Tag: music

100

I’ve been tracking all the artists I’ve seen live since 2013, and a few weeks ago (at my third Outside Lands festival) this tally reached 100.

The first artist I saw live was Chevelle at the Fillmore in San Francisco, CA on July 8th 2014. I remember standing on the fringes of the mosh pit and being extremely scared that I would be sucked in (I didn’t). I also remember being amazed by how good the band sounded live, and how talented each and every member was. Needless to say I had a fantastic time — I was blown away by the whole experience, and by the time Chevelle came back on stage for their encore I’d already decided that I would try and see as many concerts as possible.

It’s really hard to pick a favorite show of the 100+ I’ve seen. A top 5 list (in no particular order) would probably feature Tame Impala (at Coachella 2016), AC/DC, Metallica, TesseracT, Deafheaven. Not only do Tame Impala sound sublime live (I’m so excited to see them again on September 3rd), but the lights and videos they use during their live sets elevate their music to another level. AC/DC and Metallica hold huge sentimental value for me since they were the bands I grew up listening to, and seeing them live was an emotional experience. TesseracT is my (current) favorite band and the first progressive metal band I enjoyed listening to, and they were awesome live (very excited to see them again with Gojira on October 7th). Plus I got to meet the band before the show which was very cool! Deafheaven was easily the most intense show I’ve been to. Though given the type of music they play this is to be expected.

The bands I’ve seen the most times live are Tennis and Mastodon. The last time I saw Mastodon was when they played the night before my 25th birthday. It was a great birthday gift (yes, I do know it was a day early).

The Chevelle show ignited a love for live music within me that still shines brightly today.

Sunrise

I got to see Haitus Kaiyote at Outside Lands 2016 last weekend. They were one of the best bands I’ve seen live so far. Seeing them live gave me a newfound love and appreciation for their music and I’ve been listening to their songs all of last week. Not only is their music beautiful, but the pictures they paint with their lyrics are gorgeous as well, and some of them seem to appeal to my current state of mind.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ozr4KsZBTvQ

 

What I’m currently listening to: 65daysofstatic

No Man’s Sky came out recently. While I don’t intend to play the game (I own an XBox One, which I haven’t really used for the past 3-4 months) I heard very good things about the soundtrack that 65daysofstatic put together for the game and decided to give it a listen. It is sublime. My appreciation for the music grew even more after I learned how the album was created.

Electron

I’ve found myself listening to electronic music more often these days. I’ve found that it makes for quite good coding music. And writing music too.

Here’s a subset of what I’ve been listening to:

  • Jake Bowen is the guitarist for Periphery (one of my favorite bands; I have VIP tickets to see them in August). He also makes amazing electronic music.

  • Tycho. He’s from San Francisco!

  • It’s hard to classify the genre of music The Algorithm plays. All I know is that I really like it.

  • Com Truise made a single with Deftones (another favorite band of mine; I’m very excited to see them in August)

What I’m currently listening to: Gojira and Radiohead

Magma and A Moon Shaped Pool, the newest albums by Gojira and Radiohead respectively, are spectacular. They’re all I’ve been listening to for the past few days.

Both deal with the topics of love and separation, though in completely different musical styles. And more importantly, in subtly different (yet oh so similar) interpretations of these two concepts.

These albums hug your heart.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8xKttPGJg5c