Some bands just don't do it for me the first
time around. I'll hear their first single, or their first album,
and think much like Despicable Me's Gru: "This... This is garbage."
But then there are those few bands that randomly produce a song that--as Terry Pratchett might say--makes my heartstrings go twang. I've always thought it odd how that happens, like once that string is plucked, then all of the band's other songs sound wonderful--except, usually, for that first single. The first song/single/album still seems to remain one that I don't like.
And, really, I seem to have a number of these, enough that this will probably become a series. Anyway...
One of the first bands that I can remember this happening with is Marcy Playground. I don't know about you, but I thought "Sex and Candy" was one of the lamest/most boring songs that I'd ever heard. I didn't understand why in the world the radio kept playing it over and over and over again, and there were so many people that were obsessed with that song and constantly talked about how good a band MP is. I didn't buy it--the album or the enthusiasm. Perhaps it was the first hinting of my "hipster curse" in that I tend to have a stigma towards super-popular things.
But then, in my junior year of high school, "It's Saturday" hit the airwaves. I couldn't believe this was the same band that produced that earlier garbage, as this song is just so ridiculous and fun. Compared to everything else on the radio at the time, I remember this being one of the more original tracks at the time, and I instantly fell love, counting down the days until the album's release. And what solidified my love for the song was how many fans of "Sex and Candy" couldn't stand this track.
After I bought this album--which not only remains my favorite of theirs, but it also is probably in my top 10 favorite albums, if I actually took the time to sit down and figure it all out--I devoured the thing, listening to it in its entirety far too many times. Anyone that can sandwich "love" songs like "Love Bug" and "All the Lights Went Out" with other tracks like "Secret Squirrel" and "Pigeon Farm," and they can make it work towards a complete album. Well, that's pretty fucking brilliant if you ask me.
Despite their decline in popularity, I've stayed a fan of their music and grabbed up their three additional albums. (They are the one concert that I've been to here in Vegas, too. They played a--get this--FREE show, and there were, maybe, 100 people in the audience. It was all sorts of amazing.) I even purchased their first album, finally, which other than "Sex and Candy" (a song I actually don't mind too much anymore), I liked the rest of the album.
This is why I've always tried to keep an open mind when it comes to music, as it will lead me to new and better bands, and it lets me re-evaluate a band with each new release. They may produce garbage for years, but it only takes the one song to rope me in.
But then there are those few bands that randomly produce a song that--as Terry Pratchett might say--makes my heartstrings go twang. I've always thought it odd how that happens, like once that string is plucked, then all of the band's other songs sound wonderful--except, usually, for that first single. The first song/single/album still seems to remain one that I don't like.
And, really, I seem to have a number of these, enough that this will probably become a series. Anyway...
One of the first bands that I can remember this happening with is Marcy Playground. I don't know about you, but I thought "Sex and Candy" was one of the lamest/most boring songs that I'd ever heard. I didn't understand why in the world the radio kept playing it over and over and over again, and there were so many people that were obsessed with that song and constantly talked about how good a band MP is. I didn't buy it--the album or the enthusiasm. Perhaps it was the first hinting of my "hipster curse" in that I tend to have a stigma towards super-popular things.
But then, in my junior year of high school, "It's Saturday" hit the airwaves. I couldn't believe this was the same band that produced that earlier garbage, as this song is just so ridiculous and fun. Compared to everything else on the radio at the time, I remember this being one of the more original tracks at the time, and I instantly fell love, counting down the days until the album's release. And what solidified my love for the song was how many fans of "Sex and Candy" couldn't stand this track.
After I bought this album--which not only remains my favorite of theirs, but it also is probably in my top 10 favorite albums, if I actually took the time to sit down and figure it all out--I devoured the thing, listening to it in its entirety far too many times. Anyone that can sandwich "love" songs like "Love Bug" and "All the Lights Went Out" with other tracks like "Secret Squirrel" and "Pigeon Farm," and they can make it work towards a complete album. Well, that's pretty fucking brilliant if you ask me.
Despite their decline in popularity, I've stayed a fan of their music and grabbed up their three additional albums. (They are the one concert that I've been to here in Vegas, too. They played a--get this--FREE show, and there were, maybe, 100 people in the audience. It was all sorts of amazing.) I even purchased their first album, finally, which other than "Sex and Candy" (a song I actually don't mind too much anymore), I liked the rest of the album.
This is why I've always tried to keep an open mind when it comes to music, as it will lead me to new and better bands, and it lets me re-evaluate a band with each new release. They may produce garbage for years, but it only takes the one song to rope me in.
