I once heard on a podcast someone say that double studio albums are ridiculously pretentious and there’s not one that isn’t full of filler. I agree with that now. Every double album I’ve listened to would be better slimmed down to a single LP.
You know of anyones that are great as double LPs?
Out of the Blue - ELO.
shareThere is a grain of truth to this theory, particularly after CDs were introduced. A single compact disc can accommodate 80 minutes of music, while a single LP only rarely could reach 60 minutes (and that with greatly decreased sound quality).
Starting around 1990, almost everyone suddenly decided that EVERY album released had to be at least 65+ minutes, to mostly fill up the space available on a single CD. While this was fabulous for classical and jazz, for rock and pop it did lead to the creation of a lot of filler.
Here's 3 flawless double studio (live albums are an entirely different story) albums off the top of my head:
1) E.L.O.: Out of the Blue (1977)
2) Fleetwood Mac: Tusk (1979)
3) Marillion: Brave (1994).
Frank Zappa's debut album "Freak Out!" is a good double album that doesn't feel overlong and full of filler.
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