Eclectic: Verse II

Read Verse I

Suggested Audio Candy:

Porcupine Tree Arriving Somewhere But Not Here

It was a quiet time for musical inspiration throughout my twenties, nothing quite got my adrenaline going in the same manner than Rap and Hardcore Breakbeat had and consequently I spent a handful of years listening to all but nothing. Brief flirtatious with Intelligent Drum & Bass from the likes of Omni Trio and nameless progressive trance appeased me on my daily excursions to my mundane job and, once the car was alarmed, I’d simply spend my time watching films instead.

Lyrical content was never the main draw for me, I’d be far more exhilarated by a track with a gradual build to an awesome drop. In the correct state of mind I would become mesmerized by rhythmic arrangements and a decent track would open up to me musically rather than through vocal meaning. Not all the time mind, but a great percentage.

When my first marriage petered out I took on my existing mortgage on with a friend and he drank from an entirely different musical font. He’d matured in a household all dedicated to rock from the likes of Led Zeppelin and Black Sabbath so his inspirations were of stark contrast to my own. Kinda! Rap and Metal outfits had a long standing mutual respect for one another and artists such as Public Enemy, Run DMC, The Beastie Boys and Ice-T had begun to forge a connection, including guitar riffs to their vocal licks with some success.

It all happened organically, one day I returned home from work to The Other Side by the Red Hot Chili Peppers as I strode through the door and, within seconds, my weary eyes were closed as I slumped awkwardly on the sofa. The song resonated rather strongly and remains my favorite track by the Chilis years later.
It opened me up to various artists as I gradually fed my O.C.D. into familiarizing myself to an entire musical movement. Never was it quite as extensive as my understanding of Rap and its origins. I’d been popping and locking as opposed to rocking for too long and its a fairly vast genre, to say the bare minimum.

My aptitude for cherry picking assisted me in finding my chosen artists of choice and within a few months I was immersed in the Metal scene hook, line and sinker. I’ve never been one to dip a toe in so instead I cannon-balled into it. My hair was dyed Crimson, my clothes began to change from skinny fitting tops to baggy baseball tops and I’ll-fitting jeans. I developed a penchant for DC sneakers and collected them as if they were confectionery and I purchased my first and only skateboard. Not ideal attire when hurtling downhill at speeds of 20MPH+ as I almost garrotted myself on my own spiked choker anytime I bailed and ultimately going down like a sack of shit left too hefty a wound with my elbow resembling a horses head. But I carried on riffing for several years until Metal reached a stagnant point and it was time to metamorphosize once again.

Progressive Rock Gods and Metal Legends: Megadeth, Nine Inch Nails, Tangerine Dream, Pink Floyd, Pearl Jam, Nirvana, Queens of the Stone Age, Porcupine Tree, Pitchshifter

Blazing LPs: Relationship of Command–At The Drive In, Fear of a Blank Planet–Porcupine Tree, The Black Album–Metallica, Make Yourself–Incubus, Phaedra–Tangerine Dream, Nevermind–Nirvana, Welcome–Taproot, Songs For The Deaf–Queens of the Stone Age, Dark Side of The Moon–Pink Floyd, Buy Now Saved Later–One Minute Silence

My elongated infatuation with Rock and Metal throughout the lost years eventually gave way to a far more all-encompassing mindset in my early thirties. I openly embraced music from all sources and become jack of all trades (master of some). I revisited those marvellous Eighties and the likes of Japan, The Police, Depeche Mode, Simple Minds and The Cure became mainstays in my iPod shuffle list. Albums such as Paul Simon’s Graceland, Fleetwood Mac’s Tango in The Night and Phil Collins’ No Jacket Required were revisited and the color came back to my cheeks spectacularly.

Electro supplied by behemoths such as Man Parrish and Herbie Hancock got another run out on occasion as I found my true love for music once again. I had travel full-circle and had now reached a higher plane of consciousness.

I Love The 80s: Maneater–Daryl Hall & John Oates, Atomic–Blondie, Alive & Kicking–Simple Minds, Walking on The Moon–The Police, Quiet Life–Japan, Rockit–Herbie Hancock, Dancehall Days–Wang Chung, More Than This–Roxy Music, Rio–Duran Duran

Revitalized and reborn I am now open to music of any genre, from Tracy Chapman to Aphex Twin and everything in-between. Classical music doesn’t repulse me, neither does Folk. Jazz leaves me a touch cold but I’m sure in the correct environment it could be pleasing. I love nothing more than setting a dreamscape when I sleep, ceiling lasers on and anything from Enya to Above and Beyond and Ladytron crafting a lullaby for the precious few hours I’m actually restoring myself.

Having eclectic tastes is an exhaustive pursuit but I am comfortable within my pelt, open always to new experiences and can now enjoy music as an art-form like I did as a boy. I may not visibly have the bandy legs or awkward frame anymore but inside I still do.

Sin-and Dance,
Keeper of the Quill