RadioheadI know what you might be thinking. Ew, a Radiohead fan is recommending me rock music? Go back to living a kissless life, virgin!
You might not be thinking that, but just in case if you were, it's totally okay. The fanbase mentions Radiohead like they're the best band out there. They do have great albums, but some of their stuff, like Kid A, can be compared to other artists, such as Aphex Twin or Squarepusher. Kid A is simply nothing more than an exploration into IDM, which was pretty much the landscape of electronic music in the '90s. Amnesia and 8 Outtakes from Amnesia is an extension of Kid A, and almost all of the tracks on those albums are just as good. I started on In Rainbows, and it remains my favorite Radiohead album.
Seems kinda funny to talk about Radiohead's least rock album on the rock thread. I'd recommend
The Bends far sooner than I would
Kid A, and I think
Pablo Honey is deeply underrated as well, especially when you take into consideration the B-sides from that era ("Banana Co", "Coke Babies", "Killer Cars", most of the
My Iron Lung EP which is a bridge between
Pablo Honey and
The Bends eras).
Kid A isn't bad, but I think most of its acclaim comes from having been sprung on an audience who hadn't heard much in the way of IDM who then considered it some wild and bizarre sonic jump instead of Radiohead applying their icy neurotic sensibilities to an existing genre. I think the songs I'd rather listen to the most off it are the ones that are the least weird for the sake of it ("How to Disappear Completely", "Optimistic", etc). Also, it comes right in the middle of Radiohead's Important phase as opposed to being entertaining or fun to listen to, which their earlier stuff absolutely was ("The Bends" was a big piss take on their sudden popularity, "My Iron Lung" is a snarky "Creep" flip). Basically Radiohead without humor. Kinda meh.
In Rainbows does kick ass though, much agreed. Nice to hear them having a bit of fun again.
Beck - OdelayQueens of the Stone Age - Songs for the DeafGojira - From Mars to SiriusCage the Elephant - Melophobia Good choices. I was surprised at how well
Odelay held up after not having heard it for a long time, given how stressful its recording was for Beck. I'm hoping people come around on
Guero as well, since that album takes the
Odelay sensibilities and darkens it a bit, and I think it's a different spin on the same idea and just as cool to listen to. I think I'd probably take either of the first two Cage records before
Melophobia, but that's mostly my nostalgia talking (Cage was one of my favorite bands as a kid), it's not far behind.
Anyway, most of what I listen to is rock, yes! I recently picked up a big stack of 25 CDs when I was in Wales visiting my girlfriend, mostly 90s alt and weird rock bands. I've now got 210 CDs and CD boxsets in the collection. Completed my Breeders collection, completed my Bush collection, got some Black Rebel Motorcycle Club in there for your dreamily menacing indie rock fix, some R.E.M., some Built to Spill, Better Than Ezra, tons. Tons I still gotta listen to as well.
I've recently been a little obsessed with the first Remy Zero record--it's not brilliant as far as songwriting goes, since it's very sound-focused, but the sounds they conjure up are so eerie and haunting and ghostly, it's phenomenal on that front. It'll take you a few tries to start remembering stuff from it though.
Here's my Discogs collection if anyone wants to peek through what I've got.