The Syndicate

A staple of any music related forum.

Simple question...what are your top 10 bands (preferably of all time, but right now is also acceptable)?

Mine:

1. King Crimson
2. Frank Zappa
3. Soft Machine
4. Van Der Graaf Generator
5. Henry Cow
6. Magma
7. Agalloch
8. Area
9. Sun Ra
10. Matching Mole


Roughly, of course.

Holy crap, this is tough. And subject to change. But let me try...

1. Rush
2. Henry Cow
3. Kraftwerk
4. Bela Fleck and the Flecktones
5. Dream Theater
6. Animal Collective
7. Boards of Canada
8. King Crimson
9. The Mars Volta
10. Ozric Tentacles / Sigur Ros / Talk Talk / Frank Zappa...


For some reason, it becomes MUCH tougher right around #10. I really can't narrow that one down.

1. Porcupine Tree
2. Godspeed You! Black Emperor
3. Boards of Canada
4. Sigur Ros
5. Brand New

After that it gets too tough. But my Top 5 has been clear for quite some time. I love all these bands for their own reason. PT just carries a vibe that no other band does and I enjoy all of their songs. GY!BE are the masters of buildups, climaxes, and spoken word samples. BoC has an atmosphere to them that provides a very different kind of enjoyablity (almost druglike, heh) compared to other artists. Sigur Ros makes possibly the most beautiful music out there. Brand New, while some might find them generic, just make consistently incredible songs (save for their debut perhaps, but their other 3 are all amongst my top 100 albums) with some of the best lyrics out there. They may belong to the "emo" genre which tends to get a bad rap, but I love them. Especially after seeing them live.

MovingPictures07 wrote:

For some reason, it becomes MUCH tougher right around #10. I really can't narrow that one down.

It does indeed! I am fairly to very confident in my top 7...but the last three could easily be three different bands. Probably because by the time you get down to spot 10 you still have a handful of bands that 'must be included by any and all means' on the list. :P

DisgruntledPorcupine wrote:1. Porcupine Tree
2. Godspeed You! Black Emperor
3. Boards of Canada
4. Sigur Ros
5. Brand New

After that it gets too tough. But my Top 5 has been clear for quite some time. I love all these bands for their own reason. PT just carries a vibe that no other band does and I enjoy all of their songs. GY!BE are the masters of buildups, climaxes, and spoken word samples. BoC has an atmosphere to them that provides a very different kind of enjoyablity (almost druglike, heh) compared to other artists. Sigur Ros makes possibly the most beautiful music out there. Brand New, while some might find them generic, just make consistently incredible songs (save for their debut perhaps, but their other 3 are all amongst my top 100 albums) with some of the best lyrics out there. They may belong to the "emo" genre which tends to get a bad rap, but I love them. Especially after seeing them live.

Lovely descriptions. I should go back and do mine that way (when I have more time).

1) The Beatles
2) Everyone else who's awesome


does that count?

No?

Let's try this again: (I'm going to go with what I tend to find myself listening to over and over again) Though trying to rate them after number 2 is above my reasoning powers atm. (and also subject to change at any time - really - this is an easier task with writers tbh.)

1) The Beatles
2) David Bowie
3) The Smiths
4) Wilco
5) The Who
6) Johnny Cash
7) Zappa and the Mothers
8) P-Funk
9) The Police/Sting
10) Harry Chapin

Honorable Mention: Simon and Garfunkel, Bob Dylan, Muddy Waters.

Yes - I was very heavily influenced by my father's taste in music. Really - his favorites tend to be my go to listening to things more than most other kinds of music. It's funny really how important the music you grew up with becomes so much more important to you as you get older.


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Fedora With Hat wrote:

MovingPictures07 wrote:

For some reason, it becomes MUCH tougher right around #10. I really can't narrow that one down.

It does indeed! I am fairly to very confident in my top 7...but the last three could easily be three different bands. Probably because by the time you get down to spot 10 you still have a handful of bands that 'must be included by any and all means' on the list. :P

That's exactly it. I have like 20 bands that all need to be in my top 10 by any means, lol.

Bea your list is full of win!
Fedora, Sockear and Porcu - not so much - jk but srsly stf are the Beatles on your list??????????? There is no accounting for taste is there Mr CPA lol

1 Beatles ofc!
2 Pink Floyd
3 Frank Zappa
4 Cream
5 Bob Marley
6 BB King
7 Frank Sinatra/ Rat Pack
8 Led Zeppelin
9 Jimi Hendrix
10 4-way tie lmao!
Rage Against the Machine/ Robin Trower/ Paul Butterfield Blues Band/ Ten Years After

Roxy wrote:Bea your list is full of win!
Fedora, Sockear and Porcu - not so much - jk but srsly stf are the Beatles on your list??????????? There is no accounting for taste is there Mr CPA lol

1 Beatles ofc!
2 Pink Floyd
3 Frank Zappa
4 Cream
5 Bob Marley
6 BB King
7 Frank Sinatra/ Rat Pack
8 Led Zeppelin
9 Jimi Hendrix
10 4-way tie lmao!
Rage Against the Machine/ Robin Trower/ Paul Butterfield Blues Band/ Ten Years After

There's no denying the excellence and historical importance of the string from Sgt. Pepper's through Abbey Road, but in terms of my favorite artists/bands ever, they wouldn't crack the top 50 and probably not the top 100.

And no there isn't! That's what makes it so fascinating, I suppose.

Oooo hard.

I am fairly eclectic, i like a lot of Prog, but i also like a lot of punk,some Goth and a smattering of other genres. When i was a kid, I spent one summer following the Dead, and another following the Ramones, lol. So my list will be all over the place.

1~ Pink Floyd
2~ Neil Young
3~ Dead Kennedys
4~ Placebo
5~ Can
6~ Bauhaus
7~ Kraftwerk
8~ The Decemberists
9~ King Crimson
10~Beatles

Although this list fluctuates ALOT

1. Kansas
2. Yes
3. Echolyn
4. Rush
5. Boston
6. Genesis
7. Seven Nations
8. Fleetwood Mac
9. Dream Theater
10. Jethro Tull

I guess. Top four are solid. After that...

This is more or less the top 15 of all time. Most of these bands have been in regular rotation for many many years (I rarely listen to Zappa these days, but when I did, it was nothing short of obsession). Two of them (Ariel Pink and Earth & Fire) are discoveries within the last 2-3 years, but my fervor for them has been so strong and consistent they deserve a place on this list.

1. Beatles
2. Pink Floyd
3. Magma
4. Zappa
5. Kinks
6. Earth and Fire (not Wind)
7. Led Zeppelin
8. Ariel Pink's Haunted Graffiti
9. Can
10. Genesis
11. The Fall
12. Fleetwood Mac
13. Moody Blues
14. Rush
15. Soft Machine

MovingPictures07 wrote:

Roxy wrote:Bea your list is full of win!
Fedora, Sockear and Porcu - not so much - jk but srsly stf are the Beatles on your list??????????? There is no accounting for taste is there Mr CPA lol

1 Beatles ofc!
2 Pink Floyd
3 Frank Zappa
4 Cream
5 Bob Marley
6 BB King
7 Frank Sinatra/ Rat Pack
8 Led Zeppelin
9 Jimi Hendrix
10 4-way tie lmao!
Rage Against the Machine/ Robin Trower/ Paul Butterfield Blues Band/ Ten Years After

There's no denying the excellence and historical importance of the string from Sgt. Pepper's through Abbey Road, but in terms of my favorite artists/bands ever, they wouldn't crack the top 50 and probably not the top 100.

And no there isn't! That's what makes it so fascinating, I suppose.

@ Rox - I know sweets.

@ sockface. If the beatles wouldn't crack your top 100, then you are already loosing your roots. NOt one of them? you admit that these albums in this string are historically important - but you can't like one of them? In 100 albums? and you date the girl you date? really? if that is true - you have far larger problems than I can muster up on an internet forum

and to those of you who would discount say rox or my choices - what choices do you have to bring that are better?

And why do you feel they are better? I look at the why more than anything.

bea wrote:

MovingPictures07 wrote:
There's no denying the excellence and historical importance of the string from Sgt. Pepper's through Abbey Road, but in terms of my favorite artists/bands ever, they wouldn't crack the top 50 and probably not the top 100.

And no there isn't! That's what makes it so fascinating, I suppose.

@ Rox - I know sweets.

@ sockface. If the beatles wouldn't crack your top 100, then you are already loosing your roots. NOt one of them? you admit that these albums in this string are historically important - but you can't like one of them? In 100 albums? and you date the girl you date? really? if that is true - you have far larger problems than I can muster up on an internet forum

and to those of you who would discount say rox or my choices - what choices do you have to bring that are better?

And why do you feel they are better? I look at the why more than anything.

Losing what roots? The Beatles were never one of my favorite bands. For a while during my brother's Beatles obsessive mode and before that, I thought I really hated The Beatles because 99% of the time all I ever heard was the early stuff. Since then my taste has expanded immensely, but I still don't care much for that era of albums pre-Rubber Soul; I never listen to them. I'll be the first person to admit how amazing Sgt. Pepper's, White Album, and Abbey Road are, but I have many other artists I personally enjoy more. It's all subjectivity, and I was never even close to being a huge Beatles fan, and never will be.

That doesn't mean I don't like them -- in fact, I absolutely LOVE The White Album and very much enjoy Abbey Road and Sgt. Pepper's and do enjoy Rubber Soul and Revolver to a lesser degree but still enjoy them. There are just many other bands whose overall discography I enjoy more, and keep in mind just how much music is actually out there from all of the different historical periods and genres. Can, Kansas, The Flaming Lips, Grizzly Bear, Beastie Boys, Pixies, Meshuggah, John Coltrane, Devin Townsend, Radiohead, David Bowie, Ozric Tentacles, Swans, Yes, Jethro Tull, Jaga Jazzist, My Bloody Valentine, Dave Brubeck, Coil, and so many more, I just enjoy their output much more than I do The Beatles. Those are just the first to come off the top of my head that weren't ones I listed in my list. I wouldn't say any of them are objectively "better", but they are better than The Beatles overall in that they are more enjoyable for me. In the whole grand scheme of music, again, it's not that I doubt their historical importance or don't enjoy them, there's just so much music I like more and means more to me.

1. Jethro Tull
2. Queen
3. Rush
4. King Crimson
5. The Kinks
6. Be Bop Deluxe
7. Oingo Boingo
8. The Beach Boys
9. Captain Beefheart
10. Dire Straits

The only Beatles album I love is Revolver. Revolver's great. Other then that, it's just good music that doesn't do anything extraordinary for me at all.

DisgruntledPorcupine wrote:The only Beatles album I love is Revolver. Revolver's great. Other then that, it's just good music that doesn't do anything extraordinary for me at all.

This post is good but it doesn't do anything extraordinary for me
I hope you know my sense of humor well enough to know I am jk

@Bea - I agree I like to know the "why's"

@MP - Kansas > Beatles
We are all entitled to our opinions but I do wonder if lets say Radiohead will have the same sort of legacy that the Beatles still enjoy even after 30 or so years? I just don't think so.

I dunno, I think favorite bands is about how the music makes YOU as an individual feel, not about the overall greatness of the band in question. My number 4 band is Placebo~ and there are likely over a hundred bands that are "greater" legacy wise, or influence wise. But I LOVE Placebo, I love the way they sound, and how i feel when i listen to their albums. So for ME they are a Top Five band, although they will never probably be "great" like the Beatles, Floyd or other legendary bands.

S~V~S wrote:I dunno, I think favorite bands is about how the music makes YOU as an individual feel, not about the overall greatness of the band in question. My number 4 band is Placebo~ and there are likely over a hundred bands that are "greater" legacy wise, or influence wise. But I LOVE Placebo, I love the way they sound, and how i feel when i listen to their albums. So for ME they are a Top Five band, although they will never probably be "great" like the Beatles, Floyd or other legendary bands.

I quote this for the more truthy truthiness of the post. And also it's the truth.

And I agree with her - not about placibo, per say, but about Radiohead. I get the Radiohead love so very much. I don't care if anyone knows who they are 30 years from now, when I hear them, I'll always be happy and always think in my head several things, two of which are "This is MY pink floyd" and "Does anyone have something I can eat or smoke?"

I also wanted to apologize to sockalex for being a bit to go for the throat over something so subjective. That was a total My Bad. And I'm sorry. *hugs*

and - as far as what svs is getting at - I can TOTALLY see a day with her and some bonding where I would rank placibo right up there in MY top 5 because WHEN I HEAR THEM, I WOULD THINK OF HER AND OUR TIME TOGETHER. Music is so very funnily subjective that way.

S~V~S wrote:I dunno, I think favorite bands is about how the music makes YOU as an individual feel, not about the overall greatness of the band in question. My number 4 band is Placebo~ and there are likely over a hundred bands that are "greater" legacy wise, or influence wise. But I LOVE Placebo, I love the way they sound, and how i feel when i listen to their albums. So for ME they are a Top Five band, although they will never probably be "great" like the Beatles, Floyd or other legendary bands.

This.

Also, there are and will always be plenty of bands who never made the limelight, yet their influence on music will always be felt. 13th Floor Elevators, The Velvet Underground, Meshuggah, many come to mind. And there's those who make it even less. It doesn't make them any less great.

You are right ofc MP. I thought of Cream, Free, War and Emerson, Lake and Palmer just off the top of my head - that while they did not stay together for that long their music still affects me on an emotional as well as an entertaining level.

Also Velvet Underground ftmfw!

Let's not forget Can. Their influence is gigantic, yet I've never met anyone irl who's heard of them.

Indeed Velvet Underground ftmfw. And YES, Can, for sure. Fantastic example.

To go back and add whys...

Fedora With Hat wrote:A staple of any music related forum.

Simple question...what are your top 10 bands (preferably of all time, but right now is also acceptable)?

Mine:

1. King Crimson - first band that I really got into. My gateway drug that lead me on the music quest. Also, awesome.
2. Frank Zappa - no holds barred creativity. Fantastic composer/player/ideasmen.
3. Soft Machine - the hardest one for me to answer. I really don't know. It's just all in there. Everywhere. Constantly spitting out.
4. Van Der Graaf Generator - combines the emotional and the musical better than any band out there. Great singing/drumming/organing and the rest.
5. Henry Cow - My first true taste of the 'weird'. Opened the door to the avant world. Bonus: Chris Cutler.
6. Magma - A whole universe that combines many musical attributes that I enjoy (jazz/rock/classical/etc) with top notch musicianship and creativity.
7. Agalloch - Bleak and despairing with great melodies, pacing/development, and atmosphere.
8. Area - off the wall I-talian goodness. A fantastic mix of the 'normal' with the out there.
9. Sun Ra - Jazz master. No holds barred creativity as well. Percussive heavy, experimental, and from a world of his own.
10. Matching Mole - A continuation of what Soft Machine could have been? Maybe. But either way...the best Wyatt has done since leaving SM. Carry that spirit and edge.


Roughly, of course.

Nice commentaries, FWH. I'll have to perhaps do that for mine as well.

1. Devin Townsend
2. Rush
3. Converge
4. Bela Fleck and the Flecktones
5. Meshuggah
6. Dream Theater
7. The Smiths
8. King Crimson
9. Yes
10. Could be either Porcupine Tree, Zappa, or Boards of Canada. It's too hard to decide once I get to #10.

Also, outside of my top 5 (which is pretty solid at this point), the rest of them could rise up, fluctuate, or drop off depending on my mood.

These are not all in order, but here they are:

1. Rolling Stones
2. Bloc Party
3. Arcade Fire
4. The Clash
5. The Format
6. New Pornographers
7. Nirvana
8. Architecture in Helsinki
9. Iggy Pop & The Stooges
10. Sonic Youth

So basically indie rock, classic rock and a little grunge. I go through these cycles of depression when I think about how I will never hear anything new by Nirvana. It's been 20 years and I'm still so depressed about Kurt Cobain.

Bowie is my favorite musician but I didn't count him since he is not a band. I also think Freddie Mercury has the best voice I've ever heard from a human being. Also a big fan of Edith Piaf.

The Llama top 2 is majestic.

1. Queen
2. Jethro Tull
3. Yes
4. Doctor Nerve
5. Magma
6. Diablo Swing Orchestra
7. Latte e miele
8. Grovjobb
9. Anglagard (a personal favourite of Rob's :P)
10. Alice (the French psych prog whatever thingy)

This is hard. I ha v e not heard of even half of these bands you all are mentioning. So here I go...

The Beatles
Ace of Base
Belanova
The Cars
Jefferson Starship
The Police
The Corrs
REM
Queen
Tom Petty and The Heartbreakers

CMX
Einstürzende Neubauten
King Crimson
The Smiths
Tangerine Dream
Swans
Van der Graaf Generator
Nadja
Dead Can Dance
Tool

Vompatti wrote:CMX
Einstürzende Neubauten
King Crimson
The Smiths
Tangerine Dream
Swans
Van der Graaf Generator
Nadja
Dead Can Dance
Tool

Wow, this list is incredibly awesome.

No particular order:

Boards of Canada
Porcupine Tree
Sigur Ros
Godspeed You! Black Emperor
Brand New
Swans
Sonic Youth
Death Grips
Animal Collective
maudlin of the Well/Kayo Dot

A few staples have been in here for years (in some cases a decade!) but the list has really changed over time, some have fallen, been dropped entirely, while some have moved on in:

1. Symphony X

2-5: Opeth, Agalloch, Isis, Godspeed You! Black Emperor

6-10: System of a Down, Megadeth, Tool, King Crimson, Pelican

That was tough, there's so many I love but pretty much I picked bands (generally) with large discogs that I like a lot to all of, that I can listen to anytime, that I've not grown tired of over time, and especially if they can sometimes send me off to that place music can take you...
Honorable mention: Maudlin of the Well, Nevermore, Atheist, Pain of Salvation, Russian Circles

From A to (Z)T
Is to hard to put in order from 1 to 10, sometimes I say Tool is my favorite of all, but Im not a hardcore fan of any band tbqh

A perfect Circle
Beatles
Coldplay
Dredg
Incubus
Katatonia
Muse
Nine Inch Nails
Nirvana
Tool

I will probably need to add few more that I listen often too

Based on bands still active today, in rough order:

Radiohead
Arcade Fire
The National
Nick Cave and the Bad Seeds
Beirut
Beach House
The Black Keys
The Roots
Porcupine Trees
Chvrches

For me its the classics that never die.

Beatles
Led Zeppelin
Pink Floyd
Rolling Stones
Rush
Frank Zappa
Cream
BB King
Wilson Pickett
Rat Pack - any combo

unfurl wrote:From A to (Z)T
Is to hard to put in order from 1 to 10, sometimes I say Tool is my favorite of all, but Im not a hardcore fan of any band tbqh

A perfect Circle
Beatles
Coldplay
Dredg
Incubus
Katatonia
Muse
Nine Inch Nails
Nirvana
Tool

I will probably need to add few more that I listen often too

Your list is quite awesome <3

if last.fm scrobbles are any indication, then a very aribtrary hodge-podge of unrelated nonsense

Roxy wrote:For me its the classics that never die.

Beatles
Led Zeppelin
Pink Floyd
Rolling Stones
Rush
Frank Zappa
Cream
BB King
Wilson Pickett
Rat Pack - any combo

JJJ - Crowded House gets you some respect from the kiwi.

New Zealand has produced a ton of great, globally underappreciated music. I also love Bic Runga.

Also, A Tribe Called Quest is my favorite hip hop act and they'd be in my real top 8.

Pfffffff

The only good band from New Zealand is Men at Work and everybody knows it.

In some order.

Rush
Dream Theater
Pink Floyd
Porcupine Tree
King Crimson
Iron Maiden
Led Zeppelin
Allman Brothers Band
Muse
Yes

1. Interpol
2. Alan Parsons Project
3. Linkin Park
4. 'Weird Al' Yankovif
5. Sabaton
6. The xx
7. DragonForce
8. The Cure
9. Týr
10. Blue Öyster Cult

First four are easy. After that, it's a little harder.

Just wandering around the forum, lost without a Mafia game to play... here's a loose list of my faves. Modest Mouse is generally considered my favourite band. So hard to order them.

Modest Mouse
The Arcade Fire
David Bowie
The Tragically Hip
R.E.M.
Cloud Cult
Muse
Awolnation
Beck
Bright Eyes
The Flaming Lips
Pink Floyd
Smashing Pumpkins
Wintersleep

And that's not even mentioning classic 90's bands that are really close to my heart, like I Mother Earth, Our Lady Peace, Foo Fighters, Tea Party, and others. It's really hard. I don't know a lot of the bands that I have seen repeated in several lists... like, Boards of Canada, I have literally never heard that band name before just now, in your lists. And I'm Canadian, so that feels weird. Maybe I should give them a try.

I remember trying that before... on Lostpedia, there was a tragic figure known as Jackface, and he was really into Coheed and Cambria. So, I downloaded four albums and worked them into my larger playlists, so I could get a good, repeated sampling of them as I listened to music at any time. I guess I know them pretty well now, but apart from a couple of songs, I didn't care for them all that much.

I used to be really uptight about sharing the music I liked. Like, if someone didn't like a song that I thought was cool, that it reflected on me, like I was weird or not cool. I think that, reflecting on a few moments over the years that it came up, I've worked it out... because I don't feel that way any more, except for a twinge from the past that is easily shrugged away. "Yeah, that's right, I added Tiffany's 'I Think We're Alone Now' to the general work playlist, because that song fucking rocks. What?"

Metalmarsh89 wrote:In some order.

Rush
Dream Theater
Pink Floyd
Porcupine Tree
King Crimson
Iron Maiden
Led Zeppelin
Allman Brothers Band
Muse
Yes

Almost 2 years later, I've got a new list these days.


Rush
Talking Heads
Riverside
The Decemberists
Frank Zappa
Phideaux
Godspeed You! Black Emperor
King Crimson
Porcupine Tree
Muse

Allman Brothers Band
Dream Theater
Iron Maiden
Led Zeppelin
Pink Floyd
Yes