1st Anniversary: What I Look For In Music

So it was this time last year when I finally got around to finishing my first blog post, and since I'm procrastinating with the current crop of albums, I thought I might share some of the qualities that I look for in music, as well as some of my personal preferences.

Though you may have kind of guessed some of these if you've been reading these posts (if anyone actually does, and aren't just checking blogs for links to albums), my musical interests are pretty broad, though the qualities I look for in each genre are essentially universal. I like innovative sounds, technical proficiency, and creativity. Redundancy does not sit too well with me, because if all you're doing is retreading, I really don't see why you're bothering. I'm also a firm believer in music as an expression of ideas and emotions; music that is simply "fun" has its place, but baby love love songs or money cash hoes anthems have very little in the way of substance other than their unfortunate commercial appeal. I like music to say something, and this goes especially for hip hop. With more melodically leaning genres, I can see past some lyrical deficiencies, but in a genre that is essentially all about what is being said, you had better be on point. I'm probably more critical on lyrics than the average listener, but if the lyrics were just throwaways, just make instrumentals.

I also like music that sets moods, or tries to take you somewhere. This is one of the reasons I'm a huge fan of psychedelic rock, as well as the artier alternative kind of stuff. I'm a huge fan of prog for that reason as well. The instrumentals are so complex and the lyrics are very intelligent and evocative. That is not to say that one can not play very sparsely and not impress, as my enjoyment of bands such as the Sex Pistols and Joy Division can attest to. But with both of those, they set distinct moods; rage filled and confrontational, or somber and melancholy, respectively.

I feel like I'm rambling here, but I thought I might just expand on that a bit. As for future developments, I'll probably be getting back to reviews soon. Very excited about the news of new Godspeed You! Black Emperor material, as well as the follow up to Benji by Sun Kil Moon coming out later in the year. Looking forward to of Montreal's Aureate Gloom coming out in early March, along with the new Modest Mouse and Cannibal Ox's first LP in a long time. Also eagerly anticipating William Basinski's Cascade, which should be out soon, and keeping my ear to the ground regarding the rumored slew of My Morning Jacket releases in the works. Kigo and J. Francis are also planning new projects that I'm looking forward to hearing, as I have become a fan of both their work over the year. Also really looking forward to Record Store Day this year.

So, I guess I'll be writing soon. If there's an album you think I should listen to,I'm always open to suggestions and always enjoy getting turned on to new stuff.

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