Brightside Entry 2: Good Music

Alright, so this might seem like an odd thing to pick or way to phrase liking music just because I think everyone likes "good music". As in seriously, who is going to say that "I like crap music" hahaha but well, let me define what I think "good music" is.

Being raised in a house where my mother was a college activist (she got arrested and everything), a father who loves to videoke (although it doesn't necessarily love him back), a sister who can play the piano and sings, an eldest brother who is a riot with the guitar and sings the blues like a madman, an elder (younger) brother who has a penchant for melody and writes good songs, not to mention has set up his own mini-studio in his house and was the vocalist of the locally-famed band El Mercurio, I grew up very critical of what I listen to.

I was never very into faux-Punk bands like Good Charlotte or god forbid, Simple Plan. My taste in music is quite diverse in that I don't really care what genre something is but I am quite picky too. I like well-written lyrics and musical arrangements that make you feel something--make you feel like dancing ( "That's Not My Name" by The TingTings or "Hella Good" by No Doubt) or like crying ("Shimmer" by Fuel or "Brick" by Ben Folds Five) or like you're nostalgic for things you haven't experienced ("We Are Gonna Be Friends" by The White Stripes or "1251" by The Strokes).

An example of this would be the guitar riff on George Harrison's "While My Guitar It Gently Weeps"; that riff makes the hairs on the back of my neck stand up. It is so specific--not angry-sad but melancholic, haunting-sad that definitely fits the song. Each song builds a context for itself, some simple songs work because they're simple (like "Hey There, Delilah" by the Plain White Ts or "New Slang" by The Shins) and others work because they're more complicated (like "Invalid Litter Department" by At The Drive-In or "In Fear and In Faith" by Circa Survive). Also, there is Utada Hikaru's "First Love"; for most of the song I have no idea what she's saying as it's partly in Japanese but still, it's beautiful. And then there are songs like "Thirteen" by Big Star and "Great Expectations" by The Gaslight Anthem that wrench something inside you even if no one ever asked you to the dance or you never had someone to drive around and get tossed into jail with.

Listening to music has a way of making everything alright. I take the bus home from school everyday and that can be a very boring 1.5-2 hours but as long as I've got something good playing in the background, then it's alright.

This slight attachment to music might be due to the early exposure to 60s/70s Rock N Roll and movies like Almost Famous and I try very hard not to talk about this stuff so much so as not to come off boring or trivia-obsessed but my obsession runs deep and I don't think I could live without music. I play the piano and the drums and I sing a bit although I think I'm pretty mediocre at all that. I'm more an enthusiast (obsessed) than a performer, I think. (And I learned that the hard way hahaha)

Anyway, for this entry I think I'm going to list down my Top 20 favorite bands; and if anyone else is posting music up as something that makes them happy I'd like to know which bands/artist are your favorites as well. :)

El List-o:

1.) The Beatles (Favorite Songs: "Get Back", "Don't Let Me Down", "Follow the Sun", "Across the Universe", "Black Bird", "Michelle", "Eleanor Rigby")
2.) Led Zeppelin (Favorite Songs: "Tangerine", "Babe I'm Gonna Leave You", "All of My Love")
3.) Simon & Garfunkel (Favorite Songs: "America", "Sound of Silence", "Scarborough Fair")
4.) Nirvana (Favorite Songs: "In Bloom", "Come As You Are", "Lithium")
5.) Weezer (Favorite Songs: "Pink Triangle", "El Scorcho", "Buddy Holly")
6.) Eminem (Favorite Songs: "The Way I Am", "Stan")
7.) Norah Jones (Favorite Songs: "All Over Again", "7 Years", "Don't Know Why")
8.) The Shins (Favorite Songs: "New Slang", "Sea Legs", "A Call To Apathy (Gone For Good)", "Caring Is Creepy", "Those To Come", "Chutes Too Narrow")
9.) Death Cab for Cutie (Favorite Songs: "Passenger's Seat", "Your Heart Is An Empty Room", "What Sarah Said", "Photobooth")
10.) Rooney (Favorite Songs: "Blueside", "I'm Shakin'", "Paralyzed", "Daisy Duke", "I'm Sorry Sorry", "Simply Because", "I'm A Terrible Person", "Stay Away")
11.) The Donnas (Favorite Songs: "Take It Off", "Gold Medal", "Revolver", "It's So Hard", "Fall Behind Me", "Don't Wait Up For Me", "Skintight")
12.) Sahara Hotnights (Favorite Songs: "With or Without Control", "Alright, Alright", "Between Love and Hate", "Who Do You Dance For?")
13.) The White Stripes (Favorite Songs: "Walking with a Ghost", "Doorbell", "The Denial Twist", "Not That Lonely Yet", "We Are Gonna Be Friends", "7 Nation Army")
14.) The Kills (Favorite Songs: "Getting Down", "Tape Song", "Goodnight, Bad Morning", "Baby Says", "Cheap and Cheerful", "Last Day of Magic")
15.) The Academy Is... (Favorite Songs: "Checkmarks", "Down and Out", "Skeptics and True Believers", "Neighbors", "Coppertone", "Bulls In Brooklyn", "Slow Down", "Black Mamba")
16.) The Gaslight Anthem (Favorite Songs: "Great Expectations", "Wherefore Art Thou, Elvis", "American Slang", "Spirit of Jazz", "We Did It When We Were Young", "Casanova, Baby")
17.) The Horrible Crowes (Favorite Songs: "Blood Loss", "Behold the Hurricane", "Lady Killer", "Black Betty & The Moon")
18.) Taylor Swift [yeah, yeah] (Favorite Songs: "Tim Mc Graw", "Our Song", "White Horse")
19.) Miles Kane (Favorite Songs: "Color of the Trap", "Rearrange")
20.) Maroon 5 (Favorite Songs: "Must Get Out", "The Sun", "Sunday Morning")

And that's it for now! :)