Eclectic Music
Ok, so because folks have shown an interest in what I listen to, I decided to share today. This isn't a weighty diary, just a fun one to help take the edge off. Because once in a while we need to clear the palate. If you have an incense stick or some Cannabis handy, both improve the experience of music. If not, coffee will work in a pinch.
First off, I'm not a musician, but I really admire the hours and dedication put into the craft. Growing up as a kid, I was always amazed that the bands that had very little technical skill kept getting promoted by the MSM, but at the same time had no real outlet for alternatives. I listened to a lot of my folks stuff, but it wasn't until I met a friend who was a Deadhead that I really got my first taste of non corporate music. Most folks know the dead, but the MSM only payed attention to them on one song. So, since this was the first point at which my taste started diverging from the norm, I think it's a good song to start with.
[video:https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8YSTeJOxiaw]
So, I think that was the point I turned off the radio. Current fair consisted mostly of vapid pop, as always, but there was an air of just not caring about the material that really turned me off. This was about the early 90's and it was at this point I heavily got into Game Music. For those that don't know, Video game Music has come a LOOOOONG way since the days of Donkey Kong. I still have a strong affinity for this kind of creativity, talk to game music composers on the internet, and generally am a fanboy. I'm only going to include a few of the most powerful moments, because they really are adept at the most important thing about music, IMHO, and that's inspiring emotion.
[video:https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=h7aYfjE8h48][video:https://www.youtube.c...
It was only later after I got heavily online that I got back into genres that I loved as a kid. Metal and Techno have always been two of my favorite genres, and I strongly enjoy "Folk" metal. For those who don't know, this is metal that is heavily influenced by popular interpretations of mythology, as well as a lot of western European folklore. Honestly, it's Nerd Metal, but I still ADORE it.
[video:https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=n63UbX5kzAc] [video:https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GwES9M0isVM]
This is by no means the breadth and depths of metal coming out of Europe right now. I have a particular affection for the "Pirate Metal" subgenre, which COMPLETELY refuses to take itself seriously, and as a result is something I totally adore.
[video:https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=11CKOAQDsbg][video:https://www.youtube.c...
As far as dance/Techno/House Music goes, I still have an affection for it, but mostly because it's a genre that has no qualms whatsoever about its thievery of other genres. So with that in mind, I have a few DJ's/Groups I enjoy, but it's definitely something I listen to mostly for a change of palate.
[video:https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zUjeotdX-Jk][video:https://www.youtube.c...
And finally, I'm very fond of traditional singing groups/Sea Shanty Groups. The reason being that it's a great throwback to music simply for the point of enjoyment. That's what it's all about, really, IMHO.
[video:https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AYA_0R7Vw1s][video:https://www.youtube.c...
Of course, I still enjoy all the great bands of the past. Queen, Bowie, Sabbath... the list is FAR too long to go into here. This was primarily to serve as a bit of an introduction to the music that I listen to which might be a bit more obscure to the folks here at c99.
Comments
Most of the music that I play
Comes from the Scots-Irish traditions carried on by immigrants in the Appalachians, with the instruments of the time...fiddle and banjo. In the late 20s, a lot of this stuff was recorded on newly developed equipment, and sold as "hillbilly music". Much of it was preserved and later re-released, by Harry Smith, in his Anthology of American Folk Music, by Allen Lomax, and others. Through the Fifties, these treasures were mined by the likes of Pete Seeger his friends, and siblings, the New Lost City Ramblers, and millions of other interested Musicians making up the "folk scare." Incredible musicians like Mississippi John Hurt, Dock Boggs, Elizabeth Cotten were rediscovered and and given greater exposure. By the sixties, Jerry Garcia was learning to play banjo (with a missing finger), and with a gang of California friends, taking many of those same songs in a new direction.
I do like to listen to the Dead...not a lot of the time, though. It is really good stuff...I guess my taste is just a bit different. But what I really love is to hear just Jerry playing with David Grisman on mandolin, and sometimes with the likes of Mike Seeger and a few others, on things like "the Pizza Tapes". It all seems less muddied...to my ears. It's tamer...you may not like it, but search it out and give it a try. I think it gives a better chance to hear the incredible musicianship of these guys, in an acoustic environment.
"I’m a human being, first and foremost, and as such I’m for whoever and whatever benefits humanity as a whole.” —Malcolm X
I do enjoy Jerry's work...
And I should probably look up his more lesser known works. I admit I left out some of my more mainstream interests, like Mark Knopfler or Eric Johnson, because I figured people were familiar with them.
I do not pretend I know what I do not know.
Eclectic
I'm a Dead Head, but I like this song for some reason, and now-a-days I think of it as Bernie themed ;->
This is my contribution for eclectic (it might fit into your dance/Techno/House Music category)
[video:https://youtu.be/PO6R0UtLpnU]
Yeah, it's partly just her sultry voice ... but the music and lyrics are odd too ...
Reminds me a bit of Southern Rock...
But in a good way.
Actually has a bit of that "Rockabilly" feel that was big in the late 90's.
[video:https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_NWjehpGSO0]
I do not pretend I know what I do not know.
Still listening as I go about the day. Great stuff so far, dmw!
Resilience: practical action to improve things we can control.
3D+: developing language for postmodern spirituality.
As I said, not ALL I listen to...
But this is the more obscure of the playlist.
I do not pretend I know what I do not know.
what?!!? No Mersey Beat??!??!
I'm glad you enjoy music. Music is good. It's abstract, allowing listeners to hear it in their own way.
We were talking about how Video Killed the Radio Star. In ye olde days people didn't know what the recording artists looked like. Oh sure, Elvis, Little Richard, some of the 60s groups. But who knew what Ben E. King looked like? Not I, not until he had a comeback many years later. We can picture the Byrds but what about Steppenwolf? What about Martha and the Vandellas? ok....Martha maybe, but the Vandellas?
These days I don't know what the pop stars look like because I don't know who they are. No TV and we don't listen to the Top 40 stations. Or is it Top 15 now? Don't know 'cause don't listen!
My daughter listens to a little modern pop
Doesn't bother me much, I just tell her exactly what I think of it. Which becomes hilarious when she then borrows an old CD from me half the time.
I do not pretend I know what I do not know.
Finally, I am done working for the day
And get to listen to what you have posted. No Hopers, Jokers and Rogues...wow! Yeah, I really like that.
"I’m a human being, first and foremost, and as such I’m for whoever and whatever benefits humanity as a whole.” —Malcolm X