Those who know me in real life probably think of me as that-one-friend-who-really-likes-musical-theatre. Whilst this is definitely true, as you may have gathered from certain posts of mine, I am also a big lover of "regular music", particularly alternative and indie bands. With this post I've tried to go for albums that aren't hugely well-known because, as much as I love Favourite Worst Nightmare by Arctic Monkeys, for example, I hope you can instead come away from this post with new music recommendations, rather than just nodding through me gushing over albums that you've known about for years. I'm also going to recommend three songs from each album that I feel best give you the overall feel of what that album sounds like - a taster, if you will. Enjoy!
Canterbury - Thank You
Canterbury have toured with bands such as The Automatic, Twin Atlantic and You Me At Six which probably gives you the best indication of what sort of music they create. This album was actually released for free as they were a very small band at the time and it's definitely up there with some of the best £0 I've ever spent. My favourite thing about this album is that the songs link together to tell a little story - but in a manner uncomplicated enough that the songs are fine to listen to individually too.
Recommended songs: '11, 12', 'Hospital', 'Set Your Right'
The Brobecks were fronted by Dallon Weekes, who later went on to join a favourite band of mine, Panic! At The Disco (who I find myself mentioning multiple times in this one post, oopsies). The Brobecks did enjoy some success with this album and even opened for bands such as Fall Out Boy, but still remained unsigned to any label. Similar to ME (see below), I find this band quite tough to describe as they only really sound like The Brobecks, so the best thing to do really is just to listen.
Recommended songs: 'Visitation of the Ghost', 'I Will, Tonight', 'Bike Ride'
The Family Rain - Under the Volcano
The Family Rain are an indie band comprised of two twins and an older brother. I first discovered them as a support act for Miles Kane, and they definitely suit a Miles Kane gig musically. I'd say they also have a bit of an early Kasabian (particularly the Empire era) vibe to them, whilst still maintaining their own uniqueness. Whilst the lyrics are quite dark in many places, the riffs remain suitably infectious.
Recommended songs: 'Carnival', 'Reason to Die', 'Binocular'
ME - Even the Odd Ones Out
At a Panic! At The Disco gig I went to in 2012, ME were the support act. They released this album in 2013, which included some of the great tracks I remember them playing live. The band cite a wide range of influences such as Led Zeppelin, Queen and even film composer Danny Elfman. Whilst these influences to me, seem very detectable once pointed out, if I was to compare ME to a single music artist I would really struggle. They have a blend of theatricality and rock that I've never really heard anywhere else.
Recommended songs: 'Hoo Ha', 'Westward Backwards', 'Carousel'
Panic! At The Disco - Death of a Bachelor
I am aware that Panic! At The Disco are significantly less obscure than everyone else on this list (in fact, not really obscure at all) but I must confess, I don't have a wide enough breadth of "obscure" music knowledge to have got five albums into this post. Either way, this album is a big favourite of mine. Brendon Urie, band frontman and album writer, has called this a mixture of Sinatra and Queen which, whilst not a perfect description of this album, does kind of make sense. The vocals in tracks such as 'Death of a Bachelor' certainly seems to channel Sinatra whilst the showiness of many tracks is reminiscent of Queen.
Recommended songs: 'Victorious', 'Death of a Bachelor', 'Crazy=Genius'
BONUS: Urinetown the Musical soundtrack
This post wasn't supposed to be about musicals (and was supposed to only be five albums) but I couldn't resist throwing a cheeky soundtrack into the mix. Urinetown is a brilliantly funny musical filled with political satire whilst also satirising musical theatre itself. Whilst I was lucky enough to see a university production of this show, my advice for listening to soundtracks of musicals you haven't seen is to have the Wikipedia plot summary open and keep track of the plot whilst listening to the songs. Musically speaking, this has a bit of a jazz vibe in places whilst some songs are what I would best describe as "typically musical theatrey".
Recommended songs: 'It's a Privilege to Pee', 'Act One Finale', 'We're Not Sorry'
What are some of your favourite albums? Let me know in the comments! :D
xoxo
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