Whoa damn...have I really not updated this journal for 3 years? Well, seeing as I now have some time on my hands since I just graduated and am currently sans job I'll try to throw an album in here occasionally.

However, now that I'm remembering the purpose of this thread I realize why I have avoided updating it. I wanted to present people with an accurate and as-complete-as-possible account of how my music tastes have developed and the key albums along the way. That included the the alums that - if I stay true to this - may make me look really bad. This era lasted until high school and it is rife with embarrassing albums, but it also represents a time when I just didn't give a **** what people thought of the music I was listening to. If I liked it, I liked it. So while it is embarrassing, it is also one of the most honest points in my life. That honesty won't return until much later when I realize I can actually consider myself an audiophile and that I know way more about music than your average joe.

So now that you have been warned, I present you with...

The Preteen Years
Savage Garden - Savage Garden (1997)

http://image.lyricspond.com/image/s/...n/cd-cover.jpg

As embarrassing as it may be to admit, this album still goes down as a guilty pleasure. Now, I haven't listened to it since 1997 but if I hear "I Want You" on the radio, I still enjoy it. In fact...I know all the freakin words. Yes, it's true. In fact, I will karaoke the **** out of it, not look at the monitor, and not be the least bit ashamed. I was completely ready for a nostalgia trip with this one. I clicked "private session" on Spotify, hit play, and let the shame wash over me...

First impressions after 16 years...I'm reminded of just how well the 90's did pop. Comparing it to today's top 40 sludge, "To the Moon and Back" sounds organic on top of all its hooks. Then we get to "I Want You". To you guys born in the 90's and possibly haven't heard/don't remember this song should go listen to it just for historical value. It's damn catchy. My 11 year old self freaking loved the fast verses. Plus it's complete with a completely 90's hip hop breakdown. It's pure cheese...but you know what, damn it sometimes I like cheese whiz on my Triscuits. As I'm listening to "Truly Madly Deeply", I remember that I totally used this song to get laid in high school. I think it would still hold up for that purpose today. Another thing I'm impressed with is just how solid this album is the whole way through. It's amazing to me the difference between then and now. In the 90's, people were still buying whole albums as opposed to downloading singles off iTunes. Some effort to provide full album experience was even seen in pop albums of the time. On the same note, while a lot of these songs would hold up today, some are VERY of their time. "Universe" is straight up 90's smooth R&B. While it could still be used as a panty dropper, it was definitely recorded in the 90's.

My fiancée has an encyclopedic knowledge of 90's R&B. She would pull out these obscure albums and I would strangely enjoy them. I've also been really enjoying the nu-R&B that's been coming out like The Weeknd and Miguel. This also may be where I picked up some of my love for a really smooth and atmospheric sound. Now I can see where those roots were planted. Will this album re-enter my list of classic albums? Hell no...in fact, I wouldn't be surprised if it was another 16 years before I attempt listening to it again. I do have a new appreciation for it, though.

I would provide more videos, but trust me when I say this is the only thing you need to hear off this album:



There. My first truly embarrassing album...done. And you know what? It feels good. I still can't believe I posted this here, but you know what? SHUT UP.

Just be glad that you're not saying the same thing about The Lighthouse Family and leave it at that.

Are you serious? Savage Garden are awesome! They are one of my major favourite 90's pop groups. I agree with what you've said about how smooth they are, it's insatiable. I would quite happily put that record on and relax, it was a really moving experience from my youth listening to it. Those were the days when I owned cassette tapes!

This is a great idea and I wish I still wrote often enough to rip it off of you. :)

This actually makes me feel a bit better about this haha.

I've never listened to anything by them past this album (and I don't necessarily intend to) but this album is definitely ingrained into my memory. It's really crazy listening to album that I used to listen to so many years later. I know the music but it sounds new somehow...it's a pretty interesting experience. I wish I could listen to all music like that.

I hope you do sometime...I love learning about how people ended up with their particular taste.

Funfact: Savage Garden was a rung in my ladder too.

That's because Savage Garden was fantastic. ;)

Ok, so I have a bit of a reprieve from the really embarrassing stuff for now. Realizing the likes of Savage Garden weren't going to win me any cool points at school, I knew I had to go in a different direction. As a result, I went straight for the band that had the number one video on MTV...

THE PRETEEN YEARS
The Offspring - Americana (1998)

http://image.lyricspond.com/image/t/...a/cd-cover.jpg

I'm sure the first song you thought of when you saw the album title was "Pretty Fly (For a White Guy)". Yep...not only was it a huge hit and popular with everyone at school, but I actually liked it a lot, too. Couldn't miss, right? Well, this actually represents the first album in this journal that I actually didn't like.

Dexter's voice annoyed me. At the time, my exposure to punk was Green Day and while Americana most certainly had pop punk elements, it was still edgier than Green Day which I just didn't get. There was nothing really bad per say...it just didn't click with me. Still, I figured there must be something to it if it was so popular so I force fed myself the Offspring for months. As a result, I absolutely can't stand the Offspring to this day. In fact, Dexter's backing vocals on the AFI album Black Sails in the Sunset pull an otherwise great album down a notch. Jesus, man...just sing in key.

So, I still wanted to listen to the album again for this entry. It's basically exactly how I remember it...the singles are admittedly pretty good. "Pretty Fly (For a White Guy)" is still as ridiculously catchy as ever. "The Kids Aren't Alright" actually has a pretty intense chorus and I'm surprised I didn't like it more when I was first listening to the album. "Why Don't You Get a Job?" is straightforward but it's pretty clear why it was popular. The only single I didn't enjoy on some level was "She's Got Issues"...mostly because of the incredibly grating off-key singing. The rest of the album is pretty forgettable, if you ask me.

This album created a false impression of punk that lasted for years. It wasn't until I learned about "real punk" and heard the classics (The Clash, the Ramones, the Sex Pistols, etc.) and subsequently other bands that obviously knew what punk was about better than Green Day and the Offspring (Black Flag, Dead Kennedys, etc) that I could actually start to say I liked punk. While I can say that I like those bands on some level, punk will never be as big as other genres will be for me and it may all be the Offspring's fault.

You probably know these songs, but if you were living under a rock here are a couple:

I agree with you, I can't stand that guys voice, terrible! I didn't like Offspring back in the 90's and I can't stand it now.

If I was to talk about my embarrassing band past it would definitely be Korn. I still listen to them today. I had another listen of their Issues album, played it over and over a month ago and now I'm sick of them again. Next!

I'm a bit naive when it comes to punk but isn't it perfectly fine to sing off key in punk. Isn't that one of the staples?