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All things music
lightwithin
Veteran
I like music a lot and I was wondering what all of you out there listen to. Here's some music related questions you could answer:
-What are some of your favorite or most listened artists?
-Are you musically tolerant?
-Do you download music on a regular basis?
-Do you do it legally or illegally? Where do you download from?
-Do you still buy CDs?
-What's the last song or album you listened to?
-Does the music you listen to and how you get it, "conform" to Buddhism and it's teachings?
-How do you discover new artists and bands? (I use Last.fm).
You know, whatever you can think of that has to do with music, put it here, as I'd like to hear about it.
-What are some of your favorite or most listened artists?
-Are you musically tolerant?
-Do you download music on a regular basis?
-Do you do it legally or illegally? Where do you download from?
-Do you still buy CDs?
-What's the last song or album you listened to?
-Does the music you listen to and how you get it, "conform" to Buddhism and it's teachings?
-How do you discover new artists and bands? (I use Last.fm).
You know, whatever you can think of that has to do with music, put it here, as I'd like to hear about it.
0
Comments
-What are some of your favorite or most listened artists?
Lou Reed (pre and post transformer), Lightning Bolt, Ornette Coleman, Current 93, Sunn0))), u-Ziq, Slowdive, White Mice, Fuck Buttons, and a lot of other experimental bands as well as music that incorporates experimentalism too. I like how artists can break conventions so deeply ingrained into people's definition of 'what music is'.
-Are you musically tolerant?
Sometimes, I can use some improvement, although much more tolerant than I used to be.
-Do you download music on a regular basis?
Not regularly. When it looks interesting I download it, and if I really enjoy it, I sometimes buy it. Since beginning a Buddhist practice, I haven't felt as inclined to compulsively buy / download music.
-Do you do it legally or illegally? Where do you download from?
I do it both legally and illegally. Many of the artists I like encourage downloading their albums, and I can always listen to personalized radio on Last.FM (add me! I'm 'friedeaglemind').
I download it from using google boolean and popular file sharing sites. Queries in Google like:
-Do you still buy CDs?
I feel CD's are a dead medium. MP3's have the strongest portability, vinyl has the lossless quality, and tapes has the most effort / creativity / thought poured into it when it comes to mix tape swaps.
-What's the last song or album you listened to?
Current 93 - This Carnival is Dead and Gone
-Does the music you listen to and how you get it, "conform" to Buddhism and it's teachings?
How I receive it, no. With a larger discovery of artists that distribute their albums for free, I'm sure I can start. The music I listen to sometimes has themes close to Buddhism, and some artists tranquil and appropriate for the occasional meditation with music. I listen to a lot of hip hop as well, and the themes are very distant from Buddhism, but it's interesting in it's own way as a product of their conditioning.
-How do you discover new artists and bands? (I use Last.fm)
Usually through friends, although last.fm also became quite accurate too. That's probably one of the neatest web applications I've ever seen.
I'd like to see what you would answer to your own questions
I have a wide range of music I enjoy, and oddly enough my top artists are completely different from each other. I love Korn, as they resonate with the angry part of me. But I don't listen to them nearly as much as I used to, as I feel calmer and less depressed now.
I also like oldies music, and Elvis Presley is my top artist on Last.fm. I would have loved to live to see him perform when he was at the top of his career. I really enjoy Dean Martin, Sammy Davis, Jr. and the likes of them too.
There's a lot I listen to. I like hip-hop/rap (never saw much of a difference between the two terms), blues, metal, pop, and I really try not to put boundaries on the things I download and listen to. I can listen to what some people call musical "garbage" one moment and then something they would call "better" in one listening session. My taste is pretty much mainstream, but I have some things that are a bit less known too.
-Are you musically tolerant?
I didn't use to be too tolerant, but now I am. I have come to hate music "snobs" who put you down for listening to something they think is lesser music than what they enjoy. If you dig enough into my charts, you can see stuff like the hardest death metal (metal is known for it's hardcore music snobbism) to Katy Perry, to whatever you can think of.
-Do you download music on a regular basis?
I am constantly downloading new music. It's a hobby of mine and I have a lot of work just keeping up with the bands I have in my artist list on Last.fm and the new music they put out.
-Do you do it legally or illegally? Where do you download from?
I download illegally 100%. Sadly, I don't have the financial means to buy CD's or legal mp3's. I live in South America and music is not within the set budget of expenses we have in this household.
I download from music blogs, or BitTorrent.
-Do you still buy CDs?
Sadly, no I don't. I would buy them still if I could. I enjoy having something tangible to hold on to. Call it an "attachment" if you will but I like owning CDs.
-What's the last song or album you listened to?
"Get Wiser" by Soldiers Of Jah Army (reggae). Currently listening to "La Radiolina" by Manu Chao (can't pinpoint Manu Chao's genre of music. Some call it "World").
-Does the music you listen to and how you get it, "conform" to Buddhism and it's teachings?
The way I get my music certainly doesn't conform with Buddhism, as I basically "steal" it. And I'd say that some of what I listen to, is not conducive to feelings of calmness and awareness, such as Melodic Death Metal, and hip-hop, which are genres known for not having the nicest lyrics around.
I have been listening and downloading much less metal lately tho. I am slowly phasing it out, as it doesn't lead to the increased mental stillness and calmness that I'm looking for.
-How do you discover new artists and bands? (I use Last.fm).
I discover new bands through my recommended artists on Last.fm, or through TV, when new bands play on the talk show I watch every night (Late Show with David Letterman).
________________
If anyone of you wants to add me on Last.fm, my screen name is: eqblues
It doesn't mean my library is full of blues, and instead it comes from the phrase: "equatorial blues", with "blues" meaning depression, and not the musical genre. The equatorial part is because I live in Ecuador (a country that is intersected by the Equator or zero latitude imaginary line).
I know more / my music is better / I'm more openminded
than you / than yours
...which really boils down to anything else the ego loves. It gives me good Buddhist practice now because people criticize experimental quite a bit for claiming it's 'not music' or 'not pleasant', and I can practice responding with non-egoic responses.
By any chance do you know much Bossa Nova from Brazil? I'm in Cuba now, and it seems that Gilberto Gil, Tom Ze, and those artists are quite well known here compared to people in Canada.
It's good you are working towards keeping your ego in check. I need some of that same medicine myself.
I don't know any Bossa Nova artists myself, I'm sorry to say. I had a friend from Portugal who enjoyed Tom Ze, but I never even tried to listen to the music.
I also have this friend on Last.fm who listens to a lot of obscure experimental music, and she's always talking about it and posting videos, that go RIGHT over my head. Hahaha. My simple, mainstream mind can't comprehend the subtleties of the more obscure music genres.
Ha! This is so neat, SOJA is from Virginia, and I spent many nights in college in various small venues all over the state supporting them. I haven't heard anything they've released in the past five years or so, but very nice to know that you're enjoying their music. They were incredible when I was into them!
Okay, I'll answer your questions now.
1) Favorite artists - ATMOSPHERE (I am obsessed), Death Cab for Cutie, Joseph Arthur, Arrested Development, Mac Lethal, Soulcrate Music, Duncan Shiek, Jean Grae, Sugarland, Rehab
2) I consider myself musically tolerant. Even when I listened to mostly music that no one had heard of, I tried hard to keep the snobiness away from my Being. I can't stand music snobs either! Different strokes for different folks!
3) I rarely download music at all. I don't have a computer at home with internet access, and it's maybe once a year I get ballsy enough to dl an album onto my work computer, throw it on my ipod, then immediately delete it!
4) n/a
5) I very rarely buy cds either. If I want new music on my ipod, I ask my boss to dl it onto cd and bring it into work. But I've found myself being okay with not having all the songs I want at my disposal.
6) I listened to my favorite Tim McGraw song this morning on the way to work called Let It Go - a very buddhist song now that I think about it!
7) A lot of the lyrics in songs I listen to support my quest for self-love and letting go of pain. But, there are a ton of songs that I enjoy listening to with very horrible lyrics! I do love a lot of mainstream hip hop and the lyrics defintely don't leave me feeling empowered, but I still jam out to them!
8) I usually hear new music through the radio or just through word of mouth.
Haha, that's great. I didn't know they were from your state. I have like three of their albums, as that's the most I could find online, but they are very good.
I've been getting more and more into reggae and dub for the past year, because it's good chillout music and it brings a happy feeling to my days.
David Bowie, The arcade Fire, The Frames, classical
-Are you musically tolerant?
no, i prefer not to listen to rap, rnb, pop (back street boys or whatever other boy/girls band), or any other music with ridiculous and pointless lyrics.
-Do you download music on a regular basis?
I watch on youtube, so i guess it's downloading.
-Do you do it legally or illegally? Where do you download from?
I don't keep any, just watch on youtube, so i guess it's legal.
-Do you still buy CDs?
no
-What's the last song or album you listened to?
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AGJ8dY_IcgE
-Does the music you listen to and how you get it, "conform" to Buddhism and it's teachings?
well it's not Buddhist music
-How do you discover new artists and bands? (I use Last.fm).
friends.
I don't listen to music regularly, just maybe once a week.
I love going to live concerts (the Frames came to my city recently and it was great!)
Mainly i have little interest so i would not discover any new music if i didn't have these few friends who make us listen to that new band they like.
Omg, I LOVE that song. I watched "Once" a few months ago and I fell in love with the soundtrack. After that I downloaded all of Glen Hansard's and Marketa's discography (all that I could find) and I love it. And since I enjoyed that, I went and got "The Frames"'s discography as well, but I haven't listened to it yet.
I'm glad I made this thread. It's cool to hear about you guys' musical taste and habits.
I don't know which album it's from, but their song "True Love" is one that keeps me so happy! Oh! Peace In A Time of War! That's the album that they mostly played from when we were still going to their shows. They are incredible live, especially Bob the bass player!
Always amazing to find out that someone in an entirely different country enjoys listening to the same indie stuff from here!
Band Of Horses, Dream Theater, Paulo Nutini
-Do you still buy CDs? Yeah
-What's the last song or album you listened to?
10/10 by Paolo Nutini , Album = Sunny Side Up
-Does the music you listen to and how you get it, "conform" to Buddhism and it's teachings?
No
-How do you discover new artists and bands? (I use Last.fm).
At gigs , usually the support bands.
Despite my age, I am a classic rock girl all around. #1 Beatles, after that, in no particular order, Led Zeppelin, CSN(Y), Steve Miller, Jethro Tull... and the list goes on
-Are you musically tolerant?
Not really. I don't think I'm particularly "snobbish" because I recognize all music as music, it's just that I don't really enjoy it as much as my favorites. I am the least enthusiastic about rap/r&b, teenie-bop pop, and "angry music." I enjoy types of classical and country (especially the old kind my Grandpa listens to) but I wouldn't call either my favorite.
-Do you download music on a regular basis?
Regular basis? Not really. Maybe once every couple months.
-Do you do it legally or illegally? Where do you download from?
In college, I did it illegally. Now, if I'm going to d/l it's from iTunes or Amazon. Especially when they have good deals on albums!
-Do you still buy CDs?
Yes! I consider it a "hard copy" for when my computer goes belly-up and loses my database. Gotta have it stored somewhere or you'll lose it!
-What's the last song or album you listened to?
Song: I Heard it Through The Grapevine by Creedence Clearwater Revival
Full Album: Deja Vu by Crosby, Stills, Nash and Young- one of my absolute FAVORITES!!!
-Does the music you listen to and how you get it, "conform" to Buddhism and it's teachings?
I suppose many of the Beatles tracks are semi-Buddhist-ish, especially the George and John ones. But none of the music I listen to is specifically Buddhist. I suppose that since I don't d/l illegally anymore the way I get it is fairly aligned with Buddhism.
-How do you discover new artists and bands? (I use Last.fm).
Usually my brother or my fiancee have to force it down my throat
Tom Waits, Nick Cave & the Bad Seeds, Elliott Smith, Hole, The Smashing Pumpkins, Auf der Maur, Patti Smith, Nick Drake and Florence + the Machine. I'd like to think I have a diverse music taste, but it's mostly experimental/folk/mopey singer-songwriters and stripdown alternative rock.
Are you musically tolerant?
Of course!
Do you download music on a regular basis?
Very much so, a couple of albums a week.
Do you do it legally or illegally? Where do you download from?
Most illegally, but if I enjoy an album, I'll be sure to buy it and support the artist before ditching the download.
Do you still buy CDs?
...and vinyl and cassettes!
What's the last song or album you listened to?
Patti Smith's Gone Again.
Does the music you listen to and how you get it, "conform" to Buddhism and it's teachings?
Most of the music I listen to helps me by means of relation. If I relate to a song, it's usually to do with suffering, happiness or a mixture of both. Therefore, in a sense it is related to Buddhism. As for how I get it, the majority of the time it is technically stealing... but then again, it's just bytes. Notes - which no one owns - put in to different rooms. I'm not justifying my means of obtaining music, but rationally, it's not stealing in its literal sense.
How do you discover new artists and bands?
Reccomendations from friends, mostly. Also if a band/artist is related in some way or form, that would lead me on to discovering new artists. Last.fm does help too!
Gee, there are so many. Thievery Corporation, Imogen Heap, Diane Birch, Neko Case, Alison Krauss, Loreena McKennitt, Roisin Murphy, Sun Ra, Lamb, Portishead, Daft Punk. I used to like Tool and Soundgarden a lot, but find that I'm just not angry enough to listen to them much any more.
-Are you musically tolerant? I'm pretty snobbish, but have relaxed my tastes in the past couple of years. I find myself listening to country these days and (horror!) actually enjoying it.
-Do you download music on a regular basis? Sort of...see below.
-Do you do it legally or illegally? Where do you download from? Somewhat oddly, I rip most of my music off YouTube. I love the music video as an art form, and download quite a bit off of YouTube. Not sure if that's legal or not. Probably best if I remain ignorant.
-Do you still buy CDs? Rarely.
-What's the last song or album you listened to? "The Highwayman" by Loreena McKennitt
-Does the music you listen to and how you get it, "conform" to Buddhism and it's teachings? The only Buddhist music I listen to is Yungchen Lhamo, though I heard a country song today, "Alright" by Darius Rucker, that celebrates some Buddhist values.
-How do you discover new artists and bands? (I use Last.fm).
Pandora mostly, and an email list I'm on.
Bach, Piazolla, John Hall, Los Fabulosos Cadillacs, Baden Powell, I don't know. A bunch of people. :-)
-Are you musically tolerant?
I was going to say no because I don't like hip hop, but then I remembered that I have a couple of Orisha CDs and a Mala Rodriguez CD. Oh yeah, and a Gran Silencio CD. I don't know how to classify them, but they do a lot of shouting.
-Do you download music on a regular basis?
No.
-Do you still buy CDs?
Yes.
-What's the last song or album you listened to?
A Japanese import recording of a live concert that Miles did in Tokyo around 1964. That's a fluke though. For the past few years I've been discovering South American music. I just happened to have a jones for some US jazz shortly before answering this.
-Does the music you listen to and how you get it, "conform" to Buddhism and it's teachings?
Most good songs seem to have lyrics that are open to interpretation. They become popular partly because each listener can project their own interpretation onto the lyrics. So the stuff I listen to _could_ be very Buddhist if I wanted it to. But I don't need my music (or anything else) to be Buddhist, so usually I don't try to interpret lyrics in a Buddhist way.
Another way to look at it is that any song that is honest about desire is Buddhist. In that sense tango is Buddhist when it is frank about self induced suffering.
-How do you discover new artists and bands?
It's random. Sometimes I'll buy a Putumayo or Rough Guide sampler CD in the store and then search out the artists I like. Some artists I've discovered through reading. Sometimes I listen to stuff that my nieces and nephews listen to.
There are some Bossa Nova artists that I think are amazing, and some that I'm indifferent to. Nara Leao's cover of "Este Seu Olhar" is one of my all time favorite recordings. Walter Wanderly leaves me totally cold.
Tom Ze is a lunatic genius. But I think he and Gil fall under MPB, rather than Bossa Nova. (MPB in this case is Musica Popular Brasileira, not Male Pattern Baldness. Hmmm, maybe they fall under both.)
I haven't even thought about that in years. Great song, great band, great cover.
His genre is the three songs that he records over and over, each time with different lyrics. ;-)
I've got his Radio Bemba CD. I like it, but I don't need another CD of the same three songs.
The Sun Ra and Ornette Coleman fans are +10 for awesomeness.
I have an Orishas CD too, but I don't like it that much. Just got it for sheer curiosity. El Gran Silencio are pretty cool but I don't have any of their albums. Couldn't find it online (didn't put out much of an effort). Los Fabulosos Cadillac are great but I only have their "Greatest Hits" CD.
I'm from South America and I might have heard some of the artists you like, but I admit I don't have enough music in my own language. I have some Mexican bands and a few other latin artists, but not many.
LOL, I hadn't thought about his music that way, but now that you mention it, he does use the same elements and samples in many of his songs and some of them do sound a lot alike. Lyrics seem to share a theme as well.
It's impossible to listen to it all. There's lots of English language stuff that I haven't heard.
In fairness, he seems to be more oriented towards live performances, and the CDs seem like an afterthought. If you use a small number of templates for your songs, it's easier to get a groove going and maintain it through an entire concert.
As you can guess from my above list I have pretty wide ranging musical tastes. I might listen to a Slayer album then turn around and put on Simon and Garfunkel. With that said I could probably find stuff in pretty much every genre that I dig, but I'm still very selective and 75% of what's out there is, in my view, crap.
Yes.
Both, and wherever I can find what I'm looking for.
Yep, vinyl too sometimes.
A Silver Mount Zion - He Has Left Us Alone But Shafts of Light Sometimes Grace the Corners of Our Rooms - which I'm listening to at the moment actually.
Sometimes, sometimes not.
Word of mouth, internet sites (My Space, YouTube, etc), a member being involved in another project I like, etc...
I also create experimental/ambient/drone music myself under the name Static Toybox.
Laura Veirs; Kate Bush; Tori Amos; 80s electro pop.
-Are you musically tolerant?
I listent to lots of different stuff but don't like heavy/thrash metal or punk
-Do you download music on a regular basis?
Two or three times a year from itunes.
-Do you do it legally or illegally? Where do you download from?
Always legally from itunes.
-Do you still buy CDs?
Yes. I like the artwork and its easier to put in the car.
-What's the last song or album you listened to?
Tears for Fears album 'The Hurting' and Laura Veirs album 'July Flame'
-Does the music you listen to and how you get it, "conform" to Buddhism and it's teachings?
Most of the time, but I do like Gary Numan/Nine Inch Nails industrial metal which
is very dark and negative...A certain mood and its what I want to hear!
-How do you discover new artists and bands? (I use Last.fm).
Spotify and recommendations from students.
Had to play LOTS of kinds of music. I don't download music. Kinda old-fashioned: like the physicality of vinyl, cassette, and cd media and artwork.
I'm older (58), but I just bought a CD by Neon Trees, 'cause I like the
energy and pop songwriting, the band has a female drummer, and they
are good live. Don't look for buddhist music, just enjoy whatever I like.
I'm always reading music critic sites, subscribe to Paste mag, and constantly surf youtube, listening to new music and searching out old
music (1960's), as I inwardly weep for the "good ol' days", and beat myself up for not going-for-it back in the day.