Author Topic: Rob Webster's Rootin' Tootin' Musical Odyssey  (Read 10999 times)

0 Members and 1 Guest are viewing this topic.

Offline robwebster

  • Posts: 5021
Rob Webster's Rootin' Tootin' Musical Odyssey
« on: February 08, 2010, 08:23:04 PM »
Right, there's probably fifty dozen threads like this, but here we go!

I've just been musing that I haven't really had any major band discoveries in 2009. This needs to change. I found Frost* in 2008 and was disgusted that I'd not listened to them sooner. I'm sure there are more out there. More fantastic bands that I've been stupid not to check out yet. Point 'em out to me!

MY TASTES
1. I love big, boisterous music. Anthemic is brilliant. Subtlety is really grand too, don't get me wrong, but I like to have my music full of flavour. Songs like Uprising or Knights of Cydonia (Muse) that rouse with spirit, and exude raw power.
2. To that end, I like heavy music, but only if it's relatively melodic. I love dirty riffs (see also, The Dark Eternal Night) but I'm not much of a metalhead. Opeth sometimes get a bit samey, much as I like them. Death metal doesn't do it for me.
3. Choruses are fantastic. I love a strong chorus. Drown With Me (Porcupine Tree), Supermassive Black Hole (Muse), Dear Dead Days (Frost*), In Aurelia (Pure Reason Revolution), The First Man on Earth (Ayreon), Witness (Screaming Trees), By the Way era RHCP, ...
4. Creepy is good. The Incident and Sleep Together are two of my favourite Porcupine Tree tracks. I love the sludginess. It's very pure and visceral. Again, it makes a bold statement. Very certain of its tone.
5. I do like music to be a bit modern. Transatlantic are fantastic in places, and I really dig Bridge Across Forever, but The Whirlwind was a bit retro for my tastes. As are IQ and It Bites, from what I've heard (both of their most recent albums). That said, Bigelf completely do it for me, so hey!
6. Solos are great, but I'm usually listening to the rhythm section underneath them.
7. I quite like hybrids. Therion are fantastic, I love the union of classical music and metal - meanwhile Disco Queen and Supermassive Black Hole were among my favourite songs on their respective albums. Amor Vincit Omnia and Addicted really impressed me last year, I quite like the synthetic edge that they both had. A bit synthier than their previous output, both in completely different ways.
8. I like versatility. A bit of variety on an album is a very good thing. Eclectic albums tend to do more for me than unified albums. Lightbulb Sun, Octavarium, Be, Synchestra (PT, DT, POS, Devin Townsend) etc. are in my top two for each of their bands. That's partially down to the fantastic number of styles.
9. I like bands to sound quite individual. Frost* do something very interesting with the poppy edge. That really appeals to me. Devin Townsend's wall of sound thing. Porcupine Tree's pop hybrid on Stupid Dream and Lightbulb Sun. Tool's dirty, grimy edge. Almost oily. I like a signature sound.
10. I like music to sound surprising. If I can tell roughly where it's going, I'm not quite as interested.
11. That said, there's a balance. I've tried The Mars Volta and while I really like aspects, they're a little too "all over the place" for me. Diablo Swing Orchestra, on the other hand, is madcap but in a way that adheres to music rules to an extent. I like to hear the rules bent a lot, but not thrown out entirely!
12. Genesis and Yes are often too cheesy for me. Old school prog sounds kinda dated. I dig Rush and Floyd though.

Spirit, feeling, intelligence, musicianship and originality. There we go.



Er, if I wanted to try and encapsulate the kinda stuff I like with a small selection of albums...

Dream Theater - Octavarium
Frost* - Experiments in Mass Appeal
Pain of Salvation - Be
Arcturus - The Sham Mirrors
Therion - Lemuria & Sirius B
Pure Reason Revolution - Amor Vincit Omnia
Porcupine Tree - Lightbulb Sun
Coldplay - Viva la Vida
Nightwish - Once
A Perfect Circle - Thirteenth Step
Orphaned Land - Mabool

...something like that might cover it!

I don't have much else by the following bands, but these songs have been doing it for me in a major way, lately...

Zero 7 - In the Waiting Line
Sia - Buttons
Screaming Trees - Witness
U2 - Get On Your Boots
Scissorfight - Appalachian Chain
Wuthering Heights - Tree
Florence and the Machine - Drumming Song



My favourite five bands are Dream Theater, Porcupine Tree, Muse, Frost* and Kamelot.

So... yeah! Massive self-indulgent rant, but HOPEFULLY you guys get a rough gist of what I'm about... so what fantastic bands should I be listening to? Even if it seems like a really obvious choice.



Couple of ideas...
I really like Life on Mars by David Bowie. I know it from hearing it in the (original UK) TV series, and I thought "that's a fantastic song." Might I be interested in his other stuff?
And, I really like Epic and From Out of Nowhere by Faith No More. What are they like?



Sorry, humourless and really self-indulgent. I usually like to throw in at least a cheeky joke or two, break up the text, but blah. Plus I've not been asleep in hours upon hours so my written prose really isn't up to scratch, but if any of you reckon you can think of any bands I should really be checking out, please go on! Or if I should further investigate any of the bands I've already mentioned. Cheers if you read through all this trite!
« Last Edit: May 06, 2010, 12:32:41 PM by robwebster »

Offline Ultimetalhead

  • The Mighty Masturbator
  • DTF.org Alumni
  • ****
  • Posts: 7029
  • Gender: Male
  • .ay rof dab s'ti dna...
Re: I've kinda hit a musical wall
« Reply #1 on: February 08, 2010, 08:27:41 PM »
Buckethead


All of it.
Orion....that's the one with a bunch of power chords and boringly harsh vocals, isn't it?
LOOK AT THIS AWESOME SHIT AHHHHHH

Offline skydivingninja

  • DTF.org Alumni
  • ****
  • Posts: 11589
  • Gender: Male
Re: I've kinda hit a musical wall
« Reply #2 on: February 08, 2010, 08:36:50 PM »
I'll just throw out a couple of good albums that seem to fit your tastes:

-Queen
-The Decemberists-The Hazards of Love
-Coheed & Cambria-Good Apollo I'm Burning Star IV Volume I: From Fear Through The Eyes of Madness
-Mew-No More Stories...
-Radiohead-O.K. Computer or In Rainbows
-Riverside-Second Life Syndrome

Offline PixelDream

  • Posts: 2886
  • Gender: Male
  • Maestro
Re: I've kinda hit a musical wall
« Reply #3 on: February 08, 2010, 08:43:07 PM »
Karnivool - Sound Awake

Get this album now, I saw it on Steven Wilson's playlist, and he's totally right about this album. Totally epic, powerful, emotional, and textured. Sick grooves, progressive, but they're actually making catchy songs out of them.
Not 'Down To F***', but 'Dream Theater Forums' .

Offline ReaperKK

  • Sweeter After Difficulty
  • DTF.org Alumni
  • ****
  • Posts: 17688
  • Gender: Male
Re: I've kinda hit a musical wall
« Reply #4 on: February 08, 2010, 09:11:42 PM »
You and I seem to share a lot of the same music tastes, I'm going to check out some of the stuff you mentioned and I'll post some stuff a little later.

Offline Portrucci

  • Fission Mailed
  • Posts: 1383
  • Gender: Male
  • You're just another hero riding through the night
Re: I've kinda hit a musical wall
« Reply #5 on: February 08, 2010, 09:14:26 PM »
The Dear Hunter. Get Act III: Life and Death right now!
on par with the anguish one would have from getting unconsensually bent over and buttloved.

Offline Starkweather

  • Posts: 2787
Re: I've kinda hit a musical wall
« Reply #6 on: February 08, 2010, 09:21:43 PM »
Bit simplistic, but try Brand New.

Offline Phantasmatron

  • Peanut Butter Advocate and Jelly Enthusiast
  • DTF.org Alumni
  • ****
  • Posts: 3730
  • Gender: Male
  • What the Jenkins?!
Re: I've kinda hit a musical wall
« Reply #7 on: February 08, 2010, 09:23:04 PM »
Get Ultima Ratio by Superior.

It's full of flavor, heavy but melodic, has truckloads of strong choruses, isn't too all-over-the-place, and is only 8 years old.  And the band is unique enough (or hybrid enough) that it's hard to really assign them one genre.

Offline orcus116

  • DT.net Veteran
  • ****
  • Posts: 9598
Re: I've kinda hit a musical wall
« Reply #8 on: February 08, 2010, 09:35:33 PM »
I really wanna help out but for right now if you like versatility and you wanna try Faith No More get Angel Dust. Tons of different song styles that are kinda quirky but have a lot of personality.

Oh and I dunno if this band is what you're looking for with point 1 but try that band The Heavy I mentioned last week. Just nonstop, raw fun music. Link is:
https://www.dreamtheaterforums.org/boards/index.php?topic=10076.0

Offline ZKX-2099

  • Posts: 3164
  • Gender: Male
  • The Drifting Drifter
Re: I've kinda hit a musical wall
« Reply #9 on: February 08, 2010, 09:37:19 PM »
Coheed and Between The Buried & Me.

Offline Arcaeus

  • DTF.org Member
  • *
  • Posts: 4357
Re: I've kinda hit a musical wall
« Reply #10 on: February 08, 2010, 09:38:18 PM »
I really wanna help out but for right now if you like versatility and you wanna try Faith No More get Angel Dust. Tons of different song styles that are kinda quirky but have a lot of personality.

I second this.

Offline j

  • Posts: 2794
  • Gender: Male
Re: I've kinda hit a musical wall
« Reply #11 on: February 08, 2010, 09:46:15 PM »
Karnivool - Sound Awake

Get this album now, I saw it on Steven Wilson's playlist, and he's totally right about this album. Totally epic, powerful, emotional, and textured. Sick grooves, progressive, but they're actually making catchy songs out of them.

I'm terrible at music and don't generally endorse the opinions of Steven Wilson, but this is a very good album.  One of a few pleasant surprises of 2009 for me.

-J

Offline Dr. DTVT

  • DTF's resident Mad Scientist
  • DTF.org Alumni
  • ****
  • Posts: 9476
  • Gender: Male
  • What's your favorite planet? Mine's the Sun!
Re: I've kinda hit a musical wall
« Reply #12 on: February 08, 2010, 09:52:53 PM »
Redemption -  Start with the most recent album, Snowfall on Judgement Day.  You'll find a small group of us here at DTF who think the world of this band.

Enchant - A band not talked about a lot on here, but they really strike a chord with me.  My favorite album is Wounded, but you probably want to start with Tug of War (aside - they need to release a new album soon, its been almost 6 years!)

Devin Townsend if you want heavy and melodic.  Start with Terria

And as others have said, Faith No More is awesome, start with The Real Thing and Angel Dust
     

Offline Nic35

  • Which seat can I take =/ ?
  • DTF.org Alumni
  • ****
  • Posts: 1096
  • Gender: Male
Re: I've kinda hit a musical wall
« Reply #13 on: February 08, 2010, 10:07:39 PM »
Presto Ballet. The Lost Art of Time Travel is amazing.

www.myspace.com/prestoballet
Jesus Christ himself* comes down amidst a choir of 2 billion angels singing Handel's Hallelujah chorus. As KrotchRaut shred randomly on guitars made of dragon bones using picks made from God's kidney stones, Jesus heals a blind woman who promptly gives birth onstage to a creation of pure light.

*Yes, Jesus Christ himself. Nothing less will do.

Offline Xanthul

  • Posts: 1331
Re: I've kinda hit a musical wall
« Reply #14 on: February 08, 2010, 11:56:44 PM »
The Dear Hunter. Get Act III: Life and Death right now!

This, many times. Great riffs, lots of energy and awesome choruses. I haven't listened to Act III much yet but I and II are definitely incredible (and most people say III is even better, so...)

Offline tri.ad

  • The Invisible Man
  • DT.net Member
  • ***
  • Posts: 7901
  • Gender: Male
Re: I've kinda hit a musical wall
« Reply #15 on: February 09, 2010, 12:08:34 AM »
Marillion. Try out Clutching At Straws, Seasons End and Afraid Of Sunlight.
... And you ask me: "Where's my hairspray?"

Mentlegen.

Offline Zantera

  • Wolfman's brother
  • DTF.org Member
  • *
  • Posts: 13409
  • Gender: Male
  • Bouncing around the room
Re: I've kinda hit a musical wall
« Reply #16 on: February 09, 2010, 02:41:45 AM »
In your list i saw several bands i love myself, so i would recommend some of my other favorite bands that i discovered afterward... like:

Anathema - Judgement (they mix great melodies with great music)
Radiohead - In Rainbows (generally softer then PT, but still great music)
Dredg - The Pariah, The Parrot, The Delusion (amazing band that mixes prog/alternative rock with pop)

Offline orcus116

  • DT.net Veteran
  • ****
  • Posts: 9598
Re: I've kinda hit a musical wall
« Reply #17 on: February 09, 2010, 03:50:05 AM »
Man I would never start someone on Radiohead with In Rainbows.

Offline Zantera

  • Wolfman's brother
  • DTF.org Member
  • *
  • Posts: 13409
  • Gender: Male
  • Bouncing around the room
Re: I've kinda hit a musical wall
« Reply #18 on: February 09, 2010, 05:41:29 AM »
Man I would never start someone on Radiohead with In Rainbows.

Well, i think starting with the latest album is in most cases the best to do, since that's the direction the band is heading.
And in this case, it's also the best album.. by far.

Offline TheOutlawXanadu

  • The Original Unseasoned Fan
  • DTF.com Member
  • **
  • Posts: 6968
  • Gender: Male
  • The Original Unseasoned Fan
Re: I've kinda hit a musical wall
« Reply #19 on: February 09, 2010, 05:44:52 AM »
Sounds like you need some Amorphis.
:TOX: <-- My own emoticon!

Offline skydivingninja

  • DTF.org Alumni
  • ****
  • Posts: 11589
  • Gender: Male
Re: I've kinda hit a musical wall
« Reply #20 on: February 09, 2010, 05:55:47 AM »
second'd.  That and Tri.ad's Marillion suggestion.  Clutching at Straws and Marbles are great albums.

Offline GuineaPig

  • Posts: 3754
  • Gender: Male
Re: I've kinda hit a musical wall
« Reply #21 on: February 09, 2010, 07:32:01 AM »
I see no mention of Maiden in your post.  Is it the teensiest bit possible that you haven't given the masters of metal a listen?
"In the beginning, the universe was created. This made a lot of people very angry, and has been widely regarded as a bad idea."

Offline RobD

  • Jedi-Pirate
  • Posts: 2190
  • Gender: Male
  • JimJam YaHA!
Re: I've kinda hit a musical wall
« Reply #22 on: February 09, 2010, 07:42:36 AM »
I see no mention of Maiden in your post.  Is it the teensiest bit possible that you haven't given the masters of metal a listen?

If you do, try Brave New World, Powerslave and 7th Son of a 7th Son.

Also try Accident of Birth and The Chemical Wedding by their frontman Bruce Dickinson if you want something more progressive and a touch heavier with just as epic choruses.

I agree with the Faith No More suggestions, get Angel Dust and The Real Thing.
Quote
Pure. Refreshing. Bacon.
Clearly, RobD is a genius.

Offline tri.ad

  • The Invisible Man
  • DT.net Member
  • ***
  • Posts: 7901
  • Gender: Male
Re: I've kinda hit a musical wall
« Reply #23 on: February 09, 2010, 08:22:07 AM »
second'd.  That and Tri.ad's Marillion suggestion.  Clutching at Straws and Marbles are great albums.

Agreed on Marbles. If you have the chance to get the double-CD version, don't hesitate. Ocean Cloud alone makes it totally worth the effort of looking for it.
... And you ask me: "Where's my hairspray?"

Mentlegen.

Offline orcus116

  • DT.net Veteran
  • ****
  • Posts: 9598
Re: I've kinda hit a musical wall
« Reply #24 on: February 09, 2010, 08:32:44 AM »
Man I would never start someone on Radiohead with In Rainbows.

Well, i think starting with the latest album is in most cases the best to do, since that's the direction the band is heading.
And in this case, it's also the best album.. by far.

Eh, I'd point them towards The Bends, OK Computer, and Kid A first. Aside from IR being a textbook 3.5/5 album it just doesn't sound much like the stuff Radiohead is known for.

Offline Zantera

  • Wolfman's brother
  • DTF.org Member
  • *
  • Posts: 13409
  • Gender: Male
  • Bouncing around the room
Re: I've kinda hit a musical wall
« Reply #25 on: February 09, 2010, 10:43:47 AM »

Eh, I'd point them towards The Bends, OK Computer, and Kid A first. Aside from IR being a textbook 3.5/5 album it just doesn't sound much like the stuff Radiohead is known for.

Well, seeing what a variety Radiohead has overall, it's really hard to pick just one album to start with.
In that case you would at least have to pick Kid A and The Bends/OK Computer, since just one of those albums wouldn't be enough. ;)

Offline lordxizor

  • EZBoard Elder
  • *****
  • Posts: 5296
  • Gender: Male
  • and that is the truth.
Re: I've kinda hit a musical wall
« Reply #26 on: February 09, 2010, 10:57:20 AM »
The Dear Hunter. Get Act III: Life and Death right now!
And Act II while you're at it.

Offline robwebster

  • Posts: 5021
Re: I've kinda hit a musical wall
« Reply #27 on: February 09, 2010, 12:00:17 PM »
Aha! Plenty to get my teeth stuck into here. Cheers. Keep 'em coming!

Quote from: RobD
Quote from: GuineaPig
I see no mention of Maiden in your post.  Is it the teensiest bit possible that you haven't given the masters of metal a listen?

If you do, try Brave New World, Powerslave and 7th Son of a 7th Son.
Naturally I'm familiar with Iron Maiden, and pretty fond of 'em, but I've never bought an album by them! See this is the kind of prodding I need, hahaha. I even used to cover The Wicker Man in my old band (brilliant song, btw). But yeah, I know their staples pretty well. Number of the Beast, Run to the Hills, The Wicker Man, Rainmaker... and they're all fantastic. I wasn't sure if they might have been essentially the only interesting songs. Ah well, only one way to find out - to Amazon!

Angel Dust by Faith No More sounds like a must (three recs is enough for me!), and I'm pretty impressed by the description of Karnivool, so I'll throw that onto a shopping list somewhere.

@Zantera, Orcus & skydivingninja re: Radiohead
 A friend of mine lent me OK Computer and Hail to the Thief, once. I've still got them on a computer at my parents' house, so I sometimes get blasts of it, but I don't use that computer much so I've not really familiarised myself with them. Hail to the Thief doesn't do too much for me, but I really like Lucky and Paranoid Android from OKC. What are The Bends and Kid A like, compared to OK Computer? I'll copy OKC across next I'm back at the rents'.

Quote from: skydivingninja
Queen
I'm torn on Queen. Again, they're one of those bands that I have a basic familiarity with but not much beyond that. Don't Stop Me Now and the medley on BCSL do the trick for me, but I'm a little bored of Bohemian Rhapsody, and Radio Gaga actually annoys me, so I'm in two minds. What kind of era should I be looking into?

Other suggestions: I picked up that C&C album for £3 in a charity shop a few weeks ago, it's damn cool. Definitely approve. Needs a bit of time to grow but I'm enjoying it. I've got the latest Riverside and really dig it, so I'll be checking SLS out. I can't say I know anything about Mew and The Decemberists, though. What are they like?

Quote from: Zantera
Dredg - The Pariah, The Parrot, The Delusion (amazing band that mixes prog/alternative rock with pop)
How is it compared to Catch Without Arms? I bought that on a whim, and really dug the music on it, but couldn't stand the vocals for a second. Would I still be interested in checking out the rest of their catalogue?

Quote from: Phantasmatron
Get Ultima Ratio by Superior.

It's full of flavor, heavy but melodic, has truckloads of strong choruses, isn't too all-over-the-place, and is only 8 years old.  And the band is unique enough (or hybrid enough) that it's hard to really assign them one genre.
Beautiful! Sounds right up my street. Count me in.

Orcus: The Heavy sound interesting, not sure if they're my bag but they've gotta be worth a shot. I'll check out the YouTube links you posted.

Quote from: dreamtheatervt
Redemption -  Start with the most recent album, Snowfall on Judgement Day.  You'll find a small group of us here at DTF who think the world of this band.

Enchant - A band not talked about a lot on here, but they really strike a chord with me.  My favorite album is Wounded, but you probably want to start with Tug of War (aside - they need to release a new album soon, its been almost 6 years!)

Devin Townsend if you want heavy and melodic.  Start with Terria
I love Devin Townsend already (but good call!), and am interested in Redemption. I really, really dislike Fates Warning - I've tried them four different times, and not really found anything to love once - but a friend of mine sent me a Redemption song, saying that the FW guys aren't ALL bad. And I really liked it. So I've got that on my To Buy list too, now. Cheers! What style are Enchant? Progressive metal?

Quote from: lordxizor
Quote from: Portrucci
The Dear Hunter. Get Act III: Life and Death right now!
And Act II while you're at it.
I've always been put off these guys because they have a dumb name (silly, I know!), but checking samples they do sound right up my street. Goodo!

I'll check into Marillion, Buckethead Presto Ballet and Amorphis, too. I'm sure I've been given a free Marillion CD at some point in time, I've seen it floating around somewhere so I'll dig around for that. I've already heard a bit of Buckethead and he's damn impressive, so that's a good avenue too. Don't know much about the other two but it'll be fun discovering!

Offline rogerdil

  • Posts: 1024
Re: I've kinda hit a musical wall
« Reply #28 on: February 09, 2010, 12:18:25 PM »
The Pineapple Thief - described as a cross between Porcupine Tree and Radiohead

Nemo - dynamic hard rock, with some DT influence.  Sung in French.

As for Queen, I'd recommend the first three albums; many people seem to go for Queen II, with good reason.

Offline Gorille85

  • DTF.org Member
  • *
  • Posts: 4105
  • Gender: Male
Re: I've kinda hit a musical wall
« Reply #29 on: February 09, 2010, 12:34:19 PM »
Get In a Flesh Aquarium and Tightly Unwound.

Offline skydivingninja

  • DTF.org Alumni
  • ****
  • Posts: 11589
  • Gender: Male
Re: I've kinda hit a musical wall
« Reply #30 on: February 09, 2010, 01:33:06 PM »
The Decemberists are a pretty folky indie band, but on the album I suggested they go in a bit more of a prog direction without sounding dated.  Its very cool.  Mew is a very wintery-sounding band, and play around with weird arrangements a lot, so I guess experimental/alternative?  Both are very good bands/albums.

Offline YtseBitsySpider

  • **retired from DTF**
  • EZBoard Elder
  • *****
  • Posts: 5162
  • Gender: Male
Re: I've kinda hit a musical wall
« Reply #31 on: February 09, 2010, 02:07:01 PM »
that buckethead suggestion will keep you busy for a while...and many other suggestions in this thread are great.

I still haven't tried that karnivool cd....hmmmmmm
Take care everyone - Bet you all didn't even notice I was gone.

Happy Lives to you all.

Offline Fluffy Lothario

  • Posts: 4778
Re: I've kinda hit a musical wall
« Reply #32 on: February 09, 2010, 02:24:05 PM »
Quote
I've kinda hit a musical wall

Did it look like this?







:neverusethis:

Offline Zantera

  • Wolfman's brother
  • DTF.org Member
  • *
  • Posts: 13409
  • Gender: Male
  • Bouncing around the room
Re: I've kinda hit a musical wall
« Reply #33 on: February 09, 2010, 03:25:41 PM »
robwebster @

1. The Bends is pretty similar to OK Computer soundwise, biggest difference i guess is that it has a bit rawer sound, but overall it's a solid rock-album.

2. Kid A is more electronic, and even though it has some characteristics from OK Computer/The Bends, the album overall is eletronic.

3. The Pariah, The Parrot, The Delusion by Dredg is imo their best, and the album that floats the best.
Catch Without Arms has awesome songs, but overall i think TPTPTD and El Cielo by Dredg are better, because they're more "wow-albums". (aka. albums that you wanna listen to from start to end, skipping tracks is hard)
Overall this album also has amazing production, and the sound is great.

Hopefully that cleared out some of your thoughts. :)

Online ariich

  • Roulette Supervillain
  • Global Moderator
  • *****
  • Posts: 27917
  • Gender: Male
  • sexin' you later
Re: I've kinda hit a musical wall
« Reply #34 on: February 09, 2010, 03:30:49 PM »
Rob, I think I know your tastes pretty well, and they've often seriously overlapped with mine in the past. Of the bands suggested in this thread so far, I'd say The Dear Hunter (Act III is my favourite album ever) and Amorphis (get any of their three albums) would be great!

Also, if you don't know it already, get After Forever's self-titled album.

Ariich is a freak, or somehow has more hours in the day than everyone else.
I be am boner inducing.