I know you were waiting for Nika (aka Vikram Ramchandi‘s) response to Punkflop (aka Steve Abraham’s) 10 Songs You MUST Hear Before You Die so here it is, along with a picture he sent me of himself from the future. In case you missed it Punkflop & Nika are two cool cats I have the pleasure of knowing and they love music so much they started a website called Track Drops to bring you two new epically awesome tunes each day, don’t you love them already? Love, MM xoxo
Great music (according to me) is like a magic carpet, it raises your head to the clouds and has the ability to transport you to otherwise unimaginable places, spaces and faces.
10 is too insignificant a number when it comes to music but since it has come down to it, these are the songs that I would want to experience to bring back past memories, recent obsessions and new dreams.
1. Off The Wall – Michael Jackson
This man single handedly created music that connected people across languages, cultures and religion. He is the perfect embodiment of what music was meant to be, a universal means of communication.
2. Don’t Get Me Wrong – The Pretenders
This particular song from The Pretenders pulls me back to the brightness of my childhood and memories of my parents’ record collection. It is a direct dose of nostalgia.
3. Man Who Sold The World – Nirvana
Although it may be argued that the Bowie version is the superior rendition; Nirvana’s unplugged version is the one that connects with me. It is a track that many people of my generation would have cried, laughed, and loved to. It was the perfect embodiment of the changing times.
4. Open – Rhye
I see a bright future for this talented duo and their recent album ‘woman’ may be the most romantic album to have come out in years.
5. Killing Me Softly – Fugees
Lauryn Hill and her gang created their ground breaking album ‘The Score’ in the mid ’90s to resounding and universal applause. Their music empowered a generation of artists who till this day borrow influences from this hyper talented albeit erstwhile band.
6. Soul Love – David Bowie
‘Ziggy Stardust and the Spiders from Mars’ is the quintessential and reference album of modern rock. Whatever adulation you lay upon Bowie is too little. This man was at the forefront of punk, indie, pop, rock, and soul. Regardless of his many accolades, he is still underrated and is one of the true living legends of music.
7. Ain’t No Sunshine – Bill Withers
This 1971 track by Withers still makes hearts ache 40 years post. A tireless song that was an instant classic.
8. Basic Space – The XX
This young English band caused something of a mini revolution by producing intelligent music within the indie space that speaks to the heart more than it does to the ears. A band that sounds as good live as they do in recordings. The XX are a must have for your record collection.
9. Lal Meri Pat – Nusrat Fateh Ali Khan
This is a classic and and deeply revered Sindhi sufi song that has many variations, Nusrat’s isn’t the best but Nusrat is the best vocalist we have had the pleasure of hearing in the past century.
10. Anything From ‘In Rainbows’ – Radiohead
Every so often, you come across a genius of the arts. Thom Yorke and his group are the geniuses of our generation. If there was only one album that I could take to my grave, it would undoubtedly be ‘In Rainbows’ by Radiohead. His music puts you in a hypnotic state of wonderment that is not only difficult to describe but impossible to replicate.
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