*Your* History of Sound (music) - Page 4

COIL

what else?

http://www.lastfm.it/user/francis_bacon

i didnt read all the posts of this thread, i started from the 3rd page because i was lazy...

Quote:

Originally Posted by Redcarmoose 

We may find out that people search music though out much of their life as they learn about themselves. I feel most of my research was from 18-40 years old. We are exposed to sound through our social environments then start to expand and look for more.

 

I think the main quest for this searching could be in our twenties but may not ever stop for some. This is not even to make note of the external changes in new music styles which a person may or may not like. I used to think that waves or trends had a limited life and had apexes and falls. It seems after some research that even with no commercial success many forms of music seem to burn underground and not even be noted in the mainstream.The only way a person is going to find these forms is by reading and maybe continuing with styles they already like.

 

So just for the research level folks could spend years with Bach then have it fall out of favor. I think that there is also a big influence of external change which have nothing to do with the musical trajectory a person is on. If they are going through hard times maybe they want soft music. If they are rebellious maybe they want angry music and so on. So each person has a soundtrack which fits who they are on the outside and on the inside. They are shown stuff by friends and by the media. They are remembering stuff from the past. They are finding things just by random. If you believe in random.

 

Today more than ever there is a bigger world of music for people to explore. Bigger does not always end in it being better as it is daunting the amount of information out there. People will play the same CD for a month everyday even if they own 3000, that is human nature. The ability to discover even more small aspects in a work they may have played 30 times. There was a time when the only way people were able to get music free was by recording off the radio or recording a friend’s record collection. There seems more ways than ever now to explore music!

i agree that most times, the music you listen to is affected by what your going through in your life, in fact i think its almost "common knowledge" for people who are in to music any deeper than casual radio in the background.

finding the underground stuff is definitely not easy, it has become somewhat of a skill for me through the years (that sounds like theres been alot of them, infact its only been about 7). hoever,  if one is interested, one would research deep enough until he finally knew where to look.

my version goes like this: 

i was brought up on pink floyd, genesis, mike oldfield etc. moved into rock\heavy metal as soon as my teen years began and from there went deeper and deeper into the metal scene. i was actually very knowledgeable in that genre, i could tell more obscure genres apart just by listening and i knew almost all genres of metal available. 

deeper and deeper i went, from thrash to speed to metalcore to death metal, drone, doom, folk, progressive... everything. eventually i ended up listening mostly to black metal and around the age of 18 i made a surprisingly common step and started listening to industrial. then came trance, drum and bass and then dubstep.

today i listen only to electronical music: drum and bass, dubstep, glitch, break beat, trip hop, and some forms of edm. cant say iv ever liked classical or jazz... i dont mind the odd bit of blues but not too often...

Child- radio stuff

younger teens - Mainstream Hip Hop

teens - Underground Hip Hop

Older teens/ young adult - Electronic genres, Underground Hip Hop, slight bit of classical

This is a great idea for a thread--I wish I had a clearer grasp on my history with music so that I could make a significant contribution. Still, I know that I started out with the big alt bands of the 90's, in particular Radiohead, Nirvana and Smashing Pumpkins. From there I went backwards through the history of punk and post-punk--hitting up stuff like Sonic Youth, Talking Heads, Joy Division, The Clash, Velvet Underground, etc. At the same time I was really into hip hop like A Tribe Called Quest, Wu Tang Clan, and Nas. To me, it sounded like a whole new punk movement.

I fell out with hip hop for a while when the focus became extra gangsta, but continued to follow the 'underground' stuff like Company Flow and like-minded artists, and I've pretty much stuck with that flavor of hip hop from now until the present, with occasional forays into southern hip hop here and there--I especially love DJ Screw's chopped and screwed work. Throughout this period, I was also really getting into prog rock, minimalism, funk, and jazz (all of which I got into by branching out from various post-punk bands), and had finally gotten past Metallica and Black Sabbath to discover other genres of metal and found a deep connection with black metal and drone doom. I progressed naturally into drone/noise/ambient stuff from there, alongside a love of indie rock and various electronic artists, and really got into instrumental hip hop and early dubstep, like Burial. Somewhere in there, don't know when exactly, I discovered folk via Nick Drake and Comus--a lot of the modern indie stuff I listen to currently tends to be on the folksy side of things.

When people ask what I listen to I usually just say 'everything,' though that's not strictly true. I've never been a country fan, though some of the modern alt-country bands, like Wilco, have managed to stroke a chord with me. (And I have a hell of a soft spot for Johnny Cash.) I can't stand modern dubstep or most of the top 40 stuff out there. Katy Perry is probably my least favorite 'artist' of all time. Opera is torture. (Sorry, opera lovers.) On the whole, I'd say I like a pretty even blend of the out-there and the mainstream, particularly the 'classics' and modern alt/indie. As for the out-there stuff--I could probably spend the rest of my life listening to stuff like Coil, Sunn 0))), Skullflower, Zorn, Nurse with Wound, etc., and be perfectly happy. I love it when music pushes boundaries, especially if it's capable of making you uncomfortable in the process. Still, it's nice to have something safer and more familiar to fall back on occasionally. I don't know if I'm capable of determining what my all-time favorite albums are, but I think that probably the two that really struck me like a lightning bolt, more so than any others, were The Clash's London Calling and The Black Saint and the Sinner Lady, by Charles Mingus. The latter, in particular, almost gave me a heart attack. Upon listening to it for the first time, I felt as if I'd somehow wasted my whole life listening to the *wrong* music. I snapped out of it eventually, but still. It was a life-changer.

And that's about it in a nutshell. A very, very tiny nutshell.

Quote:

Originally Posted by metalsonata 

 

When people ask what I listen to I usually just say 'everything,' though that's not strictly true. I've never been a country fan, though some of the modern alt-country bands, like Wilco, have managed to stroke a chord with me. (And I have a hell of a soft spot for Johnny Cash.) I can't stand modern dubstep or most of the top 40 stuff out there. Katy Perry is probably my least favorite 'artist' of all time. Opera is torture. (Sorry, opera lovers.) On the whole, I'd say I like a pretty even blend of the out-there and the mainstream, particularly the 'classics' and modern alt/indie. As for the out-there stuff--I could probably spend the rest of my life listening to stuff like Coil, Sunn 0))), Skullflower, Zorn, Nurse with Wound, etc., and be perfectly happy. I love it when music pushes boundaries, especially if it's capable of making you uncomfortable in the process. Still, it's nice to have something safer and more familiar to fall back on occasionally. I don't know if I'm capable of determining what my all-time favorite albums are, but I think that probably the two that really struck me like a lightning bolt, more so than any others, were The Clash's London Calling and The Black Saint and the Sinner Lady, by Charles Mingus. The latter, in particular, almost gave me a heart attack. Upon listening to it for the first time, I felt as if I'd somehow wasted my whole life listening to the *wrong* music. I snapped out of it eventually, but still. It was a life-changer.

 

And that's about it in a nutshell. A very, very tiny nutshell.

oh yea i forgot about the 90's stuff. i too had a "grunge" faze. it was a bit more than a faze actually, come to think of it... i was well into nirvana, pearl jam, smashing pumpkins (whose album "adore" also had a part in introducing me to the more electronical side of music), alice in chains and all that lot... i was born too late to be a grunge adolescent and i kept wishing i was born a generation early... i feel really stupid now about all that.

anyway, to this day i have the whole nirvana discography (including some live performances) on cds wich for the life of me i cant bring myself to get rid of. even though its been years since iv actually listened to any of that stuff, i guess it still holds some emotional value somehow... this is also kinda silly come to think of it...

I actually still love some of the 90's stuff. A lot of it is overrated, like Nirvana (though I still love 'em), but there are a few alternative 90's albums from that era that are stone cold masterpieces, insofar as I'm concerned, albums like:

Weezer's Pinkerton

Smashing Pumpkins' Siamese Dream

Radiohead's OK Computer

My Bloody Valentine's Loveless

Pinkerton is probably easily my favorite radio pop album of all time. It's just such a great guilty pleasure. As for 'Adore,' man, that's a pretty good album. It sorta bums me out that it never gets any attention. I quite like it.

Quote:

Originally Posted by adamlr 

 

oh yea i forgot about the 90's stuff. i too had a "grunge" faze. it was a bit more than a faze actually, come to think of it... i was well into nirvana, pearl jam, smashing pumpkins (whose album "adore" also had a part in introducing me to the more electronical side of music), alice in chains and all that lot... i was born too late to be a grunge adolescent and i kept wishing i was born a generation early... i feel really stupid now about all that.

anyway, to this day i have the whole nirvana discography (including some live performances) on cds wich for the life of me i cant bring myself to get rid of. even though its been years since iv actually listened to any of that stuff, i guess it still holds some emotional value somehow... this is also kinda silly come to think of it...

while i agree that Siamese Dream is a superior album, adore is actually an interesting musical experiment, atleast thats the way i saw it at the time. i remember it left a very strong impression on me with songs like "tear" and "pug"

This is a brilliant thread.

I have had an interesting journey so far. In my early early years i grew up listening to my Dads vast CD collection. Before i could actively develop my own tastes i was listening to a lot of Prog rock, Alt Rock and Jazz. (Pink Floyd, Dire Straits, Tom Waits, John Fogerty, Sting, Harry Connick Jr, Duke Ellington, James Morrison, Galapagos Duck, Crash Test Dummies, I could go on and on) I still remember the day my Dad took me too the shop to buy my first CD. I so badly wanted 'Red Hot Chili Peppers - Californication' as 'Otherside' had just been released and instantly caught my attention. Alas, my Mother interfered and decided she didn't want me listening to 'drug infused, sexualised' music so i ashamedly walked out that day with 'Five' CD.  I was so dissapointed when i got home that Dad rocked up the next night after work with my beloved Chili Peppers CD. (Not to tell Mum of course)  From there, my love for all things music blew up. The Chilli Peppers became my favourite band immediately and i proceeded to dig right through there back catalogue and delve further into the rock that was coming out at that time (Linkin Park, System Of A Down) Whilst all this was going on, my love for Jazz was growing ten fold. I played Trombone in a Jazz big band all through high school as well as the Tuba in a concert band at the same time. Early on in high school when we finally got the internet connected (Good old dial up) I took it upon myself to actively look for as much variety of music as what was available to me so, over the next year i trawled the internet and started building a collection that would come to include, Bluegrass, Country, 60's, 70's, 90's, Funk, Soul, R&B. I hunted for 'different' styles of music. Celtic (Irish pipes, 16th century type stuff) Zydeco, Yodelling, Bagpipes. I swore to myself at this stage that i would never enjoy Hip-Hop/Rap or electronica as it had no soul, no feeling, emotion. It wasn't 'real music' and wasn't worthy of my time. 

In my last year of high school i used to sneak into town on weekends to go see live bands play. Mainly cover bands playing old school rock songs. They were good days. Then, a local Aussie hip-hop outfit released 'The Calling' and something about that album just grabbed me instantly. Just like that, i was hooked on this 'hip-hop' thing everyone had been talking about for so long. Needless to say, i immersed myself in it and started a new path of discovery. Aussie hip-hop is a lot different to American rap. One thing led to another, and i found myself exploring the american side of things and listened to a lot of Tupac, Biggie, Ludacris, Snoop Dogg.

Around this time i was finishing high school and decided to take my Tuba skills and join the local council Brass Band. We played at public events and did many street marches where i would play the Sousaphone as its incredibly hard to march carrying a Tube the size of a child. This got me into Brass bands such as 'Grimethorpe Colliery Band'. If anyone has seen the movie 'Brassed Off' they did the soundtrack for that. I played with the band for a few years after high school but then personal issues got in the way so i ended up leaving and i haven't touched an instrument since.

As i started to go out clubbing i unknowingly fell head first into the massive dance culture that seems to be everywhere these days. None of this music was grabbing my attention though, like others had done in the past and i was kind of in limbo for a while. Until, a friend of mine i was working with introduced me to Drum & Bass. I have a saying that goes, "Everyone loves Drum & Bass, they just don't know it yet" I stand by this statement to this day. One just needs to be exposed to te right song at the right time, and there is no looking back. I have listened to a lot of varying music in my time, in many different states. There is just something about DnB that speaks to the soul. I hear the argument about electronic not being authentic, hell, i fought that argument for many, many moons. There is a lot of 'pop electro' doing the rounds at the moment which, IMO, is absolute, utter rubbish. DnB is different. It draws influences from many genres yet still has a unique, distinct flavour that is addictive.

Right now, as well as the above mentioned, im really enjoying Glitch Hop. This has exploded for me in the last few months and i am finding some really cool tracks. I still listen to all my old music, not as frequently as i used to, but it is definitely still in rotation.

When i look back now, It feels like i have come such a long way in my musical journey up to this point in time, however, every aspect i love about DnB, are the things that i loved about earlier genres of music that i was engulfed in at the time. From the fast paced, swinging drum rhythms in big band jazz to the deep, dark, punching bass lines in a funky brass band piece. The soothing passages in Soul and R&B to the emotional filled vocal lines. DnB delivers in so many areas. Granted, there are a tonne of tracks that sound like they just want to blow your face off, but when you start digging, there are some real gems.

I love spending hours searching for new music, that feeling when you stumble across a track that just melts your mind & soul and your discovering it for the first time. Something inside you just sings. It's a beautiful thing!

Was first exposed to music such as Elvis and Cliff amongst many others in about 58-59. My brother started playing in skiffle bands and then went on to play in rock bands in the 60's. I used to set up his drum kit when he was out touring and when he was recording. All the time he was introducing me to all kinds of music such as classical, jazz, soul, rock, country in fact you name it he liked it. This in turn rubbed off on me so now I like all kinds of music. If I like it I buy it.

Of course it was no surprise when I entered the "biz" myself in the early 70's and continued to work in it for many a year. 

Got offered the chance to become an A&R man at a label once but decided against it.

Over the years my taste in music has changed ever so slightly but not to any great degree.

I think my first real heavy thirst for music started when I heard Neil Young's Heart of Gold on the car radio on the way home from school one day 1972.  I started buying 8 tracks and an 8 track player to play them on after earning the money delivering papers.  Bought Machine Head by Deep Purple, CCR Live and owned every Doobie Brother album that was out at that time.  Bought my first set of headphones so I wouldn't bother my parents who were definitely not into Rock.  I think they were the Koss HV-1 headphones which of course I no longer have.

I'm still into Rock whether I listen to it on my headphones or see shows live.  I've been going to the Ryman in Nashville saw Mumford and Sons with Dawes recently and plan to see Noel Gallagher soon.  Really been into The Beatles again and have the full FLAC albums coming in soon and couldn't be more excited.