Music that moves

[Jamesh]

I've been enjoying one of Johnny Cash's last albums over the last month or so. American IV: The Man Comes Around. It is mostly covers. It is one of those albums I know I never tire completely of. Don't like his old stuff very much though.

I like sentimental and emotional music. It's my release valve. He does the best version of "The First Time Ever I Saw Your Face". Dunno if it is on Youtube, but the cover of the Nine inch Nails song "Hurt" is.

[Dan Rowden]

I've been enjoying one of Johnny Cash's last albums over the last month or so.

I like sentimental and emotional music. It's my release valve. He does the best version of "The First Time Ever I Saw Your Face". Dunno if it is on Youtube[...]

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JEJqYG9RemY

Vomitous. Drunken sobbing song.

[Jamesh]

Vomitous. Drunken sobbing song.

No doubt! But I like what I like and what I like musically has been developed from 30 years of self-absorption and self-pity (based a lot I think due to my inability to find love and satisfaction from women).

I'm not detached from human emotions like you, so such music resonates with me. I'm a loser baby so why don't you kill me.

[Dan Rowden]

No need. That music will do the job eventually :)

[vicdan]

Ozzy Osbourne, I Just Want You.

It's about stripping away the illusions... about what is what is real.

There are no indisputable truths
And there ain't no fountain of youth...

[Philosophaster]

Boards of Canada - "Dayvan Cowboy":

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=A2zKARkpDW4

Even if you're not into this kind of music, watch the first minute and a half for the amazing video footage. Then read this.

[Boyan]

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qY0pi3WPvq4

The great pretender. Mercury was brilliant.

[Elizabeth Isabelle]

Pink Floyd - See Emily Play

Pink Floyd - Julia Dream

[Shahrazad]

Jamesh,

But I like what I like and what I like musically has been developed from 30 years of self-absorption and self-pity (based a lot I think due to my inability to find love and satisfaction from women).

Try beating them less. If that doesn't help, try letting go of the self-absorption and the self-pity. It's not sexy.

[bill]

And then there's Aussie (Nooooosha) Fox:

Thanks for these. I was ten when they were in the charts and I remember them vividly. Goldfrapp have not got a chance of reaching this level of artfullness.

Just thought I would add this future classic by some young (17/18) Scandinavian ladies.

'Hitten' by Those Dancing Days. Great voice.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ILuNZYmAs5o

[Laird]

Ah how the shifting sands of time wreak havoc upon YouTube links: many (most?) of the older links in this thread now lead to notices of removal due to copyright infringement or similar. I was so disheartened to discover this that I skipped over many links as I otherwise methodically read (listened) through this thread. I'll try to avoid a similar fate for any YouTube songs that I post by using two strategies: firstly by trying to also find and post a link to a live version of the song (as far as I know, copyright isn't infringed for live recordings if the cameraman posts the video) as well as by using Leyla's strategy of linking to the search results, because when a video is removed due to copyright infringement it often seems to be reposted again anyway to be found at a new url.

That there are many dead links also means that I can't guarantee that I'm not going to repost songs, which I've otherwise tried to avoid.

Before posting my own choices I want to acknowledge some of the fine music that other people have already posted. I only started recording the choices that resonated with me during the last few pages of the thread so this isn't a comprehensive list:
* Thank you Leyla, for reminding me of the beautiful "Golden Brown" by The Stranglers.
* A big, big thank you to Jason for reminding me of "The Sacrifice" by Michael Nyman, from "The Piano". This is truly moving music. It stirs up deep, deep emotions in me, to the point that tears well up in my eyes. It was a wonderful movie too.
* Thanks to Matt Gregory for introducing me to the band, "Return to Forever". I can't say that I'd have music like this on high repeat, but it's great to listen to every now and then. What I like about it is that it's so original and innovative. I'd describe how it feels to me as "structured freestyling anarchy". I checked out a couple of their other music videos on YouTube and I really liked The duel of the tyrant and the jester (live). It's a pity that the recording is truncated.
* Ah, Boyan, if you hadn't posted a link to this song then I would have! Deep Purple's "Child in time" is one of my favourite songs of theirs and it's one that definitely belongs in a thread about moving music: you are right that it contains strong emotions. I hadn't seen that particular live recording and I found it interesting that the organist played the high melody completely differently to how he plays it in the studio recording, but that it still worked well. As for: "Who can resist Freddie Mercury and Queen? Well, whoever thinks he can is in serious delusion :) No seriously." Erm, no thanks. Those guys for the most part leave me stone cold, with the occasional exception - for example, Bohemian Rhapsody is at least creative and fun even if I wouldn't like to have it on high repeat. And yeah, I haven't heard much Iron Maiden before but the lead singer does have a powerful voice. I've heard that he was a former opera singer.
* Thanks to Kev for "Vitriol". Great song and all the better that they're Aussies.
* Cory, I had forgotten all about the moving melodies of Moby! So good that you reminded me of him, and I did enjoy "Extreme ways" which I hadn't heard before. That also reminds me of another character who does similar things, although more upbeat: Fatboy Slim. He has some wicked tunes. I'll have to hunt down some music by those dudes.
* Well it wasn't notable for its speed but it was very notable for its wonderful feel, especially the climactic part towards the end: I'm talking about the Derek Trucks guitar solo on Desdemona that skipair posted.

Music that moves me, huh? I'll share a few of my favourites then, starting with a song that I've only just reacquainted myself with after over a decade of neglect and that I've had playing on constant repeat for practically all of my waking hours over the past two days:
What I Am by Edie Brickell and New Bohemians (search; live in San Francisco in 2006; live on Letterman with a brief interview; lyrics)
This song hooks me in at the very start with the subtletly of its guitar riff: so minimalist with the feeling of notes left unplayed to be filled in by the imagination. It locks into a laid-back groove and never leaves it but at the same time there's enough variety in the melody to keep it interesting. There's not a moment in this song where I feel "well yeah, that's OK but it doesn't quite hit the mark" - every single moment of this song is pure pleasure. It's the feeling that I love most of all though, and that I don't quite know how to describe: partly elated, partly contained, partly affirming.

Edie's voice is plaintive, evocative, longing; a delightful mixture of childlike naivete and adult maturity. I love the way that she moves: languid, with a hint of funkiness and with a suggestion of a slight lack of confidence that's better described as sincerely human modesty. The David Letterman interview with her doesn't get into anything deep but it reveals her as a fun, joyful and delightful personality. I would have liked it better if he'd asked her about the lyrics.

Speaking of the lyrics: I think that they're fantastic, especially the way that Edie delivers them. I love their associations: "Philosophy is the talk on a cereal box. Religion is the smile on a dog" - I've made that my current Skype mood message. But what in the world would Dan make of these lyrics? My guess: "Utterly vapid, inane and insipid insanity!" And David? "'Choke me in the shallow water before I get too deep': This is the very epitome of Woman!" As for Kevin: an inscrutible silence. I guess that different people will interpret them differently - my interpretation of them is that they're decrying the unnecessary and ultimately pointless intellectualisation and abstract thought of a lot of philosophy and instead encouraging us to realise that what we know innately is enough to live a creative, joyous, fulfilling life, and that religion when practiced with sincere loyalty and devotion might offer joy in itself.

How about this one: "Philosophy is a walk on the slippery rocks. Religion is a light in the fog." The way that she delivers the second sentence it might read "Religion is a lie in the fog". Either way works for me - I'm not really certain of my attitude towards religion. Hush now David, I know what you're thinking: "Yes Laird, that's your problem - you like to bliss out on uncertainty. You have a reasonably analytical mind but you're so attached to the common modern delusion that ultimate certainty is impossible that you have no hope of ever becoming enlightened." How'd I go? Speaking of David, where is the big fella these days? I haven't seen him post in a while.

Prior to locking Edie on high repeat I had on high repeat another female musician whom I've also recently rediscovered: the Aussie sensation Penelope Swales. Penelope is a very creative and talented singer-songwriter. She sings with strength and authenticity, she's a fantastic storyteller (I've seen her perform and she prefaces each song with a riveting introduction) with a great sense of humour, she has a strong sense of social and environmental justice (she's currently studying law at university in order to be able to take practical action), she is crafty (she makes stringed and percussive instruments out of gourds - pumpkins - as used in a band that she plays in, Totally Gourdgeous), she's wise and intelligent (listen to her lyrics: they're full of meaning and insight), she's a strong character (as she writes in one of her songs: "People see my tough exterior and think that I don't care"), she's blunt to a point, she's physically attractive, and she's polyamorous (last year she performed at the Seventh Annual Poly Pride Day in New York). I mean, really, what more could one want in a woman?

Six of Penelope's songs are available for free listening on the mp3.com.au site. The three that I recommend (I had these on constant repeat for several days) are:
Natural World (choice lyrics: "And you and I are the plankton that the multinationals graze upon" and "Protect your passion and your motivation - coz they're the most precious things you own"),
How Good It Is (choice lyrics: well, the whole damn song really, but let me pick out a few of them: "You spent so much time trying to be so nice. But sometimes it’s better just to spill your guts. To be real ‘bout how you really feel - even if it comes out sounding a little rough." Oh, and these lyrics are so very appropriate to this forum: "And it’s all very well to huff up and say that grown-ups shouldn’t feel this way. But the point is that we do, we do."),
Just Twisted (lyrics)
Choice lyrics from Just Twisted: again, the whole song, but here are a couple of selections that I really like:
"Honesty sounds simple
But it's not, my dearest chum
Most people wouldn't know their own mind
If it bit them on the bum"
and
"Now I'm not bitter, I'm just twisted
But people look at love like it's a shopping list
I wanna house, a spouse, a picket fence
Someone who always talks in the present tense
So it's never just me - no, always "us"
With no-one ever raising the slightest fuss
No, never a word 'bout the scratchin' clawing
Things going on behind closed doors an'
I tell you it fills my soul with claustrophobia
I tell you it fills my soul with claustrophobia"

Right on Penelope!

Moving on:

"In October 2006, a team of nine young Australian travelled to South Africa as part of the Soundscape Music Tour to spend two weeks writing and recording a collaborative CD with a Zulu Choir. The choir, called Connections Gospel Choir, is based in a rural Zulu community called Kwa Nyuswa, situated between Durban and Pietermaritzburg in the Valley of a Thousand Hills region - a region challenged by poverty, unemployment, crime and one of the highest rates of HIV/AIDS in the world.

Together Connections and the Australian team formed the group Simunye Sound, with 'Simunye' being Zulu for 'we are one'."

That quote is taken from the cover notes of the CD of wonderful music that I received mid-way through last year from my cousin, Sarah, who was one of those nine young Australians. You can sample three of the songs on this CD through the Simunye Sound MySpace page. I'm not that big a fan of the song, "Small Voice", but I love the other two: "Celebrate" and "Hello Hholla", the second of which they've uploaded to YouTube as a music video. My cousin Sarah is the white chick with the short blonde hair who can be seen in this video dancing enthusiastically and also as part of an audience. Love ya cuz, you're a joyous inspiration to me!

What I like about this music is that it's celebratory, uplifting, hopeful and positive. I love in particular about "Celebrate" the swelling sounds of the Zulu choir.

This is a great project to support because profits from the CD sales directly assist a poor region of the world that really needs it. You can order CDs through the MySpace page that I linked to above, or contact me and I'll give you Sarah's email address - last I heard she could sell you a CD for AU$23.00 plus postage and handling.

Ah, but Sarah isn't the only of my cousins who has musical talent! Her brother, Mark Boulle, is quite a nifty singer-songwriter who's formed a band named "Mark Boulle and the Haba Dudes" and who has released an album with that band, as well as, which is news to me - gotta talk to ya more cuz - apparently a solo album too now.

Without casting aspersions on the rest of his creative output, the main reason that I mention Mark in a thread on moving music is because his song, "Static", really moves me. The violin solo in this song is something special: truly beautiful. It can be heard for free through Mark's MySpace homepage and through his band's 2007 MusicOz Awards entry page.

Mark's CDs are available for purchase online.

Moving on again:

Last year I wrote for a friend a description of a song that moves me powerfully. That song is:
Rotten Apple by Alice in Chains (search; live; lyrics)
The description that I wrote of it is this:
"It has emotional depth. It pries open in my mind the fear that I am wrong, that I am descended from sin and complicit in tasting of evil; that I have made a pact to survive on the suffering of others. But how is it that I can value the experience of fear? Because it is couched in such sorrowfully beautiful melody. The guitar plucks at my resonating soul. The lyrical expression is harmonic and haunting. I experience the comfort of evil and somehow the horror of it transmutes into the poignancy of belief in a way out."

And what thread on moving music would be complete without mention of Portishead? Indeed I notice that near the beginning of this thread someone posted a link to "Roads", one of the most moving songs that I have ever heard. Given that we've had the best, I'll choose from the rest something very appropriate for this forum:
Glory Box by Portishead (search; live at Glastonbury in 1998; live in 1994; lyrics)
(Unfortunately all of the live recordings that I could find of this song seem to have been professionally produced and I suspect that they won't survive the longevity test, but I'm sure that this song will always be available through the search link)

The purity of this woman's voice and the pristine sounds that she gets out of it are mindblowing. Beth Gibbons: you give me a reason to be a man.

Hmm, I was going to move on but after listening to Glory Box so many times I can't now: I've got the Portishead bug, and Beth and the gang really deserve more recognition than they've been given so far in this thread. I mean, these guys are quality through and through. The music is at times brooding, ethereal and spooky, but it's always just perfect. The production quality of their albums is so good that listening to them is like examining a flawless diamond, and even their live performances are without fault, so without further ado, here are a couple of other spectacularly moving Portishead tunes:
Wandering Stars by Portishead N.B. not the official video (search; live; lyrics)
Humming by Portishead (search; live at Roseland NYC in 1997; lyrics)
(Again, all of the live videos for these songs seem to have been professionally produced so they might not survive long on YouTube...)
The sounds in "Humming" seem to have been so carefully and painstakingly selected: notice how many of the sounds seem to warble, waver, resonate, tremble and vibrate in a trippy kind of way - Beth even manages to effect this warble into her voice - and also notice the scratchy-record sound: that sound seems to squeeze the pleasure centres of my brain. There's something magical about the vibratory sounds in this song: one time (years ago now) lying down in my lounge room listening to it with my full concentration I felt myself leaving my body, but for some reason I never actually left.

Now if there's one genre of music that I loath with all of my soul it's heavy metal. I'm not talking here about hard rock or generally heavy music, I'm talking about that specific style of bash-'n-thrash music where the double-bass pedals are in constant motion and the lead singer roars like a demon out of hell: the sort of music that you're destined to have one of the loud, aggressive, drunken guys next door wake you up with at 3am in the morning at least once in your life, as my neighbour would have done several months ago but for the fact that I was already awake (and for the fact that he's not particularly aggressive). I paid him a visit and suggested with all of the assertivity that I could muster that a far better choice for that time of night and that volume would be Portishead's "Roads", which he'd never heard of before and which he barely listened to with a distracted, uncomprehending look on his face: clearly subtle music is lost on this man, he requires of his music the force (and creativity) of a sledgehammer. So I'm delighted to know that for those who would love to experience the power of heavy metal but who hate its bland, jarring aspects, there's a band who fits the tee perfectly, and that band is Tool: heavy power and subtlety. I notice that someone has already posted in this thread a link to their title-track song, Aenima - which album is in my opinion the zenith of their creative output: every single song on that album is rich and potent - so I'll choose a couple of other songs from that album to showcase their awesomely powerful sounds:
Eulogy by Tool (search; live at Ashbury Park, NJ in 1997; lyrics)
Don't be confused or put off by the long, slow build-up: the end result is well worth persevering for. The lyrics are as powerful as the music, they really nail the fake martyrs to the cross - here's a sample:
"Standing above the crowd,
He had a voice that was strong and loud and I
Swallowed his facade cuz I'm so
Eager to identify with
Someone above the ground,
Someone who seemed to feel the same,
Someone prepared to lead the way, with
Someone who would die for me.
Will you? Will you now?
Would you die for me?
Don't you fuckin lie"
Stinkfist by Tool (search; live; lyrics)
This song's ostensible subject matter might be a bit off-putting (it is to me anyway) but it has a deeper meaning - it's really talking about insatiability in general, as is made clear in these lyrics:
"Something kinda sad about
the way that things have come to be.
Desensitized to everything.
What became of subtlety?
How can this mean anything to me
If I really don't feel anything at all?
I'll keep digging till
I feel something."

I really like the passion and the individuality that Tori Amos puts into her music, and I admire her musical ability and her voice, but everything that I've heard of hers pretty much leaves me shrugging with indifference... except for this:
Cornflake Girl by Tori Amos (search; live; lyrics - not that I can find much meaning in them but they're pretty quirky)

OK, a bit more Australiana for ya, an awesomely talented group who go by the name of John Butler Trio. All of their stuff's fantastic but this one moves me the most:
Oldman by John Butler Trio - N.B. not the official video (search; live - starts part-way through the song and not great quality, but it was the only live version that I could find; lyrics)

This next dude's already been given a few guernseys in this thread but he really deserves them. This song of his is one that I should have played to Leyla way back when I first started posting and when she began hammering away at me - doubly so because she loves the guy. It's no longer applicable in that context because these days Leyla gives me respect, but it's a great song so here it is anyway. Leyla, transport yourself back several months and imagine these words coming out of my mouth destined for your ears (some of them still apply):
Whipping Boy by Ben Harper (search; live - definitely check this link out, it's an awesome performance with an incredible extended slide guitar solo; lyrics)

Towards the end of my second-last year of high school we found out that the reason that my mother's throat had been so sore for so long was that it was playing host to a malignant cancer. Within a few months she was dead. I guess that most guys reckon that their ma's the tops, but then they didn't get to experience mine. It's impossible to fully describe the emptiness that I felt when it finally happened. It was like my abdomen had opened up into a gaping hole. What I remember most about when it happened is that I had the most burning sensitivity towards insincerity, and I don't just mean towards people expressing insincere concern, I mean towards every form of insincerity that there is. If you weren't going to be genuine around me then I had nothing but contempt for you and you could pretty much just fuck right off. Anyway this song was in the charts during that period, and the music (but not so much the lyrics, except for the very appropriate first line: "I got a bad disease") captures what I was feeling at the time. It's one of the most poignant songs that I know of:
Soul To Squeeze by The Red Hot Chili Peppers (search; live; lyrics)

I'll leave you with, from their zenith album "Ten" (as with Aenima every single song is golden), this elegantly sad song:
Black by Pearl Jam - as far as I can tell this is not the official video clip (search; live; lyrics)
(I'm not quite sure about the longevity of the live clip because it has a branding on it but it doesn't look professional, and it's pretty good quality, so I'm going with it anyway)

[Boyan]

Hey, Laird, I appreciate the comments.

No, the singer of Maiden wasn't an opera singer, though he probably could've been. After setting legendary status in Maiden he got a bit bored and left the band for 5 years to research his own creative potential properly.

Here is some of his best solo work.

Tears of the dragon
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=szDnELHjLsc This is a reflective one intermixed with rich operatic singing in the chorus.


Navigating the seas of the Sun
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wER75apfdOU Again a reflective, emotional one. Something about the future heights of mankind in relation to the possibility of proper space travel.


Jerusalem , set to Kingdom of heaven (this one is from a concept album centered around and inspired by William Blake's poetry)

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=n6MS_OEVnk4


Bruce is an enthusiastic pilot, and this song speaks about that, or actually about the first pioneering efforts at flying, like those of the Wright brothers.
Kill devil hill
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GqxErKiZZhg

[Laird]

Ah, so Bruce Dickinson's the name! Yeah, I remember one night way back in 1999 when I was randomly listening to The Hour of Power show on JJJ (a - deservedly - popular publicly funded "youth" radio station here in Australia) and I heard a Bruce Dickinson (of whom I'd never heard before) song that awed me with its majesty. I didn't get around to trying to track it down until years later when I found the scrap of paper that I'd written his name on but I couldn't find any of his stuff on the internet and wasn't motivated to ask at a music store. So: I finally get closure on that episode! Well, partial closure - I don't think that any of the songs that you posted are the one that I heard all of those many years ago, but it's too long ago now for me to even know whether I'd recognise it if I heard it again.

Speaking of the songs that you posted, I have to say of the first three that whilst his voice is a joy to listen to, the songs themselves I could take or leave. I'm not saying that I dislike them, just that I'm somewhat ambivalent. The fourth one though I enjoyed much more.

By the way, the url that you posted for "Jerusalem, set to Kingdom of heaven", was the same url that you posted for "Navigating the seas of the Sun". I found the Jerusalem song anyhow as one of the links in the "Related Videos" box but you might want to edit your post to fix that.

[Sharly_Li]

There aren't that many honest artists out there anymore


PJ Harvey - White Chalk

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CrCQbrFCQ1I

[Dave Toast]

Laird, regarding your search for a genre defying death metal band, let me introduce you to a band David first put me onto a long while back. They're called Opeth. No descriptions or anything, I'll just let the music talk.

These are all studio versions as I reckon they're a better introduction than live stuff and they have no video so stream much quicker for those outback download speeds. While they're obviously not going to be primo quality on youtube, they're not too bad at all.

A few tracks from Deliverance (2002)

Deliverance (part 1)
Deliverance (part 2)
For Absent Friends
Master's Apprentices (part 1)
Master's Apprentices (part 2)
The Pain I See In Others


The entirity of Ghost Reveries (2005)

Ghost Of Perdition
The Baying Of The Hounds
Beneath The Mire
Atonement
Reverie/Harlequin Forest (part 1)
Reverie/Harlequin Forest (part 2)
Hours Of Wealth
The Grand Conjuration
Isolation Years

Enjoy!

I think you'll find that Tool are just playing at it.

[Laird]

Dave, I listened all the way through to "Beneath The Mire". I couldn't take any more. I have a few nice things to say about them: not all of the music was heinous. There were some reasonably melodic interludes. The guy can actually sing pleasantly when he wants to. Some of the riffs were OK.

But that's all. As for the majority of it, here are a few words that come to mind: ugly, offensive, dischordant, grating, irritating, unpleasant. What did you expect? I told you specifically what I don't like about heavy metal: the incessant double-kick drumming and the demonic roaring. And I told you not merely that I don't like it, but that I loath it with all of my soul. Opeth has this in spades. For the most part (i.e. excluding the half-way decent interludes) this is the sort of music that they'd play as they tortured you in hell.

I think you'll find that Tool are just playing at it.

Oh, Tool aren't even in the game. They're not a heavy metal / death metal band. They're just heavy.

[Ataraxia]

Tool's early albums Aenema and Undertow were absolutes gems.Am a bit over them these days.

Ministry anyone? Not exactly enlightened music but it gets the heart a pumpin' nonetheless :)



http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3RBKTo5K14M

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PlcvJjRv ... re=related

[Steven Coyle]

Now, this shit is heavy...

M. Ward - O'Brien
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wSwT0XjAW6U

:-)

And, another honest artist, from back in the day...
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oCeKkJlMJDQ

[Dave Toast]

Dave, I listened all the way through to "Beneath The Mire". I couldn't take any more. I have a few nice things to say about them: not all of the music was heinous. There were some reasonably melodic interludes. The guy can actually sing pleasantly when he wants to. Some of the riffs were OK.

Well, you chose the wrong song if you're only going to listen to one. The idea is to listen to more than one though otherwise you won't get it. You have to let that initial prejudice die down before you start hearing the proggy, classical complexity.

But that's all. As for the majority of it, here are a few words that come to mind: ugly, offensive, dischordant, grating, irritating, unpleasant. What did you expect? I told you specifically what I don't like about heavy metal: the incessant double-kick drumming and the demonic roaring. And I told you not merely that I don't like it, but that I loath it with all of my soul. Opeth has this in spades. For the most part (i.e. excluding the half-way decent interludes) this is the sort of music that they'd play as they tortured you in hell.

I would agree in most cases. There aren't many, if any, other death metal groups I'd listen to as I'm not into the growling or bog standard musicianship - it might as well be Kylie. The double kick thing depends on how good it is for me. I've always played with just the one kick but I can appreciate it done well. And the likes of this guy or Mike Portnoy from Dream Theatre do it very well.

I reckon it must be my grounding in prog and fusion that opened me up to Opeth because, as I say, I wouldn't ordinarily give death metal the time of day.

[Laird]

Laird: Dave, I listened all the way through to "Beneath The Mire".

Dave: Well, you chose the wrong song if you're only going to listen to one.

Argh, sorry I didn't express myself well there. I meant that I listened to each of the songs that you posted up until I reached "Beneath The Mire".

I don't pay much attention to the details of death metal music (how is "death metal" distinct from "heavy metal"?), so for all I know these guys really are the cream of the crop. I don't mean to disparage their musical ability, it's just that the whole genre, no matter how talented the band, is really, really not my scene.

[Jason]

Laird if you like Tool you might also like A Perfect Circle, Maynard Keenan from Tool does vocals:
A Perfect Circle - Judith

[Dave Toast]

Laird: Dave, I listened all the way through to "Beneath The Mire".

Dave: Well, you chose the wrong song if you're only going to listen to one.

Argh, sorry I didn't express myself well there. I meant that I listened to each of the songs that you posted up until I reached "Beneath The Mire".

I don't pay much attention to the details of death metal music (how is "death metal" distinct from "heavy metal"?), so for all I know these guys really are the cream of the crop. I don't mean to disparage their musical ability, it's just that the whole genre, no matter how talented the band, is really, really not my scene.

Fair enough, you've obviously given it a bit of a go then. I just figured your search for a group that defied the shortcoming of the death metal genre was better fulfilled by Opeth as they are the cream of the crop without doubt.

Should have guessed really looking at your tastes in the long post but, what with what you wrote about Portishead, I thought you might be into a bit of dischord and dissonance. I guess the likes of Zappa, Varese and even Portsihead prepared me for it. On the subject of Beth Gibbons, she put out a solo effort in 2002 called Out Of Season which is worth checkin if you like her style. Another similarly haunting voice can be found in Anthony and the Johnsons. And then if you like that kind of stuff, you might well enjoy the likes of Jeff Buckley and/or Rufus Wainwright (best I could find on YT).

In the hope of showing that double kick can be imaginative and interesting, here's some early Dream Theatre and some later stuff.

It doesn't sound like you're into instrumental stuff but here's some of my faves just in case: Some Space Rock from Ozric Tentacles, and again, and again, and again and some jazz/rock fusion from Dixie Dregs (not the best but best I could find on YT) and Mahavishnu Orchestra (again, not the best but best I could find).

[Laird]

Laird if you like Tool you might also like A Perfect Circle, Maynard Keenan from Tool does vocals:
A Perfect Circle - Judith

Hey Jason. I once upon a time had a copy of A Perfect Circle's first album, Mer De Noms. I feel about it what I feel about every Tool album other than Aenima: one or two gems of utter brilliance but the rest of the album is fairly pedestrian (well, better than average but not so good that I'd want to spend money on it in retrospect). One of the songs that I kind of liked was the one that you posted a link to: Judith. But the killer song of that album for me was this one:
Orestes by A Perfect Circle (search; live; lyrics)

The harmonies in this song are spectacular. The guitar solo rocks. And the lyrics are potent even though I don't fully understand them.

Should have guessed really looking at your tastes in the long post but, what with what you wrote about Portishead, I thought you might be into a bit of dischord and dissonance.

Yeah, I am on occasion, for example I like some of the work of Mr Bungle, whose lead singer, Mike Patton, is shared with another band some of whose music (but as with Tool, definitely not all of their music) I think is awesome: Faith No More. I must admit however that my first reaction to Mr Bungle was "Oh my God, how can anyone tolerate this utter garbage?" It grew on me though to the point that I now think that the entirety of their self-titled album is creative genius: strange, insane, unexpected sounds; the music itself, let alone the lyrics, is satirical - take this song for example, which satirises the fairground:
Carousel by Mr Bungle (search; no live version as I couldn't find a good enough quality one; lyrics)

On the subject of Beth Gibbons, she put out a solo effort in 2002 called Out Of Season which is worth checkin if you like her style.

I knew that she was going to put out an album because a long time ago I checked out her website and sampled some of the snippets that were available on it, and I remember thinking to myself that I would love to hear the finished product, but I never got around to it. Trying to get hold of that album or at least a couple of the songs on it is now on my todo list.

Another similarly haunting voice can be found in Anthony and the Johnsons.

I haven't heard that one before but it is a great song. It reminded me of this:
Why Does My Heart Feel So Bad by Moby (search; live at Glastonbury in 2000; lyrics - yeah, I know, there are hardly any of them but the last line is kind of hard to make out)
(Again, the live clip might not have longevity as it's professionally done, but this song has tonnes of listings on the search page)

And then if you like that kind of stuff, you might well enjoy the likes of Jeff Buckley

I've heard a bit of Jeff Buckley on the radio and I regret to say that I'm pretty ambivalent to his music - it doesn't do much for me - the song that you linked to included.

and/or Rufus Wainwright

I've never heard of the guy before but my sentiments are similar as for Jeff Buckley's music: innocuous but uninspiring. Then again it sometimes takes me a few listens to form a true opinion and I only listened to it the once.

In the hope of showing that double kick can be imaginative and interesting, here's some early Dream Theatre and some later stuff.

Yeah, the use of the double kick there is a damn sight more inspiring than in death metal. As for the music itself I could take it or leave it. I preferred the second song though.

It doesn't sound like you're into instrumental stuff

Oh, I like some instrumental stuff. Music doesn't have to have vocals to interest me.

here's some of my faves just in case: Some Space Rock from Ozric Tentacles, and again, and again, and again

Gold, Dave. Sheer, utter and undeniable gold, particularly the song titled "Philmology - Rene Magritte". Thanks for that mate, this band is definitely going to make its way into my collection. I loved the videos as well although I'm multitasking at the moment so I didn't devote my full attention to them.

Hmm, speaking of instrumental bands, I'm having flashbacks to a band that a flatmate introduced me to back in about 2000 and whom I haven't heard since then. They were quite good, and this music reminds me a bit of them. Something like Kiass or Kyass or Kius. Anyone know who I'm talking about? I've done a bit of googling on those variations and nothing's turned up.

and some jazz/rock fusion from Dixie Dregs

Yeah, I quite liked that too - not as much as Ozric Tentacles but it's definitely pleasing to listen to.

and Mahavishnu Orchestra

As above.

[Dave Toast]

Laird,

Yeah, I am on occasion, for example I like some of the work of Mr Bungle, whose lead singer, Mike Patton, is shared with another band some of whose music (but as with Tool, definitely not all of their music) I think is awesome: Faith No More. I must admit however that my first reaction to Mr Bungle was "Oh my God, how can anyone tolerate this utter garbage?" It grew on me though to the point that I now think that the entirety of their self-titled album is creative genius: strange, insane, unexpected sounds; the music itself, let alone the lyrics, is satirical - take this song for example, which satirises the fairground:
Carousel by Mr Bungle (search; no live version as I couldn't find a good enough quality one; lyrics)

Bungle and FNM aren't really my kind of thing but I can appreciate some of what they did.

Patton is an interesting one though. He's been in plenty of whacky groups and side projects. One of them is The Dillinger Escape Plan who play what's called Mathcore, due to it's rhythmic complexity. This sounded interesting to me when I came across them a while back (via investigating a group called Horse The Band) as rhythmic complexity is what I like most in music. I've since deleted all their stuff from my collection as I just couldn't stand it. If you think you didn't like Opeth, check some DEP (ignore the video). And while I'm talking about it, Horse The band play a style they call Nintendocore, named as such as it's metalcore (of which Mathcore is a flavour) with a Nintendo influenced keyboard. It's whacky but I found it fairly interesting although not especially technically proficient. So, for instance, the song Cutsman is about the old Nintendo game Mega Man and incorporates the old 8-bit tunes from it. Bet you enjoyed them!

I haven't heard that one before but it is a great song. It reminded me of this:
Why Does My Heart Feel So Bad by Moby (search; live at Glastonbury in 2000; lyrics - yeah, I know, there are hardly any of them but the last line is kind of hard to make out)
(Again, the live clip might not have longevity as it's professionally done, but this song has tonnes of listings on the search page)

Yeah I've got all of Moby's stuff but haven't listened to it for a long time as it didn't hold my interest for too long.

I've heard a bit of Jeff Buckley on the radio and I regret to say that I'm pretty ambivalent to his music - it doesn't do much for me - the song that you linked to included.

Shame!

I've never heard of the guy before but my sentiments are similar as for Jeff Buckley's music: innocuous but uninspiring. Then again it sometimes takes me a few listens to form a true opinion and I only listened to it the once.

I'd investigate this one further if I were you. He is without doubt one of the best singer/songwriters working today. He plays what's referred to as Piano Rock, as does another fave of mine, Ben Folds, ex-of Ben Folds Five, and again. Both great performers live too. And speaking of singer/songwriters another fave, although completely different, is the tragic Nick Drake, and again.

Yeah, the use of the double kick there is a damn sight more inspiring than in death metal. As for the music itself I could take it or leave it. I preferred the second song though.

Of course there's been plenty of Jazz and Fusion drummers that have used double kick interestingly. Check out Tony Royster Junior, a total prodigy. This is an unbelievable solo from when he was 12 years old ffs!

Gold, Dave. Sheer, utter and undeniable gold, particularly the song titled "Philmology - Rene Magritte". Thanks for that mate, this band is definitely going to make its way into my collection. I loved the videos as well although I'm multitasking at the moment so I didn't devote my full attention to them.

Heh, at least I got one right then. This is probably my favourite band although such things are hard to say. They're certainly the band I've seen live most often. They're also David's fave, coincidentally. If you listen to the podcasts, you'll find they all begin and end with Ozrics, at least the ones I've listened to did anyway.

The one with all the Magritte video is actually titled Saucers. There's quite a lot of eastern influence in that track as there is in many of their others but they take inspiration from everything from Gong to Steve Vai to Bob Marley to Ravi Shankar, and everything inbetween if that's possible. None of those vids linked are official btw, they're just the best way I could find studio versions on YT. They're not the type of band to put out videos. I'm quite jealous of all the pleasure you'll get discovering Ozrics. They have a fairly large catalogue to explore.

Hmm, speaking of instrumental bands, I'm having flashbacks to a band that a flatmate introduced me to back in about 2000 and whom I haven't heard since then. They were quite good, and this music reminds me a bit of them. Something like Kiass or Kyass or Kius. Anyone know who I'm talking about? I've done a bit of googling on those variations and nothing's turned up.

Not a clue mate.

[Leyla Shen]

Thanks for these. I was ten when they were in the charts and I remember them vividly.

Yes, they're definitely some of my all-time favourites. Welcome to the forum.

* Thank you Leyla, for reminding me of the beautiful "Golden Brown" by The Stranglers.

A timely remark, Laird. As you now know, I've just returned from humid, hot and sunny Queensland quite toasted myself. Beina a sand island, they have a desert out there just like in the video clip! Moreton Island (and the wild dolphin resort there) is definitely a place to go. For one's budget, however, bear in mind that I can get a much better pizza (and just about any other food item) here for a quarter of the price. What I can't get is that wild dolphin experience, which was indeed really something.

It's no longer applicable in that context because these days Leyla gives me respect, . . .

Now, Laird, are you deliberately trying to ruin my reputation? I have always shown you the utmost respect! (Great tune, naturally.) Was I not just as direct and forthright in person? Perhaps my physical appearance somehow softens the blows? After all, who could expect such a sharp tongue-in-keyboard from such an innocent face?

Leyla, transport yourself back several months and imagine these words coming out of my mouth destined for your ears (some of them still apply):

Well, I certainly would have been concerned if you tried to follow me to Queensland . . .

. . . definitely check this link out, it's an awesome performance with an incredible extended slide guitar solo; lyrics)

Yes, indeed.

~

Brisbane, Dan?? What have you done to it? I mean, what the . . . !

That there's one spooky ol' major city, jeez. Asked some lone guy for help with directions, his emphatic words still echoing in my mind, "Whatever you do, DON'T cross over the bridge." Well, I should have said, "It's OK, this is Brisbane and I'm quite used to the fact that every road leads right back to where you started and if you drive around in circles long enough, you eventually get sucked into the right portal out of nowhere to where you want to be"

Immaculate condition, modern, well kept---but no god damned people! Five star restaurants, white linen, shimmering glass and silverware---no people! Trains and buses running---no people! Ferris wheel outside the performing arts centre---3 Japanese tourists taking a picture in front of it with the operator! Maybe that's just Wednesdays? I'm sure it wasn't quite that bad when I last visited. Was like walking onto a Spielberg set.