[BloodSugar00]

Hi all fellow music and audiophile junkies!! I'm been around the Head-fi forums for quite some time now as I have compiled my portable audio rig (and spend quite a lot of time and money doing so!) and now I'm wanting to really get into listening to new music/bands/artists/genres/acts etc and to expand and develop my tastes in music. I have recently bought a **** load of Cd's of artists I have been meaning to listen to for ages, all relatively known and established. However, I wish to get an idea of genres more, as well as artists. I'm open to any artists/bands etc in the following genres to try out:

1. Folk/Folk rock
2. Metal/Heavy metal
3. Jazz (really naive and inexp and unendowed when it comes to jazz but wana get into it/give it a proper try out!)
4. Funk (my current exp is of James Brown, the red hot chili peppers, Gerge Clintons Parliment and Funkadelic)
5. Clasical (again like jazz, pretty much completely in the dark here)
   
   Edit: The Blues also!

Anything would be much appreciated!!!

Thanks in advance,

Steve

 

[sackynut]

Well I cant say Im an expert on all of those genres and some are somewhat ambiguous but I will do my best to give you some recommendations, anything I can do to help!

My recommendation for the metal genre, would be the band Protest the Hero. They are somewhat popular (especially in canada) and are what some people call "math core." Very complex guitar parts, tempo and time changes everywhere. The end of the song sounds nothing like the beginning. But they are VERY good songwriters and musicians, and have some sweet lyrics. Check out their CD "Kezia." It is a definite rock/metal opera.

I dont have any real funk recommendations, but you should buy (or preview before buying) "Scorpio Rising", an album by artist "Thunderball." Its funky, and very relaxing. I would call it a lounge album with funk thrown in than anything else, but its definitely a very sweet listen.

The last genre I MIGHT be able to help with is the folk genre. Im not into folk music very much, but I know some artists that some may call folk, and or are connected to folk acts.
I would preview or look into buying an album by the artist "The Album Leaf." Any full length album would do, "Into the blue again" or "in a safe place" are both great. Its more electronic, indie music, but very satisfying.

Hope I helped somewhat, good luck! Again, listen to all those first, (maybe preview on amazon?) because I could be totally off from what you want.

 

[Punnisher]

Co to a classical music performance to wet your appetite for classical. Pretty much any type of live orchestral event will do. That's how I got hooked on it.

 

[BloodSugar00]

Quote:

Well I cant say Im an expert on all of those genres and some are somewhat ambiguous but I will do my best to give you some recommendations, anything I can do to help! My recommendation for the metal genre, would be the band Protest the Hero. They are somewhat popular (especially in canada) and are what some people call "math core." Very complex guitar parts, tempo and time changes everywhere. The end of the song sounds nothing like the beginning. But they are VERY good songwriters and musicians, and have some sweet lyrics. Check out their CD "Kezia." It is a definite rock/metal opera. I dont have any real funk recommendations, but you should buy (or preview before buying) "Scorpio Rising", an album by artist "Thunderball." Its funky, and very relaxing. I would call it a lounge album with funk thrown in than anything else, but its definitely a very sweet listen. The last genre I MIGHT be able to help with is the folk genre. Im not into folk music very much, but I know some artists that some may call folk, and or are connected to folk acts. I would preview or look into buying an album by the artist "The Album Leaf." Any full length album would do, "Into the blue again" or "in a safe place" are both great. Its more electronic, indie music, but very satisfying. Hope I helped somewhat, good luck! Again, listen to all those first, (maybe preview on amazon?) because I could be totally off from what you want.

Thanks for the reply! Really appreciate it.

I'll certainly explore and sample what you've suggested. I'm probably gona compile a list first from responses but once I've given them a good listen I'll let you know what I think!

 

[BloodSugar00]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Punnisher /img/forum/go_quote.gif Co to a classical music performance to wet your appetite for classical. Pretty much any type of live orchestral event will do. That's how I got hooked on it.

Seems obvious don't it?

I may well do that. Would you recommend that before listening to recordings?

 

[Al4x]

i gave nightwish a try, now they are my fav band by far, youll love or hate em i think, had never heard of them

female symphonic metal, beautiful give them a try!

 

[dvessel]

How about joining http://www.last.fm? I've discovered quite a few artists through there. You basically "scrob" tracks which lets lastfm match related artists, other users with your tastes. Once your match up, everyone can throw recommendations back and forth. There's a lot more to it. Highly recommended.

It's easy to fall into a hole where you run into the same type of music but it depends on how diverse your collection is to begin with.

Here is one recommendation. It's not exactly metal but it is heavy as ****. Nothing comes close to how intense they are. Check out El Mundo Frio by Corrupted. Over 71 minutes for a single song that drones on and on but it never gets boring. EPIC!! As for folk, Incredible String Band is pretty nice. Funkadelic.. Their earliest work is best IMO when Eddy Hazel was on guitar. More psychedelic though which I love. For Jazz.. well I prefer free jazz which can be hard to listen to at times. Ascension from Coltrane's late period is my fav.

 

[Coop47]

I think a great entry point for Jazz listening is Miles Davis - Kind of Blue. Very accessible, and rewarding with repeated listenings.

 

[synaesthetic]

Agalloch - Ashes Against the Grain

Just a random album suggestion.

 

[bigshot]

The best way to find out about great music you don't know yet is pandora.com Type in a few artists and it will start looking for similar ones. Keep adding references and your sphere of influence will grow.

See ya
Steve

 

[Punnisher]

Quote:

Originally Posted by bigshot /img/forum/go_quote.gif The best way to find out about great music you don't know yet is pandora.com Type in a few artists and it will start looking for similar ones. Keep adding references and your sphere of influence will grow. See ya Steve

I heartily recommend this method. I used this to find some of my favorite composers, some of which I have come to adore. Same with any genre. Great tool for finding music.

 

[olblueyez]

Satellite Radio, even tells you who you are listening too.

 

[mcmurray]

Here's a free album, lossless. You will love it, 100% guaranteed

http://www.head-fi.org/forums/f9/los...ot-ntt-240020/

 

[Drosera]

Quote:

Originally Posted by bigshot /img/forum/go_quote.gif The best way to find out about great music you don't know yet is pandora.com Type in a few artists and it will start looking for similar ones. Keep adding references and your sphere of influence will grow. See ya Steve

This did sound very interesting, Steve. Unfortunately, when I tried the site I got the following message:

"Dear Pandora Visitor,
We are deeply, deeply sorry to say that due to licensing constraints, we can no longer allow access to Pandora for listeners located outside of the U.S. We will continue to work diligently to realize the vision of a truly global Pandora, but for the time being we are required to restrict its use. We are very sad to have to do this, but there is no other alternative."

I guess the OP, being from the UK, would have the same problem.

 

[zumaro]

Its a pain about Pandora for those of us outside the US, but Last.fm is a good alternative.