Hey everyone, I don't really have much to say, but I felt I should take advantage of this introduction thread. I guess I'll give a summary of my musical evolution. It may be a long/boring read, so you can just skip to the bottom for favorite bands and some additional info. : )
I'm 17, and have been a huge Prog fan for a while. I didn't know it at the time, but I liked progressive music even when I was very young (Around 6 maybe). It all started when I played MegaMan 2 for the NES. This game was different. Something stood out... Ahah! The music! Of course, I knew nothing about music at that age, but I knew I liked the sound coming out of my TV speakers.
I wasn't even seriously into music until Grade 7, when I decided to learn guitar. I got a guitar and a 15 watt amp for Christmas, and immediately picked out some Offspring, Greenday, and AC/DC songs. It was the only music available to me besides what came on the radio (I didn't have the internet and all the CD's I listened to, were from my older brother's collection)
I became bored of AC/DC and the Punk music, and I told my dad, who had been sort of helping me with guitar. He opened a drawer in which I had never looked... Inside was a giant CD collection. I flipped through tons of CD's until I came across a few with this cool zombie guy on the cover. I took them home and listened to them with a grin on my face. Iron Maiden immediately became my favorite band.
I kept coming back to my dad to get CD's, and I told him that I wanted something like Iron Maiden. The metal in his collection was limited, so he suggested Metallica and RUSH."This music is amazing!" I thought to myself, and probably said out loud a few times too, but I wasn't really a Prog fan yet.
Although I liked Rush and Pink Floyd, I was more of a metal kind of guy. My favorite bands were Iron Maiden, Metallica, and Megadeth. I started getting much better at guitar, and after gaining access to the internet, I could look up tabs, download music, and read up about my favorite artists. It was great! During some surfing on the internet one day, I saw a video of Michael Angelo Batio's "Speed Kills" (No Boundaries).
I thought "Holy Christ! This is the best music ever!!" Of course, I was wrong, but I was young and flashy things impressed me. I got heavily into "Shred" and virtuostic musicians, and I stayed that way for about a year. I'm embarrassed to say, during that year, I was introduced to Dream Theater by my Dad, and I quickly dismissed them. "It just sounds like carnival music to me. I don't really like it", I said. CARNIVAL MUSIC!
Anyway, last year I got extremely sick of Yngwie, Cacophony, and the like. It was then that I revisited Dream Theater. I listened to Train of Thought, and Scenes From a Memory in their entirety. This time, I actually did stumble upon "The best music ever."
Since then, I've totally opened my mind and broadened my musical tastes. I really don't like shred at all now, but it will always have a place in my heart. I definitely wouldn't be the guitar player I am today, without it. Ahem! Now I'll list my favorite bands, and you can see how Dream Theater has changed me.
Favorite Bands/Artists (In no particular order)
Dream Theater
Opeth
Yes
Pink Floyd
Symphony X
Mastodon
Meshuggah
Radiohead
Koji Kondo
Nobuo Uematsu
Michiru Yamane
You can click on the Last.fm link in my sig if you want to see more artists I like, or which individual songs I favor.
Anyway, This site (The Archive) is an incredible place. Many times, I've relied on reviews, Mp3's, and Top albums before making a "purchase."
I hope I fit into the community.
Cheers!
EDIT: Haha, I guess I had more to say than I thought I would. Sorry about that ; P
Edited by Kamikaze - April 14 2007 at 02:27