10 (More) Albums That Changed My Life
Part Four:
NEW WAVE Edition
NEW WAVE Edition
By Stephen SPAZ Schnee
In order to change the format a little, I thought I’d present a list of another 10 amazing albums that changed my life, but this time I’d venture out into that amazing wilderness called NEW WAVE… which really isn’t a musical genre at all… And, lo and behold, this list contains albums and artists that actually scored hits thanks to radio stations like KROQ and, of course, MTV! It was always a thrill when an album that I had owned for months finally got the attention it deserved and started selling. As many of us know, there are so many great bands of all genres that deserved fame and fortune but, for some reason, it just never happened for them….
So, what was New Wave? Well, as I stated, it wasn't initially a genre of music: it originally was a description given to a fast-growing movement of new artists that had evolved from the Indie and Punk scenes of the late '70s. These new artists were a little more accomplished musically and created songs that were more sophisticated and melodic than their Punk and Indie brethren, yet they still retained the excitement and quirky energy of Punk.
New Wave was actually a lazy way for critics to describe a band. Did The Jags and Culture Club really have anything in common stylistically? Er…no. Howabout The Fabulous Poodles and The Human League? Nope. Squeeze and Depeche Mode? Not really. But all of the aforementioned bands have been called New Wave during much of their careers. It boils down to lazy journalism written by stoned Prog Rock-loving critics who no longer understood the concept of a three minute Pop tune. Eventually, all the different sub-genres (Synthpop, Power Pop, Mod, Post-Punk, Goth, Ska, etc) became part of the New Wave umbrella and that is where they remain today.
I personally don't use the term New Wave to describe any of the bands I listen to, but in order to make the case for lazy journalism, I will on this blog entry!
Here are 10 albums that never fail to take me back to a certain period in my life. They may or many not have sold millions of copies but they had an enormous impact on me. And they are albums I will cherish until my dying day…. I still remember the exact record store I made the purchases at and the first time I sat down with the headphones and gave it a listen...
I’ve listed them in alphabetical order by band because, to be honest, I can never say that one of them had more of an impact on me than the other. They are all equally important. And I've refrained from explaining WHY they mean so much to me. Those reasons are ones that only I would understand... (and I'm sure that your choices are made based on similar situations and circumstances).
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