wallabyeyes loves your taste in music - Chefelf.com Night Life

OK, here's more than half the stuff listed (keep in mind that i despise the majority of these acts):

Sum 41 - As far as pop-punk goes, they're first couple albums were relatively non-objectionable. I liked the song that got lots of airplay here in Canada with that last bit doing their metal shtick "Satan's Sluts". that "we're all to blame" track wasn't bad... distinguished themselves from their contemporaries. all their ballads and slow songs are dumb, though.

Breaking Benjamin - I listened to a few songs off their "Phobia" album. A throwback to generic 90's rock... there are worse things a band can be a throwback to. As far as derivitive riffy alt-rock goes at least they're better than Nickleback.

Avril Levigne - This is a tough one. I guess when she released her first album she had an iota of integrity but it slowly slipped away until you saw pictures of her in the tabloids partying and fucking herself up pretty much smashing any viability of her being a role model for tweenagers. Some of her songs are catchy. You may feel the need to drill a hole in your skull to let the demons out but catchy none the less.

John Mayer - Dude, this guy can wail on guitar as his perfomances on Austin City Limits or the now defunct I&I (on MuchMusic) will attest to. Yeah he writes corny love songs and stuff, but chicks dig him so there's no harm in learning to play some of his tunes for their benefit

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Britney Spears - According to many music snobs (at least the ones who reveal themselves on the internet) "Toxic" is the bees knees. I've never heard it in it's entirety but i'll take their word for it. Why would they lie?

O-Town - one of them had a cameo in a funny cartoon?

Cyndi Lauper - she gave us "Time After Time". If you hate this song you have no soul. She's doing jazz standards now. Haven't heard them but power to her for not trying to be a middle-aged pop-tart.

Hilary Duff - She's flakey but at least you don't see her misbehaving in all the tabloids (the only source i can judge from). She did date a douchebag but doesn't everyone at some point? Her songs, though... the problem with judging her music is she isn't a musician or songwriter (except maybe the lyrics but we can't know that for sure) and accounts for maybe 4% of what goes on her records. So i wouldn't be judging hillary duff, i'd be judging some dude (or chick) in a room writing songs for celebrities, just trying to make a living and support his family. Power to him. I haven't heard any live stuff and her voice might be pitch corrected on the albums but as far as i know she can hold a tune OK.

The Pussycat Dolls - Dancers, not music makers. And they're obnoxious humans. BUT... uhh... this kind of club/dance shit is like an aphrodisiac for certain drunk bimbos who like to grind on the dance floor. So quit whining. As long as you stay out of clubs and don't watch Music Television you'll barely notice their existence.

limp bizkit - yes, i listened to these guys in high school. Wes Borland isn't a terrible guitar player and likes good bands (don't have it with me to reference but Guitar World used to have a feature called '60 minutes' where people would list some of their favorite songs and explain their choices). He's not humorless. The rhythm section was decent. Fred Durst himself is a dimwit but there's a capable band behind him on those early albums even if the sound they made together was horrendous.

linkin park - Say what you will about the group but from a sound engineering point of view the sound on their albums is great. Somebody put effort into it. The sound is pretty huge and glossy which may not mean much to the casual observer but from an behind-the-boards stand-point it's decent (Basing this on my skakey memory of their singles).

nickleback - Proof that you can be as unoriginal as you want and still be successful. This has been a source of much solace for me as a perpetually amateur musician. I'd like to shake their hands and thank them for lowering the bar for us all.

Boy Bands - I think boy bands days are numbered forever. Young girls are growing up too cynical to be into that shit. Then again, one of them spawned Justin Timberlake. His cred has just kept rising even as popular opinion shifted. Plus without boy bands, some of my favorite parodies would have been rendered moot! ie. 3x1-1 (though not a boy band in the strict sense, drew from the conventions.) In conclusion, they've never hurt anyone. They're just really dumb.

Sufjan Stevens - the fact that you're into him warms my heart. And why not? Brilliant arranger and composer. A born storyteller. I didn't see him when he played at St. Paul's to my utter dismay. I have Michigan and Illinois but haven't absorbed them apart from a couple songs so i can't give a deeper analysis...

. But as a multi-instrumentalist/composer/songwriter he has all my admiration.

David Bowie - i haven't been able to come up with anything meaningful to say about his ass-kicking catalogue or influence on popular music in the last 3+ decades that hasn't already been more eloquently said, being more of a casual fan. For me it boils down to three words: "Hunky Dory, Low" OH! the sound on his early 70's albums was so righteous, 'specially on vinyl. It's hard going finding that 'you are there' authenticity in rock today. And he's a groovy guy, probably really accomodating in person. And let's not forget the Labyrinth. That was my introduction and probably yours too. Only Bowie could get away with flashing his junk in a kids movie (through very tight pants, mind you). "What kind of magic spell to use? Slime and snails, puppy dogs tails, thunder and lightning"and baby says"gagagagplpppll" DANCE MAGIC DANCE! and so forth.

I'd like to thank ltts for listing some good bands. feel free to follow her example.

This post has been edited by wallabyeyes: 22 May 2007 - 11:24 PM