If anyone thought
it was just film and television that I was a sucker for, then think again. I
love music. When I say I love music, I mean that I LOVE music. Is there
anything more aurally pleasing than the vast collection of riveting, rhythmic
sounds provided by the endless sea of musical technology? And is it truly
possible for anybody to disapprove of such a thing, especially when it comes in
many forms to acknowledge and respect individuality? Music is undeniably one of
humankind’s oldest and friendliest of creations. It has the power to both find
where we belong and genuinely speak for us when our own words fail to. It’s
something we regularly look to for both comfort and support. But the best and
most important thing about music is that it never lies. By this, I’m referring
to our connection with it. The music one likes and connects with most, will
either speak for their view of the art or highlight their innermost thoughts
and feelings. Although it can expose our most personal interests, it tries and
often succeeds to make us feel okay about ourselves for owning them. Music is
everyone’s best and closest friend.
Like most other people, my love for music began ever since I was very young. Six years of age to be exact. While I don't think I ever was the sort of impressionable child that danced to everything with an energetic rhythm or beat, music still found ways to magnetise me. In my years of growing up, music video programs were still experiencing the heights of their success. I use to anticipate waking up on Saturday and Sunday mornings just to tune into these shows and admire the extra detail delivered to every song, regardless of my thoughts about each one that played. But one song would both aurally and visually captivate me. It was called By The Way, performed by the Red Hot Chili Peppers. I can’t explain what it was about this song that won me over and words can’t describe it either. I just felt a natural connection to it. Of course I continued to observe the other works from the Chili Peppers moving forward, and it’s safe to say I wasn’t at any time disappointed. It didn’t take very long for me to grow a strong liking to the American funk-rock band. This led me to my first album, given to me as a Christmas present. It was of course By The Way from the Red Hot Chili Peppers.
It might’ve been hard to remember what it was with the Chili Peppers I liked to begin with, but I definitely know what makes them so amazingly unique now. In spite of their ever-evolving hybrid style, they still managed to build their own recognisable sound. There have been a few times when I first heard their new music, not knowing it was them but guessing correctly through first hearing John Frusciante’s guitar or Chad Smith’s drum kit. Another strength of the Chili Peppers, was their distinctive image and portrayal. The lyrics written by Anthony Kiedis are so strange and abstruse but deep and potentially personal to the band. And the band present themselves in a similar manner live. Not to mention Flea is one of the best bass players of all time. As of now I own every single one of the studio albums from both of their record labels. I’ve got just about all 200+ clean-sounding pieces of music they have released as a band (thirty-four years and counting). But the Red Hot Chili Peppers became more than just a favourite band of mine. They became the point of origin. They opened me to all the other styles of music and led me to everything else entertainment-wise. If I hadn't have discovered them when I did, my interest in the arts would never have been as strong or significant as it is now. At least that's what I like to believe.
Outside of the Chili Peppers, I have grown to really appreciate the beauty different music has provided. ABBA was next in line for me, as I heard them now and then on either radio or on the Greatest Hits CD my parents had. I remember often pinching that CD when I was younger and nearly wearing the disc out, enjoying the sounds of Dancing Queen, Mamma Mia and Take A Chance On Me. For years my attention swayed back and forth between the American rock band and Sweden's biggest pop group. It was up until fifth grade when I started digging deeper, collecting music from both film and television and adding it to my newborn playlist. The earlier years, was just me mucking around and editing sounds with an audio program and burning a few CD's. But as both the list and I grew, I became far more serious. I explored new music, listening to the countdown shows on radio for a few years. I looked at the ARIA charts weekly and even searched up other music charts on YouTube. More than a decade has passed and little has changed when it comes to collecting music. My love for certain tunes is still based on where I stumble across them. And recently, I've seen myself turning on the digital radio to the eighties station. From that came my sudden passion for seventies and eighties sounds. There ain't no stopping me now, I'm on the move.
As mentioned earlier, it’s near impossible for anybody to lie about music. That’s because it speaks volumes for everyone’s character, including my own. Based on my taste of music I am someone quite considerate of the numerous shapes and sizes things come in, but still fairly selective. All the songs I regularly listen to, are ones I am able to deeply connect with. They allow me to expand on my imagination and seek comfort, even during the toughest of moments. This sees my primary playlist, built over eleven years and counting, currently consisting of 1384 tracks (at the time of writing this piece). Might not seem like a lot of songs to other big lovers of music, but it still in ways is a huge number. The music I have gathered for this playlist of mine varies in age and genre and is made up of both massive worldwide hits and not-so commercially successful works from all around the world. There are heavy rock sounds and DJ house anthems. Power ballads and disco numbers. Football club songs and soundtrack masterpieces. Crazy isn’t it? My taste stretches very wide to even include stuff released way before my time.
But if I were to give you the list of my music, the most obvious thing you will notice is the consistency. Of the approximate 376 artists on my playlist, at least two or more songs are listed for roughly about 251 of them. This can include different versions of the same song. Usually for me, the number of songs from one artist correlates to how much I admire the artist. The more music, the greater the admiration. ABBA wrote the biggest of hits in the smallest of island huts. The Bee Gees were too musically gifted. Jeff Lynne and the Electric Light Orchestra made simple music sound revolutionary. Elton John and Bernie Taupin were a match made in heaven. Fleetwood Mac made good from exploring a range of different styles, instruments and even vocals. Phil Collins gave new meaning to percussion. And modern artists like Katy Perry and Lady Gaga while in with the now, emphasise the importance of voice and story in their musical projects. These artists along with the Red Hot Chili Peppers of course cover a significant percentage of my playlist. I look to them as having brought out the best in music.
Like most other people, my love for music began ever since I was very young. Six years of age to be exact. While I don't think I ever was the sort of impressionable child that danced to everything with an energetic rhythm or beat, music still found ways to magnetise me. In my years of growing up, music video programs were still experiencing the heights of their success. I use to anticipate waking up on Saturday and Sunday mornings just to tune into these shows and admire the extra detail delivered to every song, regardless of my thoughts about each one that played. But one song would both aurally and visually captivate me. It was called By The Way, performed by the Red Hot Chili Peppers. I can’t explain what it was about this song that won me over and words can’t describe it either. I just felt a natural connection to it. Of course I continued to observe the other works from the Chili Peppers moving forward, and it’s safe to say I wasn’t at any time disappointed. It didn’t take very long for me to grow a strong liking to the American funk-rock band. This led me to my first album, given to me as a Christmas present. It was of course By The Way from the Red Hot Chili Peppers.
It might’ve been hard to remember what it was with the Chili Peppers I liked to begin with, but I definitely know what makes them so amazingly unique now. In spite of their ever-evolving hybrid style, they still managed to build their own recognisable sound. There have been a few times when I first heard their new music, not knowing it was them but guessing correctly through first hearing John Frusciante’s guitar or Chad Smith’s drum kit. Another strength of the Chili Peppers, was their distinctive image and portrayal. The lyrics written by Anthony Kiedis are so strange and abstruse but deep and potentially personal to the band. And the band present themselves in a similar manner live. Not to mention Flea is one of the best bass players of all time. As of now I own every single one of the studio albums from both of their record labels. I’ve got just about all 200+ clean-sounding pieces of music they have released as a band (thirty-four years and counting). But the Red Hot Chili Peppers became more than just a favourite band of mine. They became the point of origin. They opened me to all the other styles of music and led me to everything else entertainment-wise. If I hadn't have discovered them when I did, my interest in the arts would never have been as strong or significant as it is now. At least that's what I like to believe.
Outside of the Chili Peppers, I have grown to really appreciate the beauty different music has provided. ABBA was next in line for me, as I heard them now and then on either radio or on the Greatest Hits CD my parents had. I remember often pinching that CD when I was younger and nearly wearing the disc out, enjoying the sounds of Dancing Queen, Mamma Mia and Take A Chance On Me. For years my attention swayed back and forth between the American rock band and Sweden's biggest pop group. It was up until fifth grade when I started digging deeper, collecting music from both film and television and adding it to my newborn playlist. The earlier years, was just me mucking around and editing sounds with an audio program and burning a few CD's. But as both the list and I grew, I became far more serious. I explored new music, listening to the countdown shows on radio for a few years. I looked at the ARIA charts weekly and even searched up other music charts on YouTube. More than a decade has passed and little has changed when it comes to collecting music. My love for certain tunes is still based on where I stumble across them. And recently, I've seen myself turning on the digital radio to the eighties station. From that came my sudden passion for seventies and eighties sounds. There ain't no stopping me now, I'm on the move.
As mentioned earlier, it’s near impossible for anybody to lie about music. That’s because it speaks volumes for everyone’s character, including my own. Based on my taste of music I am someone quite considerate of the numerous shapes and sizes things come in, but still fairly selective. All the songs I regularly listen to, are ones I am able to deeply connect with. They allow me to expand on my imagination and seek comfort, even during the toughest of moments. This sees my primary playlist, built over eleven years and counting, currently consisting of 1384 tracks (at the time of writing this piece). Might not seem like a lot of songs to other big lovers of music, but it still in ways is a huge number. The music I have gathered for this playlist of mine varies in age and genre and is made up of both massive worldwide hits and not-so commercially successful works from all around the world. There are heavy rock sounds and DJ house anthems. Power ballads and disco numbers. Football club songs and soundtrack masterpieces. Crazy isn’t it? My taste stretches very wide to even include stuff released way before my time.
But if I were to give you the list of my music, the most obvious thing you will notice is the consistency. Of the approximate 376 artists on my playlist, at least two or more songs are listed for roughly about 251 of them. This can include different versions of the same song. Usually for me, the number of songs from one artist correlates to how much I admire the artist. The more music, the greater the admiration. ABBA wrote the biggest of hits in the smallest of island huts. The Bee Gees were too musically gifted. Jeff Lynne and the Electric Light Orchestra made simple music sound revolutionary. Elton John and Bernie Taupin were a match made in heaven. Fleetwood Mac made good from exploring a range of different styles, instruments and even vocals. Phil Collins gave new meaning to percussion. And modern artists like Katy Perry and Lady Gaga while in with the now, emphasise the importance of voice and story in their musical projects. These artists along with the Red Hot Chili Peppers of course cover a significant percentage of my playlist. I look to them as having brought out the best in music.
So you now know of my broad taste. But once again, I must remind you that like everybody else, I am quite picky. I do happen to express a certain amount of apathy for particular styles and eras of music. Genres like jazz, metal, hip hop and some aspects of rock and roll have more often than not, irked me for their overemphasised and/or repetitious qualities. But most of my disfavour lies with one particular category, and that is the nineties. Despite being born and raised within this decade, I’ve always viewed it as being kind of weak music-wise. Especially when I compare it to the other decades both before and after it. Most of the commercial successes and chart toppers of the nineties don't ever seem to resonate with me, as they became less about the music and more about everything else around it. While visual and auditory trends were around long before I came into this world, something about those from the nineties felt more artificial. The trend was all about ‘trying to be trendy’. It felt like most artists had to be similar. That political views were mandatory in both the writing and composition. A few groups demonstrated gender separation (E.g. Backstreet Boys, Spice Girls). Many raps songs were simple beats, short on energy. On top of all this, audience consensus saw talented music veterans pushed to the kerb and the dual role of singing and songwriting snubbed. Music was fast losing its illustriousness.
However the nineties music wasn’t all that bad. An obvious exception for me would be the Red Hot Chili Peppers, as they are my favourite band and were arguably in their peak during this era with hits like Under The Bridge, Give It Away and Scar Tissue. Other stuff I enjoy would be some of the lesser known works from those such as the Bee Gees and Phil Collins (I often like them more than the hit singles). There was the odd good song here and there from groups like The Cranberries and Lighthouse Family. But what really stood out from the rest was the movie soundtracks. It’s important to remember how phenomenal film and television was in the nineties. Many of Hollywood’s blockbusters and box office hits were put together throughout this period of time (E.g. Titanic, Star Wars, The Lion King, Jurassic Park and Independence Day). Some films were widely recognised for their epic scores, while others were tied in with memorable power ballads belted out by the likes of Elton John, Roxette, Whitney Houston, Celine Dion and even Aerosmith. In my honest opinion, the cinematic world carried music on its shoulders for ten or so years. In the end you could say that when it came to the nineties, video didn’t so much kill the radio star… it saved them.
Just about everyone loves some form of music and I'd have a hard time believing anyone that doesn't. My parents and the older generations love the music they grew up with during the sixties and seventies. Most of the kids today are all for what's hot on the charts. I've come across kids that loved electronic, house and anything associated with anime or nightcore. I knew teens that heavily invested their time in the classic rock of AC/DC and Kiss. Even my brother enjoyed music, having once been a fan of a band called Gob and burnt a few discs with their songs (one I distinctively remember was Give Up The Grudge). He doesn't seem to hold much interest for them anymore but I like to believe my brother secretly has some sort of music he listens to on a regular basis. Because of how expansive and inclusive music has become over time, it's that hard to find a person that doesn't appreciate it. Whether it's the epic drum break of In The Air Tonight (Phil Collins), the anthemic chorus of Living On A Prayer (Bon Jovi), the iconic introduction of Eye Of The Tiger (Survivor), the catchy beat of Tusk (Fleetwood Mac) or the complete gracefulness of Wuthering Heights (Kate Bush), there is something for everybody in the music world.
The way I see it, music is all a matter of opinion and there is no competition. Not even between the simple written pieces played on a grand piano and the riveting sounds from highly-favoured synthesizers. All music shares its own power, and certain people will see whatever power more for what it is than others around them. Music is so friendly and respectful, that it completely understands whatever state we're currently in and the challenges we face, while still allowing us the choice. I for one don't play any musical instrument, nor do I believe I'll ever be capable of doing so. I have no idea how to compose or produce any sort of musical rhythm. I'm not even familiar with much of the terminology. But I don't need any of that stuff to know what sounds good and what doesn't. Music is one of those things you don't need any experience with to embrace it. So I encourage all to put the headphones to their ears and dive right into that sweet-sounding ocean. You just never know what incredible tunes you might find.
Travis "TJ" James
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