you listen to what??: an unlikely list
By Ryan Byrd
as most of you faithful blog readers know, i have music on the brain very often. (obsessive may be the appropriate word.) and, you may have observed that i tend to swim in the waters of folk/indie/acoustic/alt country kind of stuff. and you also may know that while i have these tendencies, i have a pretty diverse assortment of tastes. but, what you may not know is that my variances are truly deep and wide.
so, there may be some artists/songs that you would be surprised to hear that i like. (and some maybe that you wouldn’t be…) here’s a list with audio tracks. some are the artists in general and some are particular tracks (and not necessarily their larger body of work). (these are in no particular order)
1. michael jackson. stranger in moscow.
if i survey my entire life’s love of music, this guy is going to come out of top every time. a lot of people have a very short memory and forget that this is the greatest pop star in the history of music. weirdness doesn’t negate greatness.
2. fiona apple. not about love.
chick music? i think not. fiona apple’s passion (read: craziness) comes through on every track and it makes for incredible music…for chicks…or dudes.
3. adele/amy winehouse/lily allen/british soul pop invasion. best for last (adele).
this whole wave of female britpop/soul has been great. i think winehouse’s back to black was the best album of 2007, but since it’s a little too obvious, i decided to post an adele track.
4. alison krauss. let me touch your for awhile.
whereas i like folk/alt country sort of stuff, alison krauss is a little more country/bluesgrass than i usually tend to like. her voice, though, and songwriting are amazing.
5. barenaked ladies. brian wilson.
i can’t explain exactly why, but brian wilson is one of my favorite songs. it’s a song that i can put on repeat in itunes and listen to over and over and never get tired of it. as opposed to the previous artists, i like barenaked ladies in limited doses. i like their greatest hits album, but i don’t own any of their other albums.
6. brandi carlile. downpour.
ok, so this one may not be as big of a surprise since i’ve talked about her several times, but still, there’s a lot of unlikely factors. “chick” music. lesbian power songs. whatever other stereotype/label you would like to apply.
7. dixie chicks. voice inside my head.
not only do i have an unlikely love for the dixie chicks, but i’ve actually shelled out cash and seen them in concert. they really transcend country music and they’re latest album, particularly, was incredible.
8. justin timberlake. future sex/love sounds.
that’s right: an ex-nsync member. seriously, though, doesn’t everybody love justin timberlake? in terms of pop music, he puts out really intelligent and creative stuff.
9. natasha bedingfield. these words (i love you).
look, if you’re only association with natasha bedingfield is the theme song for the hills, then do yourself a favor and go listen to some more of her music. much like justin timberlake, it’s actually intelligent pop music.
10. nelly furtado. the grass is green.
unfortunately, nelly furtado has pulled a john mccain over the last couple years. in other words, the person she was for her first couple albums, sadly, is a distant memory from what she/her music is now. her first couple albums were this sort of pop/folk/world music blend kind of thing that was really interesting and creative.
so there ya go. thanks for serving as the priest in, this, my musical confessional.
