(shrug) I think that just makes you more educated. You're still coming from a totally Level THREE angle, as long as the specific quality you happen to appreciate- that just happens to be overlooked by the less-educated layman- is one you appreciate because of some INHERENT good. You just happen to have a different set of preferences- and admittedly more REFINED set of preferences- than 99.99% of the population. Or not. I dunno, I can't sleep so I have been drinking for like 12 hours.

My friend Pauly Playback (<-----alias) would, however, be a Level FOUR thinker for sure. He's a brilliant musician, and works as a studio bassist as well as a.... I dunno, mixer, producer, that kind of thing. He's having quite a bit of success (read: can probably pay rent?), but he's sat me down after a long night (read: weeeeeeeeeed smokin') and explained to me the beauty of The Backstreet Boys, among other musical acts. I am an extremely untalented musician with absolutely no training or experience, so I didn't get it.

But you two would get along. I think he still lives in Chicago, even.

Wang

but whats the point of finding a few good qualitites in songs/bands that are generally terrible when good bands will have just as many if not more good stuff to admire as well as good songs?

You don't necessarily LIKE the music, but when you hear the song, you can appreciate what they're doing. I think. "Okay, so fine, I'm never going to put on this crappy Linkin Park album in the car and listen to it. But as an educated musician I can APPRECIATE the stupidly perfect guitar tones they nail, over and over again. They suck, but I can't help but notice this thing they do that's the mark of a well-produced/well-mixed/whatever band. But seriously, if you steal my Linkin Park album, I won't care or notice. Somebody put on some Todd Rundgren, will ya?"

Wang

Interesting theory about your "Level of Thinkers" there Wang, but I don't know where I would really fall in....in the end, the only thing that determines whether or not I like a band is my own preference. I don't care if they are mainstream or indie or whatnot. Personally, I think people who only like music for it being "indie" are just as if not more lame than people who just like mainstream music.

In the end, whatever anyone else thinks of my musical tastes means absolutely nothing to me, unless they are offering recommendations. I love music but don't consider myself any kind of a music snob. If anything, I just like to recommend things that I think people would like based on their other tastes.

Do I like Nirvana? Yes. I never listen to them now, but I listened to them back in their day. They are the spokesband of the 90s, and I have no problem with the recognition they are getting, regardless of my personal opinion of them. I'm glad to see the grunge/90s alternative scene make its mark on the musical history timeline, and it's clear Nivana leads the charge.

An utterly pointless semi-rant by me, but I always roll my eyes at anyone in general (not saying you) who refers to themselves as some kind of a musical elitiest or snob. It's lame.

Anyway, today I have been listening to some Pet Sounds by the Beach Boys (always rock out the Boys come summertime), Since I Left You by The Avalanches, and Natty Dread by Bob Marley....

After bonering out of the 650 and a 160 DS sunday and monday i wanted to murder people, so i loaded the following (omitting ballads and such) onto my mp3 player and went on a 25 mile bike ride:

Metallica - ...And Justice for All
Metallica - Master of Puppets
Metallica - Black
Deftones - Adrenaline
Deftones - White Pony
Pearl Jam - Vs.
STP - Core
Led Zeppelin - II

I felt a lot better afterward.

p.s. Vs. is a pretty ridiculous album. I forgot how good it is. Leash is a really sweet song.


yeah, sounds like it. has he worked on anything i would've heard of?

Listening to Caroline No all weekend when your heart is broken is maybe not such a good idea but i did it anyway

man, i love that song. i'm sorry dude.

Halford - Resurrection. Pretty solid actually. Maybe better than some of the Priest albums from the 80's.

that levels of musical thinking, wang. wow, great. fifteen points, at least!

i'm with mk, though, in that there's got to be something beyond level 3 that is somehow able to revisit quite objectively terrible work and get something out of it that's not-quite-entirely ironic in nature--something that's just not in the music itself, but rather wholly within the person who's getting something out of it.

my best friend, for instance, thinks kelly clarkson is the best thing ever, and he's entirely honest about it. after enough beers, i will occasionally say something similar about the first couple dave matthews band albums. but he's better at it than me, because he doesn't feel some sort of profound aesthetic guilt afterwards.

I still love that album to this day. It's in my top 10 all-time, even though I don't listen to it too much anymore. It was the first album I ever went to a midnight sale for.....

Here, here. Or is it "hear, hear?" I've never even really figured out what that means. But I digress....

Yeah, I really just love that album. "Daughter" was my absolute favorite song for at least 3 years. They do a lot of different things on the album (well, as "different" as Pearl Jam gets). I love being able to listen to Animal, Glorified G, Leash and Elderly Woman... all on the same album.

I decided to listen to some Pearl Jam while working today, and here's the setlist I made up (on random, so in no particular order):

VS
Leash
Go
Glorified G

LIVE ON TWO LEGS
Corduroy (live)
Given to Fly (live)
Nothingman (live)

VITOLOGY
Last Exit
Bugs
Pry To
Satan's Bed

TEN
Oceans
Porch
Why Go

YIELD
Brain of J
Faithfull
Pilate

BINAURAL
Off He Goes
Evacuation
Light Years
Nothing as it Seems
Soon Forget
Parting Ways
Sleight of Hand


Pearl Jam is always going to be one of those bands that holds a special place in my heart, mostly because they helped shape my musical preferences for years to come. When Soundgarden, STP, Pearl Jam and Nirvana were kinda the Big Four grunge bands, I always liked Pearl Jam and Soundgarden more than Nirvana, which kinda set me apart from my peers. For the first time, I realized my tastes in music didn't necessarily line up with the status quo's, but that that was certainly okay. It's not like I was going out on a limb by liking Pearl Jam and Soundgarden, but I was the ONLY one of my friends that liked them more than the critic's and everyman's choice of Nirvana.

I think I'm going to go on a musican binge today, because I don't want to play cards all that much.

Anyone wanna give me some suggestions of newish music that's come out in the last few months? I'm WAAAY behind, because I suck.

Thanks in advance,

Wang

I listened to most of the new Jurassic 5 album today. It's....different.

MK, that is my favorite avatar ever. My favorite car name was was the "Pious". I really want to get emblem for my car.

Here's a couple albums off the top of my head that have come out over the last few months that I like:

Pearl Jam - Pearl Jam
Gnarls Barkley - St. Elsewhere
Paul Simon - Surprise
Thom Yorke - The Eraser
Mark Knopfler & Emmylou Harris - All the Roadrunning

I'm sure there are plenty more but can't think right now....

I've been listening to Eva Cassidy lately.

Heh. Seems to be going over well. I do love the smell of my own farts.

Dave Matthews Band - Stand Up

right now- nothing, since i'm on my shittering downstaris computer

lately-

jay-z: reasonable doubt / the blueprint
black sabbath: sabbath bloody sabbath
tool: opiate
kanye west: late registration
zakk wylde: book of shadows

I've been listening to dredg's "Catch Without Arms" a lot lately.

nice! great cd

although you know how certain songs/albums remind of specific places/events? well that was one of my "i hate my life because i hate my surroundings" jams when i was going away to school at albany. i'd listen to it when i was reallyt depressed, or in one of those pensive, go for a walk at 5 am because you still havent slept and figured you might as well get a cup of coffee and watch the sunrise because you wanna see what the big fuss is all about moods.


or maybe i'm the only one who does that.. who knows

Bruce Hornsby - Hot House

shakira- hips don't lie

Heh, how fitting...

That's me.

well looks like you have something in common with "hate your life" c-dub

You mean besides the fact we both like men?

I'm listening to Autolux- "Turnstile Blues" at the moment.

well, thats me all the time.

i meant more along the lines of myself during my albany time period, hence "hate your life" c-dub. kind of like, "malibu" barbie, or "going to mall" barbie, or something like that.

except without the dresses and stuff.


ok fine, with the dresses, but mine arent nearly as nice

Oh I know what you meant. I just like to talk about men.

:I'm not really gay, I just play gay on the internet face:

Who am I kidding?

Moby - Play

I'm a gigantic fan of WolfMother. They just came to our station and played some of their stuff live. It was incredible.

More Moby

Dammit, now I'm gay

Peter Tosh - Equal Rights

im going to a Belle and Sebastian/Broken Social Scene/Ted Leo concert tonight. its gonna be so awesome.

good CD, but nothing even close to their previous effort, el cielo. get it and jizz your pants once, twice, or in my case, about 70 times so far.

I disagree. I like "Catch Without Arms" more.

DMB - Listener Supported

Outkast - Slump

Oasis - Champagne Supernova

ill throw in another appearance/what have i been listening to lately.

AC Newman- The Slow Wonder
Andrew Bird- Mysterious Production Of Eggs
Of Montreal- Sunlandic Twins
Microphones
Wilco- Yankee Hotel Foxtrot
Opium Jukebox- Music To Download Pornography By
Beck- Guerolito (guero remix album)
Regina Spektor- Soviet Kitsch
Neutral Milk Hotel- On Avery Island
Ratatat Remixes Album

New Morning, Dylan.

Boston - More than a feeling

The Mars Volta - Amputechture.

i have a feeling i'm gonna like this CD. i've listened to it just once so i dont have much of an opinion.

YES

Hey everybody, I'm never here anymore, but I randomly stopped by so I decided to post.

I went to IntoNation the 24th and 25th of June. It was amazing, just like last year. The first day I got to see acts such as The Stills, Ghostface Killah, and The Streets. Ghostface was probably my favorite act of the day. Second day was amazing. Bloc Party headlined the second day, other acts included Dead Prez, Robert Pollard, and Jon Brion. Overall I thought it was not quite as good as last year's, but still was well the worth the $35. I'm kind of bummed I can't make it to the Pitchfork Music Festival, but it's all good because for my graduation present I got tickets to Lollapalooza, hell yea.

I love these guys. I should listen to them more often.



One of the great CD's of all time



Haven't listened to it yet, but I really liked Guero. We'll see



Every day that goes past and I still don't own this album, I hate myself more.



A pretty good album, some really good songs. I don't know, I guess it's hard to judge this album. It would be like the hot girl from your high school standing next to Natale Portman. I mean, it's probably good, but that's not what you're thinking about (in case you don't know, I'm talking about In the Aeroplane Over the Sea).

Anyone ever listen to Headphones? Dave Bazan from Pedro The Lion's side project. They're pretty excellent. I first heard them when I saw Dave Bazan open for Ben Gibbard last year at a solo show. He previewed a couple of those tracks, and they were amazing. I don't like the CD stuff as much, but seeing him up there with just his guitar playing those songs was amazing.

Side note: That show was this:

Dave Bazan solo
James Mercer and Dave Hernandez from The Shins acoustic.
Ben Gibbard solo acoustic.

Absolutely amazing, amazing concert.

Tonights songs have included the following:

Eli's Coming by Laura Nyro (one of the BEST all time song writers)

genius of love- tom tom club

Walk on the Water and All I Want- Toad The Wet Sprocket

Indorphine - Spaghetti
Thine Eyes Bleed -
Eagles - I Can't Tell you Why
Leng Tch'e - Cockporn
Dragonforce - My Spirit Will Go On
Weird Al - I Remember Larry

Dream.

Theater.

Mike Portnoy is incredible.