Prologue

"To begin at the beginning," as Dylan Thomas once said. What has at one point started as a music-sharing club between a group of university friends, gradually turned into exponentially obsessive monthly CD compilations, composed of ear-catching freshly-discovered tracks both old and new. When one of my best friends had moved away, I started sending out my favourite selections from these monthly compilations by email. The list of email recipients slowly grew until I started recognizing that the electronic mail was no longer the most efficient way of sharing music with distant friends. Starting a music blog seemed to be the only solution, and while I am still terribly intimidated by the many well-established and knowledgeable adversaries, I am also incredibly excited to try my hand at this new venture.

I have always been a fan of pop, in all of its manifold manifestations. The late 1990's were spent teenie-bopping to the likes of Robyn, Natalie Imbruglia, numerous one-hit wonders and definitely Backstreet Boys. It was not until Grade 12 that I was exposed to non-mainstream-radio music, and ever since then my musical horizons have broadened while my musical tastes have narrowed down. Included below are 4 of personally influential songs which have defined my indie music development. They may not even be the best or my most favourite tracks, but each one of them played a huge part in forming my musical identity. I hope you enjoy them as I get a little nostalgic.

Dave Matthews - Warehouse

It was the last spring of high school, we rode around triumphantly basking in April sunshine, realization that we were nearly done school forever and the recently-acquired privilege to drive. The car only had a cassette player, so the choice of music was as diverse as the theology section of a Communist library. However, one of the tapes was Dave Matthews Band's "Under the Table and Dreaming". Overall, it is fair to say that he was the first non-radio-play artist I have ever listened to. I know that nowadays few would consider him indie, but for a seventeen-year-old boy, who spent his childhood prancing around to Michael Jackson, this was a revelation. I thoroughly enjoyed the entire album, but "Warehouse" stood out. Whether it was the suspense-building strings at the beginning of the song, or the sudden breaks into cowbell-touting Cuban-style dance, I don't know, but I could not get enough of it. I was obsessed to the point, that when the song ended, I would switch the tape side, quickly listen to 7 minutes on the other side, and flip back to the rousing strings of the song's beginning. Many a great drive would start off with an energy jolt from DMB. As I listened to more songs by the band, I have discovered new treasures in the likes of "Two Step" and "Crash Into Me", but "Warehouse" was the first song that made me realize that a pop/rock song was not limited to piano, guitars and drums.

Belle and Sebastian - Get Me Away From Here, I'm Dying

Belle and Sebastian will forever be associated with waking up in a residence dorm. As the soft whisperings of Stuart Murdoch entered my lucid dreams, the night behind my eyelids had turned to pink sunset and I was roused. I was immediately attracted to the incredible melodies woven by the band, and later on, as I listened on in a more conscious state, that attraction grew even stronger with the discovery of the quirky poetry of the song's lyrics. From Belle & Sebastian, I naturally turned to The Lucksmiths and the B&S's fellow countrymen in Camera Obscura. Such was my introduction to twee pop, with its dreamy music often masking the somber verses.

Death Cab for Cutie - Title and Registration

During one of the numerous mind-numbing classes of Organic Chemistry, a friend, completely out of context, recommended me to listen to "Title and Registration", promising that I would immediately fall in love with it. I returned home determined to check what the hype was all about. In the pre-Torrent times, Limewire single-handedly dominated the download niche. Unable to download the entire album, I was forced to search for the songs individually. However, as my luck would have it, Limewire was simply not willing to satisfy my quest for "Title and Registration". I would either end up downloading 4 minutes of static or unexpectedly listening to another Death Cab song, anything but the one I wanted. In that sense, Limewire quite well parallels real life. Having downloaded a heap of new files which were neither Title nor Registration, I set out listening to them. I heard "Tiny Vessels", "I Was a Kaleidoscope" and "Styrofoam Plates" and I knew I was going love this band. I would not hear "Title and Registration" until a week later, and by then I was long sold on Death Cab. It was great to hear something so personal, sometimes emo, but still painfully honest. The fact that a discussion of glove compartment being a misnomer leads to revelation of a broken relationship, only serves as a testament to the band's ingenuity. In hindsight, Death Cab became my gateway drug to Northwest indie culture.

Sufjan Stevens - The Man of Metropolis Steals Our Hearts

No matter what anybody says, working in an office sucks. Working in office once a week, on the other hand, is a refreshing activity, if only because the mind-numbing soul-sucking office chores offer a welcome change to your otherwise exciting daily routine. I have wasted a fair share of my life filing, which if added up altogether would probably rival the length of time it took Columbus to cross the Atlantic. The first time! when he didn't know where he was going! As I continued to work in the office, I realized that the time I spend mindlessly opening folders, placing papers inside and closing folders could be utilized to listen to new music. I turned on a random Internet radio station and had found the wasted time much more passable and much less regrettable. I was entering the filing auto-pilot, when I was shaken from my stupor by the drumming crescendo, as if a drum line was approaching the office. As I was about to turn down the volume, the song subsided by itself into a mellow melody sang by a man with a backing choir. This didn't last as the electric guitar claimed its superiority once more, this time with the choir joining in. I was intrigued by such hot shower/cold shower approach to song structure, and I was hooked. As I listened to other songs by Sufjan, I was amazed by the rich orchestral layering of his songs and it didn't take long before I fully subscribed to his brand of folk-pop. From Sufjan, I branched out to other orchestral pop groups like Arcade Fire, Beirut and Polyphonic Spree, but I never found a sound that could match his.

Well, enough about me, it's your turn now. Please comment, letting me know what songs had an impact in your life. Be as forthcoming or scrupulous with details as you see fit.