Randy and I are listening to new music tonight and trying to give it a shot.
Mostly, we’re not feeling it.
I didn’t mean to write a post commemorating the 20th anniversary of Kurt Cobain’s death, that wasn’t in my plans. But here it is anyway. At least kind of.
The last time I heard music that made me sit up and decide that I was changing everything I loved about music was the first time I heard Smells Like Teen Spirit. I love that the song was inspired by deodorant. I love that I heard this song and had a real moment of ‘fucking hell, this is amazing’ and ‘I hate this’.
Turns out I did not hate it. I loved it.
Randy says his desire to start seeking out new music was reawakened when he first heard Nirvana.
I’m sorry that Kurt Cobain had demons that won. What more would we have in an alternate reality where Kurt slays his dragons?
I can’t say that there have been many artists since that have made me really sit up and take notice. The White Stripes maybe. The Kings Of Leon a few years before they had that song about VD.
Then I heard Courtney Barnett and remembered what it was like to fall in love.
Randy and I dedicated our Saturday afternoon to listening to shit we didn’t know. I listened to Lorde. I haven’t loved a girl pop star since Madonna until now. She is amazing.
The new U2 song is okay.
I kind of like Avenge Seven Fold.
Chevelle was pretty good.
I’m not ready to give up on getting excited about new music.
Help a sister out. Give me your suggestions. I want to find something new. I want to feel like I did when I first heard Nirvana.
Nirvana was a change (BIG change) from the hair metal of the late 80’s. I knew something was happening when I heard bands like Pearl Jam, Faith No More, Alice in Chains, and Soundgarden. The music was heavier, more thought out, more for the music than for the money or girls.
As far as new music suggestions? Nah, I got nothing today. Sorry.
It’s out there..I know it is..someone is making something awesome RIGHT NOW. I just have to find it.
Volbeat is awesome the singer has this amazing voice
Cool! Thank you!
I like Lorde, Avenged Sevenfold and Chevelle (Chevelle’s Face to the Floor is a favorite). Shinedown has a few good songs (Diamond Eyes), Halestorm’s Here’s to Us. On the more alt rock side, I like Imagine Dragons quite a bit. And fun.
I miss Nirvana too.
Nice!! I will check them out!
Jake Bugg. I am telling everyone I know to listen to Jake Bugg.
Never heard of him, but I’m looking him up now.
I’ve got Florence and the Machine, Lorde, and Clutch on heavy rotation right now.
I don’t know Clutch. Or at least I don’t think I do. Sometimes I like something but I don’t know who I’m listening to. I’ll have to ask Randy about them.
Clutch are awesome, Gram Rabbit are pretty cool, and I love The Coal Creek Boys and The Civil Wars, but nothing grabs me in the way that Nirvana did or The Cramps before them, The Fleshtones et al..and before them Bowie. I hear the odd cool band on my travels around the indie stations, but none of them really fire that kind of emotion. If I hear one I’ll point you at them 🙂
I love The Civil Wars. I will have to check out the other ones as well.
Eh. I got nothing. Lately my idea of *new* music, is listening to the Greek radio station on Pandora called Zorba the Greek, but it’s perfect music for cooking and dinnertime. I’m more about old music and things I’m used to, I guess. Very cool that you guys like trying out new flavors.
I do like the Lorde girl too–she sounds like my daughter’s voice a little. Or my daughter sounds like her… The only other *new* bands I’ve liked in the last 5 years have been Evanescence, and possibly Nickelback. I know…groundbreaking, huh.
Yeah…we’re gonna have to talk about the Nickelback thing..
I have a longer comment swirling around in my head, but I’ll have to come back and write it later. Until then:
All of my friends adore Clutch. I think they’re pretty good.
The only new-ish band I’ve taken to in a long time is The Joy Formidable. They are a trio from Wales with a female lead vocalist/guitarist named Ritzy Bryan, and they bring it… hard.
Gotta go, be back later.
;
I’m having the big man look them up right now. 🙂
The last new band I had a letch for was Arid – but nowadays my son has infested my brain w/hip-hop & rap… As much as I try, I can’t get him back on the classics from Earth, Wind, & Fire 😉
We went through the hip hop/rap phase as well. I TRIED to like it…I just don’t. Mostly. He’s all about Red Hot Chili Peppers and Nirvana now. It warms my black little heart.
I was gonna say Avenge Sevenfold before finishing the post! I saw them in concert and they kicked ass! My only other suggestion off the top of my head is Flogging Molly and/or Dropkick Murphy. Dropkick is a little heavier and Molly is Irish Punk. Both of them are a LITTLE more “mainstream”. I’ll try and think of some more. Remind me if I forget though because I tend to do that…. A lot
I actually know Dropkick Murphy and Flogging Molly. I really like them both!
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DGPbHUZQ-VE
Speaking of Nirvana, this is a video I found on CrooksandLiars.com on Saturday, the 20th anniversary of his suicide. It is a bunch of kids who weren’t even born in ’94 reacting to Nirvana music and talking about it.
It is by turns hilarious, sad and uplifting. The kid in the red shirt sort of gives me hope for humanity. A little.
I’m sort of grinding my gears over this: the music I think of as new, that is, the music I took to in my last “musical awakening” is all a decade old now. Here is some of it anyway, just in case:
Sleater-Kinney. One Beat and All Hands on the Bad One are my favorites. After they went on hiatus, Carrie and Janet formed a band called Wild Flag with Rebecca Cole and Mary Timony. They made one record, and quit, because three of them live in Portland, Oregon, and one lives in Washington DC. (That would be Mary Timony, who has an excellent album called “Ex-Hex”).
I was a pretty hard-core Rilo Kiley fan while they were around, my two favorites are The Execution of All Things, and More Adventurous.
I LOVE The New Pornographers. My two favs from them are Twin Cinemas and Electric Version. They, of course have Neko Case singing for them, and her last 3 or 4 albums are also among my favorites.
Okay…I was lost until we got to Neko Case. I’m giving Randy a list from these comments and get him to make me a play list to listen on our road trip next weekend.
I always feel a little guilty about my musical taste. The nearest I come to liking “cool” music are bands like U2 & REM — other than that, I’m a big fan of pop music. I blame it on the fact that I worked for Top-40 radio stations for so many years. So, I’m of no help to you on your musical quest.
I’m stuck in the 70s and the 80s. I love the Clash and The Ramones and Elvis Costello.
Don’t feel bad about what you like…you like what you like!
Oh man…it’s been 20 years? Good Lorde I feel old! (you see what I did there?) Nirvana defined the generation I grew up in and I do find myself thinking about what Kurt Cobain would be like if he were alive today. Music has never really been the same since, and that’s not to say that Nirvana were the most brilliant artists of the past 25 years but they brought alternative music to the forefront and we’ll never get that back.
I’m not really current with music but I did write a post about Fall Out Boy yesterday. Are they new? Not really. Are they new to you? Not sure. Are they earth-shakingly amazing? Probably not. But they’re one of my faves, they’re from Chicago and they start with an ‘F’. 😀
Hahahaah..yeah, I did see what you did there. 🙂
I know Fallout Boy and no, I think they’ve been around for quite a while..maybe not 20 years, but still…and I DO enjoy a good band that begins with ‘F’
Hey, it’s me again. You know those guys in the MTV unplugged video with Nirvana? Those are the Meat Puppets, and they were my favorite band for years. They’re not new, but maybe new to you? They have at least 10 albums (the latest of which I haven’t even heard) and the two I’d recommend are Forbidden Places, and Too High to Die. Those are arguably their most “accessible” albums, so if you like it raw-er and punkier you might want to try Huevos also. They are still around.
There is a band that if you’re not from Baltimore, you’ve probably never heard of called Crack The Sky. They’ve been doing their thing for close to 40 years now. Rather than describe them, I’ll just drop a link to a song of theirs from 1978 called Nuclear Apathy, from a stellar album called Safety in Numbers:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JgjNTZuDBtA
I am actually a fan of The Meat Puppets! From way back in the 90s. Thanks for the link! Just as soon as I know I won’t wake anyone, I’ll give it a listen.
I miss getting super excited about bands and new albums. Heck I miss enjoying an entire album!! In the past few years any new stuff coming out, you’re lucky if there are 2 songs on the entire thing that are worth listening to. Even for “good” bands.
Imagine Dragons is pretty good. Agree with the comments on Avenge Seven Fold. What I find is that I’m passionate about certain songs but haven’t found any artists as a whole that I’m excited about following.
I don’t know if I know Imagine Dragons or not. Hubs introduces me to a LOT of new music, but I usually don’t know who the artist is.
Getting so many good ideas on here! I will have to check out Lorde. Recently got into Chvrches (electronic 80s -nfluenced), April Smith (think Amy Winehouse but more vintage big-band). . .yeah, that’s about it. I miss the Nirvana days.
I know! Great suggestions by the way, I’ll check them out. It’s gonna take a while to get through all these. We have a road trip coming up..looking forward to catching up then.
I think that there are only going to be a few times in a lifetime that we get that feeling from music. I was 14 when I heard Smells Like Teen Spirit. I remember that at the exact moment I heard the song, I stopped wanting to play baseball and started to want to become a musician.
Some music recommendations – I agree with Clutch, check them out.
Big Jesus.
Somebody mentioned Faith No More and Florence and the Machine. Agreed.
Colour Revolt.
The Life and Times.
Queens of the Stone Age might be a bit obvious, but I love that band.
Russian Circles is an instrumental band that kinda sounds like old Metallica.
O’ Brother.
Awesome! I am familiar with some of these, like Faith No More and Florence and the Machine. We did listen to Clutch. I liked it. I need to hear a few more songs though.
I had to come back to see if you listened to Clutch, and I see you have, lol. I’m getting ready to clean so I’m turning on the music. I have all their albums – if you end up being obsessed like I am (Neil Fallon is a rock god) then message me and I’ll see what the titles of the best ones are. I can’t remember, I just know when I hear them!
Okay! Thank you!!!