Timewaster's Guide Archive
Departments => Music => Topic started by: ryos on March 14, 2009, 02:44:44 AM
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OK. I listen to a bunch of stuff that nobody I come in contact with ever knows about before they met me. And a lot of it is great.
How much great stuff am I missing, because I've never heard of it?
So, let's try this. What obscure bands/albums do you love? Crap you're sure nobody listens to but you?
I'll go first: J Minus (http://jminus.com/). Download the free songs off their (sadly, entirely flash-based) web site. Be happy. :)
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Ookla the Mok, from which I get my username.
http://www.ooklathemok.com
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My Morning Jacket - Z
The Medic Droid - What's Your Medium
Cobra Starship - "Viva La Cobra", "While the City Sleeps, We Rule The Streets"
Phantom Planet - "Phantom Planet Is Missing", "The Guest" (The rest of their albums are good too, these are just the best.
Urhm, that's all for now. I'll give you more later.
I'm ver much like you in the fact that no one listens to the music I do.
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Miyabi, I have heard of Cobra Starship, in fact I have seen them live twice and I like their music.
As far as bands that I listen to that most people may not have heard of, umm, probably Superchick and Stellar Kart and a few other Christian rock bands that don't get much airtime.
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Ill throw a couple Christian Metal/Rock, or sometimes referred to as Christian Metalcore, bands out there.
August Burns Red
Demon Hunter
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I've already found some good stuff. Thanks for the suggestions, guys!
My turn again: Dave Beegle - Beyond the Desert (http://www.amazon.com/Beyond-The-Desert/dp/B000QQV5ES/ref=pd_bbs_sr_2?ie=UTF8&s=dmusic&qid=1237444513&sr=8-2). This is one of my favorite CDs. It's sort of a fusion of classical guitar and modern acoustic rock, with a side of Flamenco. All 7 tracks are instrumental, and I love them all.
Also, check out Meese (http://www.amazon.com/The-Start-Of-It/dp/B0014VM2SC/ref=pd_bbs_sr_1?ie=UTF8&s=dmusic&qid=1237444757&sr=8-1). They just have a 4-song EP out for now, but all four songs are great.
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Epik High (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Epik_High) - Korean Hip-Hop/Pop/Rock awesomeness.
Clazziquai (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Clazziquai) - Korean underground new movement club or something like that.
Nanook of the North (http://www.myspace.com/nanookotn) - Norwegian easy listening with interesting lyrics (all in English). "Hey Fragile" is hilarious.
The Allstonians (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Allstonians) - An excellent ska band, though less old, well known, and influential than The Toasters (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Toasters).
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They only have one song, and it's a demo, but The Paul Revere Jumpsuit Apparatus
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Sortitus, is there actually good KPop? My brother and I have looked high and low, and had little success finding Korean music as good as the Japanese and Chinese stuff out there.
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Sorry, my browser crashed a while back and I forgot about this thread for a bit.
JadeKnight, there is good KPop, but it's not the same as other Asian pop. Kpop is just a different flavor. In general, Koran music is more closely tied to the European and American music scenes than the countries around them. If you like other Asian pop music, try going to Se7en, DBSK, Super Junior or Girls Generation (SNSD) first. The artists that are biggest in the US (I think) are Rain and BoA, so you might like those as well. It's hard to suggest something not knowing your precise tastes. Message me if none of those hit the spot for you. ;D
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I've herad BoA in Japanese, not in Korean. To me, she's a Japanese artist (not entire true, but that's how my mind works...)
Great artists most Americans have never heard of:
MC Solaar - rap
Natasha St-Pier - soft rock/pop
Noir Désir - rock (their lead singer is back after having spent a few years in prison. It will be interesting to see what they do now...)
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I mostly listen to Alternative/Rock:
Making April
Guster (kind of...outside family, I don't know of many people, but I hear they're popular on the east coast)
Foreverinmotion
Straylight Run
Pete Yorn
Between the Trees
Rookie of the Year
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Heh. Wilson, I've heard of 5 of those. :P
I love Making April and Guster, but I haven't really listened to the others too much.
I'll throw another one out there: Hayley Westenra. I hear she's quite popular outside the US, but as an American it was just chance luck that I happened to hear a sample of her work. It hooked me immediately - she has one of the most beautiful voices I've ever heard. I had to find out who she was and buy her work.
She sings celtic/folk/classical songs. Even though she's more of a performer than a songwriter, her performances are very much worth listening to.
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Wow. I'm not really surprised about Guster, but...Making April? Out of those that I put down, that's the one that I would've bet that no one on here has even heard of, much less listened to. I am VERY surprised...They're pretty much my favorite band right now.
And Jade, I just listened to some Noir Désir on youtube...I like it. Good sound. I think I may have to youtube download some of it now...
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They only have one song, and it's a demo, but The Paul Revere Jumpsuit Apparatus
Any relation to the band The Red Jumpsuit Apparatus?
I recently got turned on to a band called Dispatch, which disbanded back in 2002. A few of the members joined a band called State Radio.
This is the song that got me hooked on them. (Caution NSFW language in comments section)
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=q3JjlkfX5Gk&feature=related
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No, actually they are mostly made up of the members from Panic! at the Disco and a few other people, but no one is sure who all of the members are.
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I like Dispatch. They've got some really cool songs. Personal favorite is The General.
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Motion City Soundtrack is an amazing band. Most people know at least one of their songs, but most people don't know who they are. ha ha.
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I've got them on my computer. I don't listen to them very much, but my sister loves them.
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Capital H is probably the best super-hero-parody song in the entirety of time. ha ha.
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The Arcade Fire. They're getting a little more attention now, but still. If you have not heard them, you need to. Their album Funeral is so hypnotic and gorgeous, like Nietzsche high on Romanticism. I literally cannot stop listening to it.
Tortoise. They're a sort of instrumental jazz-rock-everything-else group. I recommend starting with the song "I Set My Face to the Hillside" which is available on youtube.
The Fleet Foxes. Beautiful music, incomprehensible lyrics that only make sense in fits and starts. The effect is gorgeous enough to make up for it.
16 Horsepower. A strange, gripping alt-country band that I recently discovered. I recommend them wholeheartedly.
Elysian Fields. A smokey, noir-ish band. Not as much substance as a couple others on this list, but they're still a joy to listen to.
C.R. Avery. A fascinating and talented beatboxer/spoken word artist. That sort of thing does not usually grip me, but C.R. had the skill to make me a believer. I recommend "The Boxer Who Just Returned From London" to get yourself hooked.
Spoon. They might be getting popular now, but like the Arcade Fire, if you aren't a believer yet there is no better time than now. They aren't alternative or underground in the normal sense of experimental or weird (mostly), but at the same time they are wholly fascinating and unique.
And that's all for now. I could go on, and on, and on, but no need to make a mammoth of a post.
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Oh, I've been meaning to mention The Antlers for a couple weeks, just keep not doing it. ha ha.
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...genres?
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Oh, everything I post will be found under the indie umbrellas of alternative or electronica.
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It makes a very big difference to me which of those two it is.
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Well The Medic Droid is the only electronic band I've put up so far. Which do you prefer? I could put up a bunch of electronica too.
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I'm big on Electronica, especially Trance.
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Let's see, off the top of my head there's:
Freezepop
The Medic Droid
Daft Punk
Basshunter (His Swedish stuff is much better than his English stuff.)
Pierce The Veil (You might not like them, they are like scream-o techno.)
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Daft Punk I'm quite familiar with. Have you seen Interstella5555, the film that went with Discovery?
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Hrm.. I'm a big seeker of new music, but this thread isn't doing it for me. I need a description of what something sounds like. "Electronica" and "Indie" are still big umbrellas.
See, I listen to EVERYTHING. My playlist has rap, alternative, indie, electronica, classical, baroque, opera, classic rock, psychedelic, folk, filk, blues, bebop, swing, big band, small band, marches, oldies, do-wop, even a country song.
But I don't listen to everything WITHIN everything. Bob Dylan, Richie Havens = good. Some other folk, including most Neil Young, not so much. Ataris, yes, Jimmy Eat World, yes. Other emo? much less so. The Ramones, Rancid, and NOFX all yes. Green Day no.
The best source of new listening for me has consistently been The Onion's AV club. And less the reviews than the "upcoming events." They talk about what the artist is doing on the album, what the sound is. There's some comparison to other bands, but more often talk about the performance itself.
The best find I've had from them wasn't anythign approaching a review. They did "Random Rules" with the front man of Robbers on High Street. Just announcing the first 8 songs his iPod came up with on shuffle. The combo was so appealing I had to try what came from a musician with that playlist. True love.
Here's the review that got me to listen to Art Brut (a decision made only recently and which I will not regret, ever)
Once upon a time, Eddie Argos promised not to sing about the things he likes to sing about. “No more songs about sex and drugs and rock ’n’ roll,” he blustered on 2006’s Bang Bang Rock & Roll. “It’s boooring.” Context helps: He was ribbing The Velvet Underground for glamorizing all of the above. Or he was kidding, because Argos almost exclusively writes songs about sex, drugs, and rock ’n’ roll; he just never sounds glamorous.
That’s especially true on Art Brut’s Frank Black-produced third album, in which hangovers, blackouts, and regrettable hookups populate a good chunk of Argos’ hilarious, blurted narratives. (Sample nerd-satisfying zinger: “I fought the floor and the floor won.”) If those sound like traditional Art Brut fascinations, look closer: Argos has shifted his focus from thrill-seeking to its consequences—and more pointedly, its motives. That’s almost what he did on 2007’s It’s A Bit Complicated¸ but then he seemed more interested in generalizing about his awkward, reckless life than understanding it or making it all that humorous. And while it’s misleading to call an album “mature” when it plunders rock history for riffs and features an ode to comic books, Argos has done some growing up. The flipside of debauchery is a classic brew of loneliness, insecurity, mortality, and hope—all of which, Argos increasingly realizes, can be pretty funny.
and the blurb converting me to Kings of Leon:
Nashville three-bothers-and-a-cousin outfit Kings Of Leon was originally pegged as the “Southern Strokes,” but with the growth of their sound, the new handle seems to be the “Southern U2.” Whether or not you consider that an upgrade doesn’t really matter, because KOL’s 2008 album Only By The Night and lead single “Sex On Fire” blasted out of the gates; the band has since earned a headlining spot at Lollapalooza and made promises of a more blues-influenced, slide-guitar anchored album on the way.
In all my time writing for TWG, I tried, and largely failed, to come close to the revelation that comes with an Onion AV Club or Decider description, only with RPG instead of music and stage.
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@jade - Of course, what good Daft Fan hasn't seen that movie. Ha ha. I absolutely loved it.
@SE - Most of my stuff is the stuff that is really weird and out there. One of those things that I'm sure some bands I'm one of only like 10,000 fans. ha ha.
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Just off the top of my head:
Machinae supremacy - Great rock/chip-tune band. They use normal rock instruments and splice in chip tunes like from the old amiga/nes/whatever to make awesome songs
Ayla - Awesome techno/trance group.
Manowar - Great "nerd rock" group. (i *HIGHLY* recommend the song sons of odin)
Angelzoom - very good german operatic-like singing group. IMO, the most beautiful female singing voice i have ever heard. I highly recommend their cover of "Crawling" (original by linkin park)
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Saint E.: It'd be great if we could get descriptions like that here. I'll try to be more verbose in this thread to give you a better idea, when I post something.
However, I also regularly broadcast what I'm listening to over Skype. If you ever want a listen, let me know (and if you want me to specifically pick out stuff I think is different or exceptional, I'm usually happy to oblige).
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Freezepop - Bubbly synth-pop tehcnoness.
The Medic Droid - Hard core techno, a little bit of screamo.
Daft Punk - This is older mellow techno for the most part.
Basshunter - Swedish upbeat techno songs about video games and the internet.
Pierce the Veil - Screamo Techno.
Motion City Soundtrack - 90's Pop Rock.
My Morning Jacket - Mellow stoner music (for lack of better terms)
The Antlers - Indie alternative. . . . kind of like a mix between soft rock with some really mellow ska sometimes. They are easily becoming one of my favorites.
Cobra Starship - Depending on the song they sound like an 80s pop band.
Phantom Planet - Uhm, alternative rock that is semi-mellow.
Panic! At The Disco - Just fun indie rock.
I hope those descriptions are better.
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as far as what I'm currently listening to, I use last.fm. My recently played list is on my Facebook page and on the front of my personal web page (link in my profile thingy on the left.
Right now it's less diverse. I've recently acquired a bundle of mp3s and I'm listening to them all before I put them in the main playlist.
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She & Him Volume One has been on a steady rotation in my CD player. Zooey Deschanel (yes, the actress) and M. Ward are the collaborators, and session musicians fill out the rest of the band. I have a hard time making the album fit a genre: it has a pop/indie folk feel, but without a lot of slick production, and it has a very mellow vibe. Zooey Deschanel wrote most of he songs, but they've also thrown in covers of "You've Really Got a Hold on Me" and "I Should Have Known Better" for good measure.
Check them out over at sheandhim.com
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For SE's sake, I'll put some descriptors for the bands I listed. Just as a reference, I am a HUGE fan of Jimmy Eat World.
Making April--piano rock. Alternative and a bit emo. Some of their songs are almost orchestral (meaning the instruments that they use, it's almost a full orchestra. It's strange...). Some of their songs are more emo than others, especially the ones on their first album. Their newest album (which they view as their debut album) is a bit more mainstream alt rock. They're fantastic lyricists. They use words you don't generally hear in songs, like emphatic, incessant, haunting, etc, but it doesn't feel out of place. Good stuff.
Guster--alternative rock. Some strings. Bongos instead of drums (mostly). I don't really know how to describe these guys other than that.
Between the Trees--indie rock. Keyboard/piano.
Rookie of the Year--indie rock. Sort of emo and acoustic.
We Shot the Moon--indie piano rock.
Straylight Run--indie rock. One girl (she recently left) and three guys.
Secondhand Serenade--piano rock. Alternative and acoustic. A lot like Dashboard Confessional, only John Vesely (lead singer of SS) doesn't get quite as emo as Chris Carrabba tends to get.
Foreverinmotion--one-man show. He describes his sound as being a mixture of folk, rock, and ambient. He did a cover of Jimmy's "For Me This is Heaven" which is absolutely phenomenal. So much better than the original, I think.
Pete Yorn--alt rock. He has a bit of techno feel. A bit...He generally plays all the instruments for his songs (or he did when he first started out), from the guitar, to the keyboard, to the drums, to the harmonica, plus more. Insanely talented.
Nickel Creek--Progressive bluegrass. One girl, two guys.
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So I've been listening to this fella named Nick Ogawa alot recently. Picked up an album (album artist goes as Takenobu, same guy, though) and i can't stop listening to this one song, shady grove.
You can hear it on his blog Here. (http://nickogawa.com/?page_id=18) First song in the list. I totally recommend it.
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Thought you guys might enjoy this. "We Shot the Moon" is giving away their first album for free (http://www.weshotthemoon.com/free/). No strings attached and completely legal.
What are they like? They sound a fair bit like Sherwood. Never heard of Sherwood? Uhm...it's California Piano Rock. Not sure how else to describe it. Just go listen. It's free, after all, and it comes with the Ryos Stamp of Approval. :D
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I love We Shot the Moon. Favorite song by them is probably 'Sway Your Head'....Awesome. (Although 'Woke Her Up' is absolutely fantastic, but that's not really out yet...)
But yes. I second Ryos' suggestion, and give them an endorsement of my own. Give them a listen....
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Yeah, the new stuff they played when I saw them live was about ten times better than their current stuff. Can't wait for "A Sliver Lining".
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You know, I've still barely scratched the surface of litany of unpopular taste that is my iTunes library. :)
If you're not LDS, it's likely you've never heard of Peter Breinholt, and that's a shame. It's not that he sings LDS music, but that he lives and plays only in Utah.
How to describe his music? It's rather unlike most everything else in my library. He has a mellow, approachable sound that is both familiar and strange. Breinholt's acoustic guitar work is complimented at times by banjo, fiddle, piano, and brass instruments, and above it all is his unusual and captivating vocal style. His lyrics are mostly nonsensical, but there is also a kind of sense to them that feels very right.
I recommend most highly his newest album, All the Color Green. From that album my favorite songs are Queen Olé and First Song. The album before that, Deep Summer, is also very good, and his Christmas album is exceptional if you're into that sort of thing. Anything older than Deep Summer is just OK.
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So I've been listening to this fella named Nick Ogawa alot recently. Picked up an album (album artist goes as Takenobu, same guy, though) and i can't stop listening to this one song, shady grove.
You can hear it on his blog Here. (http://nickogawa.com/?page_id=18) First song in the list. I totally recommend it.
I like it. I'm a sucker for New Age-style strings.
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Time to resurrect this thread!
Recently I've been listening to Sia's new album, Some People Have Real Problems, and I've gotta say, it's really great.
Sia has a rich, gentle, silky smooth voice, and she knows how to use it. Her songs have a truly unique sound that I'm having trouble describing—she frequently blends lovely orchestral riffs with beats that are sometimes R&B-like, sometimes like Jazz, and other times more Alt Rock inspired, but are always pleasant—all below her creamy alto voice.
Gah, it's so hard to use words to describe music. Just go listen to samples. ;)
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Lately I've been listening to a lot of a western Washington band called He is We (http://www.purevolume.com/HEISWE). It's totally indie rock, but I love it. If you're into indie rock, you should check it out, because I'm terrible at describing sounds and such. Best I can do is say it's indie rock..and that it's a girl singing. But as far as describing voice quality and other such stuff...yeah. I fail at that. :P
My favorite song by them is called 'Light a Way', with two others, 'Radio' and 'His Name' coming in a close second and third, respectively. The only problem is that they're so tiny the only place to buy their album is iTunes. And I don't like iTunes, so I don't have it. Therefore, I have to stick with the scratchy sound quality on youtube for the songs that aren't on downloadable on purevolume. It's a little disappointing, but whatever...
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I you like "happy" Metal, I recommend Edguy. German band with some awesome songs. Also, check out "Avantasia". That's a "rock opera" done as a project album by the lead singer of Edguy. Way cool.
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Of the electronica genre, dance, pop and similiar ones, I'd reccomend:
- The Postal Service - I fell in love with this band, great vocal and the background unique among anything I ever heard, it's my all-time-favorite when it comes to both electronica and indie-pop. Too bad they released one album only, but if you're at least a little into this genres, it's going to be one of your favorite ones. I swear.
Nothing Better - http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wmaEYrmrY4I
Such Great Heights - http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hMOkfI7wCrI
- Royksopp - You might have heard about it, but if you didn't, well, you just got the name of one of my favorite bands to both be played in the background while doing anything or to simply lay down, put on the headphones, hit PLAY and forget about the world. Almost spiritual experience sometimes.
Someone Like Me - http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TcFff0Og51Y
Happy Up Here - http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KmcPeuf5aXo
I may write about rap and metal/rock genres, even though I don't listen to them as much, but I don't have much more time today.
- Imogen Heap / Frou Frou - Imogen is one of my favorite singers, and the most favorite solo artists of all. The main factor in her songs is her voice, which, believe me, is one of the best female voices of all the time. It's a perfect instrument, totally different than all the girly, sweet voices of all the radio stars you probably hear every day. Listen and you will know what I mean...
Frou Frou is Imogen's duo with Guy Sighsworth, although you can't really tell much difference between their songs and her own, maybe there's less vocal.
Just for Now, completely acapella - http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=25VGdNU3nrU
Headlock - http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eKZsZkH_MJc
Little Boots - A lovely electropop female singer. Even though I can't really point out what I like so much about her music, it's just something you can't resist to listen. It's just that you can easily put all her songs to the playlist and play it for a day over and over without even noticing it's repeating.
Remedy - http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=McdqerXrwXE
Earthquake - http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yeJBd746-4w
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Anyone know any good bubbly-pop music? I need more.
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What's "bubbly-pop"? You mean like Danger Radio? They're pretty good.
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Sounds good I listened to a song or two.
Though bubbly-pop as I was thinking is more like "Heart and Soul" by Tamaki Nami.
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http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=osTu38yuuHo
Diablo swing orchestra = epic.
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I really enjoy the singer Poe, who few people seem to have heard of. She did pretty well in the nineties, but her newest album was not well received for some reason. <shrug>
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So, this is an amazing new band that some people I have been watching on youtube for a LONG time. They just recently started a band though and they are fantastic.
playlist of all three of their songs (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rJgLzf2RR-0&feature=PlayList&p=5EF4B7ED4F74E8E0&playnext_from=PL&index=0&playnext=1)
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Ill throw a couple Christian Metal/Rock, or sometimes referred to as Christian Metalcore, bands out there.
August Burns Red
Demon Hunter
I totally listen to them and the genre!
How about Mychildren Mybride and The Chariot