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Top 10 Unique Bands that You've Ever Heard


TheCockSportif

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As noted in the singers / Mt Rushmore thread, I recently launched a second career where I mix music.  It was a segue from my original career in music (playing in bands, being under contract here and there, writing tunes, making albums that nobody ever heard, basically learning how to fail at music for a living) where I ended up finishing college and took a job in tech -- then just doing music by way of engineering and mixing with some playing on the side.  Listening to the work of people Who Are Very Good At This is a strong motivating factor that pushes me to carry on.  And it's always great to chat about music with people who know music very well, who listen to all kinds of stuff that maybe you never thought of.

 

Almost everybody I've mixed for will offer some kind of reference tracks -- from which you extract certain bits of ways other songs were mixed, to get the "vibe" that the artist is looking for.  In this case I'm mixing a rendition of Naive Melody (This Must Be the Place) by the Talking Heads, but the artist wanted a more lo-fi / organic / pop presentation of the mix than what was originally tracked in... Sweden, by this guy called Christoffer Lunquist (Brainpool, Roxette, and I believe The Cardigans, and so on).  The tracks that were given to me by the artist are easily some of the best source material that I've ever heard before starting a mixing process.  And yet, he hated the mixes that people did for him, so here I am, trying to make something organic out of something that already sounded pretty darn slick.

 

That got us into a conversation about unique bands, and initially I was all like, "yeah, the Beatles and Led Zep."  But he made a good point that the Beatles and Led Zep, while unique at their inception, have been copied time and time again (King's X, Kingdom Come, Matthew Sweet, etc., all say hello).  So he told me to make a list of 10 unique bands before I started the mix, and this is what I came up with, and as always, in no specific order.

 

  1. The Talking Heads
  2. Frankie Goes to Hollywood
  3. Faith No More (Angel Dust, and ... King for a Day era)
  4. The Pretenders
  5. Supertramp
  6. The Smiths
  7. Devo
  8. They Might Be Giants (I actually don't care for the band, but they are unique IMO)
  9. Patti Smith
  10. Throbbing Gristle

 

Who are your top 10 unique bands?

 

 

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13 minutes ago, TheCockSportif said:

As noted in the singers / Mt Rushmore thread, I recently launched a second career where I mix music.  It was a segue from my original career in music (playing in bands, being under contract here and there, writing tunes, making albums that nobody ever heard, basically learning how to fail at music for a living) where I ended up finishing college and took a job in tech -- then just doing music by way of engineering and mixing with some playing on the side.  Listening to the work of people Who Are Very Good At This is a strong motivating factor that pushes me to carry on.  And it's always great to chat about music with people who know music very well, who listen to all kinds of stuff that maybe you never thought of.

 

Almost everybody I've mixed for will offer some kind of reference tracks -- from which you extract certain bits of ways other songs were mixed, to get the "vibe" that the artist is looking for.  In this case I'm mixing a rendition of Naive Melody (This Must Be the Place) by the Talking Heads, but the artist wanted a more lo-fi / organic / pop presentation of the mix than what was originally tracked in... Sweden, by this guy called Christoffer Lunquist (Brainpool, Roxette, and I believe The Cardigans, and so on).  The tracks that were given to me by the artist are easily some of the best source material that I've ever heard before starting a mixing process.  And yet, he hated the mixes that people did for him, so here I am, trying to make something organic out of something that already sounded pretty darn slick.

 

That got us into a conversation about unique bands, and initially I was all like, "yeah, the Beatles and Led Zep."  But he made a good point that the Beatles and Led Zep, while unique at their inception, have been copied time and time again (King's X, Kingdom Come, Matthew Sweet, etc., all say hello).  So he told me to make a list of 10 unique bands before I started the mix, and this is what I came up with, and as always, in no specific order.

 

  1. The Talking Heads
  2. Frankie Goes to Hollywood
  3. Faith No More (Angel Dust, and ... King for a Day era)
  4. The Pretenders
  5. Supertramp
  6. The Smiths
  7. Devo
  8. They Might Be Giants (I actually don't care for the band, but they are unique IMO)
  9. Patti Smith
  10. Throbbing Gristle

 

Who are your top 10 unique bands?

 

 

 

 

I don't have 10 off hand..... but these come to mind:

 

Ghost

The Mummies

Warlock Pinchers

Bloodhound Gang (early to mid 90's new wave/hip hop mix)

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1 hour ago, TheCockSportif said:

As noted in the singers / Mt Rushmore thread, I recently launched a second career where I mix music.  It was a segue from my original career in music (playing in bands, being under contract here and there, writing tunes, making albums that nobody ever heard, basically learning how to fail at music for a living) where I ended up finishing college and took a job in tech -- then just doing music by way of engineering and mixing with some playing on the side.  Listening to the work of people Who Are Very Good At This is a strong motivating factor that pushes me to carry on.  And it's always great to chat about music with people who know music very well, who listen to all kinds of stuff that maybe you never thought of.

 

Almost everybody I've mixed for will offer some kind of reference tracks -- from which you extract certain bits of ways other songs were mixed, to get the "vibe" that the artist is looking for.  In this case I'm mixing a rendition of Naive Melody (This Must Be the Place) by the Talking Heads, but the artist wanted a more lo-fi / organic / pop presentation of the mix than what was originally tracked in... Sweden, by this guy called Christoffer Lunquist (Brainpool, Roxette, and I believe The Cardigans, and so on).  The tracks that were given to me by the artist are easily some of the best source material that I've ever heard before starting a mixing process.  And yet, he hated the mixes that people did for him, so here I am, trying to make something organic out of something that already sounded pretty darn slick.

 

That got us into a conversation about unique bands, and initially I was all like, "yeah, the Beatles and Led Zep."  But he made a good point that the Beatles and Led Zep, while unique at their inception, have been copied time and time again (King's X, Kingdom Come, Matthew Sweet, etc., all say hello).  So he told me to make a list of 10 unique bands before I started the mix, and this is what I came up with, and as always, in no specific order.

 

  1. The Talking Heads
  2. Frankie Goes to Hollywood
  3. Faith No More (Angel Dust, and ... King for a Day era)
  4. The Pretenders
  5. Supertramp
  6. The Smiths
  7. Devo
  8. They Might Be Giants (I actually don't care for the band, but they are unique IMO)
  9. Patti Smith
  10. Throbbing Gristle

 

Who are your top 10 unique bands?

 

 

Captain Beefheart/Magic Band

 

The Tubes

 

Arthur Brown

 

Electric Light Orchestra

 

Frank Zappa/Mothers of Invention

 

King Crimson

 

Spirit

 

Yes

 

The Fugs

 

Wall of Voodoo

 

Just some that no one else really sounds like. 

 

 

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2 minutes ago, T&C said:

Captain Beefheart/Magic Band

 

The Tubes

 

Arthur Brown

 

Electric Light Orchestra

 

Frank Zappa/Mothers of Invention

 

King Crimson

 

Spirit

 

Yes

 

The Fugs

 

Wall of Voodoo

 

Just some that no one else really sounds like. 

 

 

The Tubes, Wall of Voodoo, ELO (I somewhat discount given their Beatles-inspired nature, but VERY cool band all the same), and how could I forget the avant garde master, Frank Zappa?!  Very cool list.  Thanks for sharing.

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13 minutes ago, TheCockSportif said:

The Tubes, Wall of Voodoo, ELO (I somewhat discount given their Beatles-inspired nature, but VERY cool band all the same), and how could I forget the avant garde master, Frank Zappa?!  Very cool list.  Thanks for sharing.

I should have included The Traveling Wilburys... the greatest supergroup of them all.

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3 minutes ago, TheCockSportif said:

But are they unique, tho?  That's the whole point of this challenge and what makes it so fun.

If that isn't unique then I don't know what is. 5 legends in one band is just that imo.

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One that I forgot was... Steely Dan.  I can't think of a single band that's crafted itself after Steely Dan.  Plus, regardless of genre, I aspire to mix like the people who mixed those SD albums: the instrumental separation and width of the mixes is something of envy to be sure.

17 minutes ago, T&C said:

If that isn't unique then I don't know what is. 5 legends in one band is just that imo.

Okay, I see what you're saying here.  Yes, the lineup is unparalleled in my lifetime, and the music is really great, but when I listen to TW -- it sounds like I think that it should sound.  And each player's style has been riffed on, pun intended, many times over.  Heck, even Petty was riffing on Dylan!

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Crash Test Dummies - that baritone!

Decemberists - historical subject matter making for interesting songs

Rickie Lee Jones - Unique voice

Rhye - just two guys as far as I’m aware, unique vocals 

Thomas Dolby - his autobiography is very interesting 

10,000 Maniacs - Natalie’s vocalizations are unique

Blue Man Group - The Complex is a great album with guest vocalists. 
Enya - vocals 

 

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36 minutes ago, TheCockSportif said:

One that I forgot was... Steely Dan.  I can't think of a single band that's crafted itself after Steely Dan.  Plus, regardless of genre, I aspire to mix like the people who mixed those SD albums: the instrumental separation and width of the mixes is something of envy to be sure.

Okay, I see what you're saying here.  Yes, the lineup is unparalleled in my lifetime, and the music is really great, but when I listen to TW -- it sounds like I think that it should sound.  And each player's style has been riffed on, pun intended, many times over.  Heck, even Petty was riffing on Dylan!

Steely Dan is a great example... no one can touch the Dan. Have you ever listened to the Record Plant recordings... used to be a bootleg but I don't know if it still is.

 

 

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4 minutes ago, T&C said:

Steely Dan is a great example... no one can touch the Dan. Have you ever listened to the Record Plant recordings... used to be a bootleg but I don't know if it still is.

 

 

Actually, I've never heard this.  Thanks for sharing, and this might be my background music tomorrow during day 3 of rewiring the basement.

19 minutes ago, BringBackFergy said:

A few guys here know I’m an alt music buff. Here’s a list of my favorites in no particular order:

 

Muenster Cheese Droppings

Slit My Calf

Bungee Banging Bobbles

Questionable *****

No, No, Yes, Maybe (perhaps my favorite of the bunch)

Very interesting, and this must be very, very alt.  Here's the canonical list of weird band names, and I'm having an problem finding some of these.

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Fun topic, but disagree with the following from OP:

 

 "But he made a good point that the Beatles and Led Zep, while unique at their inception, have been copied time and time again"

 

Just cause you were copied doesn't mean you weren't unique IMO. A few off the top of my head:

 

Zappa

Sex Pistols

Pink Floyd

A case could be made for Rush

 

Someone already mentioned Devo - I wouldn't have thought of them, but spot on.

 

 

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7 minutes ago, SinceThe70s said:

 

Fun topic, but disagree with the following from OP:

 

 "But he made a good point that the Beatles and Led Zep, while unique at their inception, have been copied time and time again"

 

Just cause you were copied doesn't mean you weren't unique IMO. A few off the top of my head:

 

Zappa

Sex Pistols

Pink Floyd

A case could be made for Rush

 

Someone already mentioned Devo - I wouldn't have thought of them, but spot on.

 

 

The Stooges could never be replicated... many have tried but, no.

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