music in my life

music has always been important in my life. my childhood days consisted of listening to classic rock nonstop (drove my mom CRAZY with it being on at all times of the day), being quizzed on artists and song titles (one of my many talents is being able to most of the artists and/or song titles from this genre), sitting by our big front window on rainy days and singing "american pie," admiring my dad's cd collection (one of my ultimate goals in life is to have as many cds as my dad),  trying to name artists/song titles before my brother (I always won - except once, damn you first beat of "blinded by the light"), toting around my cd player, watching mtv and vh1 all day (when they actually showed music videos), being awaken on my birthday by the beatles' "birthday," being awaken every summer day by the beatles' "good morning good morning" (I still cringe at the sound of that rooster), and being in marching band. and because of that, I have a pretty open mind when it comes to music. I say I like everything, because I really do listen to it all. jazz, hip hop, pop, rock, classical, rap, alternative, indie, punk, 80s, and now even some country (which I previously couldn't stand). my only exception is the kind where all they do is scream. I don't find that musical nor do I find it pleasing to my ears.

another thing to note about me and music: I have a bad habit of buying cds. some I buy randomly without knowing the sound or the artist and some by hearing only one song (or a portion of a song). my spontaneity may stem from my ultimate goal of having more cds than my dad (see above), but it may also stem from my passion for hearing something different. I'm always open to new music - something I'm not accustomed to.

in reality, it may not be such a bad thing - some of my favorite albums I've bought without knowing anything about it (i.e. quietdrive). I think it keeps things interesting. you can't listen to the radio anymore to hear new music, because every station plays the same thing. over and over again. and my friends either aren't as passionate about music as I am, or have questionable tastes. so my way of exploring new music is to browse for $7.99 or $9.99 cds. I've noticed that these cds (the $7.99 and $9.99 ones) are usually the best cds by unknown non-mainstream artists.

I am in no way a music expert, but there's certain albums or artists that I think people should be aware of. so be on the lookout for my "music in my life" series where I'll post reviews of some of the music I come across.