Influential Records & Bands

Over the past month alot of people have been posting lists of "Influential Records" on facebook. As a music nerd I love reading these lists, and I of course love making lists like this. It's taken me a week to do this, and i couldn't stop at 15, or even 20. I think i'm at 21 now, and i'm forcing myself to stop. And yes i did put this same list up on Facebook. I'd love to see your lists, you can either post in the comments section or email me at xcitrus@hotmail.com

In no particular order...

KISS -- Alive 2
The reality is it wasn't just this 1 LP that affected me, it was all the records (even post make-up era up to Animalize). This record really stands out for me from an early age, the artwork, the members make up & costumes, Gene Simmons with fake blood all over his face, instantly jumped out at me. The songs were great and the pyro explosions really came thru the speakers. My love affair with music started here.

Bruce Springsteen --
Hard to choose 1 record. I guess Born In the USA would be the first one to hit my ears, I remember hearing him on the radio and seeing the videos on Much Music when this came out. Shortly after i picked up his older tapes and played the hell out of them. Over the years "Born To Run" and "The River" have been in constant rotation and i'm always finding new reasons to love the boss.

Crimpshrine -
The 3 singles, "Quit Talking Claude", "Sleep What's That?" and the split that came with No Idea, really affected me in those early years of discovering punk rock. It all seemed so simplistic, like me and my friends could be doing this. And the lyrics.... as naive as they seem now, at 16 they made me look at things differently. Read the lyrics to "Fucked Up Kid". I thought it was written for me and about me.

the Specials - Self Titled LP
I first saw the video for "Message to You Rudy" and was intrigued by the sounds, the look and the attitude. I borrowed a copy from the public library and played the shit out of it. It seemed so different than anything i had heard before! A few days later i bought a copy from Sound Connection, put it on a tape and listened to it on my walkman all the time. At 16 this music seemed connected to punk somehow but it also seemed like something someone my age shouldn't be listening, like it was a secret music that older punks listened to.

Stiff Little Fingers - "Inflammable Materials"
Discovering this record at a young age really solidified my belief in punk rock as something different, and as a musical form that was explosive and exciting. The lyrics had something to say and were spat out with such urgency that it forced your ears to perk up.

Operation Ivy - "Energy"
Shortly after discovering the Specials and Stiff Little Fingers i was introduced to Operation Ivy by my friend Rusty. This California band combined both of those groups, and at the time there wasn't many groups doing rough, punk influenced ska. Sadly ska-punk was concept that i never wanted to hear again as the 90's progressed.

7 Seconds - "The Crew"
The first time heard this record i was riding thru the streets of Edmonton in the box part of a pick up truck, riding to a band practice with my friends. It was raw, fast, and had great sing-alongs. And those were all things my 15 year old ears wanted to hear. I borrowed the record from my friend Cam, and a few days later skipped school hitting Sound Connection to buy a copy. I celebrate this bands whole catalog, and yes i do enjoy "New Wind" alot.

SNFU - I'm from Edmonton so of course this band played a big part in my musical evolution. I skipped school alot, and would just wander around town; whyte Ave, the high level bridge, Jasper Ave, etc. And along these walks i'd see posters on walls and telephone poles, and they'd have crazy drawings and band names that i'd never heard before. One name that kept popping up was SNFU. I also saw there name once or twice in the mainstream newspapers. So i stole a tape of "Better Than A Stick In the Eye" from HMV downtown, and once i hit the street i put it in my walkmen. My ears were blasted with "Time To Buy A Futon"; a great guitar riff and Chi Pig screaming his head off. Holy shit! This is so different than the metal/hard rock i listened to! I spent the afternoon walking around listening to the tape over and over and over again. This crazy style of music was what i had been searching for. The other reason SNFU influenceed me was that the people playing the songs were real, unlike the metal bands i would hang around the stadium parking lot trying to me i would see these guys on the street and when their set was done they wouldn't run away to a dressing room that was off limits, they would just hang out in the crowd.

The Replacements -- "Tim"
One of my all time favorite records, and also a record that was a soundtrack for a strange time of my life so it can bring on some weird feelings and emotions. Me and my old roomate Dave K. would stay up for days on end listening to this record over & over again, rocking out to "One Dose of Thunder" at the start of the bender and burning out to "Here Comes A Regular" when all our supplies ran out and the sun was coming thru the curtains. This record is Paul Westerberg at his finest.

Modern Life is War -- "My Love, My Way"
There's a feeling you get when you first discover music, those early years of buying records can be so exciting what with all the fresh new sounds burrowing into your ears. As time goes on you get a little pickier, maybe you you don't get impressed as easily, and you will go thru periods of time where nothing excites you anymore, and you're searching for that one band and record that will change you and affect your life. For me that band was Modern Life is War. I discovered this band during a particularly ripe time for hardcore/punk in the early 2000's, a time when bands like American Nightmare, Reach the Sky, Champion, WHN?, Suicide File, No Warning, Count Me Out, Panic and so many more were active (look at the lineup for Posi Fest 2002-2004 for a good example of the core at that point). MLIW stood out amongst the stellar crop of bands at the time mainly because they were heavy without being metal core, they didn't play super fast, and they had lyrics that i related to and felt. This band made me realize how much Hardcore/Punk meant to me. They are also probably the only band i could ever want to see for 37 nights in a row (which i did).

LA Guns/Faster Pussycat/Motley Crue/Guns n Roses --
4 way tie here on this entry. The debut albums from these 4 Hollywood glam bands really struck a chord with me. I would listen to their tapes on my walkmen all the time and think and daydream about what i thought life in a Sunset Strip metal band would be like; sleep all day, drink/drug/fight/fuck all night. This shit just seemed so bad ass to me! I can honestly say that these records were my gateway to punk rock because unlike other glam/hair metal bands i was digging these records/bands were grittier, rawer, and a little more dangerous. The guitar tones weren't super slick and over produced (for the most part). So when i heard punk it just seemed like a more extreme version of what i was already listening too. And yes i still do listen to these records alot (more so LA Guns and Faster Pussycat).

Metallica - Master of Puppets
The 1st time i heard this i was blown away by how fast, angry and raw it was! i used to stare at the cover thinking how cool and bad ass it looked. Metallica (and soon after Slayer) really made me appreciate heavy & fast music.

Descendents -- Milo Goes To College
Fuck, how do i pick 1 record? I believe the first Descendents records i heard were "Milo Goes to College" and "Enjoy". "Milo" has become my favorite. I had heard their name a bunch but at the time ALL was where you could find most of the members, so i was listening to them alot. At some point in 1990, about a month or two before i saw ALL for the first time, i picked up these 2 records. It was similar to ALL but faster at times and a little less produced, I was hooked. Over the years Descendents have been there to help me thru some shitty rough times. At the risk of sounding lame i'll admit to more than 1 occasion of having my heart broken and sitting around listening to the Descendents in the aftermath. And i know i'm not the only one. They also taught me that "thou shall not consume decaf".

Lucero - That Much Further West
This band, and this record, was a turning point for me around 2003-2004. At that point i was listening to hardcore pretty much all the time, just a steady diet of angry, fast, hard music. When i first heard Lucero it made me pull out my old Replacements, Bruce Springstreen, Jawbreaker and Johnny Cash Records. Because to me this band combined elements from all of those songwriters. They were my escape to the constant barrage of hardcore that was my life on the east coast. And aside from the music there was the lyrics... I don't even know where to start in describing them, but suffice to say they were comforting to me. And yes, much like the Descendents, Lucero became a go to band for me when i was feeling lonely, confused and heartbroken. They also became the perfect soundtrack for the long drives while on tour.

Rick Springfield -- Working Class Dog
For the record i still put on his records. But anyways... back when i was a young pup i would listen to whatever my brother was playing, thankfully he had good taste in music, and i would take records out from the public library. My first obsession with a band/artist that was my own decision and had nothing to do with my what my brother was listening to was Rick Springfield. This record has some catchy fuckin' jams on it!!

Bad Brains -- ROIR tape
One day i'm skipping school and as usually stopped in at Sound Connection. I bought a Bad Brains 7" that day. At first it grabbed my attention because it was on yellow vinyl, but the guy working said i needed to hear it. It was a live 7", and had this insane song called "Pay to Cum" that blew my mind! It was so fast and out of control. A few days later i was back at Sound Connection (i was there at least 3-5 days a week) and saw a tape from the Bad Brains so bought it. I was 16 and never left home without my cassette walkman so as soon as i left the store i put the tape on and wandered. For the next few hours i walked all over Edmonton listening to that tape trying to make sense of the sounds i was hearing. It blew my mind with how fast and raw it was. I remember thinking that the people who made it had to be insane. This wasn't fast like Metallica was fast. Metallica sounded like they were in control of what they were doing. Bad Brains sounded like they were possessed or something!!

Jawbreaker -- Unfun
While this might not be my favorite Jawbreaker record, that changes all the time due to stuff like my mood, but it was my introduction. It was 1990, i'm in a car with Todd Flintstone, Rusty Gragg and maybe someone else, on our way out to Sherwood Park court house to yell at some nazi skinheads being charged with beating an old reporter (who's name escapes me). Once we hit the highway Rusty puts on a tape from a band he's booking at the Ambo in a few months. Rusty was grinning as Todd and my jaws hit the floor. The melodies, the rawness, the emotions, that ruff voice, it was unlike anything else i heard at the time yet you could compare it to Husker Du in some ways. A few months later the band played the Ambo for 2 nights and it was amazing! You could put Jawbreaker alongside Descendents and Lucero for bands i've reached out to when i'm bummed out or stuck inside on a rainy day. For the record the song "Bivouac" (from the LP of the same name) is one of the greatest songs ever. Equal parts melancholy, hard and chaotic.

Husker Du -- New Day Rising
When i first heard this record i was amazed at how raw and chaotic it all sounded, yet underneath it all was some amazing melodies. "I Apologize" is a pop song thru and thru.

Forbidden Dimension - Mars is Heaven tape
The first time i heard this tape i was so confused, but i couldn't stop listening to it! The guitars were beyond distorted & fuzzed out, the vocals had some strange effects on it to make them distorted & warbly, and underneath it all was a simple drum machine beat. And the songs were about UFO's, aliens, horror movies, etc. It was all so simple and primitive. And it all seemed so fuckin' punk to me!! I remember going to Calgary with Josh Stevenston for a weekend (at 16) and somehow ended up staying with the members of the band (they had a full lineup for live shows) and got to go watch the band practice and than later that night play an after hours club. It was awesome!

Suicide File -- Twilight
It all started with their 1st 7" and i was sold. Great lyrics, simple punk influenced hardcore. But i'm picking Twilight because this was a soundtrack for my life in Montreal. I travelled down to Boston for the record release show for this LP, it was one of the most amazing shows i've ever seen! I'm actually at a loss for words in trying to describe why this band means so much to me. The lyrics, the music, the people in the band... it was all so amazing and really they became my saving grace for staying involved in hardcore. They were like the amalgamation of everything i loved about hardcore punk. And i'm not going to lie... at their last show (at the ICC Church in Boston) I found my eyes welling up with tears during the last song "Song For Tonight".


J Church -- Camels, Spilled Coronas and the Sound of Mariachi Bands
It's not easy to pick 1 J Church record because the band released ALOT of 7", a few 10" and a handful of full length LP's. Picking this one is kinda cheating because it's a compilation of the first couple 7"s. Before J Church there was Cringer, a mediocre band that got great just before breaking up. J Church was great from the get go, only recording a few bad songs over the years. The melodic music was always a pleasure to hear, but it was the lyrics that i always looked forward to. Lance Hahn could write political lyrics without being preachy and mask it all with a good pop hook. But he could also write something personal that everyone could relate to. One of the best shows i've ever put on was J Church in the basement of the Blue House in Calgary (Showdown 76 and Viceroy opened). Lance was so nice, letting me help write the set list in my kitchen. I don't know what else to write because whenever i think of J Church enivitabily i think of Lance and all the songs he would've written if he hadn't passed away back in 2007. R.I.P. Lance...