Many years ago, I was in a terribly dysfunctional relationship. Consequently I was one really depressed, insecure guy. To lift my spirits I would regularly play Henry Rollins’ “End Of The Silence” loud. That, and Public Enemy’s “Takes Nation Of Millions” CD were on heavy, heavy rotation on the old headphones.
After listening to Henry, I’d always think: Jeez, my life sucks and I’m pretty pissed off, but compared to THIS guy, I guess things are going pretty well.
And for whatever reason, listening to PE just always got my mind off my troubles. Chuck D’s just got the sort of voice that makes everything he says sound important, from racial injustice to party rhymes.
Again, I’d listen and think: Well, sure she treats me like poop, but at least I’m not getting screwed by The Man.
My own little theory of relativity. IE: Relatively speaking, I guess things could be worse. I mean look at these guys…
So what have you played to get you through this stinky old mortal coil of ours?
Being confused about my sexuality throughout high school, having very strange relationships with guys, and trying to find out who the hell i was without disappointing my parents/teachers/self… i pretty much lived and breathed Ani DiFranco and Tori Amos albums. Also poetry by Sylvia Plath and Anne Sexton.
(i am SO the poster child for teenage feminist/lesbian angst)
Once upon a time I was suicidal and depressed. To get me through the bad times - well, this may strike you as a surprise, but I listened to weepy country music. Gary Allan’s “Smoke Rings In The Dark” album, and the entire works of Garth Brooks (except the Christmas album), to be specific. Somehow listening to depressed music made me feel better. I think it was the fiddle.
Whenever I’m feeling low, I listen to Exile in Guyville by Liz Phair.
Her songs help me realize I’m not the only one who longs for someone deeply yet must be patient until that day arrives…
If I’m feeling angry, I listen to Pretty on the Inside by Hole. Riot grrl rock at it’s most aggressive. I sing along until I feel better.
I just finished two years of chemistry and, while I listened to lots of music whilst studying, I found that I felt best when listening to:
The Dillards ~There is a Time~
Front 242 ~Up Evil~
Hossam Ramsey ~Baladi Plus~
Bluegrass and foreign music cheer me up most.
BTW, does anyone else really like foreign music just because you can’t understand the words and therefore aren’t aware of how trite the song may be? I listen to a lot of Middle Eastern, Indian, and Finnish music just because I don’t speak the languages.
Since I’ve been out of work, I’ve been listening to the old Decca recording of THE RING OF THE NIBELUNG, Vienna Philharmonic, Sir Georg Solti conducting. The first stereophonic recording, from 1965, remastered onto compact disc back in the '80s.
It, er, fills the time. I’m listening to the third act of DIE WALKURE at the moment.
Also, the RING is something that a busy feller doesn’t have tons of time to properly pay attention to. So I’m enjoying the freedom to ram it into my head over a period of weeks…months…
Hmmm. In high school it was mainly Pink Floyd and Don Henley (long, strange story which I’ll spare you the details of). Since the late 1990s its been Nine Inch Nails and Dead Can Dance. Gotta say that at the end of a twisted relationship, there’s nothing better than hearing Renzor scream his lungs out about screwed up he is.
Strangely, Weird Al Yankovic. Don’t know why. Lynyrd Skynyrd, especially Simple Man, Tuesday’s Gone, and Free Bird. And I picked up Metallica about the same time, starting with the Black Album. I was an emotionally unstable person by myself, but I kept it together in front of people. Long, painful story. In the same vein, sorta, repeated viewings of my favorite movie, MST3K:TM, helped.
When I was depressed, I always liked listening to heavy depressing stuff like '80s Metallica, Ministry, and Slayer. It doesn’t cheer you up so much as intensify and focus your feelings to a point where it’s easier to think about your problems and accept them. Either ‘…And Justice for All’, ‘Psalm 69’, or ‘Seasons in the Abyss’ was in my CD player through most of the early '90s.
Leonard Cohen. Can’t say that it made me feel cheerful, but it made me feel better, calmer. I still play it a lot, but only when I’m alone. MrsO doesn’t really understand English, so she doesn’t know what he’s saying, but she tells me that the sound of his voice depresses the hell out of her.
Phish. My patented Shitty Day Decompression Routine for the first three years of med school (mostly in Gross Anatomy and later in Surgery) consisted of lying on the couch in the dark for about 20 minutes listening to some choice Phish cuts.
During first year I nearly wore out my tape of Set 2 of Dayton 12/7/97 when I found that the Reba and Guyute were just about right. This year my CD-R of 7/12/00, particularly the Piper > Crosseyed and Painless > Prince Caspian, has been a popular choice.
[embarrassing revelation] When my first love cheated, lied and then broke up with me I was devastated. Couldn’t believe someone would lie to me, etc. I think it was 1992. I listened and sang over and over a popular song then. I’m SO embarrassed to say this. I know I won’t get any respect for a while around here, and no one better tell my friends, but I listened to ‘How am I Supposed to Live Without You’, by…ugh…Michael Bolton. There I said it, I can heal now. [/embarrassing revelation]
When I broke up in 1996 I played ‘Amplified Heart’ by Everything but the Girl incessantly, and every song had my emotions in it. Great album. HIGHLY RECOMMENDED.
When my last one broke up with me I was caught between a rock and a hard place. She loved Everything ButTheGirl too, so I couldn’t play that. I listened to the new one from Lucinda Williams. ‘Blue’ and ‘Reason to Cry’ are wonderful.
And Mary Chapin Carpenters’ songs always have a lyric or two in them that just hit you between the eyes and let you know she’s been there too. A lot of running into the old flames songs. ‘Never Had it so Good’ is an all-time favorite.
Then I play some music from the old days, some Live Dead, Doobies and Bob Seeger–loud.
I went through this period where I was really depressed (no surprise…I suffer from chronic depression) when my then-fiancee ran off with another guy. Basically, I felt like my life was for shit, yada yada yada. Anyway, I found a lot of solace in Counting Crows and Ben Folds Five. The Crows made me realize that that’s a universal feeling.
Ben Folds Five because they seemed unafraid to say the dark sides of what I was feeling.
