Your Music: A Reflection on your Life

[Aberinkula]

[COLOR="DarkSlateGray"][SIZE="1"]I want everyone to try and do me a favor... look at the posts I've made in this thread: [URL="http://otakuboards.com/showthread.php?t=57603"]Petentious Music for Pretentious Musicians[/URL] Yeah, see how foolish I was then, the worst thing about it is now that I read that, I cringe at myself.

It's odd how small amounts of time bring large amounts of change. So, I'd like to know what music have you listened to throughout your life, like a music biography, if you will. You can do it like I did, or something different, it's up to you.

[U][B]Birth[/B][/U]
My brother got me into music, to me it was important, but not that important. I started by listening to KoRn, Limp Biscuit, Eminem and stuff like that. But my favorite band was Linkin Park, and now they're not even on my favorites list! That was the time where I was indulged with hip-hop and I even tried rapping. My mentor: Eminem.

[B][U]The First Progressive Era [/U][/B]
I was getting more serious with music, I listened to a lot more Linkin Park and stuff like Evanescence, in other words, I was a radio geek, however, I was starting to grow a bit more, and my music appreciation level grew.

[B][U]The Middle Ages[/U][/B]
I started listening to Avenged Sevenfold, and soon Breaking Benjamin, Mudvayne and Bullet for my Valentine settled it's way in. I was foolish at this time, and evidence of that is strewn throughout OB. (see thread above) But I still enjoyed music nonetheless. And soon I decided it was time to change a bit and I discovered
metal bands such as Mastodon and Amon Amarth, and soon I discovered Fair to Midland.

[B][U]The Second Progressive Era (from late 13 - now)[/U][/B]
Still far away from good, but I was maturing, my attitude on OB was still stubborn. But over time I began to listen to more bands, my newest fav was Coheed and Cambria which was my foray into greater music, than it was Tool, and so on. The Mars Volta, Chevelle and 3 were all bands that were helping me improve, and soon I got into hardcore/screamo music. Bands like Circle Takes the Square, Between the Buried and Me and other various bands paved the way to my current music obsessions. Site's like Projectplaylist and surprisingly, Wikipedia introduced me to some bands (Circle Takes the Square and Heaven Shall Burn, for example were found through Wikipedia) as well.[/SIZE][/COLOR]

[Haku877]

Well, if this were an auto-biograpy of music I would take it into terms of, what music describes you life so far, but looking at your post, I was close.

[U][I]The Beginning[/I][/U]
When I first started getting to notice or acctually get into music was about, I'd say 4th maybe 5th grade, and remember this is when I really "Noticed it". I belive it was fourth grade when I started listening to classical and or nature, as some would call it, types of music cause I loved the calm sense of comfort it brought. also I was interested in some country, thanks be to my father.

[I][U] The Understandmentt [/U][/I]
Well I really got into music in 7th grade because I got really involved in the band and I could notices the different articulations and variations, and for any who care i play the flute and piccolo...yes, yes I do. and that got me going on more upbeat songs and fast rythmec type stuff.

[I][U]About Now[/U][/I]
Now? well I love fast songs and kinda techno. But I really love band music the best, AND JAZZ! man that stuff kicks! I listen to classical alot and slow songs and the amazing Michael Jackson/ Jackson 5. and weird al. hes pretty cool too.

But thats the jist of my life really.:animesigh

I hope that is anything near what it was supposed to!

[Panache]

As corny as this seems what the hell I got time to kill.

When I was young and my mom would play music it was never the same. She would play a very wide variety of things. [B]Pink Floyd,Depeche Mode,Nirvana,Creed,Sade,and A Tribe Called Quest[/B] was the kind of variety she played. When I was around 8 I consciously looked for music on my own. I was really into hard rock and rap music. All really popular stuff.

My first CD I ever purchased was [B]Alien Ant Farms Debut album[/B]. I bought it for one song and only appreciated that one song (Smooth Criminal). I was actually incapable of accepting it was originally done by Michael Jackson. He was some freak and I thought only beautiful people made beautiful music(I was 9 shut up). From 10 on up I only [B]listened to hip hop and hard rock[/B]. bands like System of a Down and Disturbed scared me. I thought they were satanic(to be fair that IS what everyone told me). I basically listened to pop till I was 13.

Up till then I thought all the stuff my mom listened to was lame. I didn't have any appreciation for music or opinions for that matter. When I was 13 I listened to [B]System of a Down and Disturbed [/B]a lot. I was slowly getting weaned of of popular rap onto popular hard rock. When I was around 14 I was introduced to several bands. The first and most important of which was Metallica. This got me into metal. I searched for it all the time. In about 3 months the only thing I would listen to is metal. I loved it and wouldn't listen to anything else.

Then there was [B]Tool[/B]. I remembered a song my mom played a long time ago. I looked around on the web for it until I found it. this song was called schism. Long story short I bought every album and all I listened to was Tool. [I]Anything Tool related I would eat up[/I]. It was the raw emotional connection I had to it. It touched me on a deep level unlike any other music before it. Eventually however I needed more. So I searched everywhere for some type of music to cling to. Through this I discovered every type of music has something to offer. [I]And now I am open to anything pretty much[/I]. I can listen to what my mom listens to and have an actual appreciation for what it is trying to convey.

If you read this Kudos to you. you learned a little more about me :).

Edit:The bold and Italicized stuff is for non wall of text readers.

[Muad'Dib]

[COLOR="Navy"][FONT="Franklin Gothic Medium"][B]Early Years:[/B]
When I was young, I didn't listen to a whole lot. I remember distinctly that the first actual band I ever showed an interest in was the Beatles. Real old-school. This was mostly because my dad was a Beatles nut, and he sort of passed it on to me. For quite a few years, the Beatles were pretty much all I listened to. I was (and still am) very picky about what I would listen to, and never really bought any CDs.

[b]Awakening:[/b]
Finally, around middle school, I let my music tastes start to branch out. I discovered that I really liked what I would later learn was Alternative Rock. The first band of the genre that I got really "into" was System of a Down. Their style was so radically different from anything I had heard before, I searched diligently for their albums. After SoaD, oddly enough, I discovered the Gorillaz. I enjoyed their random style, even the hip-hop elements, surprising since I detested rap. Again, my choice of bands remained small for quite a while.

[b]Discovery:[/b]
By the middle of High school, I was starting to actively seek out new music. I remained picky about albums I would actually buy, but I was at least listening to new things. A friend of mine introduced me to A Perfect Circle, and though I only have one of their albums, I will claim that they are one of my favorite bands. I started listening to the radio to search for songs that I liked, and then look for more of the same artist. In this way I found Tool. Much like Panache (see his post) I immediately fell in love with them. Their music almost seemed like it was made especially for me. It was only later that I discovered that the lead singer from Tool and A Perfect Circle were the same person.

Today I continue to search for bands I'm not familiar with and with sounds I haven't heard. I've become much more of a music person than I thought I'd ever be. Some other bands I like, but don't necessarily own much (or any) of their work are Disturbed, Muse, and Foo Fighters. Thanks for reading, if you did.[/FONT][/COLOR]

[Epitome]

[size=1][b]Forced Listening:[/b]
When I first found music, I immediatley knew that it was going to be a huge part of my life. I started off listening to music that my mom had listened too, due to my being in her car alot of the time. I listened to stuff like [i]Backstreet Boys, Celine Dion, Whitney Houston[/i], as corny as that sounds. Even then I could relate to the words that were being spoken through music from those people, and I knew that I was going to grow up playing and listening to music on the daily, which is very true today. However, I wasn't open to new music because I was comfortable where I was with my music tastes. I enjoyed it very much.

[b]The Birth of a New Age:[/b]
I remember one day coming home to my brother listening to the ever famous [i]Eminem[/i], and for some reason I was very intrigued when this happened. I was in about the 5th or 6th grade and I started to experiment with my tastes in my music. I found myself really getting into hip-hop however, because every day I came home, my brother would be in his room blaring [i]Eminem, Big L, Dr. Dre, Eazy E, Tupac, Notorious B.I.G.[/i], the OG's of that genre.

[b]The "Emo" Era:[/b]
Soon after really getting involved with hip hop I moved to an area of Maryland where there was only two types of music that were listened too. Country, which I was totally not interested in, and rock, which I had some interest with. I began listening to the classic rock stuff like [i]AC/DC, Guns N' Roses, Eric Clapton, The Beatles, Jimi Hendrix[/i], you know. Eventually I got into high school and from that I evolved into "emo." I was listening to screamo bands like [i]From First to Last, Underoath, Emery, Bullet for My Valentine, Avenged Sevenfold, As I Lay Dying, It Dies Today[/i]... the "emo" stereotyped bands.

[b]In the Now:[/b]
Now I will pretty much listen to anything and everything. I think part of the reason is because of the way I was stereotyped from that "emo," era, and I don't want anyone to go through the insults that I had to go through. I am willing to listen to anything and everything. I still listen to all my favorites from hip hop, emo, classic rock, whatever. [i]Angels and Airwaves[/i] is one of those favorites and I find that they are classified as a lot of different genres. However, some music expresses me much better than others. I can say safely though that music is [i][u]HUGE[/i][/u] in my life today, and I dont know what I would do without it.[/size]

[Cat]

[SIZE=2]Birth:
When I first started to listen to music it was all my mom early 90's to mid 90's. I had never heard any other kind of music and back I was also going to a Catholic private school where music that isn't christen based was not allowed.

Moving:
In the late 90's we moved to Arizona were I then went to a public school. I started to find different music then most hip hop and boy band stuff like Brittney Spears and Nsync. I was about 9 years old and anything that wasn't Shina Twain and Reba was new to me.

Early High School Years:
I moved on then to rock bands[/SIZE][COLOR=DarkSlateGray][SIZE=1][SIZE=2][COLOR=black]. During this time I was in a different kind of group that was more Emo if you want to label them. They that what I listen to before was all crap and just pushed there stuff on me. This is when [/COLOR][/SIZE][/SIZE][/COLOR][SIZE=2]I started to listen to some harder music like[/SIZE][COLOR=DarkSlateGray][SIZE=1][SIZE=2][COLOR=black]Evanescence and Linkin Park.

Late High School Years to Now:
In the last few years I have moved on to a assortment of music that range from metal to 80's rock. I don't care anymore of what people are into or what my friends are into. If I find them to match what I want then I will listen to them. Thats how I come across listening to such shock bands like Wednesday 13 all the way to listening to Culture Club. I think its better now that I'm more diverse in music. It lets me see that genre doesn't really matter to much its the music band or artist that does.


[/COLOR][/SIZE][/SIZE][/COLOR]

[Zen]

[color=royalblue][size=1]

[b][u]The Old-School:[/u][/b] When I was a kid, as in, birth through seven years old, I was fairly unaware of popular music. I listened to whatever my parents put on and enjoyed a varied mix. However, I showed an early appreciation for Hip Hop, and I would search for early-mid nineties Hip Hop records that my young mind could appreciate. My first favorite rappers were [b]Coolio[/b], [b]LL Cool J[/b], [b]Will Smith[/b] and [b]Snoop Dogg[/b] back when he had a 'Doggy' in the middle. My favorite songs growing up were [b]"Gangster's Paradise"[/b] and [b]"What's My Name"[/b]. My father also engrained me with a life-long appreciation for classic rock and metal such as [b]Ozzy Osbourne, Black Sabbath, AC/DC[/b], and [b]Led Zeppelin[/b], amongst others.

[b][u]Growing Pains:[/u][/b] Around the ages of nine through 12, my musical tastes began to steer towards alternative rock, rap rock, and popular hip hop. I started to search for my own music and listen to things that my parents didn't (nor were they fans of it). My first bands were [b]Smashmouth[/b] and early[b] Kid Rock[/b]. On the Hip Hop front, [b]Sisqo[/b] entered the line up and[b] Nelly[/b] (which I now hate myself for). Then I began to slowly gravitate towards harsher music. The likes of [b]Limp Bizkit, Linkin Park, At The Drive-In, Eminem, DMX[/b], and others began to show themselves. Over this time, however, I began to mature. [b]Gorillaz, Blink 182, Rage Against The Machine, Daft Punk[/b] and [b]Lenny Kravits[/b] joined the line up. I still listen to them, along with [b]Eminem[/b] and [b]DMX[/b].

[b][u]Grew Up A Screw Up:[/u][/b] From ages 13-16, things really matured. I dropped some of the "kid" bands that I liked, including [b]Limp Bizkit[/b] and [b]Smashmouth[/b] and began to mature my tastes in Hip Hop. I began to study the musical form and explore the roots, and the things I missed as a child. I started listening to alot of underground and burgeoning southern music as well. On the popular level, I listened to [b]Dem Franchize Boyz, Ludacris, Lil' Wayne[/b], and [b]Lil' Jon[/b], as well as Houston movement artists [b]Slim Thug, Lil' Flip, Paul Wall[/b], and[b] Chamillionaire[/b]. As for the GOOD Hip Hop (which I still listen to 'till this day) I began listening to [b]Tupac Shakur, Jay-Z, Beastie Boys, Notorious B.I.G., Nas, Wu-Tang Clan, KRS-One[/b], and other early-mid-nineties MCs. I also developed a taste for underground and intrumental Hip Hop. [b]MF Doom, Murs, Quasimoto, Danger Mouse, Invisibl Skratch Piklz[/b], amongst others.

[b][u]Today:[/u][/b] From 17 to the present, my tastes have matured even more than before. Being exposed to a more varied music scene has helped. Once I had moved to my current location, I connected with the local musicians of nearly every genre within a year. Hip Hop, Indie Rock, Death Metal, you name it, and I know a peforming musician within the genre more than likely. Currently, I'm trying to get some of my own music going. I've performed my own Hip Hop a few times on stage at a local venue, and I'm also trying to break into the Deathcore scene.

As for the bands I started listening to, I began to get into alternative flavors. Indie Rock, underground and pop punk, folk, anti-folk, techno/house, hardcore, metalcore, Death Metal, and deathcore make up alot of my musical diet now-a-days along with the regular dosage of Hip Hop. I started listening to [b]All That Remains, Born of Osiris, Winds of Plague, The Moldy Peaches, James Brown, Justice, Chromeo, Suicide Silence, Through the Eyes of the Dead, Hello Tomorrow, Set Your Goals, All Time Low, Senses Fail, The Black Dahlia Murder, Job For A Cowboy, Bob Dylan, Bloodline, Michael Jackson, Genghis Kahn, Despised Icon[/b], and [b]All Get Out[/b], among others.

I'm listening to such a broad spectrum of artists right now, its hard for me to focus on one for a very long amount of time. A song has to be very special for me to remember the lyrics to it. Currently I'm obsessed with [b]"Reloaded"[/b] by [b]Winds of Plague[/b], [b]"Bow Down"[/b] by [b]Born of Osiris[/b], and [b]"A Millie"[/b] by [b]Lil' Wayne[/b]. Most of my current diet, though, is majority Deathcore and Hip Hop. I have a thing for both genres I suppose, and I am burgeoning within both scenes currently.[/color][/size]

[Nomurah!]

[SIZE="1"][COLOR="hotPink"]Interesting.

[B]Starting Out and Stuff[/B]
As far back as I can remember, my dad played shows, and I went to them. I'd get on stage and help him do "YMCA" and "Mustang Sally" and other such classic rock songs. I can remember being with my friends at recess and pretending to be in a "rock" band. At an early age but later than that of course, I was listening to bands like[B] Staind, Evanescence, Slipknot, Breaking Benjamin, Linkin Park,[/B] and later on, I fell in love with [B]Hawthorne Heights.[/B] Upon hearing some of these edgier bands, I went on to try and find music even edgier. Anything that screamed for example, but at the time, I had no taste for metalcore or death metal, because it was TOO heavy, lol. I failed to mention that I was almost named after Stevie Ray Vaughan... that may have had something to do with my musical tastes, lol.

[B]The Forming Of:[/B]
I think this is where it really starts out, to forming what I am today. At this time, I was listening to several bands. [B]AFI, My Chemical Romance, Billy Talent, From First to Last, [/B]etc. etc. And with buying both Billy Talent albums, I decided to buy an [B]Underoath[/B] CD. At first, I didn't like it so much, but by the end of the night... I was listening to it over and over. This would be my first encounter, with metalcore. By then, I started listening to As I Lay Dying, and other metalcore bands. Of course, the post-hardcore bands never went away for me, in fact, I still enjoy their music today. :] Underoath, most definitely has stuck with me for years.

[B]The Almost There:[/B]
I started talking to Kevin, which later started turning douchey. But I'd have to say, he opened alot of new doors for me. I started listening to [B]The Number 12 Looks Like You[/B], after finding them on an Eyeball sampler disc. I remembered Kev had mentioned them, so I was like "..Eh. Okay." and... what can I say? My taste had changed, and I knew that this was my new favorite. The oddness to it.. The everything. The Number 12 is what made me want to play guitar, and drums, and everything really. I acquired a taste for tempo changes, dual vocals, odd time signatures, and of course, Jazz. If you know me, by now... You'd know that the Number 12 is still my favorite band, and will probably remain that way for a while. Also, Kevin cleared it up for me that "emo" was NOT bands like MCR or FOB... No.. But I would surely find out.

[B]Mid Era thing[/B]
Went to my first hardcore show with Strike the Choir, Kaiden and an indie rock band named Life in Rescue. All three blew me away. STC remains in my top three, and Kaiden, in my top twenty. I'm also good friends with some of the guys from all of the bands, so I guess that makes them even cooler. This would strike my love for concerts. My favorite places to be.

[B]Hardcore Era[/B]
I started listening to Hardcore Punk. I love bands like Black Flag, The Misfits, SSD, Die Kreuzen, and Bad Brains. This was something new to me. Kevin, too, liked that kind of stuff. This evolved into better post-hardcore acts. Kevin got me into a few screamo/emo bands, and from there, I was set. I looked up every band I could find in the genre, ordered CDs left and right... I loved it. A new kind of hardcore, emotional... not poppy... odd time sigs... even jazzy... wow. [B]Saetia, Circle Takes the Square, Gospel, pg. 99, I Would Set Myself On Fire For You, Envy, Hiretzuken, Shikari,[/B] all kinds of bands. I was getting into bands like [B]Fear Before the March of Flames[/B], and [B]Heavy Heavy Low Low[/B] as well, though those really don't have much to do with screamo/emo. But they did have odd time signatures, and were different. So, why not mention them?

[B]The End[/B]
After that, I got into Deathcore. But that wasn't so much of a revelation lol. That kind of just happened. So, here is a list, of a few that I think deserve a good note, that I'm still in love with today, that have a place on my long list of favorites. These musicians, would be my TOP favorites, that I can't live without. You can see, my musical taste spans alot of genres.


[B]Strike the Choir
The Number 12 Looks Like You
Enter Shikari
Heavy Heavy Low Low
pmtoday
Kaiden
The Jonbenet
Saetia
Circle Takes the Square
I Would Set Myself On Fire For You
The New Season
I Set My Friends on Fire
pg. 99
Fear Before the March of Flames
HORSE the Band
As Cities Burn
Underoath
This Love These Hands
The Black Noise Party Boys
This Is Your Captain Speaking
The Blood Brothers
The Fall of Troy
Gospel
The Devil Wears Prada
Here I Come Falling
Straylight Run
From First to Last
Aiden
Coheed and Cambria
Bring Me The Horizon
Don the Reader
From A Second Story Window
Drop Dead, Gorgeous
Between the Buried and Me
Breathe Carolina
[/B][/COLOR][/SIZE]

[Panache]

So uh whats up with the little titles for these stages? Should I go back and do that?