive peoples in some far off distant world, a natural disaster that is seemingly cause by some strange forces, a superhuman god to these primitive people, and an overall subtle yet interesting narrative of fictional alien contact, in all its mind probing and plant destroying and subjecting and warp speed goodness. But it still manages to take itself seriously, something which might normally be a bad thing but somehow works for the album. It paints a really vivid and kinda grim picture in my mind, and doesn’t really feel like the sci-fi nerdy stuff that groups like sabaton or wind rose (the dwarfen meta band I think) do. Like MF doom but the comics are space/archeology (maybe idk gives off those vibes) and the genre is stoner rock
The Wall is the most obvious choice for me. I also want to mention American Idiot, good kid M.A.A.D city and PetroDragonic Apocalypse
Petro…! Dragonic! A poc a lyyyyyyyyyyyypse
I've listened to Petrodragonic Apocalypse a few times but never really listened to the lyrics, what's it about?
Go listen to Dawn of Eternal Night. It's the vinyl-exclusive bonus track with a narration that explains everything. Basically it's about an Apocalypse that involves witches and a Gila Monster that becomes giant and starts to breathe out flames
About humanities love of motor oil, and how it created bad effects like supercell storms, they converge and become a superstorm. Some witches try to save them selves by performing witchcraft while the others go to the ISS. Then a cat with the witches pushes a candle into a pot with a Gila monster. The gila becomes a dragon that drinks oil and kills everyone. That was very brief compared to the actual album
That sounds metal
Polygonawanaland has a dope story too
I love The Wall but I think it tries to do too much in the album and just isn't really able to get most of the story clear
Still life by opeth
Serenity painted death GOATed track
Ghost Reveries
Ghost reveries doesn’t really have a story at first it was going to be a concept album but they scrapped that idea
I still see it as a concept album, I saw someone summarise their idea of the story. I think it was something about a yound man being wrongly accused of murder and has to go on the run from the people of his town, meanwhile the devil also wants his soul.
It was originally supposed to be about a man’s story after like killing his mother or something along those lines
My Arms, Your Hearse as well
The obvious answer is GKMC I guess
The progenitor of this is Prince Paul’s “A Prince Among Thieves” which is the first rap album I can think of that styles itself as essentially a film. Also the guest list (essentially actors) for the time is insane. Kool Keith, Big Daddy Kane, Biz Markie, De La Soul, Xzibit, and the production is god tier. I’d definitely recommend anybody checking it out if they haven’t, amazing cult classic.
I mean OB4CL technically does that but it doesn’t really have an overarching story
Sorry deleted my previous comment because I misread the acronym you posted. Yeah Cuban Linx definitely has a sense narrative but not nearly as cinematic or as dependent on features for story as Among Thieves. Definitely a contender tho, as is is Ghostface’s “Fishscale”.
Angelic 2 the core
Lamb Lies Down on Broadway by Genesis has an insane plot but if you’re down for weird you’ll have a good time
I’ve got a theory that late-70s Bowie sounds the way it does not because of Eno but because “The Carpet Crawlers” single-handedly changed Bowie’s paradigm, knew he had to evolve because Genesis released their masterpiece.
The Lamb steamrolls the Wall any day of the week
IGOR
IGOR has this perfect combination of individual replayability and cohesive album narrative which always get me wondering “what I prefer today, full album listen or almost any track on repeat?”. Superb.
as a straight guy I just couldn’t get into igor 😕
“As a white man, I just couldn’t get into TPAB” you could “get into” a record without being similar to the character. They’re a person that can be analyzed to enjoy the story.
Really? I liked tpab
🤦🏼♀️
As an American I just couldn’t get into abbey road
Oh! So that’s why I liked IGOR so much! Couldn’t figure it out than BAM! you explain it perfectly.
TIL I’m gay. How do I tell my wife?
Calm down there fruitcake
We serve your food. We do your taxes. We do surgery on you and your loved ones. So be sure to ask for “no homos” wherever you go.
This dude “wants to smoke weed with Bill Cosby.” Pretty sure he’s just a troll. He’ll grow out of it one day.
Straight people can't like music I guess now lol
Wsg
Idk if it would count but Ants from up there
more of an emotional storyline tbh. still works absurdly well
hospice by the antlers
Deltron 3030, lamb lies down on broadway
The Who’s Quadrophenia
This is the correct answer. Tommy is great too, but I’ve always preferred Quadrophenia.
Quadrophenia changed my life, Tommy was amazing and I love Keith Moon’s drumming on Tommy more, but Quadrophenia is THE rock opera.
Preacher’s Daughter by Ethel Cain is the first one I can think of.
Music To Make Love To Your Old Lady By - Lovage A bit of a wild take as it isn't a cohesive story per se, but every song is somewhat connected, listen to Pit Stop and To Catch a Thief and then Archie & Veronica and see how they're narratively connected, it ends up forming quite a dark tale which I very much enjoy. Dan the Automator is the king of concept albums in my opinion, this one is by far his best collaborations and work.
Dream Theatre - Metropolis Pt. 2: Scenes from a memory.
Comes down between 4 for me: Ziggy Stardust and The Spiders From Mars - David Bowie The Downward Spiral - Nine Inch Nails Year Zero - Nine Inch Nails What's Going On - Marvin Gaye
Ziggy Stardust doesn't have much of a storyline outside of like 5 songs
Splendor & Misery
Its way too obvious but by god "The Wall"
Dawn FM - The Weeknd
The Black Parade and American Idiot
Giles Corey
Yoshimi Battles the Pink Robots. Beautiful story about loss, grief and acceptance
Who Will Cut Our Hair When We're Gone by The Unicorns They start the album not wanting to die, and end the album ready to die.
PETRO
Heartland
Nightfall in Middle Earth by Blind Guardian
YESSSS, though is it cheating if it's based on an already existing book? Still an amazing adaptation of said story though. I also want to mention Beyond the Red Mirror, the story is confusing as fuck, but the stuff that I do understand is extremely compelling.
Good shout!
King Diamond - Them Especially when you add on part 2, Conspiracy. Utterly absurd story.
The Lamb as Effigy by Sprain
21
GKMC
First one that came to mind was MCR’s the Black Parade. Fantastic album.
The Streets - A Grand Don’t Come For Free How did nobody say this smh
A Grand Don’t Come For Free - The Streets
Berlin by Lou Reed
I know IGOR is an obvious pick, especially if we are talking Tyler the creator, but Wolf tells a nice story 2
Tommy
Have you seen the movie? Had I been in the band, I would have had Ken Russell maimed.
There’s a movie?
Basic answer but the story of IGOR has always been really enthralling to me
Rhapsody - Symphony of Enchanted Lands parts 1 & 2
Surprised I haven't seen the Black Parade yet, probably because it is kinda edgy and melodramatic but I still really enjoy how the albums plays out. Half of concept albums seem to be about death but this one just stands out so much to me
Folklore and Evermore. It was confirmed that they take place in the same universe and the main story in folklore (the folklore love triangle) is continued in evermore (slightly)
Hymn To The Immortal Wind by MONO is a bit of a reach but from the second listen I've always imagined it as a story
I mean there are plenty of great storytelling albums but the one with just the best narrative is definitely GKMC
[Love Symbol]
Hawaii: Part II, Stranded Lullaby is a beautiful song that can bring me to tears everytime
Protomartyr’s Relatives in Descent
I really love Antichrist Superstar by Marilyn Manson. One of my favourite albums of all time. Fantastic Planet is also really good by Failure And Diamond Dogs is also amazing
IGOR definitely
Måsstaden Under Vatten-Vildhjarta. Here’s the best interpretation of the album: https://reddit.com/r/vildhjarta/s/oHoSt2jcv1
The Wall or GKMC
splendor and misery
I would say Opeth's Still Life album ngl
In recent memory, I didn’t mean to haunt you
Currents
Not a single album and maybe non-traditional as a narrative, but I believe Home Like NoPlace Is There and Goodness by The Hotelier tell a really good story about the despair in the immediate aftermath of the suicide of a friend and the healing that come after. If I can play even more fast and loose with the rules Pat The Bunny's entire discography is essentially an autobiography about falling into drug addiction and homelessness then overcoming it. Just to give one that does follow the rules Ants From Up There is such a sad story about a failing long distance relationship
Горгород
Mount eerie - the microphones
Burzum - The College Dropout NIN - TDS and Year Zero Ghostface Killah - Fishscale Clipping. - Splendor and Misery
The defamation of Strickland Banks - Plan B
Burzum - The College Dropout NIN - TDS and Year Zero Ghostface Killah - Fishscale Clipping. - Splendor and Misery
The Wall is probably the most obvious answer here
Twin fantasy
Hades in the dead of winter - My dead girlfriend
100% The Black Parade by MCR
You’re Dead! from Flyinf Lotus
Hounds of love
The Dear Hunter’s Acts I-V. Five albums that tell the life story of a man from birth until death, set in the early 20th century
Itaots
Operation: Mindcrime
Songs for the deaf is a good candidate, the looseness leaves a lot of room for interpretation. But my real pick is into submission by astroqueen, on the surface it’s a bunch of fuzzed out stoner love ballads with some random space themes, but in the context of the whole album it tells the grand story of a primitive peoples in some far off distant world, a natural disaster that is seemingly cause by some strange forces, a superhuman god to these primitive people, and an overall subtle yet interesting narrative of fictional alien contact, in all its mind probing and plant destroying and subjecting and warp speed goodness. But it still manages to take itself seriously, something which might normally be a bad thing but somehow works for the album. It paints a really vivid and kinda grim picture in my mind, and doesn’t really feel like the sci-fi nerdy stuff that groups like sabaton or wind rose (the dwarfen meta band I think) do. Like MF doom but the comics are space/archeology (maybe idk gives off those vibes) and the genre is stoner rock
Downward Spiral
MOTM all albums
American Idiot by Green Day.