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Thursday 21 August 2014

The Curious Professor's Homework Assignment: Inspiring Songs



First off, apologies for not having this up on time. I could talk about how I was seeing Fringe shows at the weekend, packing for university and working during for the week, but excuses aren't usually of interest to the reader and the reality is that the events of Ferguson really did a number on me. Anyway. Onto business.

Surprisingly, this was a really hard challenge for me. Despite being a great music enthusiast, I must admit something I'm very embarrassed about; I haven't listened to any new music in a long time. And I do mean a very long time.

New music is a very difficult thing for me; I take a long time to warm up to anything I haven't heard before, even if I eventually grow to love it. Added to that the overwhelming labyrinthian network of bands that's out there (which I'm apparently expected to know?), and it's just too much to do.

I find the term 'inspiring' very non-specific; inspiring for what? Swing dance? Swooping about in black lace? Joining an anarchist collective and shouting about the inequality in society? Different music affects so many different facets of my life, in many different ways. However, there are certain songs which affect me in ways others can't, and make me feel like something more, an escape from reality; this was one of the things that so enamoured me about post punk when I first began listening to it. Some of these are very typical hits, but hits are hits for a reason.


Track List
Bauhaus - She's in Parties
Kuuntele Ääniä - Kuudes TuntiJoy Division - 24 Hours
Sisters of mercy - Poison Door
Sex Beat - Sex Beat
Siouxsie and the Banshees - Into the Light
Joy Division - Disorder
The Damned - Smash it up


In reality, I could write an essay on each of these selections (maybe I will sometime?), and why they are so significant, but I'll let the songs speak for themselves. The chemistry of these songs really do inspire my appearance, mindset and mood. Within them, I can find a certain synergy within myself that I can't find solely through other means. My aspiration for next year is to have added more music to this list.

I hope that this selection awakens the same feelings in you - maybe not, because of the individuality of music, but these songs represent a large part of my psyche (sorry if that sounds pretentious). I may check the order later, but I'm tired currently and may have to wait until the morning. Good night, all!

What do you find makes a song personally affect you? Any song suggestions for a musical stagnate? Please do let me know!




Fee


9 comments:

  1. I don't think you're late, I thought it was before the 28th? I am stumped for this one too! Argh! Hopefully I will get mine up in time! I like the Bauhaus song, and I love Siouxsie.

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    1. No, I am on time for the challenge, but I was a bit late publishing for my own deadline! Hope you manage to post for it.

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  2. You're not alone, I just can't get into new music. I'm not sure why that is, so much of it just sounds, well, bad lol. New music all sounds so contrived and sloppy; lyrics are bad, vocals are worse and instrumentals are cliche three chord combos. I prefer to stick with music from pre-2000, maybe it's because way back when more people were reliant on their actual raw talents rather than what could be cleaned up in a studio. For what I do listen to it's a bizarre mash-up of alt, grunge and indie bands. Sometimes I listen to house/techno when I'm doing my art, it helps quicken the pace of things lol.

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    1. Oh no; I don't think new music (as in produced in a certain time period) is bad - my issue is with the actual process of finding and listening to music which is new to me, which I have some kind of mental block on.

      I'd actually disagree - a hell of a lot of crap was produced in whatever decade or past genre you care to choose. The difference is that we can be selective in what we listen to from previous years, and don't have to live with what we don't enjoy from then in the way we do with today's music. Music from the 20th century is just as rife with heavy studio editing, which isn't always a bad thing (Joy Division sounded radically different live to their studio albums, and the studio cleaning is what made Joy Division's album outlast their punk contemporaries and gave them their iconic sound), and there were as many bad singers, unexperimental music (cough Ramones cough) and worse song lyrics as there are now.

      What is currently popular certainly doesn't float my boat the way popular music in other decades does, but that doesn't mean I hate all music which is current or like everything that's older than me. It would be a shame to dismiss something just because it's been released recently!

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  3. Great Playlist, filled with iconic bands. What's not to love? ;)
    I've always said, "so much amazing music, so little time" When one falls in love with a song and listens to it on repeat it means: less time for new music. :P
    In the end, all that matters is feeding your soul with something you really enjoy, even if it's not new.

    And I'm typing this before going to bed so I'm sorry for any type-o's x-x

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    1. Exactly! I get quite comfortable in my music, and when I do make time to try something new think it's a case of information overload; I need to listen to it several times before I can form an opinion, and nobody has time for that. I enjoy my music anyway, so I won't whine too much. Thank you!

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  4. What a wonderful playlist! :) Hmmm ... inspiring is definitely open to interpretation and that's what I love about this kind of challenge. Wait until you see September's! HA! Anyway, I have the same reaction to new music -- it needs to grow on me, unless it's so incredible and breathtaking that it hits me over the head.

    Thanks for participating.

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    1. There's so many things that inspire me in different ways; it was a struggle to pick any one topic or feeling. It's good to hear that other people require some time to let new music grow on them too!

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