Bands/Albums you've been aware of but only just got round to listening to

beed84

There is a wealth of music out there and sometimes some of it can pass us by.  Just recently, I've made an effort to listening to bands I've been fully aware of for years but haven't really paid any attention to their music etc.

So for me, 3 bands and there respective albums are:

Blind Melon - Blind Melon

I knew this band existed years ago - probably 13 - due to the late Shannon Hoon being Axl Rose's cousin and contributing backing vocal's on GNRs Don't Cry.  Amazing album.

Manic Street Preachers - The Holy Bible, Everything Must Go, This Is My Truth Tell Me Yours

If I remember correctly, the first Manics song I heard was If You Tolerate This Your Children Will Be Next during my secondary school years.  I heard a couple of other songs of theirs afterwards but never really made an effort to listen to them properly despite their success and critical acclaim.  Well hadn't I missed out.  I love these albums, especially Everything Must Go.

Blondie - Parallel Lines  

In a continuous and fervent effort to bulk up my record collection, I bought this album after stumbling across it in a charity shop.  I noticed it had the track One Way Or Another, which I like, and I thought it was worth 99p just for that song.  Again, a great album.

Overall, it amazes me I haven't heard this stuff considering how long it's been around, and also considering that I've actually known about them, which makes me think there is so much more good music to discover that I previously turned a blind eye to.

So, if any, what are your only-just-listened-to bands/albums? 

ICBM

I just got a Flaming Lips album the other day. First impression is that it's quite interesting but not as mind-blowing as I had been led to believe they were - but that's after only one listen.

A couple of years ago I finally got around to listening to Wishbone Ash, who I had been aware of for about thirty years but never tried, no idea why not! Great.

If you like Parallel Lines, get Eat To The Beat as well - if anything it's even better.

RocknRollDave

Oh good thread! This happens to me fairly regularly - possibly an offshoot of growing up with parents who didn't really have a record collection to speak of.
As a result, it's only been in the second half of my 41 years I've caught up with bands like Led Zep, Iron Maiden, ACDC, ZZ Top etc etc...
My most recent one, maybe a year or so ago, is the Black Crowes....why didn't I think of listening to their albums earlier?!

breakstuff

I've been what I'd consider a semi fan of Iron Maiden for years but only owned a couple of best of albums so was only really aware of their more populist output.After Sky plussing a couple of concerts off Sky Arts and watching them countless times I thought it was about time I purchased their back catalogue.
I've recently bought Powerslave.Bloody brilliant album.
Just wish I'd started collecting their early albums sooner.

Phil_aka_Pip

I've been meaning to check out Bill Nelson .... someone should do a Beginner's Guide to him ... pleez?

EricTheWeary

My Morning Jacket.

Dismissed by me as hipster indie twats until heard on American Dad.

Slightly confused by their back catalogue so a Beginner's Guide to them wouldn't go amiss for me.

And although not just got around to Richard Thompson has been my discovery via MR and here the last couple of years - why wasn't  I listening to him 20 years ago? 

mudslide73

EricTheWeary said:

My Morning Jacket.

Dismissed by me as hipster indie twats until heard on American Dad.

This exact thing happened to me. That's a crazy episode btw. 

IanSavage

I wrote off Fall Out Boy for a very long time as I figured I was too old for them - turns out a lot of their stuff is just well-written and played melodic modern rock which I rather enjoy. Who knew?

EricTheWeary

mudslide73 said:

EricTheWeary said:

My Morning Jacket.

Dismissed by me as hipster indie twats until heard on American Dad.

This exact thing happened to me. That's a crazy episode btw. 

I don't normally watch American Dad so quite odd that I saw that episode.

mudslide73

EricTheWeary said:

mudslide73 said:

EricTheWeary said:

My Morning Jacket.

Dismissed by me as hipster indie twats until heard on American Dad.

This exact thing happened to me. That's a crazy episode btw. 

I don't normally watch American Dad so quite odd that I saw that episode.

That's spooky.. I didn't watch it before but that episode drew me in.. I pressed the "i" button and it said something about My Morning Jacket so I watched it. 

JAYJO

IIRC  I would put on an album and move a switch enabling the needle to go back to the start of the record and begin playing again.. As records had either an A or a B side (ocasionally a double A side) it was mostly the A side that got played. I discovered i had only heard one side of Gerry Raffertys Night Owl album ,when i was listening to it the other day from the laptop through the sonus. I wreckon there are tons of B sides on Albums i like that i Havent even played. 

MPH

Curtis Mayfield - Curtis / Roots / Superfly / Back To The World

NervousJohn

ICBM;258480" said:

I just got a Flaming Lips album the other day. First impression is that it's quite interesting but not as mind-blowing as I had been led to believe they were - but that's after only one listen

The Flaming Lips really need to be seen live. It's like going to the best birthday party in the world aged 5, at which point they start making sense. And your mind will not so much be blown as at risk of an epileptic fit. On two of the three times I've seen them they have had to stop shows for 5 minutes to let someone get evacuated out of the audience. They do a health and safety briefing about strobes and noise during the setup but it still a regular occurrence.

I completely missed the Velvet Underground until my mid 30s, after over 15 years of being a full on indie kid. Embarrassing.

And currently I'm getting into Professor Longhair. 50 odd years after the event.

xSkarloey

Nice thread. 

I got into Jackie Leven around 2005-6ish. I bought a couple of his albums as they came out and saw him live, but then my attention wandered elsewhere. It was a big shock when he died (2011 now) and that has slowly got me buying his back catalogue. The joy of it (also a bit of a problem) is that he was extremely prolific. Can't remember how many he recorded, but I'm currently up to 6 or 7 or them. In the coming years I'll assemble the whole collection probably. 

Richie Havens is someone else I like whenever I dip into him on Spotify, so I need to give his albums a proper listen. 

In a different vein I am working my way through Ravel's work at the moment, but I need to do that with a proper index of what he wrote and when, because he would write a lot of stuff for piano then orchestrate it later, so there's a lot of crossover. 

stickyfiddle

beed84 said:

Manic Street Preachers - The Holy Bible, Everything Must Go, This Is My Truth Tell Me Yours

If I remember correctly, the first Manics song I heard was If You Tolerate This Your Children Will Be Next during my secondary school years.  I heard a couple of other songs of theirs afterwards but never really made an effort to listen to them properly despite their success and critical acclaim.  Well hadn't I missed out.  I love these albums, especially Everything Must Go.

Wisdom for Manics. TIMTTMY is the one that made die-hard fans cry they'd sold out but I really don't care, it's a marvellous record. Go see them live if you can - they've still got it. JDB is the most underrated voice AND guitar player of his generation IMO. Absolutely cracking band.

Bucket

Been aware of Maximum the Hormone for about a year or two but dismissed them as some weird J-pop band for nerds... turns out they're actually a fucking brilliant band who have a serious System of a Down vibe about them, except even madder. See my thread for details.

Knew about the Wildhearts for a couple of years before finally listening to them for the first time last year. Holy shit am I glad I did, they're one of my favourite bands now. Absolutely awesome.

Lodious

For MMJ recommendations, id go for Z and the live cd/dvd..both V. Good IMHO

IanSavage

Bucket said:

Knew about the Wildhearts for a couple of years before finally listening to them for the first time last year. Holy shit am I glad I did, they're one of my favourite bands now. Absolutely awesome.

Wisdom for this

kuro

Ryan Adams. I remember all the hype from a few years ago but had never heard anything of his, saw HEARTBREAKER on sale in Oxfam for a pound, bought it on a 'see what the fuss was about' basis.

Please don't tell me he has released a ton of albums as I shall have to buy them all.

Skipped

Sort of on topic....
When I was in my late teens I used to go see a band in the Leeds University refectory every Saturday night. Sometimes we got tickets during the week, sometimes we would just go and hope it was not sold out. The only time I can recall not getting in was Elton John.
I am convinced that if we had have got in I would now be a huge fan and own all his albums. And in a small (?) way that has changed my life.  :-S
Soon after that a guy I was in a band with insisted that I sat down and listened to Steely Dan (sh*t..which album was it) and I was hooked for life. If he had not done that would I have been drawn in by hearing the singles on the radio? I am not sure. Can you imagine a life without Steely Dan?
:-O

richardhomer

kuro;262607" said:

Please don't tell me he has released a ton of albums as I shall have to buy them all.

I believe he has released a ton of albums...