For the Radiohead skeptics: try Amnesiac or Kid A. Those are their two best albums. My favorite is Amnesiac. The Pyramid Song ftw. And if you listen to Pink Floyd's Meddle and don't like it, something is wrong with you. Dark Side of the Moon is very mediocre compared to that one. Second best album is The Final Cut, then Piper at the Gates of Dawn, then WYWH.
Depends on a lot of factors. Do you prefer orchestrated or more sparse music? (if the former, you'll love Emerson, Lake and Palmer; if the latter, Creedence Clearwater Revival). Shorter or longer songs? (The Clash for the former and the Allman Brothers for the latter). How much do lyrics matter? (if they matter, you'll probably like Elvis Costello; if you don't care, Sammy Hagar). Pure singing voice, scratchy, or something in between? (Steve Perry vs. Bruce Springsteen). Are you more of a guitar person or a piano person? (e.g. if you're a big piano fan, you'll probably like Supertramp; if you're more of a guitar person, Heart would be more your cup of tea). Major key, upbeat music or minor-key stuff (if the former, you'll prefer the Ramones; if the latter, Pearl Jam would be more of your taste). Crisp and clear production or somewhat muddied? (Dire Straits for the former, Rolling Stones for the latter). And how much does musical virtuosity matter? (if yes, then Rush, if no, then Kiss- although even the most limited groups have to have some skills- e.g. Ace Frehley is a pretty good guitar player). There are exceptions in all those cases, but generally speaking those are some things to consider. One of my favorites is The Who because (1) I like their combination of shorter, earlier songs and more complex, later songs; (2) lyrics are very important to me, and Townshend is a top 5 lyricist, to me; (3) prefer a more screaming type of singer, but don't mind the pure ones, and Daltrey is a mixture of both; (4) like that they tried both concept albums and more simpler ones), etc. Now, you might have one factor that could negate all the others; i.e. you just can't stand Springsteen's voice, and nothing else matters. That's kind of how it is with me and the Smashing Pumpkins. I feel guilty sometimes b/c I know they're a great band, interesting lyrics, musically terrific- yet even though I've listened to Siamese, Mellon Collie, etc. I just can't listen to him sing. Conversely, Warren Zevon's lyrics alone make me listen to him. I don't think his music is all that great, not a huge fan of his voice, really not a big fan of anything of his musically. But I own nearly every CD of his because he's one of my favorite lyricists of all time. So, that's just some ideas about why one might like a certain type of music or not.
Sentimental Hygiene is one of my all-time favorite albums. Some great Neil Young guitar work, Dylan harmonica, and REM as a backing band. Love it.
Just got into them this year. Listen to this entire song and you'll love them. Anytime you have a ****ty day or something this song always brings out the chill* mood. <iframe width="420" height="315" src="//www.youtube.com/embed/TK1bi4emEkk" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen></iframe>
Why?? <iframe width="560" height="315" src="//www.youtube.com/embed/uC0WB4tBrVI" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen></iframe>
Bruce Springtein is terrible. His appeal is baffling to me. I also don't understand the massive popularity of Radiohead. But, I can at least listen to them. Lady Gaga Rush Daft Punk Jay Z U2. I can listen to them, but I have no idea why people think these guys are any better than any average band out there. Elvis Costello never did much for me either. Kid Rock. Um. NO. Never. Not any of it.
Agreed. Stop whispering is my jam. But that might be because it sounds like it could have come off of Siamese dream.
Gimme gimme gimme gimme nothing!! http://youtu.be/Tj24i43SpRg I admit he's probably one of the worst singers ever, and they're my favorite band, but I still think their sound is ****ing fantastic. Also screw all country.
What I completely do not understand is how some individuals cannot understand why certain bands are popular. Heck, I never listen to Madonna but completely get why she's big. Springsteen's an easy one- people want bigger, they want larger-than-life, they want over-the-top- that's what Springsteen, U2, Metallica, and Michael Jackson bring/brought to the table. It's a combination of passionate music, live performances, and good branding. We're a Superman, Patton, Jordan, Oprah society- we want heroes. Springsteen and U2 brand themselves as such, and consequently they have huge, huge followings. People believe that they care. People believe that their music has meaning and stands for something. People look up to them. What musical acts of today can we say that about? That's why Springsteen, U2, McCartney, and Madonna still sell out stadiums. Or when people make a judgment when they only know few of their songs. If I were to listen to only the Grateful Dead songs that get played on the radio, I'd be like, "umm, this is great??" But when you see them in concert, listen to ALL their stuff, then you get why Deadheads are Deadheads. Same with Dave Matthews, etc.
Groups like The Ramones and Green Day are easy to figure out. It's for people who want loud, hard, driving music with sing-song melodies. The Who, The Kinks, Cheap Trick, The Ramones, The Smithereens, Green Day, and Weezer all fall in this category. "Twenty twenty twenty four hours to go, I wanna be sedated..." "hear the sound of the falling rain, coming down like an Armageddon flame" "mommy's alright, daddy's alright, they just seem a little weird..." "but I'm a substitute for another guy, I look pretty tall but my heels are high..." "whats with the homies dissing my girl, why do they got to front?" "I'll do anything i have to do, just to win the love of a girl like you..." Different decades, but all the same- you can sing along to them easily, but the music is much louder and harder-edged than the Beatles or Beach Boys. Power Pop, if you will.
For the life of me, I can't understand why anyone wouldn't completely dig this song and the accompanying Michelangelo of a video (and the girl with the running mascara just DOES it for me): <iframe width="420" height="315" src="//www.youtube.com/embed/PQHPYelqr0E" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen></iframe> As well as the song that, to me, started hard rock- all because Davies slashed his amp with a razor to get a nastier sound: <iframe width="420" height="315" src="//www.youtube.com/embed/-2GmzyeeXnQ" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen></iframe>
Queen for sure. I feel more masculine listening to Britney Spears than I do, Queen. Journey sucks too. For shame on the Beatles hate though.
I'm probably going to date myself here, but: I never got: Inxs. Some things you probably didn't know about Inxs, at one point in the 80s, they were as big or bigger than u2.
