Music suggestions?

[SimonDoom]

I'm bored of the music I listen to. I feel somewhat trapped by my Spotify playlists. They seem stuck in amber.

Any suggestions for something to listen to? I like most things, but I'm not really into country & western, or most of the rap that's come out over the last 10 years or so. I find contemporary Top 40 dull. I don't get Drake.

I'm trying to keep my aging mind open. I'm willing to try something different. I'm especially intrigued if there's new stuff out there that I'm just not aware of.

 

[ElectricBlue]

What do you currently listen to? As a starting point to suggest something different...

 

[Nylonian]

I'm bored of the music I listen to. I feel somewhat trapped by my Spotify playlists. They seem stuck in amber.

Any suggestions for something to listen to? I like most things, but I'm not really into country & western, or most of the rap that's come out over the last 10 years or so. I find contemporary Top 40 dull. I don't get Drake.

I'm trying to keep my aging mind open. I'm willing to try something different. I'm especially intrigued if there's new stuff out there that I'm just not aware of.

My go-to, automatic first recommendation for anyone looking for something interesting to listen to is a band called 'Blood Cultures'. Start with the album 'Happy Birthday' and go from there.

 

[PennameWombat]

Jandek (official site) or Guide to Jandek (unofficial but informative). Try the very first album. Or… skip to the various live ones, e.g., early ones in Glasgow.

You’ll thank me later.[1]

As a note, what little biographical information exists about the Representative from Corwood, is that he claimed once to have written seven novels but burned all of the manuscripts after repeated rejections from publishers. This would’ve been in the 1970s. So he apparently turned to music.

Too bad he was too early for the self-publishing world for books . Not for music.

About the only artists post-1995 I have any knowledge of are Flogging Molly, Dropkick Murphys and The Dead South (all of which I recommend) so my other recommendations are Bad Brains, Minor Threat, TSOL, Black Flag[2], MDC, Husker Du and Motörhead. And The Pogues.[3] Oh, yeah, and Black 47.[4]
[1] Or, more likely, you’ll hunt me down and kill me .
[2] I once attended a triple bill of TSOL, Black Flag and Nig Heist. The latter were first up, and the riot they started (midway through their first song) rather put a kibosh on the whole evening.
[3] One of my stories on this site was inspired by “Fairytale of New York.”
[4] Amongst various places they played, more or less the ‘house band’ at Connolly’s Pub (midtown) in Manhattan for a long time.

 

[Zeb_Carter]

Hmm... my playlist spans the the years of rock and roll, from the 50s through to the 90s. Never did get rap or hiphop. There are country and western songs that I like. Back when my kids were listing to headbanging music I tried to explain rock and roll to them. They didn't get it. But now, I have songs from AC/DC on my list along with Metalica and others of the era.

Current play list has...

Thunderstruck - AC/DC
Longtime - Boston
I Feel Love - Donna Summers
Rockstar - Nickleback
Piano Man - Billy Joel
Immigrant Song - Led Zeppelin

There are 20 more in the list.

 

[Haulover]

I used to be a rock music journalist, and have an album collection of over 6,000. So I might be able to help.

Key question : What do you, and don't you like? If you can provide a few examples of likes and dislikes, we might be able to point you in the right direction.

Also - dive into the "What Are You Listening To Now" thread. There's a wealth of wisdom in there.

 

[Kumquatqueen]

Some less well-known bands to investigate:

Republica
Queensryche
Claytown Troupe
Young Gods
Garbage

 

[HeyAll]

Artist: Weyes Blood

Album: Titanic Rising

Look it up on Spotify immediately. I first heard of this singer when she did guest vocals on a Killers song called "My God" and I think she was pretty good. It didn't want to make me look her up or anything. One night I was looking at a Spotify playlist (which I should do more often, those are great) and saw her name and clicked on it. I was blown away when I heard this song. She's now one of my favorites. So many amazing songs on this album.

 

[yowser]

Gypsy jazz such as Django Reinhardt cover bands like John Jorgenson?

Folk from John McCutcheon?

Give us a little more to work with...

 

[Handley_Page]

I'm bored of the music I listen to. I feel somewhat trapped by my Spotify playlists. They seem stuck in amber.

Any suggestions for something to listen to? I like most things, but I'm not really into country & western, or most of the rap that's come out over the last 10 years or so. I find contemporary Top 40 dull. I don't get Drake.

I'm trying to keep my aging mind open. I'm willing to try something different. I'm especially intrigued if there's new stuff out there that I'm just not aware of.

Have you considered some Classical music ?
Personally, I'm a bit of a fan of Beethoven (try the 8th symphony)

Or go back to some really good Rock (from the 70s)

 

[Bramblethorn]

No surprise to "What Are You Listening To Now?" readers, but I'm a big fan of Lord of the Lost. Huge range of different influences led by a singer who originally trained as a cellist and then worked as a sound engineering lecturer - their sound is very diverse and keeps on evolving, though there is a central theme that keeps coming back. Also, lovely people by all accounts. A few picks from different points on their range:

My Better Me: melancholy, symphonic.
Priest: metal, showcasing Chris's ability to pivot between clean and dirty vocals.
Raining Stars: metal with a lot of synth and keyboards, the song I listen to when the world seems unsaveable.
Sex On Legs: honestly, what it says on the can.

Bloodywood: Indian metal-folk-rap, influenced by acts like Rage Against The Machine: Gaddaar.

Sineád O'Connor: if you've only heard "Nothing Compares 2 U", try Troy. One of those god-given voices.

Scarlet Dorn: Siberian-German singer, frequent LotL collaborator. I'm fond of her Snow Black.

Seconding the rec for Garbage.

I'm fond of dark ambient, in particular the stuff from Cryo Chamber.

 

[XerXesXu]

I'm bored of the music I listen to. I feel somewhat trapped by my Spotify playlists. They seem stuck in amber.

Any suggestions for something to listen to? I like most things, but I'm not really into country & western, or most of the rap that's come out over the last 10 years or so. I find contemporary Top 40 dull. I don't get Drake.

I'm trying to keep my aging mind open. I'm willing to try something different. I'm especially intrigued if there's new stuff out there that I'm just not aware of.

Avoid new stuff. Keep it 88% vanilla.

The dog wakes me to be fed at 5 am. I put on my Bluetooth headphones and hit my playlist. First up are always these three.

Hanson MMMBop - to remind me how young I feel.

Roxette - She's got The Look - because they've got the look.

One Night in Bangkok - just because - great lyrics, great video.

These occupy my first cup of coffee and enthuse me to seize the day. As I do the chores, I jump about in the playlist of a long, long list of upbeat popular hits from the 50s to date; what I cue depends on my mood, the chore, and often, how long it’s been since I played the number. After a few mellow hours, people begin to stir, and it’s back to work, to the annoying accompaniment of their fashionable taste in contemporary music.

PS: Links taken directly from one's youtube playlist may not compute, link directly to the original video.

 

[gunhilltrain]

Have you considered some Classical music ?
Personally, I'm a bit of a fan of Beethoven (try the 8th symphony)

Or go back to some really good Rock (from the 70s)

Classical music is fine, but I don't think that's what he was talking about. But maybe he will heed your suggestion. Anyway, these are all live performances.

The Dead South They may seem a bit country although they are Canadians. I like that guy who plays a cello like a guitar.

Drive-By Truckers Certainly a very dark song, but they know how to tell a story.

Bobby Womack The late, great Womack covers a song (The Mamas and the Papas!) and does one of his own - the latter was written for the soundtrack of a movie, Across 110th Street.

 

[BelleCanzuto]

Apocalyptica

Started out as a chamber quartet Metallica cover band. Yes, Metallica played on a cello and a couple of violins. But, then they started writing their own music, and got guest vocalists. "Worlds collide" is a good album to start with.

I also highly recommend "S&M" by Metallica and the San Francisco symphony. Hearing "one" backed up by a full orchestra is epic. It even makes their crappy songs from "load" sound good.

Also, it's old school, but a band I think hasn't gotten the respect they deserve is Live; "throwing copper" and "the distance to hear" are my favorites of their albums.

Or, if you enjoy Linkin Park, Mike Shinoda's new band Fort Minor is pretty good too.

Oh, and how could I have forgotten The Tragically Hip! A brilliant Canadian band. "Fireworks" and "bobcaygeon" are great, "new Orleans is sinking", "38 years old", really, you can't go wrong if you like straight up rock, with interesting lyrics

 

[Blind_Justice]

Try "into The Electric Castle" by Dutch prog project Ayreon. If you liked that, pick any other Ayreon album. Can't go wrong. But now for the crazy part: Arjen, the guy behind Ayreon, loves to gather groups of vocalists to sing on his records, most of which work in other bands. Chances are that if you find a voice on an Ayreon album you like, you might enjoy their main bands as well. It's a beautiful rabbit hole to dive into.

For something less work-intensive, try a band called "The Birthday Massacre". If you have any fondness for rock with a massive '80s coat of neon, this might give you the warm and fuzzies.

And since I can't resist a chance for a cheap plug, have you tried the music my lady love and I make? The Soundcloud link leads to our demos, the Bandcamp one to the finished stuff.

 

[SimonDoom]

What do you currently listen to? As a starting point to suggest something different...

I listen to classic rock (I think of that as Beatles through the Police), punk, heavy metal, Motown, classical, opera, jazz (especially 50s cool jazz, like Miles Davis), 90s alternative. Probably like many people as they get older, I've felt somewhat disengaged from music over the last 15 years, especially recently. I want to try harder to stem the tide of fogey-ness.

Apocalyptica

Started out as a chamber quartet Metallica cover band. Yes, Metallica played on a cello and a couple of violins. But, then they started writing their own music, and got guest vocalists. "Worlds collide" is a good album to start with.

I also highly recommend "S&M" by Metallica and the San Francisco symphony. Hearing "one" backed up by a full orchestra is epic. It even makes their crappy songs from "load" sound good.

Also, it's old school, but a band I think hasn't gotten the respect they deserve is Live; "throwing copper" and "the distance to hear" are my favorites of their albums.

Or, if you enjoy Linkin Park, Mike Shinoda's new band Fort Minor is pretty good too.

Oh, and how could I have forgotten The Tragically Hip! A brilliant Canadian band. "Fireworks" and "bobcaygeon" are great, "new Orleans is sinking", "38 years old", really, you can't go wrong if you like straight up rock, with interesting lyrics

I'll check that out. There's a cool version of Radiohead's Creep by the Brooklyn duo featuring Escher Quartet. It's accessible on YouTube. I like Metallica, so the idea of a string quartet cover band is a must to check out.

 

[SimonDoom]

What do you currently listen to? As a starting point to suggest something different...

I have broad and eclectic tastes, but I tend to listen to classic rock (I think of that as the Beatles through the Police), some punk, heavy metal, Motown, classical, opera, jazz (especially 50s cool jazz, like Miles Davis), 80s synth pop, 90s alternative. Probably like many people as they get older, I've felt somewhat disengaged from music over the last 15 years, especially recently. I want to try harder to stem the tide of fogey-ness. I feel like I've listened to my existing Spotify lists to the point of exhaustion.

I'll check out some of the things people have recommended.

 

[ElectricBlue]

I have broad and eclectic tastes, but I tend to listen to classic rock (I think of that as the Beatles through the Police), some punk, heavy metal, Motown, classical, opera, jazz (especially 50s cool jazz, like Miles Davis), 80s synth pop, 90s alternative. Probably like many people as they get older, I've felt somewhat disengaged from music over the last 15 years, especially recently. I want to try harder to stem the tide of fogey-ness. I feel like I've listened to my existing Spotify lists to the point of exhaustion.

I'll check out some of the things people have recommended.

I see your problem. If you use Spotify lists you're getting a computer choosing shit music based on the last shit music you listened to, so it's no wonder your musical taste is disappearing up your fundamental - you're reducing yourself to your own lowest common denominator faster than a mom/son story in the back of a car.

You need to diversify and introduce a random human element.

I have two suggestions:

1) find ABC JJJ (Triple J) which is our national broadcaster's youth network - so you get new music, Oz focussed, plus Oz deejays, who have to be better than your American FM turkeys - they stream on-line; and

2) this is quirky stuff - Oz has many community radio stations which are amateurish as all fuck, and more odd-ball than a bloke who sticks penii on fishes and spruiks it as erotic - I listen to nothing else in the car.

Try 3D Radio, my local crowd - again, they stream. Shows such as: Friday evenings, for an hour, Karmen's Doo Vop Corner, a German woman who loves her doo-wop and K-pop, and if they're combined, even better; or Rodney and Jude, a very cool American bloke (rare, I know, but he's in Oz, so he's been converted) who play classic blues rock; or a bloke who can barely string a sentence together but has a massive collection of funk and jazz fusion. Or, my favourite if I want a yard full of Akka-Dakka and mournful ballads, The Prisoner Request Show which is exactly that, shout outs from those doing time to their loved ones outside and their bro's inside - breaks your fucking heart.

That's the human element that you're missing.

 

[Zeb_Carter]

I forgot to mention, that I have an extensive CD collection and have then all on my hard drive as MP3s. So I don't depend on some outside server for my music.

What I like to do when I'm not writing is peruse The Voice Blinds to see what everyone there is singing. I have come to like a few of the newer releases from hearing them sung by others than the original.

 

[Haulover]

Try "into The Electric Castle" by Dutch prog project Ayreon. If you liked that, pick any other Ayreon album. Can't go wrong. But now for the crazy part: Arjen, the guy behind Ayreon, loves to gather groups of vocalists to sing on his records, most of which work in other bands. Chances are that if you find a voice on an Ayreon album you like, you might enjoy their main bands as well. It's a beautiful rabbit hole to dive into.

I strongly endorse this recommendation.

Give it a try - it could might you up to several whole new genres of quality music that most people don't know about.

 

[IWillEndYou]

I have broad and eclectic tastes, but I tend to listen to classic rock (I think of that as the Beatles through the Police), some punk, heavy metal, Motown, classical, opera, jazz (especially 50s cool jazz, like Miles Davis), 80s synth pop, 90s alternative. Probably like many people as they get older, I've felt somewhat disengaged from music over the last 15 years, especially recently. I want to try harder to stem the tide of fogey-ness. I feel like I've listened to my existing Spotify lists to the point of exhaustion.

These are some suggestions you might enjoy, but may not find on a Spotify playlist or on the Top 40.

1. Classic Rock.
Now, I don't particularly like The Beatles or think they're special (blasphemy, I know) but since you're a fan (and if you also like The Beach Boys and that mid 60s beachy-rock esthetic), you might like this 2015 song by the band "Vitroles." It's sounds so out of its time that the band might have recorded it in 1967 and just forgot to release it for 55 years.

You might also want to check these out:
a) "City Slang" by Sonic's Rendezvous Band.

b) "I'd Love to Change the World" by Ten Years After.

c) "Paper Sun" by Traffic.

d) "Panis Et Circences" by Os Mutantes. This has beautiful psychedelic harmonies.

e) "Typhoons" by Royal Blood. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=k9SQ2xfHEiM
f) "Highway Tune" by Greta Van Fleet, released 2017. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cj56b8Ucjaw
This is another one that sounds like it belongs to an earlier era. The band's whole discography is like stepping back into the 70s. They're often compared to Zeppelin, with good reason.

2. Punk.
a) "My Dad Is the BTK" by Night Birds. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tIFET5mpNmc
b) Pretty much every song by the band "Bad Cop/Bad Cop."

3. Metal.
a) "Heaviest Matter of the Universe" by Gorija. This song is aptly named. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6DPhFpZW5a8
b) "Illusion of Life" by Dionysius. More of a melodic prog metal. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Rj192k-C7wo
c) Many songs by Nightwish and Jinjer.

4. Western Classical.
a) A collection of piano nocturnes by John Field. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Uktj2MYSsaU
b) An orchestral arrangement of "Solveig's Song" from Peer Gynt. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bR3N1yBEGbw
c) Guitar concerto from the Classical era. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=D5gx0okVzrI

5. Opera.
I don't know if you also listen to lieder, but I'm suggesting a couple.
a) "Lied der Nachtigall" by Grothe. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lh5_7-go57s
b) Elena and Uberto's duet "Scendi nel piccol legno" from The Lady of the Lake opera. https://youtu.be/tnn-weab4Y4
c) "Die Bekehrte", a Goethe lieder. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=od1kqSuiGOY
d) "Cosi dunque tradisci" a lesser-performed Mozart concert aria. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pfiuGb_ZvDE

6. Jazz.
a) "Palhaço" by Egberto Gismonti. Released in 1980. Bonus: it features the soprano saxophone instead of the more common alto or tenor. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=g-YW7I5_3AE
b) "Promise of Spring" by Joey Alexander. Jazz piano, just released a few weeks ago, 2022. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ic4QexBGfiA
c) There's an instrumental cover of "Golden Brown" by The Stranglers released in 2020 by sax player Laurence Mason. It's a tribute to Dave Brubeck so there's a composite Take Five video to accompany it. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2Qs1J612nZs
d) You can also check out the ECM label albums by various modern jazz artists. You'll find lots of contemporary gems there.

7. Alternative.
There's a lot of good contemporary alternative, but it's such a broad genre that you might want to specify the kind you're into? Here's a sample of different flavors (including indie and new wave) from the late 80s to now.
a) "Picasso Visits the Planet of the Apes" by Adam and the Ants. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zyYUHMPG-Bo
b) "What He Wrote" by Laura Marling, 2010. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Rm3uMGfIj2E
c) "The Mariner's Revenge Song" by The Decemberists, 2005. This one is anything but boring. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iPAr7kL-mmg
d) "I Wanna Get Better" by Bleachers, 2014. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8twpQTna_9w
e) "Hey Julie" by Fountains of Wayne https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DtKhFaW2Z1E
f) "Cinder and Smoke" by Iron & Wine, 2004 https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=phjxhBx8MEE
g) "In the Aeroplane Over the Sea" by Neutral Milk Hotel. This is technically lo-fi. It features a woodcutting saw as an instrument. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1FeD16vu_qQ
h) "Renegades" by X-Ambassadors. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6tu4wWSbnIs
i) "What's the Matter?" by Milo Green, 2012. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=omdaONa3ucY
j) "Cape Town" by The Young Veins. Pretty catchy. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=amLd9SV6PnA
k) "Another Girl, Another Planet" by The Only Ones. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lKuc3faQAEs
l) "Deep Water" by The Middle East, 2011. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VmMxZmerOFg

 

[TadOverdon]

Even more Miles Davis is always a good answer.

I'm in the middle of a Gaga fixation right now.

 

[JaxRhapsody]

I'm bored of the music I listen to. I feel somewhat trapped by my Spotify playlists. They seem stuck in amber.

Any suggestions for something to listen to? I like most things, but I'm not really into country & western, or most of the rap that's come out over the last 10 years or so. I find contemporary Top 40 dull. I don't get Drake.

I'm trying to keep my aging mind open. I'm willing to try something different. I'm especially intrigued if there's new stuff out there that I'm just not aware of.

I feel the same about rap, but I just started checking out this underground rapper who's been in the game for years; Aesop Rock. Of course one can never go wrong with MF DOOM.

Mostly I listen to rock and metal. Train, Gin Blossoms, Otep, Guano Apes, Bring Me Horizon, Spiritbox, Pearl Jam, Stone Temple Pilots, Motörhead, FFDP, Machine Head, for example. I have never considered spotify, when I have like 630 songs on my phone alone. I only ever used Pandora to find more songs to download.

 

[SimonDoom]

Thanks for all the suggestions.

One of the problems is that I've always been somewhat passive about how I learn about new music, mainly listening to the radio. I don't actively seek new stuff much. But I don't listen to the radio nearly as much anymore. I'll follow up on these suggestions.

 

[Rustyoznail]

Following on from what EB said, look at Aussie bands from whatever your favourite era is. I bet you've never heard of them before. Early 60's - Easybeats, 70's - Daddy Cool and Skyhooks, 80's - too many to mention...

Try "Aussie rock classics" on Spotify and see what you find.