MUSIC that Defines you/ favorite bands...

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list your favorite bands and why they are.

1. Bad Religion - my absolute favorite of all time. Im not necessarily into the the genre of punk but these guys are classic. For some of the reasons I dont like "punk" music, they do the complete opposite. They have so much melody, prescence. They rock...but in a classic sense. I just get this "classic euporic" feeling when I listen to them, especially their more uplifting material.

2. Millencolin - Similar to bad religion but different. Some of their songs follow a more hard-rock badass sound to them. Some of there songs just nail my frustration about dominance and about ego

3. Hot Water Music - possibly emo or not, but one of the only bands that really deals with emotion without whining about it. I hate emo btw....

4. The buzzcocks - very weird but very intrigueing sound + lyrics

5. the Division of Laura Lee - very weird bizarre band from sweden, but for some reason i really like them


theres so many others like 311, franz ferdinand,The Who, The Beatles, and alot of rap/hip hop music as well.

I also like some blues/jazz stuff as well. Not really into electronic or trance at all. what is everyone else favorite?

here are just a few that ramble around my mind

Jawbreaker. The song "busy" off their first LP "unfun" says it all

Death Cab For Cutie, the song "what sarah said" describes exactly something i've been through

American Analog Set, the "postman" is just amazing

Misfits - well just because they are awesome... i'm NOT talking about Misfits95... i wish i still had all my original 7"'s i had 'em all.

Fugazi - yeah, i think the name says it all?

Minor Threat - same here

Youth of Today and Shelter - hey Ray Cappo was on to something back then

Douglas Fir - local boston band who is just awesome and moody and interesting and makes cool music

Sparta - their first record was a damn fine effort, even if it did have a couple duds

I think that's it for now, i could go on and on like this for a day! but i'll spare everyone that tedium.

Really can't say much about these artists that's already been said. But these are my all time favortie artists (in no particular order except for the first two)
1. Pink Floyd - My all time favorite band. This will never change.
2. The Cure - All of their albums have at least three songs off of it that I like (the lowest amount of songs I like on an album is "Wild Mood Swings" (3). Otherwise I like most - if not all of the album)
3. Biffy Clyro - One of the best bands i've heard in a real long time. That song "Living is a Problem Because Everything Dies" is one of the best songs on Alternative Rock radio right now.
4. The Stone Roses - Made a truly terrible second record, but the first album is probably one of the best debut albums of all time
5. Silversun Pickups - This band put on the best live show i've ever seen. The future of shoegazing. Their bassist Nikki Monniger plays lead bass, which many thought died with John Entwhistle
6. Pulp - Their first two albums were nothing special, but from Seperations onwards, all of their records were brilliant (including a three album progression in which the next album was better than the previous one: Seperations, His n' Hers, Different Class)
7. Blur - They've never made a bad album, which is really hard for any rock band to do. It's really sad that the only song that most people know by Blur - "Song 2" - sounds absolutely nothing like the rest of their catalouge.
8. Radiohead - I hate when people proclaim a band is the "Next" anything, but Radiohead are indeed the Pink Floyd of our generation. OK Computer is hands down the best album to have ever come out in my lifetime.
9. Arctic Monkeys - This is a band that i'm fanatical about right now. Both of their albums are excellent. They're not the "sixth greatest band in UK history" as NME claimed, but they are great and deserve all the breathless praise they got.
10. They Might Be Giants - Not to big on their albums post-Flood (usually on every album made by the band since there's two or three great songs and a bunch of filler), but they always make really brilliant, intelligent music that has a multi-generational appeal.
11. The Zutons - Another really good new band that I like right now. Their second album was not as good as the first, but still pretty good. They sound a bit like the Coral, but are a far better band.
12. Tokyo Police Club - Alternative band from Canada. Another brilliant live act.
13. Regina Spektor - Saw her live opening for the Dresden Dolls and immeadiatly went out and bought her most recent album (which at the time was Soviet Kitsch).
14. Syd Barrett - Whereas Blur never made a bad album, Barrett never wrote a bad song. A total genius
15. Muse - The new kings of prog rock. Every one of their albums is better than the last, but I don't know how they can top Black Holes and Revelations.
16. The Blood Brothers - "The sound of a crashing train" (a lyric from "Set Fire to the Face on Fire" which pretty much defines how the band sounds). Holders of the award of "Greatest song title of all time" ("Love Rhymes with Hideous Car Wreck").
17. iForward, Russia! - Another really cool British band that blew me away when I first heard them. They sound like a mixture between Bloc Party, At the Drive-In and several cans of Jolt Cola.
18. Foo Fighters - They wrote my all time favorite song "Everlong" and have exceeded the influence of Nirvana.
19. Shout Out Louds - A friend of mine got me into this band and they've yet to fail me. The song "Tonight I Have to Leave It" is one of the better songs of last year.
20. Sonic Youth - Used feedback to create melody. Nuff said.

Mississippi John Hurt King of the Geogia blues.
One crusty old man and his 12 string guitar telling it like it is. Doesnt get more real than that.

Adam Pascal in general . His bands include: Wine and Vision/Mute, the Adam Pascal Band, solo career, and Me and Larry(coming out this April). Sorry for plugging, but he's my mentor. His voice and music rocks. Old and new rock n' roll type voice, without sreetching or damaging his vocal cords.

Hmmm.. All punk fans huh?

1.Bad Religion, Great lyrics and beats

2.Tears For Fears, New wave is technically punk and they sound awesome.

3. KMFDM, Techno+Metal=Awesome!

4. Rage Against The Machine, I'm no leftist, but Tim Morello is probably the best guitarist I've heard yet.

joy division - Ian Curtis wrote amazing songs and i love the sound its like tribal,Nazi architecture or something

GG Allin - the true king of rock and roll lived life the way he wanted

sublime - the only band I'm always in the mood to hear

Christian death - amazing surrealist lyrics and sound

Skrewdriver - classic skinhead punk

Okay, my favourite bands and the bands that define me are totally different things. And I've seen a lot of my tastes overlap with others on here so in a shameless moment of self-promotion I'm going to link to articles I've written about them for www.rockmidgets.com if you guys are interested.

1. The Beatles - The first band I remember. My dad was a big fan, so I used to listen to their records. Still one of my favourites. A band that defines my move into music, and my being different to everyone else from a very early age.

2. Weezer - The first band I discovered myself. Their video for 'Buddy Holly' was on the Windows '95 install disc. I used to watch it over and over again. Still one of the bands that absolutely defines me. Their lyrics speak to me so much, as an autist, as a geek, as someone who has had their heart broken. Fourteen years as a fan, and counting. (review of the new Rivers Cuomo demo compilation: http://rockmidgets.com/releases.php?page=3&id=2508)

3. Linkin Park - The first band I properly got into as a kid. I got the merchandise, I bought the CDs. They were my favourite band up until March 2003, when their second album came out. I'd waited three years for it. I pre-ordered it and listened to it immediately once it arrived. And I thought... three years, and that's IT? (review of Minutes To Midnight: http://www.rockmidgets.com/releases.php ... =3&id=2063)

4. Eminem - From his debut single in 1999, Eminem started to get under my skin. For five years, I denied it. I denied the fact that I liked this guy. But finally, I opened myself up and rap music poured in. Eminem is still one of my favourite artists ever, and without doubt my favourite rap artist ever. I consider 'Stan' to be a work of art. I consider that song to be on a level with Dylan as far as lyrical prowess and storytelling.

5. Blur - This band's album Parklife is one of the albums that has defined my life. It defines the journeys to and from family holidays as a child. Its lyrics define the country I live in and the love/hate relationship every Englishman has with it. And the lyrics to 'Tracy Jacks' show my attitude - 'I'd love to stay here and be normal/but it was always overrated.'

6. Pink Floyd - A band who mean a great deal to me and dominated my listening habits for several years once the Linkin Park glow wore off. A band who truly have a song for every occasion, who I adore a great deal, and all of whom I respect an enormous amount. I still mourn Syd Barrett with a t-shirt I made myself. Albums like The Wall and The Final Cut and Animals define the way I feel about so many things. I've done several Floyd-related articles recently; a review of David Gilmour's last solo album (http://www.rockmidgets.com/releases.php ... =3&id=1002), an obituary for Syd to mark a year since he died (http://rockmidgets.com/features.php?page=4&id=1125) and a guide to buying Barrett's records (http://rockmidgets.com/features.php?page=4&id=1126).

7. Ryan Adams - A man who is one of the last true mavericks in music. He makes records on his own terms and releases whenever he wants. Another guy who throws crap at the wall and sees what sticks, and I love that. Has a song for every mood. Helped me with my love of country.

8. Wilco - Yankee Hotel Foxtrot is an album that defines me. It is country, yet it is alternative. It is accessible, yet it is inaccessible. It is noise, yet it is beauty. Every contradiction contained within me is contained within this album, and I love it. (Review of Wilco's last album http://rockmidgets.com/releases.php?p=9&page=3&id=2408 and of Jeff Tweedy's recent DVD http://www.rockmidgets.com/releases.php?&id=1616)

9. Nick Cave and the Bad Seeds - The man that defines my tastes from 2004 up to this point. Almost certainly my current favourite artist, and my favourite lyricist ever. He speaks to me so much on so many levels that I can barely go into it here. I'll simply list my two favourite lines of his that alternate:
'Far From Me' - It's good to hear you're doing so well/but really can't you find somebody else that you can ring and tell?
'There She Goes, My Beautiful World' - You weren't much of a muse/but then I weren't much of a poet
Review of Grinderman album: http://www.rockmidgets.com/releases.php ... =3&id=2013
Review of Abattoir Blues live album: http://www.rockmidgets.com/releases.php ... =3&id=1845

10. Hundred Reasons - One of the few bands who I have been with from the very start. I've been with these since 2002 when their first single hit, and I have all four albums; I even love Colin Doran's side project, Lucky Nine. A consistent modern band who don't fit well into any scene and have a distinct personality, and their shameless sentimentality and occasional geekiness speaks to me.
Review of Kill You Own: http://www.rockmidgets.com/releases.php ... =3&id=1051

I think they'll do for the moment.

Music has never defined me I usd to have all the Talking Heads stuff then Steely Dan then CCR but now I like blues and folk, but if I went without I'd be ok. If I went deaf I'd be ok.

I'm strickly visual arts.

Aqua - Their music is really cute and cheerful. It's just a lot of fun to listen to.

Cascada - It's one of those bands where all their songs sound the same. It really strikes a chord with me though, especially the instrumentals.

Flogging Molly - Their songs are hard-hitting and fast, which make them good to exercise to. I really enjoy the Celtic feel to their music, and I'm a sucker for Irish accents.

slayer - fast, furious, unrelenting. full of win
pantera - slow, brutal and kicks you in the balls or p****
emperor - cold, dark & haunting
carpathian forest - total holocaust

Evanescence
Queensryche
Disturbed
Heartsbane

I feel that the music of Hole defines me as a person, I really identify with them. The music is very exciting and powerful. The lyrics illustrate really important gender and self-esteem identity issues to me and I feel that they give an accurate perspective of the female roles in society.

I guess I use music in a more "stimmy" kind of way. I love it intensely, but I don't really care if the artist is saying anything that relates to my life... at all! I certainly couldn't care less whether the song has, or could be percieved as having, anything to do with autism. Or anything else that's affected my life. It's a straight question of, 'does this give me any kind of visceral kick', do I want to move about to it? I'm also not remotely concerned about the artist maintaining a high standard over a series of albums, or even over one album. If there's one seven inch single I like I will just treasure that. Only rarely will I be tempted to research biographical detail - and usually only so that I can see if they've put out anything else I might like. Ultimately, I prefer the music itself to the bands that create it. They're usually pretty boring. Five pretty young boys, some feminist girls, swedish girl, bloke with laptop, blah. I wouldn't let them say anything for me, let alone define me.

Sometimes the noise they make seems to describe the mess in my head, quite accidentally. The b-side off the first Eighties Matchbox B-Line Disaster single is called 'Alex'. I like it because I don't think even Guy knows what he's singing, he could sing different 'words' every time he sings it live. He's just making noises; ululations. Then there's the manic way that Jerry Lee Lewis plays piano. Some specific chord changes on Motown and Northern Soul songs seem to manipulate me so strongly it's like I don't have a mind of my own. But thinking about it, those don't say anything about me, they're just stimuli I respond to very strongly.

For me, the position for "number one favorite band" is basically split between Orgy and Evanescence. I don't love every single song from either band, but for some reason those are the two that touch me the most.

I just love Orgy's unique sound--they don't sound quite like any other band, combining elements of rock, pop, nu-metal, industrial, electropop, gothic, etc. Even other bands that have those elements, like Zeromancer or Marilyn Manson, don't have quite the same sound. Even Jay Gordin's singing voice is just strange. Their lyrics combine sci-fi concepts (such as in "Fiction" and "Opticon") with social criticism.

As for Evanescence, I love them for several reasons: their dark fantasy, the pervasive dark sadness, Amy Lee's voice, and the fact that I can relate to so many of the lyrics.

Joy Division/New Order (their entire catalog)
KLF aka The Justified Ancients of Mu Mu furthermore known as the JAMs (this is the most interesting/convoluted band ever, they actually burned a million quid of their own money)
Vince Clarke (anyone going to see the Yazoo reunion tour?)
Pet Shop Boys (everyone should listen to "Behavior" at least once)
Depeche Mode (for "Violator" and "Black Celebration")
Sisters of Mercy ("Floodland")
70s/90s David Bowie
70s/90s Gary Numan
early Cure ("17 Seconds", "Faith", "Pornography", and "Disintegration")
honorable mention to Dubstar for their "Disgraceful" album