Spin, spin sugar

Day 04: Your Music
Well, this post isn't going to be too difficult! I LOVE music and I LOVE talking about it (you may have noticed). What I find tricky, however, is explaining how and why I like certain bands or singers or genres of music. I appreciate music in such an idiosyncratic way that it almost verges on synaesthesia. I see images, scenes from books and movies and so, when I listen to songs. I assign lyrics to certain moods and activities. I line up lyrics to use as Facebook statuses, not just now, but for almost all foreseeable future circumstances (I had the lyrics for an 'I've got PhD funding' status planned from about six months beforehand, and my choice of lyrics would've made sense only to me).

I suppose, if I had to break it down, there are three criteria which determine what music I like:

Clever lyrics, 'ethereal' sound and awesome bass and synth.

Certain People have weaned me off saying 'I like all kinds of music', which is clearly a lie, so the best description of my tastes might be 'eclectic and omnivorous'.

I like...

TRIP HOP: Massive Attack, Strawpeople, Tricky, Portishead.

ELECTRO POP: Van She, MGMT, Pnau, Hot Chip, Empire of the Sun, Lovers Electric, Goldfrapp, Ladyhawke, Röyksopp, the Knife, Eurythmics

DANCE: VNV Nation, Sash! Vengaboys, Bag Raiders, the 'Swedish House Mafia', The Similou, Basement Jaxx, Chemical Brothers, Groove Armada, Earth, Wind and Fire, Justice, Fonzerelli, LCD Soundsystem, the Prodigy, Underworld, Apoptygma Berzerk

TRANCE/GOA: Tiësto, Lost Tribe, Groove Cutter, Paul Oakenfold, 009 Sound System

SHOEGAZE: The Pains of Being Pure At Heart (they sing a song about having sex in a library!), m83, Asobi Seksu, God Is An Astronaut, iliketrains, Coalter of the Deepers, The Daysleepers, etc etc

COUNTRY/ALT-COUNTRY: Lucinda Williams, Gram Parsons, Emmylou Harris, Calexico

WORLD MUSIC/FOLK MUSIC: Steelye Span, Cirque du Soleil, Yothu Yindi, Monsoon Wedding soundtrack

EURODANCE/90s MUSIC: Snap!, The Real McCoy, Aqua, Mr President, Culture Beat, Ace of Base, Haddaway, La Bouche, Savage Garden, Shanks and Bigfoot, Coolio, Corona, Twenty Four7, Whigfield, Eiffel 65, Smashmouth, the entire Daria soundtrack, Maxx, Sin With Sebastian, E-Type, Inner Circle, TLC

PUNK-FOLK: The Pogues

AUSTRALIAN MUSIC: Powderfinger, Silverchair, Paul Kelly, Regurgitator, Spiderbait, Happyland

HIP-HOP: Hilltop Hoods, The Herd, Koolism, M.I.A., Lauryn Hill, random French rap, early-to-mid-90s hip-hop

ELECTRONICA: Daft Punk, Air

DRUM N' BASS: Pendulum

SYMPHONIC METAL: Nightwish, Leave's Eyes

REGGAE: Bob Marley, Jimmy Cliff

STUFF I CAN'T CATEGORISE: Sigur Rós, Björk, Komputer, Kid Creole and the Coconuts, Little Feat, Elvis Costello, Paul Simon, New Order, Joy Division, Roxy Music, Suzanne Vega, Annie Lennox, early (pre-Gwynneth) Coldplay, Taktical Sekt

There's only one genre of music I really don't like, and that is what I tend to call 'laid-back dude with a guitar, chilling out'. You know what I mean: the Jack Johnsons of the world. I don't like it because I don't view 'mellow' or 'chilled out' as a genuine emotion worthy of musical expression.

I don't have any shame about any of my musical tastes because I think that would be a waste of time. I like what I like, and that's as it should be.

( The other days )

Spin, spin sugar

Day 04: Your Music
Well, this post isn't going to be too difficult! I LOVE music and I LOVE talking about it (you may have noticed). What I find tricky, however, is explaining how and why I like certain bands or singers or genres of music. I appreciate music in such an idiosyncratic way that it almost verges on synaesthesia. I see images, scenes from books and movies and so, when I listen to songs. I assign lyrics to certain moods and activities. I line up lyrics to use as Facebook statuses, not just now, but for almost all foreseeable future circumstances (I had the lyrics for an 'I've got PhD funding' status planned from about six months beforehand, and my choice of lyrics would've made sense only to me).

I suppose, if I had to break it down, there are three criteria which determine what music I like:

Clever lyrics, 'ethereal' sound and awesome bass and synth.

Certain People have weaned me off saying 'I like all kinds of music', which is clearly a lie, so the best description of my tastes might be 'eclectic and omnivorous'.

I like...

TRIP HOP: Massive Attack, Strawpeople, Tricky, Portishead.

ELECTRO POP: Van She, MGMT, Pnau, Hot Chip, Empire of the Sun, Lovers Electric, Goldfrapp, Ladyhawke, Röyksopp, the Knife, Eurythmics

DANCE: VNV Nation, Sash! Vengaboys, Bag Raiders, the 'Swedish House Mafia', The Similou, Basement Jaxx, Chemical Brothers, Groove Armada, Earth, Wind and Fire, Justice, Fonzerelli, LCD Soundsystem, the Prodigy, Underworld, Apoptygma Berzerk

TRANCE/GOA: Tiësto, Lost Tribe, Groove Cutter, Paul Oakenfold, 009 Sound System

SHOEGAZE: The Pains of Being Pure At Heart (they sing a song about having sex in a library!), m83, Asobi Seksu, God Is An Astronaut, iliketrains, Coalter of the Deepers, The Daysleepers, etc etc

COUNTRY/ALT-COUNTRY: Lucinda Williams, Gram Parsons, Emmylou Harris, Calexico

WORLD MUSIC/FOLK MUSIC: Steelye Span, Cirque du Soleil, Yothu Yindi, Monsoon Wedding soundtrack

EURODANCE/90s MUSIC: Snap!, The Real McCoy, Aqua, Mr President, Culture Beat, Ace of Base, Haddaway, La Bouche, Savage Garden, Shanks and Bigfoot, Coolio, Corona, Twenty Four7, Whigfield, Eiffel 65, Smashmouth, the entire Daria soundtrack, Maxx, Sin With Sebastian, E-Type, Inner Circle, TLC

PUNK-FOLK: The Pogues

AUSTRALIAN MUSIC: Powderfinger, Silverchair, Paul Kelly, Regurgitator, Spiderbait, Happyland

HIP-HOP: Hilltop Hoods, The Herd, Koolism, M.I.A., Lauryn Hill, random French rap, early-to-mid-90s hip-hop

ELECTRONICA: Daft Punk, Air

DRUM N' BASS: Pendulum

SYMPHONIC METAL: Nightwish, Leave's Eyes

REGGAE: Bob Marley, Jimmy Cliff

STUFF I CAN'T CATEGORISE: Sigur Rós, Björk, Komputer, Kid Creole and the Coconuts, Little Feat, Elvis Costello, Paul Simon, New Order, Joy Division, Roxy Music, Suzanne Vega, Annie Lennox, early (pre-Gwynneth) Coldplay, Taktical Sekt

There's only one genre of music I really don't like, and that is what I tend to call 'laid-back dude with a guitar, chilling out'. You know what I mean: the Jack Johnsons of the world. I don't like it because I don't view 'mellow' or 'chilled out' as a genuine emotion worthy of musical expression.

I don't have any shame about any of my musical tastes because I think that would be a waste of time. I like what I like, and that's as it should be.

( The other days )