End with a slow song or a fast song?

[djsclaus]

You're listening to a CD, or seeing a show. Do you prefer when the album/show ends with a slow song or a fast song?

[TheZeroKid]

I tend to like my albums to end with a slow song. Usually when I'm writing with an album in mind, the slow/epic songs are reserve for the outro.

[djsclaus]

I usually prefer my showstoppers with a fast song, but when I saw Lydia they ended with 'All I See' with just Leighton and Mindy on stage, and that was just incredible. So I suppose it varies

For CDs, I like ending with a slow song. It puts you in more of a thinking, analytical mood.

[NeededYouMost]

i want the song to start slow and end fast
see- Some Will Seek Forgiveness by Underoath
Fin by Anberlin
or Ender by Finch

[blue_bedlight]

Album - Slow
Show - Fast, without doubt.

[meroki22]

Slow for sure. A couple of great examples...

Radiohead- Motion Picture Soundtrack
Neutral Milk Hotel- Two Headed Boy Pt. 2
Brand New- Soco Amaretto Lime
Arcade Fire- In the Backseat
The Decemberist- The Hazards of Love 4 (The Drowned)
Radiohead- Videotape
My Morning Jacket- Dodante
Weezer- Butterfly
Yeah Yeah Yeahs- Modern Romance

[jwicklun]

as much as I like fast, it just feels better to end it slow.
*thats what she said

[spansen]

doesn't matter, but i voted slow.

[phil19]

fast songs. gots to finish on a high

[dpetty21]

Fast on a cd and fast at a live show. Slow songs at live shows that is mainly fast music brings down the energy.

[Paulb-182]

It's two different questions really. Albums with a slow one. live shows, now that I tend to listen to much 'fast' music, but I will always prefer an upbeat number to end a set with.

[BozzBlonde]

Usually, I like it when they end with a slow song, but if the band slows it down after the midpoint in the album and then the last song is like this kick ass, fast song like the latest The Devil Wears Prada album then I would have to go with the fast song.

I chose slow song though.

[BozzBlonde]

Album - Slow
Show - Fast, without doubt.
Definitely agree.

[Say Nothing]

Completely depends on the tone and mood of the album?

[MADSTA]

Fast for show, either for album.

[domotime2]

the answer is.... depends.

[fightinirish217]

Usually a slow song, for both situations.

[HelloxAlone]

For an album, probably a slow song.
Always just sets the mood if the last song is slow and meaningful, makes you think about it afterwards.

[Hay]

Completely depends on the tone and mood of the album.
this

[lindZ629]

Typically slow for album, fast for show.

[11:11]

I like songs that build up from slow to fast.

[abcdefghijake]

Definitely agree.

This.

[flks511]

It doesn't matter, as long as it makes the experience feel complete.

[x1onexwo1fx]

depends on the genre. if the used s/t ended with a slow song it probably wouldn't have been as good as it was. if thrice's the earth will shake and red sky switched places on vheissu, i don't know how i'd feel about that album. probably bad examples, but the first that came to mind.

[Nick Le]

Album - Slow
Show - Fast, without doubt.

This, definitely.

as much as I like fast, it just feels better to end it slow.
*thats what she said

Hahaha nice.

[just.Starla.]

Start with a fast song, end with a slow song.

[jordalsh]

I like songs that build up from slow to fast.

this
or depends, for some bands its good to go out with a bang, like Say anything.

[IceAge/HeatWave]

Slow for sure. A couple of great examples...

Radiohead- Motion Picture Soundtrack
Neutral Milk Hotel- Two Headed Boy Pt. 2
Brand New- Soco Amaretto Lime
Arcade Fire- In the Backseat
The Decemberist- The Hazards of Love 4 (The Drowned)
Radiohead- Videotape
My Morning Jacket- Dodante
Weezer- Butterfly
Yeah Yeah Yeahs- Modern Romance

perfect list.

i like crescendos too, though.

[meroki22]

perfect list.

i like crescendos to though.

Glad you agree. Fresh avatar.

[drawndead]

as much as I like fast, it just feels better to end it slow.
*thats what she said

well played

[Alex DiVincenzo]

I much prefer fast songs -- in fact, I usually dislike ballads and the like -- but ending a record with a slow song is usually a win.

Always fast for a show though.

[lauren1234]

I like shows ending with a fast paced songs because it leaves me with a sense of energy and excitement.

[Pat k]

Ending with a slow song is just romanticized bullshit. Think of all the great albums which end fast:

STD - SWYA, TBC
Animal Collective - MPP
The National - Alligator

[love_american_style]

i prefer faster songs but it depends on how well the slow song is done. if its "epic/swan songish" then it's better than a faster paced one...but if it's drony and boring then forget about it.

[songydarko]

Slow for albums. Fast for show. I hate it when bands end an energetic show with a boring slow song.

[jmirand1]

I think shows and albums both end best when the second-to-last song is slow/long and the last song is fast.

[jmirand1]

Ending with a slow song is just romanticized bullshit. Think of all the great albums which end fast:

STD - SWYA, TBC
Animal Collective - MPP
The National - Alligator

I was pretty much thinking of these two albums when I voted for "fast." Also, TTTYG by Fall Out Boy - Patron Saint of Liars and Fakes. Such an amazing closer.

[jmirand1]

I prefer fast closing songs, but I don't think the tempo matters so much as how heartfelt, sentimental, and endearing the closing track is. I'm thinking of tracks like "The Story So Far" by NFG and "Wendy Clear" by Blink (I know Wendy Clear is the second-to-last track, but god I wish it was the closing track. On my ipod I always switch the order of Anthem and Wendy Clear.)

[BulleTheory]

depends on the album obviously.

[BulleTheory]

Completely depends on the tone and mood of the album?
this is the answer.

[Shin Akuma]

depends on the album/artist ...

[BryterJonah]

Bonnie 'Prince' Billy HAS to end a show with I See A Darkness. Always.

[TotalCollapse]

It depends, but I usually like it when the final band ends with a slow song; however, if the band isn't last, then I like it better when they end with a fast song.

[himynameiszack]

Album - Slow
Show - Fast, without doubt.
Agreed.

[seventy.times7]

I voted fast .. but this is mainly for shows, love crowdsurfing out on the last song :)
But some of your comments made me think, and album ender that starts slows and ends fast works well, ender by finch and fin by anberlin were great examples.
And even shows vary, seeing soco amarretto lime by Brand New as a solo acoustic ender song was one of the most amazing experiences ever.

[fran.182]

Slow, without a doubt.

[kbi the crowing]

depends on the album, but usually a fast song caps shit off nice

[denissuxx]

Slow. My favorite albums have slow endings

[Poe-tryGirl]

Slow song.

[Die Phe]

Album -> Slow/Fast
Show -> Fast

[SuNDaYSTaR]

i want the song to start slow and end fast
see- Some Will Seek Forgiveness by Underoath
Fin by Anberlin
or Ender by FinchMy perfect example would be Coheed's The Light & The Glass.

[yayitsjoe]

i honestly have no idea.

for albums, it does not matter to me.

however, for shows. i was originally going to say slow songs. cause Death Cab's "Transatlanticism" blew me away. but thinking to ADTR's "The Plot to Bomb the Panhandle" and Say Anything's "Admit It!!!" i really don't know. so i just didn't vote.

[kbi the crowing]

My perfect example would be Coheed's The Light & The Glass.

ahh I don't know why I didn't think of that example

[Feenucks]

It depends on the band, but generally (for me)...

Album - Slow Song
Show - Fast Song

[sleepyseanzzz]

finish with a burst of energy

[Brand-new-123]

I like it when shows and albums end with a song called In A Sweater Poorly Knit.

[Ryan Gentile]

Album - Slow

Concert - Fast

[sdisticsquirrel]

i voted slow, but at shows, i'd rather it end fast - i want to leave the show pumped
as far as albums go, i said slow because of a lot of examples that have already been said, but i'm with TheZeroKid on slow/epic songs being great at the end of albums - epic needs to be integrated into the poll question somehow to be accurate for my response, i suppose....

[NateFoundGlory]

For a show, a prefer the second to last song to be slow, and then end fast.
On a cd, slow end.

[SanePsychotic]

I like it when an album ends with a good song. It doesn't matter if it's fast or slow to me.

[sammyboy516]

Usually slow, or, as someone said already, a long song with a good build up to a harder ending.

I'm listening to Mat Kearney's City of Black & White as I type this. That CD has a good last song that's slow.

Also, The Last Song by the All-American Rejects was my favorite song when I was like 15. That's a good last song that's faster.

[nerdvglc]

Completely depends on the tone and mood of the album?
while i agree, i like when the closer is epic in a way that sums up a lot of the album, be it fast slow, or bipolar with both. it seems though, at least off the top of my mind, that a slow closer can feel more epic sometimes, so that got my vote.

[kbi the crowing]

now that I think about it more, I'd vote for the both option
if it existed

[mycuban]

Album - Slow
Show - Fast, without doubt.

agreed.

[FUCKDIRTYWIPES]

slow.

[aoftbsten]

Fast for a show definitely, but it really depends on what captures the mood best in an album.

[miketheauthor]

Completely depends on the tone and mood of the album?
Agreed.