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[Cerulean]

I'm looking for some new music and thought it'd be a good idea to ask this community.

Here goes:

I like Postal Service because the nonvocal elements reward me for paying attention. I hear something new each time I listen closely. I appreciate that the lyrics are less formulaic than some popular music, with less verse/chorus/repeat.

I like narrative music like Marty Robbins's El Paso. Music that tells a story appeals to me greatly if it's a good story.

I like to learn. I have memorized the song from Animaniacs in which Yakko sings the names of (almost) all the world's countries.

I like vocal harmony. Gregorian chant is a good example, as is African tribal music.

I like unusual voices because singing along exercises my ability to imitate. (Bright Eyes, Rammstein, Leonard Cohen.)

What do you suggest?

[Hat]

Woah it has been so long since we had one of these threads.

[Cerulean]

Woah it has been so long since we had one of these threads.

I assumed it would be a pretty common request. Unfortunately, the specific nature of this sort of request does not lend itself well to a single all-encompassing post that could be stickied. I apologize if my topic choice of "requesting music suggestions" misled you into assuming this thread was something besides a request for music suggestions.

[Hat]

No its just there was a point a while back where we couldn't take a crap in the music lounge with out a thousand of these threads getting in your way. As it is though, you've done a pretty good job of describing what you like and why and you might actually get recommended something other than a meme album!

Not from me though.

[Tom]

Weird voices, we'll start light. Try Colin Meloy (Tarkio, the Decemberists), move onto Spencer Krug (Swan Lake, Sunset Rubdown, Wolf Parade) and Carey Mercer(Swan Lake, Frog Eyes).

Diverge wherever possible.

[casull]

I apologize if my topic choice of "requesting music suggestions" misled you into assuming this thread was something besides a request for music suggestions.

<3


If you like the clicky, beepy sound of the postal service, you might try some IDMish stuff like Telefon Tel Aviv, The Album Leaf, and (taking it somewhat to an extreme) BT's This Binary Universe

I have been loving a track from Nightwish's new album that has some nice vocal harmonies.

Also, the one really recognizable song of Imogen Heap's that is just voice and vocoder is cool.

Actually, I'll zip and host a track from all the bands I just mentioned, and throw in a track from my college choir as well. Package inc in half an hour or so.

[Cerulean]

If you like the clicky, beepy sound of the postal service, you might try some IDMish stuff like Telefon Tel Aviv, The Album Leaf, and (taking it somewhat to an extreme) BT's This Binary Universe

I have been loving a track from Nightwish's new album that has some nice vocal harmonies.

Also, the one really recognizable song of Imogen Heap's that is just voice and vocoder is cool.

Actually, I'll zip and host a track from all the bands I just mentioned, and throw in a track from my college choir as well. Package inc in half an hour or so.

Wow, that's really nice of you! I look forward to checking them out.

[casull]

ho hum, upload upload upload. Honestly I think it would be great if everyone would be as cool as me and upload demo tracks when they rattle off a long list of bands- otherwise it's a pain to try to find anything by all those bands and you probably won't listen to them, or you won't hear the best track.

Welcome to the forums, btw. This is one of very favorite places on the net, after waffles.


Edit: here be muzix.

http://www.mediafire.com/?ehxm34okkvn

[Uber Ritter]

I'm looking for some new music and thought it'd be a good idea to ask this community.

I like narrative music like Marty Robbins's El Paso. Music that tells a story appeals to me greatly if it's a good story.

I like vocal harmony. Gregorian chant is a good example, as is African tribal music.

I like unusual voices because singing along exercises my ability to imitate. (Bright Eyes, Rammstein, Leonard Cohen.)

I think you might mean Renaisance music (like Palestrina, Byrd, Des Prez), not Gregorian Chant, since Gregorian Chant is usually monophonic.  But anyway, I'd suggest bluegrass if you like vocal harmonies and interesting voices.  For the former I'd got with the Seldom Scene (who have been around for a while) perhaps their album Act I or their live album At The Cellar Door, and for the latter maybe Ralph Stanley's more recent albums (if the Seldom Scene have been around for a while, Stanley's been around for fuckin' ever).  The big minus I could see given your description of your tastes is that most bluegrass song structures are pretty verse/chorus oriented (if someone did bluegrass-based postrock that didn't turn into a hippy jam session, I'd listen to it), but I'm also not a huge fan verse-chorus-verse etc. but Bluegrass is still probably one of my favorite genres.

A decent intro to the genre as a whole (along with gospel, et al) is probably the O Brother Where Art Thou? soundtrack, which you've probably heard already.

Also, for weird vocal Tom Waits is pretty well-known and at least on some albums (Alice, for instance) pretty accessible.

[IronOxide]

Umm, not to burst your bubble, but both Gregorian Chant and African Tribal music is actually largely noted by its lack of vocal harmony.

That being said, I'm going to recommend the same three groups that I recommend for everyone: Sigur Ros, I'm From Barcelona, and Soulwax.

[Dimmukane]

Mr. Bungle's pretty fun to sing along to.

Almost anything Mike Patton does is fun to sing along to, or to try to sing along to.

[IronOxide]

Also, everything you are looking for seems to lend itself to Musical Theater and Opera.

Wagner will reward you for listening carefully, most musicals and opera have [good?] stories, characters with interesting and distinct voices, and without vocal harmony, most of the songs would be pretty boring.

I'm going to tell you to get one of the works from Wagner's Der Ring des Nibelungen cycle, the original British Cast Recording of Les Miserables, and the original Broadway recording of Avenue Q.

[imagist42]

I don't know about anyone else, but reading your list of qualifications the first and only thing that came to my mind was The Fiery Furnaces. Specifically Rehearsing My Choir (even though it's nowhere near as good, objectively, as Blueberry Boat or Widow City).

[Juxtaposition]

I'd reccomend The Decemberists, though I've never really understood why people think Colin's voice is weird. Also, The Builders and The Butchers are awesome, and the lead singer has a really weird cool voice. If you want to hear something new every time you listen, try Menomena. You could listen to one song of theirs every day for years and still hear something new every time. If you like The Postal Service and haven't listened to any Death Cab For Cutie yet, you are as silly as I was a year ago. (I bought one of their albums because someone suggested it. I then spent months trying to figure out what sounded so familiar about it.)

[monkandmovies13]

You definitely seem like a Decemberists person.

Try Richard Thompson. I'm falling in love with him right now.

Joanna Newsom has the weirdest voice. Most people I know hate it. I absolutely love her, however.

And KATE BUSH!!!!!

[dalconnsuch]

i'm gonna suggest this because EVERYONE should love it


iron and wine

if you ahven't already gotten into it, you should despite what you may already listen too

[My Aim Is True]

off the top of my head, check out The World/Inferno Friendship Society.


They have a lot of what you described. complicated instrumentation with a lot of little flourishes, weird broadway-esque vocals, female back up singers, many atypical song structures and narratives.

[Max Nova]

Halloween, Alaska (yes, a terrible band name) always reminded me a lot of Postal Service.

Deerhoof generally makes me want sing along.

Few would claim Bright Eyes has a normal voice.

The Nonesuch label's Explorer Series is a fine intro world music stuff.

[Thrillho]

Mr. Bungle's pretty fun to sing along to.

Almost anything Mike Patton does is fun to sing along to, or to try to sing along to.

I've got to support this. I'm not sure how much of what Patton's done will be what you want musically, but if you want to learn how to imitate, imitate Mike Patton. Because Mike Patton has more vocal range than the rest of my CD collection combined, as far as I can tell...hell if you learn to sing his cover of 'Come To Daddy' with Dillinger Escape Plan, you'll be learning how to imitate an imitation of Aphex Twin.

[Inlander]

If you like punk you might want to explore the work of the Los Angeles band X (as opposed to the one or two other bands also called X). The band's trademark was the close harmonies between the two lead singers, John Doe and Exene Cervenka, which sound country inspired but which were apparently pretty much made up on the spot. Actually, "harmony" might not be quite the right word . . .

[12-tone]

Math & Science is what I listen to when I want to listen to The Postal Service but I'm tired of them.

Most of the old of Montreal records are weird narrative style songs. The newer ones have a lot more electronic stuff and vocal harmonies.

I guess if you like people specifically for having an annoying voice you can't go wrong with Tom Waits.

[De_El]

Whaaaat noes.  Tom Waits its the motherfucking man, I wish he was my grandfather.

For some reason when you said "narrative music" I wanted to think spoken word narrative, like "The Gift" by The Velvet Underground or "9th and Hennepin" by Tom Waits.  Buck 65 often has a bit of narrative.  Also good are a lot of songs by Nick Cave, particularly the Murder Ballads album (not to say those songs are "by" him, I know they're covers). Granted, that's the whole point of a song that's considered a "ballad"; it tells a story.

If you don't mind twee, Architecture in Helsinki is pretty much all about vocal harmonies (and being super adorable).

And I second the bit about Mike Patton.

[Thrillho]

Also good are a lot of songs by Nick Cave, particularly the Murder Ballads album (not to say those songs are "by" him, I know they're covers).

Erm, about half of that album is original material, dawg.

[De_El]

*facepalm* So they are. I think at some point someone had to point out to me that he didn't write all of them, so in my mind I understated the level of original material, until I hit the opposite extreme. Or maybe I just got confused.
Need something more interesting to contribute...
Oh, ah. Want a challenge imitating voices, try Animal Collective XD
And Beirut, and Clap Your Hands Say Yeah.

[lilibet23]

Kate Nash
Jack Penate
(I like the naratives and they both have interesting voices)

For something to try singing along to that's a challenge, also someone I reccomend to EVERYONE:William Elliot Whitmore

My favourite for Harmonies: The Futureheads

Unusual voice: Murder of Rosa Luxumbourg/Tera Tora/Lovvers (Same singer, not everyones cup of tea and quite spazzy....)

For clicky/bleepy/narrative/proper singing all in one & I know this may be totally wrong all obvious, but Minus the Bear, later albums.

[Thrillho]

Kate Nash has a voice, yes. A speaking voice. She talks. It's a spoken word album set to music. If she told more jokes it could be a stand-up album.

I hate Kate Nash.

In the immortal words of a big black guy, via Billy Bailey, 'Sing, bitch.'

[a pack of wolves]

Kate Nash
Jack Penate
(I like the naratives and they both have interesting voices)

For something to try singing along to that's a challenge, also someone I reccomend to EVERYONE:William Elliot Whitmore

My favourite for Harmonies: The Futureheads

Unusual voice: Murder of Rosa Luxumbourg/Tera Tora/Lovvers (Same singer, not everyones cup of tea and quite spazzy....)

For clicky/bleepy/narrative/proper singing all in one & I know this may be totally wrong all obvious, but Minus the Bear, later albums.

Lovvers are ex-Murder Of...? I never realised. I loved that first album but I wasn't so keen when they stopped spazzing out after the line-up change and went all Joan Of Arc. Not nearly as much fun.

You really can't go wrong with William Elliot Whitmore and the Futureheads first album.

[lilibet23]

Yup, Sean, same singer...the guitarist is ex army of flying robots as well...

Oh and I'm sick of people ragging on Kate Nash, yes that one song got annoying, but the fact is she uses her voice in interesting and entertaining ways, she is also good live, I saw her at a VERY varied festival (Gallows to Kano to Blonde Redhead to The Cribs to Lethal Bizzle to, well Kate Nash....) She was without question one of the best acts I saw, Bob Dylan never really sang, didn't stop him! (Not that I'm actually comparing, just saying like....)

[ledhendrix]

Hendrix was finally convinced that he could sing and get away with it after he saw Bob Dylan singing. I thought that was great.

[Joseph]

Sunset Rubdown, Destroyer, Frog Eyes, and Neutral Milk Hotel will all fit in with lyrics which are off the norm, frequently narrative, and voices that are different from the narm in music.  If you're feeling more adventurous, you could try Current 93.  Or maybe Owls/Joan Of Arc?

Bruce Springsteen is as wonderful as you are going to find anywhere when it comes to narratives in lyrics.  Tom Waits could work wonderfully for this as well.

Maybe Bonnie 'Prince' Billy, or any other Will Oldham project?

[Tom]

Weird voices, we'll start light. Try Colin Meloy (Tarkio, the Decemberists), move onto Spencer Krug (Swan Lake, Sunset Rubdown, Wolf Parade) and Carey Mercer(Swan Lake, Frog Eyes).

Diverge wherever possible.

[sombrasoubrette]

Word Disassociation (a web video by Lemon Demon) is good for memorizing...difficult things. Link here.

The Decemberists for a few reasons: a) Colin Meloy has a somewhat distinctive voice and b) they are all about the narrative.

[CarpeNoctem]

If you could imitate Mark Lanegan, I'd be impressed. He was in the Screaming Trees, and he toured with Queens of the Stone Age, and he did an album with Isobel Campbell. Really cool dude.

[De_El]

"Chemical Calisthenics" by Blackalicious is highly educational.