I got into music...really got into it...at about 15? 16? It was the early 90's and suddenly it was all Nirvana, Smashing Pumpkins, the Cure, Liz Phair. I felt a connection I'd never felt before. And it was all played by outsiders, for outsiders. No one in my tiny high school was ever interested in talking about books, but I could finally connect with people about music.
At 18 I started dating First Love. He was a punk rocker. I'd listened to some punk through friends before, but he took me to shows and we spent every weekend seeing bands at the Fireside Bowl. The soundtrack was suddenly Dead Kennedys, the Descendants, Face to Face, the Boll Weevils, Apocalypse Hoboken. Because my mom raised me feminist, it was important to me that I also listen to punk by women too, so I got into Bikini Kill, Bratmobile, Babes In Toyland and other riot grrrl bands.
After the big break up, I discovered I couldn't listen to punk anymore, it reminded me too much of him. (This isn't the case anymore...a lot of it is on my ipod now.) It was the late 90's, and I started listening to British bands, not to mention the bands I'd fallen in love with at 15 like the Cure and the Smiths. This all led nicely to my gothic phase...Peter Murphy, Siouxsie Sioux, Rasputina (still my favorite) and Switchblade Symphony. I wore lots of black and learned how to show off my cleavage, and even if I looked depressed, I was happier and more confident than I'd ever been.
Sometime after college the goth phase fell away, although I still wear a whole lot of black. I listen to mostly British bands. I still love 90's britpop like Blur and Pulp, and I named my cat after David Bowie. I adore music with a sharp wit (the Indelicates), smart lyrics (the Decemberists), and a gorgeous female voice (The Gossip). I notice I like most of my songs fast-paced. Don't get me wrong, I adore Radiohead, but I never got into shoegaze, I'll take the Long Blondes over Slowdive any day. Although I like Slowdive. Just not love. I blame the punk music...I still need my music to have a fast beat.
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