Blog

Because I've basically saved every song I've ever collected in my long life of music listening, I figured it would be fun to compile CD length playlists containing songs that best represent my music taste at various stages in my life. What's interesting is that there are very few bands that I used to listen to that I now say are terrible. It seems like my tastes haven't exactly changed; I've merely added new genres and bands to my collection, and I still listen to artists that I rocked out to as a wee youngin. See what you think of my former selves, and sound off on which one's taste sucks the most if you want. It's all kosher here.

Age 13 (When I was an awkward, fat teenager)
Beastie Boys - Intergalactic
The Beatles - Maxwell's Silver Hammer
Black Sabbath - Paranoid
Blue Oyster Cult - Don't Fear the Reaper
Collective Soul - The World I Know
Dave Matthews Band - What Would You Say
Kent - Things She Said
Meja - All About the Money
Mikael Wiehe - Flickan och Krakan
Oasis - Wonderwall
Robbie Williams - Millenium
Seal - Kiss From A Rose
Soundgarden - Black Hole Sun
Sugar Ray - Falls Apart
Sweet - Ballroom Blitz
The Verve - Bittersweet Symphony
Verve pipe - Freshman
The Wallflowers - One Headlight
The Who - My Generation

This playlist shows the beginnings of my exploration of music. At this point in my life, I got music from two sources: my parents and my radio. My mom would buy me popular bands such as Dave Matthews Band, Sugar Ray, The Wallflowers, etc. My dad would play me records and CDs by artists such as The Beatles, The Who, Sweet, and Black Sabbath. The radio introduced me to the grunge movement, alternative rock, and The Beastie Boys. I even distinctly remember a short fascination I had with the Aqua song Barbie Girl... anyways, you might notice a few outliers there, namely Meja, Kent, and Mikael Wiehe. I spent one semester of 8th grade in Sweden, where my friends and neighbors had a considerable impact on what I listened to. So that's that, then.

Age 17 (senior year of high school)
Alizee - Moi Lolita
Bone Thugs-N-Harmony - For Tha Love Of Money
Bright Eyes - The Calendar Hung Itself
Death Cab for Cutie - Photobooth
Finch - What It Is To Burn
The Get Up Kids - Long Goodnight
GLAY - Two Bell Silence
Jay-Z - It's Like That (w/Kid Capri)
Jimmy Eat World - Sweetness
L'Arc~en~Ciel - Spirit Dreams Inside
Led Zeppelin - Immigrant Song
Noir Desir - Le Vent Nous Portera
Poison the Well - Torn
The Rasmus - In the Shadows
Red House Painters - I Feel The Rain Fall
Sigur Ros - Hjartao Hamast
Something Corporate – Hurricane (Changing Weather Patterns)
The Used - Buried Myself Alive

Ah, I remember this time in my life so clearly. This was probably the biggest change in my listening habits. I had tapped out radio-friendly music and, becoming more internet savvy, I decided to expand my music horizons through talking to people online and, probably the most effective way, searching for random words in file-sharing programs. By searching for “spirit,” I got “Spirit Dreams Inside” by L’Arc~En~Ciel. By searching for “hjarta” (Swedish for “heart”) I got “Hjartao Hamast” by Sigur Ros. By searching for “vent” (French for “wind”), I got Noir Desir etc etc. I also discovered an online game called “The Emo Game” that introduced me to bands like Bright Eyes and The Get Up Kids (although they’re admittedly not emo). I also got some rap music for blasting in my car like pretty much every other idiot jock.

Age 18 (after my first year of college)
Abandoned Pools - Start Over
Avenged Sevenfold - Remenissions
The Beautiful Mistake - Circular Parade
boysetsfire - Full Color Guilt
Dave Matthews Band - Grey Street
Erase the Grey - Rain
From Autumn to Ashes - I'm The Best At Ruining My Life
Guided by Voices - Liquid Indian
Her Space Holiday - My Girlfriend's Boyfriend
Jimmy Eat World - Claire
Keepsake - Cartoon Life
Murder by Death - I'm Afraid of Who's Afraid of Virginia Woolf
Radiohead - My Iron Lung
Rise Against - Like The Angel
Sparta - Light Burns Clear
Sunny Day Real Estate - Pillars
Thrice - The Artist in the Ambulance
Thursday - Standing on the Edge of Summer

In college, I connected with people on my hall that had similar music tastes. Two of my closest friends got me into Avenged Sevenfold, Thrice, Thursday, Sparta, From Autumn to Ashes, Rise Against, all that jazz. I randomly heard Abandoned Pools while I was walking past a kid’s room once, and I ran in there and asked him what it was because it was so incredibly beautiful. I continued finding stuff on my own, introducing myself to Radiohead, Guided By Voices, and Murder By Death. I also had my second Dave Matthews Band resurgence; after hating Everyday, Busted Stuff and the Lilywhite Sessions came out and blew my mind with yet another sound, this one more folk/bluesy. It seemed like every other album they’ve put out are the ones that everyone cracks on for being lame (Crash (though it’s only because of Crash Into Me, the rest is awesome) Everyday, Stand Up), and the good ones they do so well on (Under The Table and Dreaming (aside from Ants Marching and What Would You Say), Before These Crowded Streets, Busted Stuff, Big Whiskey and the GrooGrux King) go unnoticed… but enough legitimizing my on-again-off-again romance with a band that’s trendy to hate. I listed Jimmy Eat World again because while the band moved in their mediocre pop direction (Futures, Chase This Light), I started going back in their history, checking out Static Prevails and Clarity and the various underground comps they lent singles to. They used to be so good, so raw…

Age 20 (senior year of college / becoming a music snob)
The Album Leaf - On Your Way
Arcade Fire - Wake Up
Ariel Kill Him - Ca-cao
Atkins Lane - Everything Was You
Bishop Allen - Ghosts Are Good Company
Dinosaur Jr. - Even You
Fugazi - Give Me The Cure
Iron & Wine - He Lays In The Reins
JR Ewing - Fucking & Champagne
Life at These Speeds - Land Filled
Love Lost but Not Forgotten - Perfectly Fucked
M83 - A Guitar And A Heart
Marc Broussard - Home
Matt Pond PA - The Trees And The Wild
Minus the Bear - This Ain't A Surfin Movie
Rites of Spring - For Want Of
Saetia - Venus And Bacchus
Tujiko Noriko - Aru Choten
Up Up Down Down Left Right Left Right B A Start - Come Away
Wilco - At Least That's What You Said

This was when I truly got into underground music. The girl I dated at the time started hating the music I listened to (and we actually broke up not long after I refused to go to a Brand New concert with her). I had a torrid love affair with Dischord and Level Planes (my man crush on Guy Picciotto supercedes all other musical emotions even today) caused by a single listen by Saetia’s Venus and Bacchus that lead to me buying over a dozen CDs in a week, including Love Lost But Not Forgotten, Fugazi, JR Ewing, Life At These Speeds, Saetia, Rites of Spring and so many more. I also started moving in the exact opposite direction, away from drum- and guitar-driven rock and hardcore and towards minimalist indie and vocal work. I bought The Album Leaf album without even hearing it, which started me on the road towards Ariel Kill Him, Tujiko Noriko, Iron & Wine, and M83. I also started seeking out rising indie bands like Arcade Fire, Up Up Down Down, and Minus The Bear, catching on right before the huge upswell in popularity. I had my first Wilco moment, and fell in love with Marc Broussard’s voice and writing at first listen even though I only listened to him to be able to mock him (I saw him on Yahoo! Music and thought he was another boy band reject from his looks). I also began getting into unknown bands through random concerts around town (Atkins Lane, matt pond PA).

Age 22 (Wasting time / looking for a job / The Guitar Hero era)
All That Remains - This Calling
...And You Will Know Us by the Trail of Dead - A Classic Arts Showcase
The Appleseed Cast - Here We Are (Family In The Hallways)
Black Kids - I'm Not Gonna Teach Your Boyfriend How To Dance With You
Carissa's Wierd - Ignorant Piece of Shit
Clap Your Hands Say Yeah - Details of the War
Greenleaf - Agents of Ahriman
I Would Set Myself on Fire for You - Seven
Lightheaded - Poetry in Motion
Mac Lethal - Turn Off The Radio
The National - Fake Empire
Othello - Seasons Greetings (feat. Sirens Echos)
Scar Symmetry - Artificial Sun Projection
A Silver Mt. Zion - Take These Hands and Throw Them In The River
Strange Fruit Project - Get Live (feat. Erykah Badu)
Strata - Night Falls (The Weight of It)
Suis La Lune - Quiet, Pull The Strings
Trophy Scars - Alchemist. Alchemists.
65daysofstatic - This Cat Is A Landmine

I call this the Guitar Hero era because being introduced to that game hearkened back to high school when I actually used to try to play instruments… I returned my focus to instrument-driven work, paying more attention to technique and individual performances instead of the whole song. This lead to a lot of progressive rock and metal. Mike Martin and Olin Buchanan of All That Remains single-handedly slated my guitar-shredding thirst for almost a year. Trail of Dead, Appleseed Cast, The National, Strata, and Trophy Scars kept me happy with unusual drum-work and time-signatures and variations on the 4/4 that would blow most musicians’ minds. Suis La Lune, I Would Set Myself On Fire For You, 65Daysofstatic, and A Silver Mt. Zion created beautiful and off-kilter music. Bands like Greenleaf and Scar Symmetry gave me the guitars to fill the void that All That Remains couldn’t. I also began my foray into undergroup hip-hop, using Mac Lethal as a springboard into balding white rappers and Lightheaded and Strange Fruit Project introducing me to rap music that can uplift and energize. Finally, I continued to get into indie music, playing Black Kids, Clap Your Hands Say Yeah, and Carissa’s Wierd till my roommates wanted to kill me (insert music asshole joke about how one play is all it took here).

Age 24 (Gainfully employeed / the man I am today)
The Avett Brothers - I And Love And You
Band of Horses - No One's Gonna Love You
Bottomless Pit - Leave The Light On
Dave Matthews Band - Why I Am
Fleet Foxes - Blue Ridge Mountains
Jacobi Wichita - I Only Draw Chairs
Justice - D.A.N.C.E.
The Knife - We Share Our Mother's Health
The Last Shadow Puppets - The Age of the Understatement
The Mae Shi - Run To Your Grave
Mars ILL - Fade to Black (feat. Sintax)
MGMT - Time To Pretend
Nizlopi - Last Night In Dakar
Pierce the Veil - The Cheap Bouquet
Restiform Bodies - Foul
Silversun Pickups - It's Nice to Know You Work Alone
United Nations - The Shape of Punk That Never Came
Why? - Good Friday
Zolar X - I Pulled My Helmet Off (I'm Going to Love Her)

Once I got my life on track and got into the real world, my music tastes matured with me. The “My Grass Is Blue” movement in Blacksburg got me into The Avett Brothers and Fleet Foxes (not exactly related, I know, but bear with me), Carissa’s Wierd led me to Band of Horses, peeks at Pitchfork and last.fm led me to Justice, The Knife, and MGMT, and random music review sites turned me onto Jacobi Wichita (still only 250 listeners on last.fm is a crime!) and Zolar X (extremely awesome David Bowie’s mind meets Styx’s sound meets Rush’s instrumental insanity space-age love progressive rock). I also continued to find underground hip-hop, experiencing a love for half of Anticon (Restiform Bodies, Why, Odd Nosdam, etc) and a mixture of disgust and pity for the other half (all the straight-edge assholes like Non-Prophets). I had my third DMB sighting after Stand Up made me hate the band, but Big Whiskey made me their bitch again, and I continued to find bands in genres I thought I already nailed down (Bottomless Pit, Pierce The Veil, Niz, Silversun Pickups, United Nations).