Album recommendations for songwriting influence.

I never listened to Pink Floyd but was thinking they might be a good influence on my songwriting. what do you guys think? And what other epic rock records out there should I listen to? thanks.

0 members like this

Replies are closed for this discussion.

Replies to This Discussion

Permalink Reply by runnersdialzero on November 9, 2010 at 7:32pm

Phy said:

I'm saying everything you listed is excellent!

runnersdialzero said:

Phy said:
Runners, your taste in music is epic XD

Haha, what is that supposed to mean? Listen to the songs, d00d.

OhhHHHH! I thought you were making fun of me =( but uherm, cool. :)

Permalink Reply by Patricia J Wiemers (wolfpjw) on November 9, 2010 at 7:33pm

Gene has a point. You have no lack of music already. Bruce Cockburn is a Deep Artist, and another band with exciting music is The 77s(with Michael Roe).

Gene Simmons said:

my suggestion? Stop writing and just release ALL of your demos. not just full songs, all of them.

Permalink Reply by Phy on November 9, 2010 at 7:35pm

Haha yeah, nice to see someone else acknowledge Our Lady Peace or Silverchair

runnersdialzero said:

Phy said:
I'm saying everything you listed is excellent!

runnersdialzero said:

Phy said:
Runners, your taste in music is epic XD

Haha, what is that supposed to mean? Listen to the songs, d00d.

OhhHHHH! I thought you were making fun of me =( but uherm, cool. :)

Permalink Reply by ItsBimblyBitch on November 9, 2010 at 7:39pm

The thing to take away from Pink Floyd would be their guitar solos, and even then... it's something I shy away from. Anything I'd suggest is probably territory already well mined.

Led Zeppelin 2, 3, 4 - for the band interplay. I know LZ is a key influence in Pat's writing as a drummer. Their band dynamics are unparalleled. Presence is amazing as well.

Black Sabbath - Masters Of Reality. Love, love, love melodic vocals against heavy music.

Pixies - Trompe Le Monde.

The Breeders - Pod, Splash, Mountain Battles.

My Bloody Valentine - Isn't Anything, Loveless. Kevin Shields is an amazing writer, strange timing, incredibly unique chord progressions and 60s melodies. The guitar sound is out of this world.

Cheap Trick - eponymous. Loose production, amazing tunes, singer is one of the best ever.

Guided By Voices - Bee Thousand, Alien Lanes.

Shotgun Jimmie - Still Jimmie. Funny lyrics, sloppy playing, wonderful songwriting.

The Zombies - Odyssey and Oracle. Very smart songs.

Neil Young - Le Noise. The guitar sound is incredible, especially on a song like 'Angry World'.

Requiem by Mozart.

You no doubt know all of these bands inside and out (save for Shotgun Jimmie). Oh well.

Permalink Reply by Daniel Gasparini ( Danorganplaye on November 9, 2010 at 7:50pm

CREAM - great band to draw influences from...

Actually anything Eric Clapton

Permalink Reply by Gohi on November 9, 2010 at 7:58pm

Pink Floyd is amazing. You will dig 'em. Check Animals and Wish You Were Here out.

My reccs:
PRINCE - LOVESEXY
One of my favorite albums of all time. I've heard you mention Prince a few times but I'm not sure how deep you are into his catalog.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FBqpxWTMNbk

Jellyfish - Spilt Milk
Gorgeous harmonies and old-school songwriting.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JojV8kNfWK8

Dream Theater - Awake
Epic progressive metal but also really amazing melodically.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=G6SjyRLKy70

Permalink Reply by arfentul on November 9, 2010 at 8:01pm

Gonna throw out a few I haven't seen yet:

Deerhunter - Microcastle: Their songs are have a wonderful dissonance to them, as well as thumping beats and good melodies. Like Pink Floyd, they could be described as psychedelic, but they also have a lot of garage rock influence.

Cloud Cult - Advice From The Happy Hippopotamus: Just an incredibly fresh, exciting band, who arn't afraid to use a variety of sounds and approaches to their songs, all while keeping them emotional, personal, and cohesive. It's just a blast to listen to them, and "Hippo" is a fantastic fantastic album.

Mew - No More Stories Are Told Today.... (etc etc): These guys are Prog-rock/pop from Denmark, but sing in English. They have a really immersive sound and their songs are just beautiful. Also that album title is very long and I didn't want to write it out, but it shouldn't be too hard to find. I thought they would be cool if you wanted to hear a non-US, non-UK band.

Permalink Reply by SunnyDownSnuff on November 9, 2010 at 8:01pm

Television - Marquee Moon - The title song, along with the last song, are the definition of epic. The rest is mostly epic, with some other epicness sprinkled around.

The Clean - Anthology - I think the first disc is absolutely perfect, and if you actually listen to it, I hope you think that too. This is an example of some 80s, perfect, poppy rock from New Zealand.

Iggy Pop - The Idiot - It's crazy and awesome. Rock-y, kind of electronic-y, and sounds demonic at times

The Kinks - Arthur or the Decline and Fall of the British Empire - Seriously, this rock opera, Something Else, and ... The Village Green Preservation Society are better than the Beatles.

The Boswell Sisters - Kick all kinds of ass. Old stuff with loads of harmony and makes you happy. It's 30's vocal jazz.

Any Billy Chlidish is kickass, too, if you enjoy garage (punk) rock, which is a genre worth exploring.

I hope you read this post, listen to the music if you haven't before already, and like it, because I like it.

Permalink Reply by ItsBimblyBitch on November 9, 2010 at 8:04pm

I'm gonna break the epic form and suggest Morrissey. Get back into Morrissey for his amazing words!

Permalink Reply by Smailtronic on November 9, 2010 at 8:07pm

Look up Eluvium's album Copia, and Caspian's latest Tertia. No vocals, just epic, orchestral tunes. Eluvium's piano heavy, but the Caspian really brings the rock.

Permalink Reply by Gohi on November 9, 2010 at 8:08pm

oops, my Prince recc was not really epic rock. Sorry Rivahs!

Permalink Reply by G Foo Chombey on November 9, 2010 at 8:11pm

Never thought I'd see another Partch fan here. Props.

A.J. Beeves said:

Hi Rivers,

I have gotten so much joy out of listening to these Beach Boys albums:
1. Pet Sounds (of course)
2. Smiley Smile
3. Friends (especially the song "Little Bird")

There are plenty of other good ones, but those are probably my top three.

Also, T-Rex Albums are great!

Have you heard of Harry Parch? Check him out. He built all of his instruments for the compositions, because traditional musical instruments couldn't play the music he wanted to compose. He was a farmer from the mid-west too.

And, Flaming Lips - "At War with the Mystics"
And, Starlight Mints - "The Dream That Stuff Was Made Of"

Good Luck!

Peace,
A.J.