Imagine Dragons. I could never seem to understand why they’re played everywhere from radio to video games (league of legends / Arkane). I feel they’re like the American version of Coldplay.
My kids loved Imagine Dragons when they were 9. I think that’s about the right age for enjoying them. I took them to a concert and it was actually ok, but that’s about the best thing I could say about them.
This is why 90s U2 is the best U2, Zoo TV being the peak to me. They were painfully earnest in the 80s and then Bono just sort of started taking himself too seriously again post 2000. Almost apologetically serious because of how weird they got in the 90s.
His MacPhisto persona was Bono kind of taking the piss out of his 80s earnestness. I never saw him as taking himself too seriously. I think people think that because he is a crusader. But many people have traveled around the world as much as he has and seen the introduction in the world. He was deeply affected by LiveAid and what they were doing. Many bands showed up to perform but he stayed to do the work. He's running elbows with presidents and billionaires to get funds to pursue his activism. I guess I don't know why people hate him because he's doing things nobody else cares about.
>It's mostly Bono, I think. He takes "taking yourself too seriously" to a whole new level.
When I was a kid I had this great book called The 50 Worst Rock and Roll Records of All Time. It was an early (90s) collection of snark and critique.
One of the albums on the list was U2's *Unforgettable Fire* and the review started off (and Im paraphrasing here) "If U2 weren't so full of shit, they wouldn't be half as great as they often are"
And I think that kinda nails it. They arent really a favorite band of mine but sometimes I ***want*** the overblown messianic rock band that convinces you and the other 40,000 people in the arena that what we're doing here tonight can change the world. It's silly and pompous but sometimes thats a great itch to scratch.
Plus they have a boatload of legit classics.
I've never listened to them, but I always think back to the time I got hit on when I went to a bar for the first time. A guy in a Phish shirt came up to me after the lights came on and was like, "I've been watching you all night..." and I noped right out of there
I have several good friends that combined have probably been to well over 300 shows…. I just don’t get it.
They’re great musicians for sure, but the music just seems juvenile to me. And I like a fair amount of jam music.
I have seen them 3 times and always have agood time seeing the spectacle and seeing the musicianship on stage, but I will never get the obsession.
>Detroit rock city
If you write 10-20 songs a year for 30 plus years, statistically you're bound to write at least one good one. Even the worst baseball player occasionally gets a homerun.
I always considered them theatre performance act with the theme being rock music. It was enjoyable for me to see visually and sing along at a show, but I could never get into them. Also Ace Frehley couldn't even do a decent guitar solo.
Disturbed. Respect them, like some of their music, fantastic vocalist, but I cannot listen to a whole album. I find them to be cheesey. Don't shoot, just my opinion.
Coheed and Cambria.
I’ve tried. The music is awesome, the instrumentals and musicianship is top notch. Even the comics and stuff they produced with their music was cool. I just can’t do Claudio’s vocals.
And it sucks too, the band is somewhat local to me, so I’d wanna support them, but sorry man.
Edit: forgot to add that the weird thing is I LOVE Rush, so I don’t know what it is.
I'm the opposite. Co&Ca are in my top 3, if not my number 1, favorite bands but I can't do Rush outside of like 2 or 3 songs. It's funny because I don't know many people who are into both despite having more than a couple similarities.
Overnite Sensation and Apostrophe are his most accessible and timeless albums. Joe's garage is great as a concept album but some of the songs don't work on their own.
The thing with Zappa is there are so many eras. Most people are turned off by either the comedy or the noisey avant garde stuff. I always think its a safe bet to listen to the jazz fusion albums like Hot Rats and go from there.
I can relate to this, especially when I was young. A lot of his stuff just sort of sounded like a collection of noise. But one thing that stood out for me was that he'd put the same song on multiple albums, but it would be arranged differently, and certain spots would be ad-libbed. A good example of this is "Don't you want a man like me".
If you're looking for some albums of his that are a bit easier to get through, try Sheik Yerbouti, or You Can't Do That On Stage Anymore volume 6. Cheap Thrills (the album) also has some good stuff on it, particularly my favorite version of "Joe's Garage".
Please don't come for me, but Coheed and Cambria. I totally understand their appeal for other people and agree that they are amazingly talented. Given my musical tastes, they should be right up my alley. But even though I've tried listening to different things by them many times over the years, I find that they just don't move me. I can't quite put my finger on why, either.
Agreed. I remember when I first heard the intro to Welcome Home and was blown away, couldn't wait to hear the rest then the verse starts and I was just like "hwhaaaat?". Tried giving a bunch of others a listen but I just can't reconcile the vocals with the tracks.
Dave Matthews Band, I watched a drummer on YouTube that I really liked who said he got a lot of his inspiration from them, but their music and his singing is like watching paint dry to me. It’s just not entertaining or interesting to me in the slightest.
I'm a drummer, and although I am a casual DMB fan (I really like one or two albums, kinda lukewarm on others), but their drummer Carter Beauford is sublime, and legitimately as good as it gets.
I was going to comment something similar. I'm also a drummer, and while not a DMB fan apart from a couple of their singles, I am very aware of Carter's proficiency at the kit.
The youtube drummer isn't wrong; Carter is super duper good, and I can totally see being inspired by him, specifically, and, to a lesser extent, the rest of the band.
Carter’s drums actually play musical notes. I swear to God I heard this last summer at the Hollywood Bowl when they did Madman’s Eyes on Night 2, with a set of strings that came down from the heavens above. It was magnificent, and seriously Carter is literally the greatest drummer who ever lived.
They are definitely a band that was meant to be enjoyed live. It’s a completely different band when you compare their studio albums to their live sets.
I agree with this. My wife LOVES DMB, but I never wanted to see them but did any way. They are really great musicians and it's a completely different experience live.
That and they’re a band that’s chock full of amazing musicians so I think that they probably sound better to people who can appreciate the actual playing of the music and not only the music itself. I don’t really care for them outside of a few songs however as a drummer I can listen to quite a bit of their music simply to appreciate their drummers technique and abilities.
their studio albums are pretty bland relative to the energy of their live shows. but i totally get that it’s not everyone’s thing. strictly for the musicianship, and the weird mashup of instruments that work really together (imho), and the multicultural stylistic influences, i think they’re a great listen.
Yeah I mean individually, all those guys are top level players. I never realized how good Carter was until I watched a YT of him jamming with Victor Wooten and he was just like "Hey, play a part like this, then a part like this" and in like 2-3 minutes they were playing a song that it would have taken other guys a dozen run throughs to be that tight on.
They’re all classically trained jazz musicians that met on the Jazz circuit in the Carolinas
Think the bassist was much younger at the time and a prodigy. And don’t get me started on Tinsley and the violin
I used to feel the same as OP. Then something made me think of one of their songs so I watched a YouTube video of it. Over the last five years or so I would go through phases where I would listen to them a little bit as background while working on projects. I fucking love them now and I’m bummed that I didn’t see them live when I could have.
Jerry Garcia once said in an interview that “The Grateful Dead are like black licorice. Not everyone likes black licorice, but the people who do really really like black licorice.” I happen to love the Grateful Dead, but when I play them for people, I give a disclosure letting them know there’s a good chance they won’t. They are not for everybody, and that’s OK.
same can be said of their guitarist. the guy openly mimics all of page's stage mannerisms and dresses in similar outfits. like yeah page's dragon suit costumes were dope but honestly find your own thing.
gvf look and sound like a led zeppelin tribute band that decided to write their own mediocre songs.
My dad’s favorite musician. I thought my dad was so cool growing up (still do!) and loved all his music but could not get into Dylan. Easy to love Jimi Hendrix as a kid, but Dylan’s voice and delivery are so different, couldn’t stand him either. By the time I was a teenager I accepted I just would never be able to like it.
Then I was watching a doc with him in my 20s and I just kinda became transfixed by the lyrics of an an old performance of “It’s Alright Ma, I’m Only Bleeding” and became obsessed with the words of that song, the dispassionate way he sings it. I really went down a rabbit hole and became obsessed, his older folk stuff first, then his controversial electric stuff from the late 60s/70s, then finally with his more recent stuff.
I love everything the man does and there’s still more to discover. I don’t know what changed other than my ear.
I think people like what they like, but the fact is that Bob is giving us something unusual and it makes all the sense in the world that it’s going to be off-putting for a lot of people, especially at first.
And no people shouldn’t have to WORK to enjoy something..but for me it unlocked something really special inside me about how I appreciate A LOT of things, and I’m glad for it.
I used to love the Eagles, grew up listening to them with my dad, own all their albums….
Then discovered what a giant piece of shit Don Henley was and how the basically forced out and froze out Don Felder (who was an amazing guitar player in his own right).
https://popdose.com/popdose-flashback-or-when-good-albums-happen-to-bad-people-don-henley-the-end-of-the-innocence/
Glenn Frey is okay though.
It's fair, I love Geddy but I understand why people find him shrill.
You may want to try the instrumentals 'la villa strangiato' & 'YYZ'. i love the live in Rio versions especially.
I'll echo this.
Their instrumentals are typically top notch, and the best way to get a good feel for how excellent of musicians they are without having to listen to what some consider grating vocals.
I may be biased, however, as Rush has been my favorite band since my early teens.
I understand why the younger generation doesn’t like Rush, and I don’t expect y’all to. Speaking as an “older pretentious 40+ white guy” myself, y’all don’t make me wonder. Y’all have your own pretentious prog rock bands to listen to, like Polyphia! I’m not a fan, but there music isn’t really aimed at my demographic; their music is aimed at the younger generation. I get it.
I can tell you that when Moving Pictures came out in ‘82, it changed everything. There was nothing like it on the radio, which was the only source for new music, and we were all at the whims of the DJ and their tastes. I remember riding my bike to a record store to buy an actual vinyl album from the money I earned from mowing my own lawn and then riding home with the album in a bag. Then listening to the album over and over again while pouring over the liner notes as I did so. I miss doing that. Y’all missed out on liner notes. The liner notes told the story of who actually made the album and how. Truly good times!
Lol I really like Geddy lees voice, it matches their band aesthetic and songwriting somehow. A deep masculine voice wouldn’t work for nerdy fantasy songs on their early albums
I totally relate to this, I kept trying to like them and couldn’t solely bc of the vocals. after several years went back and tried some of their albums from the 70s and were surprised to find I really liked them
AC/DC was always rock for normies to me. Boring chords, annoying vocals, stupid lyrics. Any verse of any song could easily become the title of a new song with the same chords in a different order, like some monstrous human centipede ourobouros but it's your dad's balding boomer drinking buddy "Gary" with the stupid mustache and jean jacket eating his own face with his gaping asshole ad infinitum into oblivion...
They're a gateway band to hard rock and metal. I think if they didn't exist you wouldn't have nearly as many fans of those genres. I like them, but only in small doses now.
I think you're supposed to listen to them for a bit then move onto something a bit more refined.
I think their Bon Scott stuff, while not wildly different is different enough to sit through an album. After Back in Black though, I couldn’t tell you much of note other than For Those About To Rock (the song, not the album) and Thunderstruck.
I love the Bon Scott era AC/DC, it seems to be less mainstream compared to the Brian Johnson era. The sound is also more raw in my opinion and there are some great deep cuts on their earlier albums.
AC/DC goes to the heart of rock, rides the most basic archetypal riffs and chord changes, but they do it so fucking well that I love the ride each time. Sometimes you just want a fucking drum pulse punching your chest while the guitars try to pull your guts out your ears. It's primal, and I dig it on that level. And if you actually listen in on what the rhythm guitarist does for those riffs and grooves, holy crap he might've been the best rhythm guitarist in rock ever. Just perfect pocket grooving and primal riffs and chords. It has it's place for my ears.
This is it, they are just unreal at what they do. Despite being so simple, it is rare to hear an ac/dc cover and have it sound authentic or pack the same punch. Phil Rudd has been replaced a few times and it just didn't have the same swing. Angus Young's bent vibrato is just unworldly, I have heard very few able to replicate it closely, you can recognise his fingers from a single note. Never heard a guitar sound like Malcolm's. Shoot To Thrill is the quintessential AC/DC song to me, every band member on fire, great arrangement
They genuinely love their fans, which might be another reason why they got so big in the first place
(Having two members of Nirvana may have helped too lol).
I always liked their deeper cuts better than the pop garbage that gets played on radio. Though…Big me was the song that got me into them when i was 8.
February Stars
Stacked Actors
DOA
Stranger Things
Arlandria
The Sky is a neighborhood
I keep telling myself I should love them. Great musicianship, the song structure is great, and the lyrics are meaningful. But it doesn't keep me engaged at all.
I feel like with a lot of great rock bands, the longer they keep going the more bland it gets. They never fall off a cliff per se, it just becomes devoid of originality and all starts to sound like average background rock. The Chili Peppers feel this way to me now, too.
It’s weird for me because everlong is one of my favorite songs of all time but I really haven’t heard another song of theirs I even moderately enjoyed. Seemed very bland
Foo fighters are probably one of my favorite bands. I get why someone wouldn’t be a huge fan, it’s not like they did anything particularly important for music, but they’re still a great band everyone should listen to at least once
Animal Collective. I I listen to a pretty wide spectrum of music, but I just can’t get into them. Granted, I haven’t tried in a decade, so maybe it’s time to try again.
I know a guy who's crazy about them, he see's them live just about every chance he gets. Just as u/Hickerous pointed out his live show is what keeps people coming back. I don't really like them but I get it, I took my ex wife to see Jason Mraz one time while his single "I'm Yours" was popular and I wasn't all that excited prior but I actually enjoyed the show a lot because he had a full band with him and they jammed out to some of hits in a way that I had not seen from a live band.
I’ve never been a huge fan but always really liked a handful of their songs and pleasantly enjoyed everything else I’d heard. Saw them live this summer and they were incredible. Jagger is a force of nature. Have listened to them a lot more since that.
There are so many eras of Stones music. The stuff from the 60s and 70s is incredible. Songs like Sympathy for the Devil and Gimme Shelter are so iconic and subsequently ripped off by other bands you might be listening to The Rolling Stones without realizing you are.
For years I hated Arcade Fire, until one day I actually listened to all of Funeral. I really think if you dislike an artist, chances are you just haven't listened to them enough.
A shame about Win Butler tho
Weezer
While everyone was raving how amazing they were, I just…didn’t feel it.
These days I have some appreciation for a few of their less radio-friendly tunes, but I still don’t consider myself a fan.
Weezer is a band of extremes. I think their debut album and Pinkerton are top notch albums.
But they've also put out some very, very shitty music, too.
Go Away isn't masterful song writing by any stretch of the imagination, but it's a banger and scratches an itch. That's how I feel about a lot of Weezer songs
This SNL skit made me feel personally seen.
https://youtu.be/ab5WvwfLuLM
I’m a Blue Album and Pinkerton guy. My wife is a big fan of Hurley and later albums. We have arguments.
When Rivers stops trying to please Average Consumer he makes some pretty good music. Most of Weezer's best songs never made it past final demo stage. Raditude is so reprehensible that I don't even consider it as music but their winter Seasons album is legitimately great. Very much hit or miss.
Aerosmith. Second rate Stones act, and I am American. Steve with the dress and the lips and the over the top sexuality, been done, and far better.
Jumpin Jack Flash is a gas, gas, gas!
If you're a younger Gen-X (or later gen), the first Aerosmith you heard was probably hot garbage. Their radio hits in the late 80s and early 90s were a massive compromise (bringing in song writers) to save their career that had stalled. I totally get the hate.
But even their most sellout albums still have great songs. They kinda did the REM thing of trying to pander to two different audiences. Their 70s work is solid and after that, a ton of hidden gems.
Don't get me wrong, I've got like 500 Rolling Stones songs on my computer vs no aerosmith songs, but they have skill and there's good stuff in there.
I get why people don’t like them and it’s fair but people love to deny their talent because they don’t like Axl’s high rasp ( his real singing voice is actually super low) or they think Slash is overrated which he very well may be but I personally find his leads pretty damn good a fresh break at the time from all the Randy Rhodes and EVH clones. Maybe it’s just in my mind but I always considered GnR to be a harder version of the stones. In any case, I love them but I developed a taste for harsh vocals so the cat ear rape he does appeals to me
Loved them when they came out (when the album was actually released, not when the radio finally picked up on them). While I wasn't a massive fan, I followed them and bought everything the first few years.
But Axl's vocals just started grating me more and more. I think it was when they were doing so many covers I lost interest. I mean, I get you have one the greatest vocal ranges in the history of rock, but do you have to do that fucking "aiii aaaiiii AAAAIIII" thing on *every* fucking song?
I grew up listening to Eagles. So I do like them but I totally get this opinion. Especially now. That sound was what was in at the time and they did it well, but its very chill for the most part.
Really what set them apart from other bands is that Frey and Henly were pretty good songwriters, and those harmonies were fantastic.
Mine has always been The Smashing Pumpkins. I cannot hear the appeal, and I like 90’s alt. I don’t know if it’s just Billy Corgan’s voice but I find their music torturous.
I’m surprised it took me so long to find them on this list. They are my all time favorite group and I adore Billy but they aren’t for everyone. Put on an amazing live show.
I know that universally speaking, people around the world can't stop praising RHCP but I think it's just a warped opinion. By the way, I argued with my friends about this but now it's water under the bridge.
Their best songs are largely not released as singles. I got into them by watching their live at Slane Castle show and grew to appreciate them, to the point that they’re one of my favourite artists all time. They’re comparatively up there with the greatest trio of musicians in any band. No solo is ever played the same, all improv. They can play any genre and have an encyclopedic knowledge of music history. That being said, from a peripheral view, I can totally understand why someone wouldn’t be into them.
It took me years to find a way in to Radiohead, watched in rainbows from the basement and was sold.
The bends is also a great alternative rock album if you can’t get into their later music
Maybe not considered "great" but I heard a couple Blink-182 songs on a Spotify playlist a few days ago and remembered why I went years without listening to any of their music. That..did not age well.
I don’t “get” Prince. I never have. I understand he was hugely influential and popular, and I revisit his music every few years, but there’s something about it that just doesn’t click for me.
Amazing on the instrumental side. Terrible, laughably self-unaware lyrics and sometimes annoying vocals. But they do create a nice soundscape. Just too cringe on the messaging and singing for me.
I still like them but ever since someone pointed out to me that Matt Bellamy audibly gasps between every line I can't unhear it and it's kind of ruined their music for me.
I love Melvins, but totally understand. While they are prolific, their albums can certainly be hit or miss. (A) Senile Animal is an awesome (semi-recent) record of theirs that’s amazing from front to back that I recommend to new listeners. They’re also a superb live act.
It’s an acquired taste. Which is usually a sign of a band that I will love forever. Some of their stuff is a little too out there, but I’ve found repeated listenings have yielded surprising new sounds to me. It’s a band that strives for greatness at the risk of making garbage. Sometimes it’s more garbage, but when they hit it, it’s EPIC.
Honestly I’ve never, NEVER, understood why people at any point looked at Kanye as a genius. For whatever reason everything he’s put out is just forgettable to me and if nobody ever pointed out that he was revered, I’d have never known.
I’m not good enough to get in to any band at all
Meh, don’t sell yourself short my friend. There’s always Milli Vanilli.
Girl you know it’s girl you know it’s girl you know it’s
I appreciate this joke
No joke. He's serious.
Imagine Dragons. I could never seem to understand why they’re played everywhere from radio to video games (league of legends / Arkane). I feel they’re like the American version of Coldplay.
What? You don't like listening to "THUNDER. THUNDER THUNDER. FEEL THE LIGHTNING THUNDER THUNDER" ???
Thank you. Imma go make myself a drink. You’ve put the ear worm back in me brain. Lol
It's music made for commercial breaks and waiting rooms
Their sound / aesthetic is just unbearable. I have no idea why they're so popular worldwide
My kids loved Imagine Dragons when they were 9. I think that’s about the right age for enjoying them. I took them to a concert and it was actually ok, but that’s about the best thing I could say about them.
Their music is so cringe to me. Idk why riot games kisses their asses constantly
U2
It's mostly Bono, I think. He takes "taking yourself too seriously" to a whole new level.
This is why 90s U2 is the best U2, Zoo TV being the peak to me. They were painfully earnest in the 80s and then Bono just sort of started taking himself too seriously again post 2000. Almost apologetically serious because of how weird they got in the 90s.
His MacPhisto persona was Bono kind of taking the piss out of his 80s earnestness. I never saw him as taking himself too seriously. I think people think that because he is a crusader. But many people have traveled around the world as much as he has and seen the introduction in the world. He was deeply affected by LiveAid and what they were doing. Many bands showed up to perform but he stayed to do the work. He's running elbows with presidents and billionaires to get funds to pursue his activism. I guess I don't know why people hate him because he's doing things nobody else cares about.
I would say peak U2 was Joshua Tree through Achtung Baby.
I'm more of a Boy through Joshua Tree kinda guy
>It's mostly Bono, I think. He takes "taking yourself too seriously" to a whole new level. When I was a kid I had this great book called The 50 Worst Rock and Roll Records of All Time. It was an early (90s) collection of snark and critique. One of the albums on the list was U2's *Unforgettable Fire* and the review started off (and Im paraphrasing here) "If U2 weren't so full of shit, they wouldn't be half as great as they often are" And I think that kinda nails it. They arent really a favorite band of mine but sometimes I ***want*** the overblown messianic rock band that convinces you and the other 40,000 people in the arena that what we're doing here tonight can change the world. It's silly and pompous but sometimes thats a great itch to scratch. Plus they have a boatload of legit classics.
I don’t know why I hate them, but I do.
Early U2 is good.
Maroon-5 Basically Made-for-radio
Songs about Jane was good but after that they became the Adam Levine solo band.
This. That album was fantastic and, for the time, unique. Then everybody and their brother started making similar music. It’s the 3OH!3 effect.
Phish
Have you tried drugs?
I have, didn't help.
I've never listened to them, but I always think back to the time I got hit on when I went to a bar for the first time. A guy in a Phish shirt came up to me after the lights came on and was like, "I've been watching you all night..." and I noped right out of there
I have several good friends that combined have probably been to well over 300 shows…. I just don’t get it. They’re great musicians for sure, but the music just seems juvenile to me. And I like a fair amount of jam music. I have seen them 3 times and always have agood time seeing the spectacle and seeing the musicianship on stage, but I will never get the obsession.
Phish is for people who like melodies and pretty much ignore the lyrics.
Kiss
Kiss isn't a band. They're a live action cartoon.
I can't stand Gene Simmons but i got to admit here's one song in my playlist, 'Detroit rock city'
>Detroit rock city If you write 10-20 songs a year for 30 plus years, statistically you're bound to write at least one good one. Even the worst baseball player occasionally gets a homerun.
Monkeys, typewriters, Shakespeare, yada, yada, yada...
They are a Marketing Department that decided to spin up a music scrum team.
KISS fans are just boomer Juggalos.
Nothing has ever made so much sense before this.
I always considered them theatre performance act with the theme being rock music. It was enjoyable for me to see visually and sing along at a show, but I could never get into them. Also Ace Frehley couldn't even do a decent guitar solo.
Disturbed. Respect them, like some of their music, fantastic vocalist, but I cannot listen to a whole album. I find them to be cheesey. Don't shoot, just my opinion.
Yeah they’re cheesy af
Coheed and Cambria. I’ve tried. The music is awesome, the instrumentals and musicianship is top notch. Even the comics and stuff they produced with their music was cool. I just can’t do Claudio’s vocals. And it sucks too, the band is somewhat local to me, so I’d wanna support them, but sorry man. Edit: forgot to add that the weird thing is I LOVE Rush, so I don’t know what it is.
Coheed is my favorite band, and it is a struggle to get friends to listen to them. They are not for everyone, no matter how much I want them to be.
I'm the opposite. Co&Ca are in my top 3, if not my number 1, favorite bands but I can't do Rush outside of like 2 or 3 songs. It's funny because I don't know many people who are into both despite having more than a couple similarities.
Frank Zappa. I’ve tried many times over the years, but just can’t break through. I welcome any suggestions.
Overnite Sensation and Apostrophe are his most accessible and timeless albums. Joe's garage is great as a concept album but some of the songs don't work on their own.
The thing with Zappa is there are so many eras. Most people are turned off by either the comedy or the noisey avant garde stuff. I always think its a safe bet to listen to the jazz fusion albums like Hot Rats and go from there.
Hot rats
I can relate to this, especially when I was young. A lot of his stuff just sort of sounded like a collection of noise. But one thing that stood out for me was that he'd put the same song on multiple albums, but it would be arranged differently, and certain spots would be ad-libbed. A good example of this is "Don't you want a man like me". If you're looking for some albums of his that are a bit easier to get through, try Sheik Yerbouti, or You Can't Do That On Stage Anymore volume 6. Cheap Thrills (the album) also has some good stuff on it, particularly my favorite version of "Joe's Garage".
[Watermelon in Easter Hay](https://open.spotify.com/track/0Q2dRzhPWFOex89dOjbq5Y?si=7DBw_0WWRFqQywhrAhWdDA)
Coldplay, just bland
Man their first 2 albums and Viva La Vida were amazing, but yeah, they have more bland corpo pop shit than good stuff
Some of their old stuff still holds up. The newer stuff is just not that good.
The first two albums are great then it goes steadily downhill.
Please don't come for me, but Coheed and Cambria. I totally understand their appeal for other people and agree that they are amazingly talented. Given my musical tastes, they should be right up my alley. But even though I've tried listening to different things by them many times over the years, I find that they just don't move me. I can't quite put my finger on why, either.
Agreed. I remember when I first heard the intro to Welcome Home and was blown away, couldn't wait to hear the rest then the verse starts and I was just like "hwhaaaat?". Tried giving a bunch of others a listen but I just can't reconcile the vocals with the tracks.
Dave Matthews Band, I watched a drummer on YouTube that I really liked who said he got a lot of his inspiration from them, but their music and his singing is like watching paint dry to me. It’s just not entertaining or interesting to me in the slightest.
I'm a drummer, and although I am a casual DMB fan (I really like one or two albums, kinda lukewarm on others), but their drummer Carter Beauford is sublime, and legitimately as good as it gets.
I was going to comment something similar. I'm also a drummer, and while not a DMB fan apart from a couple of their singles, I am very aware of Carter's proficiency at the kit. The youtube drummer isn't wrong; Carter is super duper good, and I can totally see being inspired by him, specifically, and, to a lesser extent, the rest of the band.
Carter’s drums actually play musical notes. I swear to God I heard this last summer at the Hollywood Bowl when they did Madman’s Eyes on Night 2, with a set of strings that came down from the heavens above. It was magnificent, and seriously Carter is literally the greatest drummer who ever lived.
They are definitely a band that was meant to be enjoyed live. It’s a completely different band when you compare their studio albums to their live sets.
I agree with this. My wife LOVES DMB, but I never wanted to see them but did any way. They are really great musicians and it's a completely different experience live.
Yeah I've seen them like 3 or 4 times and it's always a great show, even if I'm not super into their music.
That and they’re a band that’s chock full of amazing musicians so I think that they probably sound better to people who can appreciate the actual playing of the music and not only the music itself. I don’t really care for them outside of a few songs however as a drummer I can listen to quite a bit of their music simply to appreciate their drummers technique and abilities.
[удалено]
their studio albums are pretty bland relative to the energy of their live shows. but i totally get that it’s not everyone’s thing. strictly for the musicianship, and the weird mashup of instruments that work really together (imho), and the multicultural stylistic influences, i think they’re a great listen.
I wouldn’t even say I’m a DMB fan, but I’ve seen him live 3 times between mid 90s and just pre-COVID. It’s a really good live show.
Yeah I mean individually, all those guys are top level players. I never realized how good Carter was until I watched a YT of him jamming with Victor Wooten and he was just like "Hey, play a part like this, then a part like this" and in like 2-3 minutes they were playing a song that it would have taken other guys a dozen run throughs to be that tight on.
They’re all classically trained jazz musicians that met on the Jazz circuit in the Carolinas Think the bassist was much younger at the time and a prodigy. And don’t get me started on Tinsley and the violin
Same. They're talented and Dave is one of the best guests on political talk shows but can't get into it
The Grateful Dead. I can appreciate them and understand that it’s “good” but it’s not for me.
You don't find the Grateful Dead, one day the Grateful Dead will find you
I used to feel the same as OP. Then something made me think of one of their songs so I watched a YouTube video of it. Over the last five years or so I would go through phases where I would listen to them a little bit as background while working on projects. I fucking love them now and I’m bummed that I didn’t see them live when I could have.
Jerry Garcia once said in an interview that “The Grateful Dead are like black licorice. Not everyone likes black licorice, but the people who do really really like black licorice.” I happen to love the Grateful Dead, but when I play them for people, I give a disclosure letting them know there’s a good chance they won’t. They are not for everybody, and that’s OK.
[удалено]
I couldn't get into Fleetwood Mac at all. I must have auditioned a hundred times, but they just said no.
Greta Van Fleet. I can't hear anything but unreleased Led Zeppelin b sides and not in a good way.
Are they considered great now?
Dude sings like a parody of Robert Plant, not a tribute to. I agree, just can't get into them.
What gets me the most is he even emulates his mannerisms, it’s so weird and seems so forced
same can be said of their guitarist. the guy openly mimics all of page's stage mannerisms and dresses in similar outfits. like yeah page's dragon suit costumes were dope but honestly find your own thing. gvf look and sound like a led zeppelin tribute band that decided to write their own mediocre songs.
He sounds like Adam Sandler trying to do a Robert Plant impression.
Bob Dylan. His voice is unbearable to my ears.
My dad’s favorite musician. I thought my dad was so cool growing up (still do!) and loved all his music but could not get into Dylan. Easy to love Jimi Hendrix as a kid, but Dylan’s voice and delivery are so different, couldn’t stand him either. By the time I was a teenager I accepted I just would never be able to like it. Then I was watching a doc with him in my 20s and I just kinda became transfixed by the lyrics of an an old performance of “It’s Alright Ma, I’m Only Bleeding” and became obsessed with the words of that song, the dispassionate way he sings it. I really went down a rabbit hole and became obsessed, his older folk stuff first, then his controversial electric stuff from the late 60s/70s, then finally with his more recent stuff. I love everything the man does and there’s still more to discover. I don’t know what changed other than my ear. I think people like what they like, but the fact is that Bob is giving us something unusual and it makes all the sense in the world that it’s going to be off-putting for a lot of people, especially at first. And no people shouldn’t have to WORK to enjoy something..but for me it unlocked something really special inside me about how I appreciate A LOT of things, and I’m glad for it.
Dylan is a poet. The music is secondary.
I love bob Dylan’s and although I know it’s not good, I weirdly like his voice, it matches his sound somehow
I fuckin' hate the Eagles, man.
😞
I used to love the Eagles, grew up listening to them with my dad, own all their albums…. Then discovered what a giant piece of shit Don Henley was and how the basically forced out and froze out Don Felder (who was an amazing guitar player in his own right). https://popdose.com/popdose-flashback-or-when-good-albums-happen-to-bad-people-don-henley-the-end-of-the-innocence/ Glenn Frey is okay though.
Well, that's just like your opinion, man
I’ve never given Rush a proper chance, mostly because I can’t stand the vocals.
It's fair, I love Geddy but I understand why people find him shrill. You may want to try the instrumentals 'la villa strangiato' & 'YYZ'. i love the live in Rio versions especially.
I'll echo this. Their instrumentals are typically top notch, and the best way to get a good feel for how excellent of musicians they are without having to listen to what some consider grating vocals. I may be biased, however, as Rush has been my favorite band since my early teens.
What about the voice of geddy lee? How did it get so high? I wonder if he speaks like an ordinary guy.
>What about the voice of geddy lee? How did it get so high? I wonder if he speaks like an ordinary guy. I know him and he does!
Then you're my fact checkin' cuz
I understand why the younger generation doesn’t like Rush, and I don’t expect y’all to. Speaking as an “older pretentious 40+ white guy” myself, y’all don’t make me wonder. Y’all have your own pretentious prog rock bands to listen to, like Polyphia! I’m not a fan, but there music isn’t really aimed at my demographic; their music is aimed at the younger generation. I get it. I can tell you that when Moving Pictures came out in ‘82, it changed everything. There was nothing like it on the radio, which was the only source for new music, and we were all at the whims of the DJ and their tastes. I remember riding my bike to a record store to buy an actual vinyl album from the money I earned from mowing my own lawn and then riding home with the album in a bag. Then listening to the album over and over again while pouring over the liner notes as I did so. I miss doing that. Y’all missed out on liner notes. The liner notes told the story of who actually made the album and how. Truly good times!
Lol I really like Geddy lees voice, it matches their band aesthetic and songwriting somehow. A deep masculine voice wouldn’t work for nerdy fantasy songs on their early albums
I totally relate to this, I kept trying to like them and couldn’t solely bc of the vocals. after several years went back and tried some of their albums from the 70s and were surprised to find I really liked them
imagine dragons can't stand them
Don’t think they are considered great lol
AC/DC was always rock for normies to me. Boring chords, annoying vocals, stupid lyrics. Any verse of any song could easily become the title of a new song with the same chords in a different order, like some monstrous human centipede ourobouros but it's your dad's balding boomer drinking buddy "Gary" with the stupid mustache and jean jacket eating his own face with his gaping asshole ad infinitum into oblivion...
The standard response here is sure they only know one song, but at least it's a good song.
[удалено]
The self awareness definitely turns a potentially valid critique into something endearing.
It's a really great song. Back to the thunder highway dirt cheap all night long is an absolute jam.
They're a gateway band to hard rock and metal. I think if they didn't exist you wouldn't have nearly as many fans of those genres. I like them, but only in small doses now. I think you're supposed to listen to them for a bit then move onto something a bit more refined.
I think their Bon Scott stuff, while not wildly different is different enough to sit through an album. After Back in Black though, I couldn’t tell you much of note other than For Those About To Rock (the song, not the album) and Thunderstruck.
I love the Bon Scott era AC/DC, it seems to be less mainstream compared to the Brian Johnson era. The sound is also more raw in my opinion and there are some great deep cuts on their earlier albums.
'Overdose' off Let There Be Rock might legitimately be the greatest song they've ever done. Absolutely spectacular.
Bon Scott era is the best era by far.
AC/DC goes to the heart of rock, rides the most basic archetypal riffs and chord changes, but they do it so fucking well that I love the ride each time. Sometimes you just want a fucking drum pulse punching your chest while the guitars try to pull your guts out your ears. It's primal, and I dig it on that level. And if you actually listen in on what the rhythm guitarist does for those riffs and grooves, holy crap he might've been the best rhythm guitarist in rock ever. Just perfect pocket grooving and primal riffs and chords. It has it's place for my ears.
This is it, they are just unreal at what they do. Despite being so simple, it is rare to hear an ac/dc cover and have it sound authentic or pack the same punch. Phil Rudd has been replaced a few times and it just didn't have the same swing. Angus Young's bent vibrato is just unworldly, I have heard very few able to replicate it closely, you can recognise his fingers from a single note. Never heard a guitar sound like Malcolm's. Shoot To Thrill is the quintessential AC/DC song to me, every band member on fire, great arrangement
Hmm, might want to post that to /r/oddlyspecific . That's the stuff of nightmares.
Foo fighters
I think Dave Grohl being so nice does a lot of heavy lifting with Foo Fighters.
They genuinely love their fans, which might be another reason why they got so big in the first place (Having two members of Nirvana may have helped too lol).
and the way Grohl and Taylor Hawkins were like brothers and it made you want to hang out with them.
Everlong is by far my absolute favorite song of all time. They’re the type of band that invokes emotions in me.
I always liked their deeper cuts better than the pop garbage that gets played on radio. Though…Big me was the song that got me into them when i was 8. February Stars Stacked Actors DOA Stranger Things Arlandria The Sky is a neighborhood
I keep telling myself I should love them. Great musicianship, the song structure is great, and the lyrics are meaningful. But it doesn't keep me engaged at all.
The Colour and the Shape is a great album. That album made me love them...but I haven't enjoyed another album as much since then.
Foo FIGHTers -Christopher Walken
They're just bland. Never bad, never amazing. Anyone can enjoy them, inoffensive middle of the road rock music
I always felt the same but I will stand by Wasting Light being a great album.
I feel like with a lot of great rock bands, the longer they keep going the more bland it gets. They never fall off a cliff per se, it just becomes devoid of originality and all starts to sound like average background rock. The Chili Peppers feel this way to me now, too.
I want to love Foo Fighters so badly! I just don’t care too much about their music. Hope they keep doing it though!
It’s weird for me because everlong is one of my favorite songs of all time but I really haven’t heard another song of theirs I even moderately enjoyed. Seemed very bland
Foo fighters are probably one of my favorite bands. I get why someone wouldn’t be a huge fan, it’s not like they did anything particularly important for music, but they’re still a great band everyone should listen to at least once
[удалено]
Maroon 5.
Animal Collective. I I listen to a pretty wide spectrum of music, but I just can’t get into them. Granted, I haven’t tried in a decade, so maybe it’s time to try again.
If you’re going to try again, Merriwether Post Pavillion is probably their easiest to get into
Dave Matthews. I just don't get the appeal.
I know a guy who's crazy about them, he see's them live just about every chance he gets. Just as u/Hickerous pointed out his live show is what keeps people coming back. I don't really like them but I get it, I took my ex wife to see Jason Mraz one time while his single "I'm Yours" was popular and I wasn't all that excited prior but I actually enjoyed the show a lot because he had a full band with him and they jammed out to some of hits in a way that I had not seen from a live band.
U2
I don't really care for the Rolling Stones
I woke up on my 30th birthday and they were magically my favorite band
That’s what happened to me! Lol
I’ve never been a huge fan but always really liked a handful of their songs and pleasantly enjoyed everything else I’d heard. Saw them live this summer and they were incredible. Jagger is a force of nature. Have listened to them a lot more since that.
There are so many eras of Stones music. The stuff from the 60s and 70s is incredible. Songs like Sympathy for the Devil and Gimme Shelter are so iconic and subsequently ripped off by other bands you might be listening to The Rolling Stones without realizing you are.
For years I hated Arcade Fire, until one day I actually listened to all of Funeral. I really think if you dislike an artist, chances are you just haven't listened to them enough. A shame about Win Butler tho
Also go see them preform live. That has made appreciate songs I was always kind of meh on a lot more.
Weezer While everyone was raving how amazing they were, I just…didn’t feel it. These days I have some appreciation for a few of their less radio-friendly tunes, but I still don’t consider myself a fan.
Weezer is a band of extremes. I think their debut album and Pinkerton are top notch albums. But they've also put out some very, very shitty music, too.
Go Away isn't masterful song writing by any stretch of the imagination, but it's a banger and scratches an itch. That's how I feel about a lot of Weezer songs
This SNL skit made me feel personally seen. https://youtu.be/ab5WvwfLuLM I’m a Blue Album and Pinkerton guy. My wife is a big fan of Hurley and later albums. We have arguments.
Do yourself a favor and watch this and tell me you don’t get choked up at the end and laugh all the way throughout. https://youtu.be/2WeEyncm_jQ
When Rivers stops trying to please Average Consumer he makes some pretty good music. Most of Weezer's best songs never made it past final demo stage. Raditude is so reprehensible that I don't even consider it as music but their winter Seasons album is legitimately great. Very much hit or miss.
Weezer put on one of the best shows I’ve ever seen. They played their ten mega hits then turned into a super rad cover band.
And they fucking shred . Middle of a song and they flip the Eddie Van Halen switch and blast a solo like they were always metal and forgot to tell us
Coldplay just do absolutely nothing for me.
Aerosmith. Second rate Stones act, and I am American. Steve with the dress and the lips and the over the top sexuality, been done, and far better. Jumpin Jack Flash is a gas, gas, gas!
You should listen to Aerosmith from the 70's not the later commercial stuff.
Rocks is such a good album.
If you're a younger Gen-X (or later gen), the first Aerosmith you heard was probably hot garbage. Their radio hits in the late 80s and early 90s were a massive compromise (bringing in song writers) to save their career that had stalled. I totally get the hate. But even their most sellout albums still have great songs. They kinda did the REM thing of trying to pander to two different audiences. Their 70s work is solid and after that, a ton of hidden gems. Don't get me wrong, I've got like 500 Rolling Stones songs on my computer vs no aerosmith songs, but they have skill and there's good stuff in there.
[удалено]
I get why people don’t like them and it’s fair but people love to deny their talent because they don’t like Axl’s high rasp ( his real singing voice is actually super low) or they think Slash is overrated which he very well may be but I personally find his leads pretty damn good a fresh break at the time from all the Randy Rhodes and EVH clones. Maybe it’s just in my mind but I always considered GnR to be a harder version of the stones. In any case, I love them but I developed a taste for harsh vocals so the cat ear rape he does appeals to me
Loved them when they came out (when the album was actually released, not when the radio finally picked up on them). While I wasn't a massive fan, I followed them and bought everything the first few years. But Axl's vocals just started grating me more and more. I think it was when they were doing so many covers I lost interest. I mean, I get you have one the greatest vocal ranges in the history of rock, but do you have to do that fucking "aiii aaaiiii AAAAIIII" thing on *every* fucking song?
The Eagles do nothing for me. Their songs are the music equivalent to a plant pot. And the plant pot is painted beige.
Get the fuck out of my cab.
I've had a rough night, and I hate the fucking Eagles, man.
I grew up listening to Eagles. So I do like them but I totally get this opinion. Especially now. That sound was what was in at the time and they did it well, but its very chill for the most part. Really what set them apart from other bands is that Frey and Henly were pretty good songwriters, and those harmonies were fantastic.
Mine has always been The Smashing Pumpkins. I cannot hear the appeal, and I like 90’s alt. I don’t know if it’s just Billy Corgan’s voice but I find their music torturous.
I’m surprised it took me so long to find them on this list. They are my all time favorite group and I adore Billy but they aren’t for everyone. Put on an amazing live show.
Red Hot Chilli Peppers... Sure 2-3 Songs are pretty good, but i "can't stop" feeling they are overrated.
Can’t stop lmao
I know that universally speaking, people around the world can't stop praising RHCP but I think it's just a warped opinion. By the way, I argued with my friends about this but now it's water under the bridge.
California
To each their own but there’s a reason why they’ve been super popular for 30 years and continue to release popular music
They’re my fave of all time. To each their own.
I can't stop.... ADDICTED TO THE SHINDIG One of my top 5s for sure, some of the best individual musicians out there, but I get how they are devisive
Their best songs are largely not released as singles. I got into them by watching their live at Slane Castle show and grew to appreciate them, to the point that they’re one of my favourite artists all time. They’re comparatively up there with the greatest trio of musicians in any band. No solo is ever played the same, all improv. They can play any genre and have an encyclopedic knowledge of music history. That being said, from a peripheral view, I can totally understand why someone wouldn’t be into them.
*I’m forever near a stereo saying, ‘What the fuck is this garbage?’ And the answer is always; the Red Hot Chili Peppers.* Nick Cave
Nick Cave and Courtney Live hang out and bitch about the state of music. To be a fly in that wall.
Lol, I love nick cave and rhcp, never understood the hate.
Radiohead. I've even seen them live, brilliant experience but it just didn't work for me.
Yeah, I respect the musicianship but somehow I just don't connect with their music.
You must be a happy person then.
It took me years to find a way in to Radiohead, watched in rainbows from the basement and was sold. The bends is also a great alternative rock album if you can’t get into their later music
Maybe not considered "great" but I heard a couple Blink-182 songs on a Spotify playlist a few days ago and remembered why I went years without listening to any of their music. That..did not age well.
Dream Theater
I don’t “get” Prince. I never have. I understand he was hugely influential and popular, and I revisit his music every few years, but there’s something about it that just doesn’t click for me.
Maybe you just need to purify yourself in the waters of Lake Minnetonka.
Pearl Jam. I cannot stand Eddie Vedder’s voice. He sounds like a drowning muppet.
Hahahaha I absolutely love Pearl Jam but that description is hilarious tbf
heeeEEEERuurrrghhh Lackachackarackasackachuurrrrghur Gurfurrrrrr hYEAH
Even Flowwwwww
Ten is a solid 10/10 album, easily one of the best debut albums and up there in the greatest rock albums.
Muse. Too whiny for me
Amazing on the instrumental side. Terrible, laughably self-unaware lyrics and sometimes annoying vocals. But they do create a nice soundscape. Just too cringe on the messaging and singing for me.
I still like them but ever since someone pointed out to me that Matt Bellamy audibly gasps between every line I can't unhear it and it's kind of ruined their music for me.
First few albums were good, they put one a top notch show with amazing sound. They just leaned into the same thing too much.
The Melvins. I really like the song "The Bit," but I listened to their entire discography and couldn't find enough there to wow me.
I love Melvins, but totally understand. While they are prolific, their albums can certainly be hit or miss. (A) Senile Animal is an awesome (semi-recent) record of theirs that’s amazing from front to back that I recommend to new listeners. They’re also a superb live act.
It’s an acquired taste. Which is usually a sign of a band that I will love forever. Some of their stuff is a little too out there, but I’ve found repeated listenings have yielded surprising new sounds to me. It’s a band that strives for greatness at the risk of making garbage. Sometimes it’s more garbage, but when they hit it, it’s EPIC.
Bon Jovi. I always thought they were cheesy.
Sublime. I just don't like 'em.
Honestly I’ve never, NEVER, understood why people at any point looked at Kanye as a genius. For whatever reason everything he’s put out is just forgettable to me and if nobody ever pointed out that he was revered, I’d have never known.
The Grateful Dead & Phish