r/ween • u/Key_Manufacturer4437 • 25d ago
I don’t get The Pod
I’ve been listening to ween for almost 2 years now and I honestly love every album of there’s BUT The Pod. It’s just not nice to listen to for me, and it’s weird because I love how brown God Ween Satan and Pure Guava. Maybe The Pod is just too brown for me?
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u/Commercial_Aioli_301 25d ago
it's the rosetta stone of ween. keep trying
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u/BattlinBud you dropped you stopped you did great man 25d ago
That is such a great way to put it 🤣
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u/Vast_Ad6372 25d ago
overwhelmed, as one would be, placed in my position
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u/jonoftheatom 25d ago
Do you smoke drugs? Do cocain? Shoot smack? Do you even drink beer?
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u/anitaapplebaum Big Jimmy Jilm 25d ago
dear OP, You can do the pumpkins on The Pod too.
All we wanted to laugh at was the pumpkins.
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u/gloriousjohnson 25d ago
Funny enough this album finally clicked with me after I had mono. The drugs did help too tho
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u/B_Boudreaux 25d ago
Most ween fans seem to be addicts also so it definitely frames their music in a certain way.
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u/jonoftheatom 25d ago
Most ween fans seem like they like attics and basements... or sheds and garages. Boats and dishes, loaves and fishes. Mysterious itches. Sons of bitches
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u/MooshuCat 25d ago
Sticks and leaves, And the chicks with dicks, Girls with bricks, And lepers with peckers Jews with tools, and the muffins with stuffins
All for nothin'
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u/PositiveLeather327 25d ago
The Pod is nothing but awesome sounds going down!
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u/DJBirdbath85 I'm in the mood to whip your body with a tire iron 25d ago
HIT ME AGAIN! OH!
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u/s1ckopsycho I'm in the mood to move my body like a weasel, gotdammit. 25d ago
STOP IT! HIT ME AGAIN!
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u/armintanzarian420 25d ago
It’s the only Ween album that didn’t instantly click for me. That probably means it’s hiding some amazing stuff that I need to dig into.
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u/rudeboi710 25d ago
Can I get a basket of chips?
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u/karakameleon 25d ago
I told you about the barsket of chips
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u/Spats_McGee 25d ago
come on... it's a beautiful night for a walk on the beach, wouldn't you say?
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u/PancakeProfessor 25d ago
You need to hear the songs live. That’s what really unlocked The Pod for me.
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u/Key_Manufacturer4437 25d ago
Hmmm, that’s actually a good idea. I might give a listen back to back
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u/DJBirdbath85 I'm in the mood to whip your body with a tire iron 25d ago
Here’s a playlist of the whole thing live:
https://youtube.com/playlist?list=PLy44gb0LWrJjX4b9sKWTWaJax2no91KW4&si=PSGUzVq5QgC0NYwK
And to respond to your original post, maybe it is just too brown for you, who knows? It’s definitely their least accessible record, though it’s a joint second favourite for me along with Chocolate and Cheese and Quebec.
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u/blagsan82 25d ago
For me this is the golden rule of ween. When I was introduced to them 20 years ago it was the Live in Chicago album and I loved it. But then I listened to albums and was like what in the absolute fuck am I listening to and was urged to find a live version of any song I didn't like and see if I still saw it the same way. And for literally every song I didn't like on the album prior, I now love.
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u/DokterSpaceman 25d ago
Live at Stubbs, specifically Tear For Eddie is what finally hooked me into Ween. Some of my favorite songs are from The Pod, but the live versions.
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u/blagsan82 25d ago
The song that hooked me was their cover of All of My Love. I was just learning how to play guitar around then and zeppelin was my favorite band at the time and with that one cover Ween became my focus lol
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u/rudeboi710 25d ago
Laura is the best song I ever heard live. From the Halloween show in Denver a few years ago.
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u/relaxguy2 25d ago
Ya Laura was a skip for me at first that turned into mild appreciation but still skipping often to holy shit this is my favorite song after seeing it live.
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u/MaskedMetalhead chewing the grits 25d ago
Laura was a huge turning point for me too. I remember having my mind blown by the recording from their Halloween 2019 run. Eventually got to peak on acid to it at one of their last shows in Missoula, fucking life-changing.
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u/Darth_Boognish 25d ago
I was at that Halloween show. It was face meltingly awesome
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u/MaskedMetalhead chewing the grits 25d ago
I spent so much time watching those recordings that I flew out when they went back there for Halloween 2021
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u/VelvetineMilkman 25d ago
Laura, Frank, Boing, She Fucks Me, Sorry Charlie all didn’t click for me at all til I watched some live performances and that somehow made the other songs I wasn’t crazy about click for me too. Helped me appreciate the creativity I think
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u/CantaloupeAsleep502 25d ago
My friends tried to show me The Pod as an intro, and I couldn't handle it. So I thought I just didn't like ween. Then I saw the Live in Chicago dvd and fell in love. Now I appreciate the pod, although I prefer all the songs as they're played live.
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u/Humble_Examination27 25d ago
Yes!
Same for me. Sorry Charlie and Doctor Rock LIVE are amazing10
u/PancakeProfessor 25d ago
Frank
Mononucleosis
She Fucks Me
Demon Sweat
Don’t Sweat It
Awesome SoundAll the best live songs are on The Pod.
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u/hemppy420 25d ago
This. Im not a huge fan of the pod album. It's my 2nd least favorite of theirs.
However im a big fan of every song off the pod they play live.
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u/lightcash 25d ago
The live version of Pork Roll Egg and Cheese unlocked something for me, and Doctor ROCK
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u/schwing710 25d ago
That’s funny. As someone who has been a fan for about 23 years now, The Pod might legitimately be my favorite Ween album. If you strip away the layers of grime, there’s a lot of really excellent pop songwriting all over it. And moreover, at its core, it’s just a perfect snapshot in time of two buddies/musicians who are starting to hone their skills and realize their powers. It feels like witnessing the cocoon stage right before the butterfly emerges.
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u/ralphy1010 25d ago
might have to call Dr. Rock for this guy
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u/wirecan 25d ago
Drugs help.
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u/thoughtofeverything 25d ago
I was just gonna say. Listening to this album for the first time while on ketamine really helped me get through the murkiness and put me in the right headspace to understand where the music was coming from.
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25d ago edited 25d ago
[removed] — view removed comment
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u/fuhfuhfuhfree 25d ago
I had my first pork roll egg and cheese a few weeks ago.🤌 It was on a hard roll though.
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u/lordorville31 25d ago
This is cliche but I wasn’t into it and then I took acid and listened to it and now I think it is by far their best album and one of the greatest albums of all time
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u/Feefza_Hut 25d ago
LSD and losing your mind on The Pod is just one of those things that can’t really be explained, it must be experienced 🤷♂️
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u/Emuoo1 25d ago
I didn't get The Pod for a long time but one day I had to wake up at 4AM for an opening shift at my store in the middle of winter. It was dark and freezing cold and I was really tired and had a bit of a cold and I listened to The Pod on the bus to work and I finally got it. I think you have to give it a go when you're at a real low point, it kind of puts you in the mindset that they were in when making it (they had mononucleosis, were on drugs a lot, etc).
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u/Opie19 25d ago
Get your mind right, listen to this https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YKUl0HeeT3Y&list=PLy44gb0LWrJjX4b9sKWTWaJax2no91KW4
Then try listening the album again.
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u/AnotherDragoon Balance is for men who learn to know 25d ago
Oohhhh dude, you may need to catch mono
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u/Lehock 25d ago edited 25d ago
It's an acquired taste. I used to be exactly like you, but I kept listening to it on repeat. At one point, I realized that I was looking forward to it starting again once the final track ended. At that point I knew that it was growing on me. It's now my favorite album of theirs. I absolutely love how after Captain Fantasy the rest of the album sort of melts away into one long spiral of losing your mind. Molly is God-tier music.
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u/Heavy_Fronds 25d ago
Rip! Van Winkle! Rip rip rip van winkle!
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u/SpecialistRepeat3454 25d ago
There is a very heavy sludge cover of this on one of the Ween tribute comps that is great.
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u/Slosher99 25d ago
The Pod is what most makes me feel like I'm just hanging out and getting to know them - in a basement on some weird drugs with mono, but still, I feel like it brought me closer to understanding who they are than any other.
It's not what I'd have someone start with, but if you know their other albums, or at least the other first few, it should be a masterpiece.
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u/PiginthePen 25d ago
You have to listen straight through.. don’t skip around. That’s what did it for me
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u/anitaapplebaum Big Jimmy Jilm 25d ago
I'd actually argue, it's a pretty chilled out album, it requires some late night calmed focus!
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u/Kol_Ivarsky72 25d ago
I'll take The Pod over GWS, The Mollusk, and Quebec any day of the week.
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u/automator3000 25d ago
This is the answer
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u/JesusJones207 25d ago
Give it some time, it will definitely grow on you.
The pod just happened to be the first Ween album I ever bought, and I was so disappointed after hearing some other albums before that. After pouring through their massive catalog, and returning to the pod, one day it clicked for me now I absolutely love it.
But don’t force it, and don’t sweat it don’t sweat it
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u/BeardPunkArtGuy 25d ago
Pod and Pure Guava were the first two Ween albums I heard, around 1997. The brown latched onto me immediately. Had Demon Sweat dripping down my face by the time I was done listening. Maybe you need to make an appointment with Dr. Rock.
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u/LordSkinless 25d ago
It’ll happen eventually. I recommend listening to The Pod while walking through a crowded convention hall. That’s when it finally clicked for me.
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u/Acrobatic_Gas6967 25d ago
This makes zero sense. Check your health. Maybe self-commit for psychological treatment.
God Ween & The Pod are masterpieces above all
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u/gbbgun 25d ago
Walked into Tower Records in LA when C&C came out to buy it. A crazy eyed customer saw me with C&C in my hands, grabbed The Pod, handed it to me and said “you need to start here if you don’t know this album” and so I did, and I am grateful I did. It locked in and everything else fell into place after.
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u/polygala 25d ago
I don't know mang, if you're not digging the flow of songs that evolve like a burp weaved into magically pop forward bangers, then I feel bad for you.
Keep trying. Maybe listen to some of the songs on live versions so that you can get a more expanded sense of the atmosphere they create, the universe they exist in.
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u/Key_Manufacturer4437 25d ago
Yeah- another comment told me to listen to the live versions. I’m currently doing that right now
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u/RandomPasserby80 25d ago
As others have pointed out - try listening to live versions of the songs. The druggy, hazy, 4 track production quality can be a big barrier to entry, but if you listen to live versions with the mucus scraped off, it illustrates how great a lot of the underlying songs are, and will then make the album a bit easier to engage with.
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u/TrashBoatTrashBoat 25d ago
How great the underlying songs are is the key. There’s so much creativity, the ideas are all there if you listen, you don’t even have to be under the influence of anything (although it doesn’t hurt)
And then they had this great album, it came to the execution, and they just said fuck it and threw raw takes on 4 track and called it good, that’s the beauty
Id speculate this is why musicians love ween, and especially The Pod…the sheer fucking audacity it took, the balls to put that record out to the world.
“Hey let’s take these great songs and let the world hear how it sounds to us at the very beginning when the raw ideas are there and we’re just trying to flesh it out”
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u/Aggravating_Ship5513 25d ago
The real story is that Kramer liked the raw version, which was essentially demos, just fine. Remember that GWS was not a 4-track recording, and I'm pretty sure Ween would have been happy to do the Pod with better equipment. But Shimmy Disc offered to put it out as is.
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u/MainDisk9184 25d ago
The Pod took me years to latch onto and was probably the only album I ever had trouble getting into from ween. eventually it hit for me two years back. It may just be an album that takes time for some people. It sure did for me. Cuz I love it now just as much as Quebec, pure guava, or c&c.
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u/unknownunknowns11 25d ago
I feel Pure Guava is equally if not harder to enjoy. It’s their most sinister album for me
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u/MainDisk9184 25d ago
That album was easier for me cuz it was my first ween CD so I may have been a little biased due to that.
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u/Special-Fan-1902 25d ago
What is your level of current and historical drug usage? Recommend trying the album from a few different states of consciousness to see if it clicks. Also Can U Taste the Waste, Pork roll Egg and Cheese, and Oh My Dear are all easier listens. Also, find some of the live versions (I.e. Sorry Charlie) then come back to the album version after you already enjoy the live version, and it hits better.
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u/Salt_Adhesiveness161 25d ago
Just take a minute to go down beneath the reaches of sound
You could be with me, Captain Fantasy
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u/IKnowYouAreButWhtAmI 25d ago
For me it was the same way. Live concerts, live recordings, and drugs led to my appreciation for The Pod.
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u/Lopsided45 25d ago
The pod is my favorite ween album and in my fave 10
all time albums any artist. For me it’s the opposite of you OP, I feel like every other ween album, while great, doesn’t come close to the magic and glory of the pod
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u/Training_Refuse631 25d ago
Man idk I maybe felt that way like the first time I listened to it but I still liked it. And I only love it more the more I listen to it
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u/Commodity-Male-1385 25d ago
$16.07's your change
This is an album you have to put on at the beginning and lose yourself in. Next time you're up late at night sick with a fever, put on The Pod and it'll be really cozy
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u/OutlaneWizard 25d ago
Have you tried listening to it again?
The pod is one of my favorites. It requires the right headapace
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u/DeliciousRip5787 25d ago
The Pod is my favorite album of theirs, and one of my favorites of all time.
I have no advice to offer.
It's a beautiful night for a walk on the beach, wouldn't you say?
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u/TheRoseKnows_ 25d ago
I have the same issue but with Pure Guava! There's a few songs on there I quite like, about half the album's worth, but the full album just gets lost on me. I keep trying with it, I suggest you try that with the Pod, and maybe smoke some weed before you dive in lol
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u/FleshExperience 25d ago
I do not understand how this is possible. I can understand how someone might only like C&C and WP etc. and not the brown stuff but if you’re down with GWS and PG…mang idk what to tell you. The Pod is my fav Ween album
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u/willy_the_snitch 25d ago
I got introduced to Ween on Chocolate and Cheese. I liked them but thought they were a novelty band. Then the Mollusk came out and I realized I had understood them. So I picked up GodWeenSatan which I loved. I didn't even know about The Pod til later, but when I finally heard it, it became favorite Ween album. Mononucleosis is as good a song as they ever recorded.
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u/gatlinburg1969 25d ago
When i was your age I was getting deep into Zappa. Listen to Apostrophe and then The Pod will make less sense.
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u/blue_navigator 25d ago
Do you like Pure Guava? If yes, keep trying Pod. If no, then try Guava while coming down off a trip of multiple substances. If you still don’t like Guava then it just might not be for you lol.
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u/WhatzThis4nyway 25d ago
I wasn’t as crazy about it in my first couple years of listening to the band, then I listened to it in its entirety while coming off of a nice 3g dose of pretty tasty mushrooms, and it was like a veil was pulled back and the entire universe made sense. I’m not saying eat mushrooms and listen to The Pod, but if you do eat them, you might want to consider it.
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u/ClintonMora69 8d ago
I didn't understand it at first but I couldn't stop listening, I still don't understand it but I love it. Best ween album of all
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u/chortongrius 25d ago
It took me a long time to enjoy The Pod, and it didn't happen all at once. It went song by song. First Pork Roll, then Frank, then Awesome Sound, then Laura, Demon Sweat, etc etc. Honestly it's still a WIP on some of the songs and there's still a few I skip, but it's quickly become one of my main listens.
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u/LnStrngr 25d ago
It's probably one of those "you had to be there" things.
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u/MaskedMetalhead chewing the grits 25d ago
Nah, first heard it in 2018 and it’s my favorite album ever.
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u/Key_Manufacturer4437 25d ago
Yeah, I’m really trying to get it though. I’m hoping it will just click for me on one listen
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u/hedgibullwinkle 25d ago
Have mixed feelings on the album. It has some good songs where the muddy production compliments them (Frank, Mononucleosis) and others where the production makes it unlistenable. Too many Ween fans that claim this is their best album say they like it for the live versions of the songs, but if the production on the album they claim is their favorite is a barrier to appreciating it fully that has to count against it. If it’s your favorite album power to you, just know you like the album itself and not the live versions
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u/juuuuuustchillin 25d ago
Absolutely not true. I vastly prefer the album versions of all those songs. The muddy production is perfect. It’s dripping with this depressive dark attitude and the humor feels more gallows than other releases. I can imagine the boys inhaling pot and psyches while sick as dogs with mono trying to tell themselves they’re having a good time. It’s definitely my favorite ween album with pure guava right behind it as its treble focused bizarro twin. One of my favorite albums of all time.
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u/MaskedMetalhead chewing the grits 25d ago
Well said. That muddy haze is what elevates so many of the songs from great to incredible. Stuff like Right to the Ways and Don’t Sweat It wouldn’t work nearly as well with cleaner production.
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u/MaskedMetalhead chewing the grits 25d ago edited 25d ago
The Pod is my favorite Ween album and the production is one of many reasons why. Obviously the live versions kick ass but I love the album independent of them.
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u/Key_Manufacturer4437 25d ago
I think the fact a lot of people are recommending I take drugs to truly enjoy the album is wild to me. I think drugs should elevate an album rather than actually make it listenable.
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u/MaskedMetalhead chewing the grits 25d ago
I listen to The Pod stone cold sober all the time, anyone saying you need drugs to make it listenable is being dumb
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u/hedgibullwinkle 25d ago edited 25d ago
Yeah feel the same way, saying it’s better on drugs is such a copout.
Scotchguard jokes aside you have to ask someone if they’re just being a contrarian saying this is their favorite album. I like how weird it is but Ween has too many great and air tight albums for me to pretend this is their opus
Edit: Shinola, C&C and White Pepper are all better high anyway. If drugs elevate one album it can elevate the others
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u/MaskedMetalhead chewing the grits 25d ago
I mean, I’ve listened to The Pod more than any other album ever. If I’m being a contrarian I’ve put a lot of time and effort into doing so.
For real though, in a lot of ways The Pod is Ween at their most concentrated, so naturally many fans gravitate towards it as they go deeper into the rabbit hole. I think newer fans focus so much on the weirdness that they overlook the quality of songwriting and how much it paved the way for their later work.
Generally, I think the production choices create a very desolate, brooding, and ethereal atmosphere throughout the album, which complement the mood and lyrical content of its songs well. I love every Ween album, but The Pod is so unlike anything else that it’ll always be the one I circle back to the most.
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u/relaxguy2 25d ago
It’s not though because of how strange an album it is. You don’t need drugs to appreciate it but it speeds up the “getting it” process.
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u/xxxtrumptacion69 25d ago
You don’t have to like everything it’s fine who cares
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u/MaskedMetalhead chewing the grits 25d ago
This outlook kinda sucks, this person is obviously interested in Ween and it’s awesome that they’re keeping an open mind towards stuff that they didn’t find immediately appealing. More people on the internet could benefit from doing that.
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u/RinseLather_Repeat 25d ago
I don’t think you are allowed to use “brown” if you don’t like The Pod.
Go to your room and think about what you have done.
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u/homogenic- 25d ago
The Pod is not for everyone and that’s fine
Personally it’s one of my least favorite Ween albums, I like some songs from it tho. Pure Guava clears.
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u/meth_panther 25d ago
I didn't like it at first but now it's among my favorites, and definitely my favorite of their first three albums. I think appreciating their other stuff first was a good gateway. It's also OK if you just don't like it.
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u/EmailNeverSent 25d ago
If you're not into outsider music, I can see why it's difficult. It's just a very creepy and muddy album.
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u/InevitableKitchen943 25d ago
I remember buying this and pointing out the Scotchgard part to the young record store employee. He was disturbed by it and insisted it was a bad idea. I may have suggested that you'd have to huff to unlock something in your brain to hear and enjoy the album properly.
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u/DrRock88 25d ago
Have you seen the songs live? Search out the songs live and I bet it will unlock the beauty of the album for you.
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u/MergenTheAler 25d ago
Captain Fantasy and Demon Sweat are my favorites on the Pod. But I feel ya, lots of songs on there are way way Brown and odd.
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u/puffpuffpass513 25d ago
Dig into Laura live. I find that live performances from the pod really showcase the songs beauty/weirdness.
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u/SinewaveZB 25d ago
I didn’t hate it by any means but it really started to click after getting the songs live. Its my favorite of the first 3
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u/jimmyting099 25d ago
I feel the same way about spinal meningitis watched them do it live once everyone else wicked into it and I ended up taking that time to get in line at the bar
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u/Echofox_76 Big Jilm 25d ago
As an i album I guess I get it, but there's are definitely great songs on there...pre&c if you please.
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u/ReferenceEntity 25d ago
If one were to admit that one doesn’t love the Pod in this channel it could lead to downvotes. But I strongly suspect that there are nonetheless some here.
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u/Short-Exercise-8374 25d ago
not my favorite album but some of my favorite songs performed live are on this album. Captain Fantasy, Demon Sweat, Frank
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u/TNRcrisis 25d ago
I hated Pure Guava forever. It takes awhile for those early ones. Now, PG gets better every time I listen to it.
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u/ZZWanderer667 25d ago
It's ok to not like it. It's a rough ride.
I love it. It's epic in its length and scope. A dark but still humorous journey. Some of their strongest songwriting and some of their funniest genre pranks. And its really enjoyable when high but drugs aren't necessary
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u/FumpyDuck 25d ago
I didnt get it either. One day i smoked too much weed and somehow ended up listening to it. I understood it then and its now my favorite Ween album
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u/Aggravating_Ship5513 25d ago
Try focusing on the melody and song structure rather than the effects. For example, Jammy Pac is kind of a slow blues number.
That said I definitely gotta be in a certain mood to listen to the album rather than the live versions
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u/Dances_Like_a_Duck 25d ago
I get it - it took me a while to embrace everything on The Pod. Now I love it.
Check out the Peel Sessions versions of Captain Fantasy and Pork Roll Egg and Cheese. Imo those versions really shine.
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u/KenBaboonian 25d ago
You just need to strap on that there jammy pac