The Books - Albums Poll

Message Bookmarked
Bookmark Removed

The best "folktronica" act of them all

Poll Results

OptionVotes
The Lemon of Pink (2003) 10
Thought for Food (2002) 6
Lost and Safe (2005) 4
The Way Out (2010) 4
Music for a French Elevator and Other Short Format Oddities by the Books (2006) 0


Indexed, Thursday, 21 May 2026 14:37 (two weeks ago)

The Way Out is one of my fav albums of all time. the rest are pretty good too though

ciderpress, Thursday, 21 May 2026 14:44 (two weeks ago)

calling them "folktronica" is a major disservice IMO but I get it. this is a *tough* choice, I think it comes down between Lemon and The Way Out for me, but Lost and Safe has some of my favorite individual tracks and the first album has its charms as well.

feed me with your chips (zchyrs), Thursday, 21 May 2026 15:35 (two weeks ago)

I haven't really spent any time with French Elevator, think I heard it once but it didn't leave much of an impression

feed me with your chips (zchyrs), Thursday, 21 May 2026 15:36 (two weeks ago)

On a recent re-listen to both catalogues, struck me how much thematic and sometimes musical similarity there is between The Way Out and some Boards Of Canada... but yeah The Way Out was the first i really got into and i do think still my fave.

. (jamiesummerz), Thursday, 21 May 2026 15:42 (two weeks ago)

This may be one of those acts where every album is better than the last, which is pretty remarkable given how enjoyable Thought for Food is and the fact that Lemon of Pink is kind of a perfect album. But the next two are somehow even better. Personally I may go Lost and Safe, one I initially thought was kinda boring but really resonates with me now. But I really do appreciate how The Way Out brings back their humor and playfulness, one of those where it's clear they knew it was their last go round so they wanted it to be their definitive statement. Hmmm...I'll have to think about it

frogbs, Thursday, 21 May 2026 16:50 (two weeks ago)

I honestly think they're one of the best bands of the 2000s. Incredible 4 album run (not counting the French Elevator EP). The Lemon of Pink is the first one I fell in love with so remains my favorite, but Lost and Safe is a very close second.

Indexed, Thursday, 21 May 2026 17:52 (two weeks ago)

Haven't listened lately, but voted Lemon of Pink, going w my collegetown alt.weekly show preview from Sept. '09:

The Books
Thursday @ Wexner
The Books play (and sample) plucked, strummed and bowed instruments, while talking and singing with countless other sounds, also sampled (and played). Waves of fragments move calmly, and, on their first album, The Lemon of Pink*, venerable voices provide “helpful” gibberish. The Books like to ricochet through such decay, although the subsequent Lost & Save risks spelling this out a little too plainly, before zigzagging through unexpected insights and comedy. Their new version of Nick Drake’s “Cello Song,” feat. Jose Gonzalez and rec. for the Red Hot Organization’s AIDS charity comp Dark Was The Night, even grooves with the glitches of a reviewer’s cheapo CD-R!

*Didn't know about Food For Thought yet!

dow, Thursday, 21 May 2026 18:57 (two weeks ago)

Lost and Safe is the best album of the 00’s, so that one.

✖✖✖ (Moka), Thursday, 21 May 2026 19:55 (two weeks ago)

Automatic thread bump. This poll is closing tomorrow.

System, Monday, 1 June 2026 00:01 (five days ago)

okay I relistened to them all and I think it goes Lost > Way Out > Lemon > Thought. funny because at the time the subsequent albums never quite gave me the same rush as the debut but they've all grown on me considerably.

imo the Books signature is samples or lyrics that are kinda like badly translated fortune cookies, phrases that seen profound but are contradictory or botched. Lost and Safe has the most of this, including some great lines like "your head is made of clouds but your feet are made of ground"

frogbs, Monday, 1 June 2026 01:29 (five days ago)

The Lemon of Pink is so good, so based off memory.

Bee OK, Monday, 1 June 2026 05:52 (five days ago)

the Zammuto website about 6-8 years back was something i would regularly turn to for my life goals.

My homies buttthole surfers' record sounds like a f (Western® with Bacon Flavor), Monday, 1 June 2026 06:09 (five days ago)

relistening to "Thought for Food" and it's an absolutely glorious "swing-for-the-fences" unin/in-tential first album release.

My homies buttthole surfers' record sounds like a f (Western® with Bacon Flavor), Monday, 1 June 2026 06:14 (five days ago)

ya kinda odd that Zammuto went from a guy blogging his every move and writing/filming detailed breakdowns of each of his tracks to just total radio silence for nearly a decade. I guess he did kinda seem like someone who might just go off the grid one day.

frogbs, Monday, 1 June 2026 13:48 (five days ago)

xps "With your eyes closed, close your eyes" comes into my head randomly all the time

Indexed, Monday, 1 June 2026 14:23 (five days ago)

"You are something that the whole world is doing" is the one for me

frogbs, Monday, 1 June 2026 14:39 (five days ago)

The Way Out is a perfect album

H.P, Monday, 1 June 2026 14:47 (five days ago)

Ended up voting for The Way Out, which is an album that feels oddly in dialogue with the new BoC

feed me with your chips (zchyrs), Monday, 1 June 2026 16:34 (five days ago)

to expand a bit on what I mean, The Way Out uses found speech to engage with spirituality in a wryly amused way, and is anchored in a steady optimism. Whereas Inferno approaches similar material with cosmic dread and pessimism about the human condition. Each albumfeels emblematic of the time in which it was made.

feed me with your chips (zchyrs), Monday, 1 June 2026 16:41 (five days ago)

Automatic thread bump. This poll's results are now in.

System, Tuesday, 2 June 2026 00:01 (four days ago)

I voted lemon for sentimental reasons and the title track

nicky lo-fi, Tuesday, 2 June 2026 00:04 (four days ago)

one thing that always sticks with me about these guys is how adamant they were about not using samples people could actually trace back. they wanted their music to have no digital footprint which is why they stuck mostly to home recordings and things like answering machine tapes. the only sample they use where I actually know the source is the bit on "Enjoy Your Worries" that comes from an episode of Judge Judy (which I only know because Zammuto mentioned it in his blog). I think BoC is kinda similar but most of their samples have been identified by now right? granted there are way more people looking.

frogbs, Tuesday, 2 June 2026 14:19 (four days ago)

The one where a radio voice says 'Nyheder fra Grønland' is from the Danish radio show 'Nyheder fra Grønland'.

Frederik B, Tuesday, 2 June 2026 17:00 (four days ago)

Sometimes listening to the Books feels like rummaging through a junk drawer of nostalgia or unresolved memories buried in my subconscious. I don’t always enjoy the experience, but I respect the band for bringing those feelings on.

nicky lo-fi, Wednesday, 3 June 2026 09:41 (three days ago)


You must be logged in to post. Please either login here, or if you are not registered, you may register here.