1. Appetite For Destruction/Guns N' Roses (1988)
I borrowed this tape from an ex-best friend in the fall of 1988. From the second I put the tape in my walkman till the next morning when I had to return it to her, I didn't do anything but listen to it on loop for the entire night she let me borrow it. Goodbye Debbie Gibson. Hello Axl Rose. Literally overnight I went from singing along to lyrics like "Could've been so beautiful, could've been so right" to "Turn around bitch I got a use for you. Besides, you ain't got nothin' better to do, and I'm bored."
2. Getting Away With Murder/Papa Roach (2004)
Without getting TOO sappy, let's just say I was going through some weird life stuff and a few of these songs, most of all "Not Listening", hit home at the right time. I needed to hear that someone else was dealing with the same type of emotions as I was. This album helped me deal with all of it just a little better than if I hadn't heard it at all.
3. Summer of '92 mix tapes (1992)
The same ex-friend who lent me Gn'R played the same mix tapes the entire summer of 1992. The tapes contained: Nothing's Shocking, Ten, Nevermind, Pretty Hate Machine, Psalm 69 and a smattering of Violent Femmes songs. I am pretty sure we listened to these because she was trying to educate herself on the music that her latest crush was into. I used to listen begrudgingly because I was still very much into my hair metal and didn't want to cave into the new stuff just to spite my friends. But as it turns out, I was powerless against such genius.
4. Significant Other/Limp Bizkit (1999)
I always say that "I'm not going to sit here and tell you that Fred Durst is the Genius of Our Time, but there's something about them I find quite enjoyable." I know the lyrics are ridiculous and in fact, I can barely listen to the music now without saying "What the fuck Fred?" But for whatever reason, this is the album that brought me out of my 5 year hip hop phase, when I lived for the newest Bad Boy Remix, and got me interested in rock again. I don't know what it was that sparked my interest. It might be that it's because I am a sucker for douchebags and therefore I was drawn to Fred Durst like a moth to a flame. These days I don't listen to them nearly as much, but I do miss their live show because it was always a lot of fun.
5. Dirty Dancing Soundtrack (1988)
No. I'm not kidding. This album introduced me to the golden oldies of my parents time, which I now have a profound love and respect for. Sirius Gold is on my presets because whenever there isn't anything I want to hear on the other stations, I know there'll be something good on that station. One might think that music is way too sappy or too tame, but consider this: Bill Haley and the Comets ("Rock Around the Clock") managed to get the kids so excited at their concerts that riots ensued. That's rock and roll for you.
