As a preface to this post, I have to say that this is by no means an all-inclusive list, nor does it appear in any particular order. My only goal here is to list some awesome bands.
- Aerosmith: Yeah, their older stuff is better than their newer stuff on the whole, but for those who think they haven't done anything good in a long time, check out "Honkin' on Bobo". It's an all-blues album where they also did their own producing. Not bad for a bunch of guys in their mid-fifties. I think it says something about a band when they've got the original members still together after over 30 years. There's a certain chemistry there. Also, I've seen them in concert twice, and they put on an excellently awesome show.
- Pearl Jam: When Pearl Jam first came out, I was in a stage where I was determined to dislike the things that the cool kids liked, because I was the cool one, and I didn't like stuff just because everyone else did. So it took me a while to realize what a brilliant album "10" was. And since then, Pearl Jam has kept putting out good music. Not only that, but how many different sounds have they tried out? Yeah, sometimes they let you know about their political views (it drives me insane when bands do that--just play your friggin' music already), but they're good enough that I can forgive that.
- Led Zepplin: Can you tell me a Zepplin album that wasn't good? I didn't think so. This one goes without saying. Not only were the vast majority of their songs awesome, but they were different. Look at the difference in these songs: "The Rain Song", "Babe, I'm Gonna Leave You", "Immigrant Song", "Stairway to Heaven". I could go on, but do I really need to?
- Soundgarden: Roger Daltry was probably the best screamer that rock music has ever known. If anyone thinks different, please say so and I'll say you're wrong. But the thing about Chris Cornell is that his screams seem more controlled. His screaming still sounds like singing. The guy just has an amazing voice. Unfortunately, I guess after Superunkown, there was nowhere for this band to go but down. So they broke up. It's a shame, really, but they put out some great music. Chris Cornell is still awesome, though, in Audioslave (with the instrumental stylings of Rage Against the Machine).
- Stone Temple Pilots: This band is in a special category, because they really only put out one good album. The thing is, that one album was so good that people continued to buy their subsequent albums until they were just flat-out bad. Core is one of the best albums I've ever heard, but they never did anything remotely close to it afterward.
- The Jimi Hendrix Experience: Do I even need to say anything here? The man oozed awesomeness. One of music's true tragedies is that he didn't live long enough to give the world more great music.
Well, I could go on, but I'd probably never stop and this post would be inordinately long. So maybe there'll be a volume 2 of awesome bands.
Take your lady somewhere special tonight.
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