Note: This is an old post from my Multiply site last March 1, 2009.
...is what I usually tease my friends with when they admit they listen to mainstream music then. Yeah, I was one of those people who hate listening to pop music especially the irritatingly catchy ones. If I would listen to a mainstream sound, it would perhaps be a classic (something like The Beatles, Led Zeppelin or Fleetwood Mac). Pop music this decade has turned me off a lot of times that I had a playlist which contained underground songs which some people have not even heard of yet. I admit that I get disgusted when the artists I listen to appear in MTV, or worse, in Myx with some music video portraying the pop culture (I almost puked when I first saw Fall Out Boy’s Dance Dance music video). There was even a time when I did not like it when I heard Funeral For A Friend’s Juno in NU 107.5. That’s already NU 107! They seldom play mainstream songs and have got to be the best radio station for me for this decade!
I hated mainstream songs. Maybe it was because I want to listen to something unique that the masses do not dig. It is a bit elitist and silly but that was how I valued the music I listened to before. Maybe, it was because there were so much crappy pop songs spoiling the airwaves then. I call bands sellouts if they start to get popular and cater to the mainstream crowd. More importantly, I call them such when their music degrades – they were just simply doing songs to gain cash. I don’t know why, but my presumption is that maybe corporations give the bands such strict deadlines to which they need to conform to. They have lost their ability to appease their fans, especially the die-hards.
Years and/or months pass and one by one, the bands I have grown to like start to become more popular. The band that was just on my MP3 last year suddenly has an expensive music video playing in my TV. This became a common theme for a lot – My Chemical Romance, Fall Out Boy, Panic! At The Disco, Arctic Monkeys, Incubus, and Jimmy Eat World. Not all of them are super popular nowadays but they have at least a music video to remind the masses that they exist. At first, it was disappointing. There were times when I stopped listening to their songs by the time they got popular. But sooner or later, I realized that they were not that bad at all. Soon, I matured from my thinking and have accepted them for what they have become.
After some time, I find myself listening to pop music again. I do not know if it is the ‘girlfriend effect’ but I was listening to some mainstream songs last year. I even watched (and is still watching) American Idol. Believe it or not, I know how pop music goes so I have an idea which contestants the judges would give good critiques. It did not matter if I do not like the songs of Archuleta – he was so ‘pop’ (and mind you, was good in it) – but I gave him a two thumbs up along with David Cook (of course, I rooted for Cook) last year. We are getting off hand (this is not an Idol discussion blog!) but the point is, I listened to a lot of pop music last year. No Music, No Life 2K9 blog entry should have been entitled No Music, No Life: Sellout! but I forgot to. I may have listened to some more pop songs because I want to sing in videoke nights. Another probable reason is that I was just happy and I did not care for lyrics a lot then. I just want to get jumpy, energetic or just feel good for the song. Things have changed for me.
Mainstream or not, catchy or not, I will always love these bands:
Eraserheads. Arguably the best Filipino band in the 90s. I don’t know if they should be counted in this list because they are simply classic. They have captured the hearts of the Masa with songs about normal authentic Filipino experiences. I have so much favorite songs from them that I cannot enumerate it here. Popular or not, they still rock. Even if they are disbanded, I still listen to their songs from time to time. I even shelled out some money just to watch their Final Set this coming March 7.
Panic! At The Disco. Just like them, things have changed for me. I just got to listen to Panic! for a while before they emerged in the mainstream market. My friend endorsed them to me because he mistakenly thought that it was Patrick Stump (Fall Out Boy) at their vocals. Nevertheless, Panic! At The Disco was still superb even if I found out it was not Patrick who’s singing and even if they went mainstream with hits such as I Write Sins Not Tragedies or That Green Gentleman. Yeah, they were catchy and upbeat but that was what I needed since last year. They are not emo unlike FOB so most of their songs either increase my adrenaline or just make me feel good. Favorite Song: Lying is the Most Fun a Girl Can Do Without Taking Her Clothes Off
Incubus. They are not that mainstream anymore. I think it was just on Morning View when they were 100% mainstream. The good thing with this band is that they always change their style that their distinct feature is having different styles in every album. Of course, Brandon Boyd’s voice is still the same and Mike Einziger still uses flanger but the band continues to deliver quality music to please their fans. Their lyrics are always awesome and the sound is one-of-a-kind (Einziger rivals Tom Morello on present-day mainstream guitar acts). Another plus for this band is that, they are remarkable live. I was fortunate to watch them when they first came to Manila. Favorite Song: Pardon Me
Foo Fighters. They are awesome. ‘Nuff said! (You can also put Coldplay here)
Paramore. Of course! I first knew of Paramore as that pop/rock band with a vocalist who has a bit of a raspy voice in the catchy hit, Misery Business. I did not consider listening to them for six months. I changed my mind when I got to listen to the acoustic version of Misery Business. Talent was just oozing Hayley’s voice in that song. I started looking for their YouTube performances (because I was not yet fully satisfied in downloading their MP3). I soon found out that the raspy voice singer was a teenage red-haired chick who’s got an angelic voice if she does not do rock. I appreciated the talent I suddenly was so into it that I went into a three-month long Paramore addiction last year. I knew that I was going to listen to a mainstream band. But I did not care because the band was just so talented, energetic and always end up making me feel good. I spent hours searching Paramore’s performances in YouTube because they were just so fun to watch live. Hayley sings pretty much accurate and Zac’s rapid drumbeats just amaze me. If they keep on going like this for two more years, I will rank them as my best band of all time. Even the highly mainstream Twilight soundtrack – Decode – was awesome. Favorite Song: Pressure
Fall Out Boy. This article pretty much sums up my Fall Out Boy experience. I got to know of them months before the release of the Sugar We’re Going Down music video. I loved them because only a few people know of them. I knew they were talented. Patrick Stump’s vocals are crazy! But when they got mainstream in From Under the Cork Tree, I thought they were heading the wrong direction and are just going to suck big time. They do not have Pete Wentz’s screams in songs in the Take This To Your Grave album anymore. Their sound is obviously aimed for the masses. Infinity On High pretty much cemented their mainstream status. They even have a music video showing their die-hard fans getting angry at them because of their change. But I guess, the change was for the good of the band. I appreciate Patrick’s vocal range better now. They are not that much talented in shredding the guitars anyway so it was just fitting for them to go to the popular sound. I guess they just pulled it off that is why I still find them awesome. Hey, I am listening to Folie A Deux right now. Favorite Album: Take This To Your Grave
There you have it. I am not as underground as I was. It might be for the good or for the bad. I am just more open to music now. As long as I appreciate the music, I will listen to it. It does not matter anymore if it is mainstream or not. Anyway, the main reason I listen to songs is because these are good. I am not depriving myself of something awesome. You may agree or disagree but that’s how I view music now.
...is what I usually tease my friends with when they admit they listen to mainstream music then. Yeah, I was one of those people who hate listening to pop music especially the irritatingly catchy ones. If I would listen to a mainstream sound, it would perhaps be a classic (something like The Beatles, Led Zeppelin or Fleetwood Mac). Pop music this decade has turned me off a lot of times that I had a playlist which contained underground songs which some people have not even heard of yet. I admit that I get disgusted when the artists I listen to appear in MTV, or worse, in Myx with some music video portraying the pop culture (I almost puked when I first saw Fall Out Boy’s Dance Dance music video). There was even a time when I did not like it when I heard Funeral For A Friend’s Juno in NU 107.5. That’s already NU 107! They seldom play mainstream songs and have got to be the best radio station for me for this decade!
I hated mainstream songs. Maybe it was because I want to listen to something unique that the masses do not dig. It is a bit elitist and silly but that was how I valued the music I listened to before. Maybe, it was because there were so much crappy pop songs spoiling the airwaves then. I call bands sellouts if they start to get popular and cater to the mainstream crowd. More importantly, I call them such when their music degrades – they were just simply doing songs to gain cash. I don’t know why, but my presumption is that maybe corporations give the bands such strict deadlines to which they need to conform to. They have lost their ability to appease their fans, especially the die-hards.
Years and/or months pass and one by one, the bands I have grown to like start to become more popular. The band that was just on my MP3 last year suddenly has an expensive music video playing in my TV. This became a common theme for a lot – My Chemical Romance, Fall Out Boy, Panic! At The Disco, Arctic Monkeys, Incubus, and Jimmy Eat World. Not all of them are super popular nowadays but they have at least a music video to remind the masses that they exist. At first, it was disappointing. There were times when I stopped listening to their songs by the time they got popular. But sooner or later, I realized that they were not that bad at all. Soon, I matured from my thinking and have accepted them for what they have become.
After some time, I find myself listening to pop music again. I do not know if it is the ‘girlfriend effect’ but I was listening to some mainstream songs last year. I even watched (and is still watching) American Idol. Believe it or not, I know how pop music goes so I have an idea which contestants the judges would give good critiques. It did not matter if I do not like the songs of Archuleta – he was so ‘pop’ (and mind you, was good in it) – but I gave him a two thumbs up along with David Cook (of course, I rooted for Cook) last year. We are getting off hand (this is not an Idol discussion blog!) but the point is, I listened to a lot of pop music last year. No Music, No Life 2K9 blog entry should have been entitled No Music, No Life: Sellout! but I forgot to. I may have listened to some more pop songs because I want to sing in videoke nights. Another probable reason is that I was just happy and I did not care for lyrics a lot then. I just want to get jumpy, energetic or just feel good for the song. Things have changed for me.
Mainstream or not, catchy or not, I will always love these bands:
Eraserheads. Arguably the best Filipino band in the 90s. I don’t know if they should be counted in this list because they are simply classic. They have captured the hearts of the Masa with songs about normal authentic Filipino experiences. I have so much favorite songs from them that I cannot enumerate it here. Popular or not, they still rock. Even if they are disbanded, I still listen to their songs from time to time. I even shelled out some money just to watch their Final Set this coming March 7.
Panic! At The Disco. Just like them, things have changed for me. I just got to listen to Panic! for a while before they emerged in the mainstream market. My friend endorsed them to me because he mistakenly thought that it was Patrick Stump (Fall Out Boy) at their vocals. Nevertheless, Panic! At The Disco was still superb even if I found out it was not Patrick who’s singing and even if they went mainstream with hits such as I Write Sins Not Tragedies or That Green Gentleman. Yeah, they were catchy and upbeat but that was what I needed since last year. They are not emo unlike FOB so most of their songs either increase my adrenaline or just make me feel good. Favorite Song: Lying is the Most Fun a Girl Can Do Without Taking Her Clothes Off
Incubus. They are not that mainstream anymore. I think it was just on Morning View when they were 100% mainstream. The good thing with this band is that they always change their style that their distinct feature is having different styles in every album. Of course, Brandon Boyd’s voice is still the same and Mike Einziger still uses flanger but the band continues to deliver quality music to please their fans. Their lyrics are always awesome and the sound is one-of-a-kind (Einziger rivals Tom Morello on present-day mainstream guitar acts). Another plus for this band is that, they are remarkable live. I was fortunate to watch them when they first came to Manila. Favorite Song: Pardon Me
Foo Fighters. They are awesome. ‘Nuff said! (You can also put Coldplay here)
Paramore. Of course! I first knew of Paramore as that pop/rock band with a vocalist who has a bit of a raspy voice in the catchy hit, Misery Business. I did not consider listening to them for six months. I changed my mind when I got to listen to the acoustic version of Misery Business. Talent was just oozing Hayley’s voice in that song. I started looking for their YouTube performances (because I was not yet fully satisfied in downloading their MP3). I soon found out that the raspy voice singer was a teenage red-haired chick who’s got an angelic voice if she does not do rock. I appreciated the talent I suddenly was so into it that I went into a three-month long Paramore addiction last year. I knew that I was going to listen to a mainstream band. But I did not care because the band was just so talented, energetic and always end up making me feel good. I spent hours searching Paramore’s performances in YouTube because they were just so fun to watch live. Hayley sings pretty much accurate and Zac’s rapid drumbeats just amaze me. If they keep on going like this for two more years, I will rank them as my best band of all time. Even the highly mainstream Twilight soundtrack – Decode – was awesome. Favorite Song: Pressure
Fall Out Boy. This article pretty much sums up my Fall Out Boy experience. I got to know of them months before the release of the Sugar We’re Going Down music video. I loved them because only a few people know of them. I knew they were talented. Patrick Stump’s vocals are crazy! But when they got mainstream in From Under the Cork Tree, I thought they were heading the wrong direction and are just going to suck big time. They do not have Pete Wentz’s screams in songs in the Take This To Your Grave album anymore. Their sound is obviously aimed for the masses. Infinity On High pretty much cemented their mainstream status. They even have a music video showing their die-hard fans getting angry at them because of their change. But I guess, the change was for the good of the band. I appreciate Patrick’s vocal range better now. They are not that much talented in shredding the guitars anyway so it was just fitting for them to go to the popular sound. I guess they just pulled it off that is why I still find them awesome. Hey, I am listening to Folie A Deux right now. Favorite Album: Take This To Your Grave
There you have it. I am not as underground as I was. It might be for the good or for the bad. I am just more open to music now. As long as I appreciate the music, I will listen to it. It does not matter anymore if it is mainstream or not. Anyway, the main reason I listen to songs is because these are good. I am not depriving myself of something awesome. You may agree or disagree but that’s how I view music now.
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