The Final Rip: U-Z

Here is where I talk a little about various artists whose music I own. (S/T means self-titled.)

Since MTV was a big part of my early music experience, I tried to find videos of one song for each band just for fun. Apologies in advance for some of the more lurid examples, I mostly picked them based on the song, not on the video content!

Other segments: A B C D E F G H I J K L M N O P Q R S T U V W X Y Z

Complete(ish) Collections

Suzanne Vega (1985 S/T, 1987 Solitude Standing, 1990 Days of Open Hand, 1992 99.9 F, 1992 In Liverpool, 1995 Nine Objects of Desire, 2001 Songs in Red and Gray, 2007 Beauty & Crime, 2010 Close-Up, Volume 1: Love Songs, 2010 Close-Up, Volume 2: People & Places, 2011 Close-Up, Volume 3: States of Being, 2012 Close-Up, Volume 4: Songs of Family, 2014 Tales From the Realm of the Queen of Pentacles) — My wife was a big Suzanne Vega fan when we met, and I was familiar with her more popular songs from the MTV days, so we’ve enjoyed being mutual fans as the years have passed. I thought it was a pretty nifty idea of hers to re-record most of her catalog acoustically and release them over a short span from 2010-2012. And for some reason “The Queen & The Soldier” can just wreck me emotionally from its opening line.

Suzanne Vega - The Queen And The Soldier

Weezer (1994 S/T (Blue), 1996 Pinkerton, 2001 S/T (Green), 2002 Maladroit, 2005 Make Believe, 2008 S/T (Red), 2009 Raditude, 2010 Death to False Metal, 2010 Hurley, 2014 Everything Will Be Alright in the End, 2016 S/T (White)) — Loved the blue album and Pinkerton. Was glad they came back strong with the green album, and happy to see them prolific, even if some of their stuff is a little uneven. These guys can totally write a hook though! Also, “Pork and Beans” is one of the best videos ever if you are at all aware of the history of YouTube memes.

Weezer - Pork And Beans

Partial Collections

U2 (1983 War, 1987 The Joshua Tree, 1991 Achtung Baby, 1993 Zooropa, 1997 Pop, 2000 All That You Can’t Leave Behind, 2004 How to Dismantle an Atomic Bomb, 2009 No Line on the Horizon) — I’m a bit of an odd U2 fan. War is my favorite album. I think The Joshua Tree is overrated. I totally hated Rattle and Hum. But felt that the Achtung Baby-Zooropa-Pop sequence put them back on track. And I’m kind of meh on their later stuff, honestly.

New Year's Day U2 Video

Waterbone (2003 Orion Prophecy) — A little techno-Egyptian fusion music for the collection.

Waterbone - Hymn To Isis

Way Out West (2004 Don’t Look Now) — Random electronica I must have picked up when trying to explore the genre more. Not bad, but not good enough to make me pick up more of their stuff.

Way Out West - Anything But You

Wumpscut (2006 Cannibal Anthem, 2007 Body Census) — Modern industrial band from Germany, definitely Skinny Puppy-inspired. Wow, they’ve released a lot of albums! These two will do for the moment.

Wumpscut - Remember One Thing

Thom Yorke (2006 The Eraser) — Like Radiohead but a little different. It’s all good!

Thom Yorke - Black Swan

Zohar (2001 Onethreeseven) — Another techno band with a Middle East influence.

The Final Rip: T

Here is where I talk a little about various artists whose music I own. (S/T means self-titled.)

Since MTV was a big part of my early music experience, I tried to find videos of one song for each band just for fun. Apologies in advance for some of the more lurid examples, I mostly picked them based on the song, not on the video content!

Other segments: A B C D E F G H I J K L M N O P Q R S T U V W X Y Z

Complete(ish) Collections

Serj Tankian (2007 Elect the Dead, 2010 Imperfect Harmonies, 2012 Harakiri) — Solo efforts from the System of a Down lead singer to hold me over until SoaD deigns to drop a new album. These are more political with more varied instrumentation but don’t quite hold together as well as the full band’s work.

Serj Tankian - Sky Is Over (OFFICIAL VIDEO)

That 1 Guy (2000 Songs in the Key of Beotch, 2007 The Moon Is Disgusting, 2010 Packs A Wallop!, 2014 Poseidon’s Deep Water Adventure Friends) — Very quirky and fun one-man band playing his own invented instrument, the “magic pipe,” which is sort of a hybrid upright bass and super synth pad that he can use to create whole songs on. Check him out live sometime, he puts on a great show!

That 1 Guy "Mustaches" Video

They Might Be Giants (1986 Then: The Earlier Years, 1990 Flood, 1990 Istanbul (Not Constantinople), 1992 Apollo 18, 1992 I Palindrome I, 1992 The Guitar (The Lion Sleeps Tonight), 1993 Why Does the Sun Shine?, 1994 Back to Skull, 1994 John Henry, 1996 Factory Showroom, 1998 Severe Tire Damage, 2001 Mink Car, 2002 No!, 2002 They Got Lost, 2004 Indestructible Object, 2004 The Spine, 2004 The Spine Surfs Alone, 2005 Here Come the ABCs, 2007 The Else, 2008 Here Come the 123s, 2009 Here Comes Science, 2011 Album Raises New And Troubling Questions, 2011 Join Us, 2013 Nanobots, 2015 Glean, 2015 Why?, 2016 Phone Power) — I really disliked TMBG for the first six months after I was introduced to their quirky pop magic, but once Flood was released in 1990 I saw the error of my ways. Since then I’ve become a huge fan. Probably my favorite disc from them is the Back to Skull EP which features a complete re-imagining of “She Was a Hotel Detective” in a glorious 70s falsetto pastiche, and “Ondine,” one of their bleakest songs. At one point I could sing from memory all their songs from the beginning until around Severe Tire Damage because I had a set of cassette tapes I’d made that I just looped over and over in the car. Sadly, I’ve not kept up that particular skill.

Snail Shell - They Might Be Giants (official video)

Tool (1993 Undertow, 1996 Ænima, 2001 Lateralus, 2006 10,000 Days) — I’m not as hard-core a fan as most other Tool fans I know, but I definitely appreciate their sound and interesting approach to music.

Tool - Schism (HD 720p)

Partial Collections

Tears for Fears (1985 Songs From the Big Chair) — Classic 80s album with so many great songs, but for whatever reason I can’t stand the follow-up (Seeds of Love), which has kept me from exploring any further.

Head Over Heels by Tears For Fears

TGT (The Genetic Terrorists) (1988 Machine Gun) — Ahhh, back in the days when you could sample liberally from movies like “Robocop,” “The Running Man,” and “Aliens” and get away with it. These guys released this single and one album and that was all she wrote.

TGT - Machine Gun 1990

Télépopmusik (2001 Genetic World) — Fun downtempo electronica.

Breathe - Telepopmusik

Greatest Hits

Talking Heads (1988 Naked, 1992 Popular Favorites: Sand in the Vaseline) — Naked was one of those albums I bought from a record club out of curiosity and fell in love with after giving it some time to settle in. Eventually I discovered that I liked a lot of their other stuff as well but settled for the hits versus backtracking through all their albums.

Talking Heads - (Nothing But) Flowers

Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers (1993 Greatest Hits) — Another band I knew of who had a bunch of songs I was pretty familiar with but didn’t realize the full extent until I grabbed their greatest hits. I always loved the surreal “Don’t Come Around Here No More” video, an old MTV favorite.

Tom Petty And The Heartbreakers - Don't Come Around Here No More

The Final Rip: S

Here is where I talk a little about various artists whose music I own. (S/T means self-titled.)

Since MTV was a big part of my early music experience, I tried to find videos of one song for each band just for fun. Apologies in advance for some of the more lurid examples, I mostly picked them based on the song, not on the video content!

Other segments: A B C D E F G H I J K L M N O P Q R S T U V W X Y Z

Complete(ish) Collections

S’Express (1989 Original Soundtrack, 1991 Intercourse) — Early in college picked this up to see if I was into house music. Apparently not too much, but it did insinuate itself into my musical consciousness enough that I’ve kept them in my collection.

S-Express - "Superfly Guy" - ORIGINAL VIDEO - stereo

Scars on Broadway (2008 S/T) — System of a Down’s Daron Malakian off on a solo tangent. The songs are simpler but veer more toward the ironic, reflecting his influence in SoaD.

Scars On Broadway - World Long Gone

Schoolyard Heroes (2003 The Funeral Sciences, 2005 Fantastic Wounds, 2007 Abominations) — This local Seattle goth horror/punk band really caught my attention during their brief period of activity. Enjoyed all their albums, especially the second. Too bad they’ve moved on, but at least we got to see them live (even if we were seriously the oldest people in the audience!)

Schoolyard Heroes - The Plastic Surgery Hall Of Fame

She Wants Revenge (2005 S/T, 2007 This Is Forever, 2011 Valleyheart) — Discovered this band thanks to a girl in church wearing their T-shirt, ironically. Found out they had a really droll goth rock sound that I liked, with nice dark lyrics and a mood to match.

She Wants Revenge - These Things

Simon & Garfunkel (1990 Collected Works) — Not sure I really qualify as a big enough fan to own Collected Works, but I am impressed to see their entire collection of works squished onto 3 CDs total.

Simon & Garfunkel - Cecilia (Audio)

Skinny Puppy (1985 Bites, 1986 Mind: The Perpetual Intercourse, 1987 Cleanse Fold and Manipulate, 1988 VIVIsectVI, 1989 12 Inch Anthology, 1989 Rabies, 1990 Too Dark Park, 1990 Tormentor, 1992 Last Rights, 1996 The Process, 1998 Remix Dystemper, 2004 The Greater Wrong of the Right, 2007 Mythmaker, 2011 HanDover, 2013 Weapon) — Loved the dark industrial sounds of Skinny Puppy since I first got a chance to hear them in high school. Their earlier works were very sample-heavy, with a dark horror theme. Then they hooked up with Al Jourgensen of Ministry and produced Rabies, with a more guitar-heavy sound and one of their best songs, “Worlock.” A lot of fans thought that was the end, but they came back stronger than ever with my absolute favorite album (and album artwork) in Too Dark Park, a 35-minute magnum opus of incredible music. To me, definitely one of the pinnacles of the industrial scene. After a bit of a fallow period, their newer 21st century albums seem to have found them revitalized with a bit of a tweaked sound.

Skinny Puppy - Spasmolytic

Sting (1985 The Dream of the Blue Turtles, 1986 Bring On the Night, 1987 …Nothing Like the Sun, 1991 The Soul Cages, 1993 If I Ever Lose My Faith in You, 1993 Ten Summoner’s Tales, 1994 This Cowboy Song, 1996 Mercury Falling, 1999 Brand New Day, 2003 Sacred Love, 2009 If on a Winter’s Night…, 2013 The Last Ship, 2016 57th & 9th) — I liked Sting as part of The Police, but when he went solo in the mid-80s I found his new sound challenging and ultimately very enjoyable. Especially those first few albums had a heady intellectualism about them that fit well with my graduating high school and moving on into college. I also personally feel Bring on the Night is probably my all-time favorite live album by any artist. And his recent stuff has been great as well, from the great winter-themed If on a Winter’s Night to the stage soundtrack for The Last Ship.

Stone Temple Pilots (1992 Core, 1994 Purple, 1996 Tiny Music… Songs From the Vatican Gift Shop, 1999 #4, 2001 Shangri-La Dee Da, 2010 S/T) — Originally lumped in with the grunge bands of the early-to-mid-90s, I connected with these guys from the start. Yes, Core slots in nicely with the grunge of the era (and in fact is one of my favorite albums of the times), but their subsequent releases were much more varied and interesting.

Stone Temple Pilots - Trippin' On A Hole In A Paper Heart (Official Video)

Styx (1972 S/T, 1973 Styx II, 1974 The Serpent Is Rising / Man of Miracles, 1975 Equinox, 1976 Crystal Ball, 1977 The Grand Illusion, 1978 Pieces of Eight, 1979 Cornerstone, 1981 Paradise Theatre, 1983 Kilroy Was Here, 1990 Edge of the Century, 1999 Brave New World, 2003 Cyclorama) — Styx’s Cornerstone was the first album I ever purchased, when I bought the cassette tape from the local drug store. Then I joined a record club or two to pick up a bunch more of their stuff and was hooked. I know these albums (well, everything up through Kilroy) so well that they are just a total part of me. For a while I thought I had outgrown them but came back recently found myself loving them all for totally different reasons. These days I can really see the yin-and-yang of Dennis DeYoung and Tommy Shaw and their influence on the songs. I appreciate that all the band members can sing and harmonize together. And I don’t think there’s another band in my collections whose songs can give me the chills as much as these guys.

Styx - Grand Illusion

System of a Down (1998 S/T, 2001 Toxicity, 2002 Steal This Album!, 2005 Hypnotize, 2005 Mezmerize, 2006 Lonely Day) — Fell in love with this band with “Chop Suey!” and still love their eclectic mix of humor, politics, metal, and sweet harmonies.

System Of A Down - B.Y.O.B.

Partial Collections

Sade (1984 Diamond Life, 1985 Promise, 1988 Stronger Than Pride, 1992 Love Deluxe, 1999 Lovers Rock) — So smooth…

Sade - The Sweetest Taboo

Seal (1991 S/T, 1994 S/T, 1998 Human Being, 2003 S/T, 2007 System) — Seal is definitely more my wife’s pick than mine, though I can’t claim to have any serious objections.

Seal - Kiss From A Rose (Official Music Video) + Lyrics (HQ - High Quality)

Smashing Pumpkins (1993 Siamese Dream, 1995 Mellon Collie and the Infinite Sadness) — Never was a superfan, but “Disarm” totally kills me emotionally, and most of their Mellon Collie era stuff is a good listen.

The Smashing Pumpkins - Disarm

Sneaker Pimps (1996 Becoming X) — These guys released a great moody trip-hop first album, then followed it up by changing singers and direction. Oh well, at least we have one excellent offering anyways.

Sneaker Pimps - 6 Underground - Official Video [HD]

Soundgarden (1991 Badmotorfinger, 1994 Superunknown, 1996 Down on the Upside, 2012 King Animal) — Picked up on these guys as grunge hit its peak in the mid-90s. “Black Hole Sun” was everywhere on the radio, and Chris Cornell’s voice was hugely compelling in its power. Didn’t end up exploring their earliest stuff, but their last few albums are solid rockers.

Soundgarden - Rusty Cage

The Sugarcubes (1988 Life’s Too Good) — Bjork before she went solo. I owned this album when it came out, then ditched it, then reacquired it recently. Now when I listen to it, it totally reminds me of an Icelandic B-52’s, LOL.

The Sugarcubes - Deus

Greatest Hits

Scorpions (2001 The Millennium Collection: The Best of Scorpions) — Growing up in MTV land of course meant that I was well aware of this German rock band that had apparently been around since the early 70’s. But in the MTV era we got their early 80’s work with those awesome riffs and classic songs that I just couldn’t get enough of.

Scorpions - No One Like You Official Music Video HQ by Ximbadores

Billy Squier (2005 Absolute Hits) — Billy Squier was one of those solo rock artists who was all over MTV in the early days. Over the years he accumulated quite an awesome collection of songs, and I was happy to finally see a decent compilation so I could own them.

Billy Squier - My Kinda Lover

Cat Stevens (1975 Greatest Hits) — Never been that into Cat Stevens myself; he’s definitely more my wife’s cup of tea.

Cat Stevens - Morning has broken 1976

The Final Rip: Q-R

Here is where I talk a little about various artists whose music I own. (S/T means self-titled.)

Since MTV was a big part of my early music experience, I tried to find videos of one song for each band just for fun. Apologies in advance for some of the more lurid examples, I mostly picked them based on the song, not on the video content!

Other segments: A B C D E F G H I J K L M N O P Q R S T U V W X Y Z

Complete(ish) Collections

Radiohead (1995 The Bends, 1997 OK Computer, 2000 Kid A, 2001 Amnesiac, 2003 Hail to the Thief, 2007 In Rainbows, 2011 The King of Limbs, 2016 A Moon Shaped Pool) — First got into Radiohead during The Bends years, with their dreamy falsettoy sound, then came to love OK Computer and pretty much all the follow-ons. These days I’m particularly fond of some of their odder bits like “Life In a Glasshouse” and “We Suck Young Blood,” but like much of my music, I’m in it deep for the melancholy moodiness of it all.

Radiohead - Knives Out

Rage Against the Machine (1992 Rage Against the Machine, 1996 Evil Empire, 1999 The Battle of Los Angeles) — Listening to these guys feels like getting yelled at by a drill sergeant with some sick grooves in the background, and it’s undeniably compelling.

Rage Against The Machine - Testify

Ruby (1995 Salt Peter, 1996 Stroking the Full Length, 2001 Short-Staffed at the Gene Pool) — Kind of hard to peg Ruby, sort of trip-hoppy, I guess. Anyway, two albums and out, though it appears she’s started recording again in the past few years.

Rush (1974 Rush, 1975 Caress of Steel, 1975 Fly by Night, 1976 2112, 1976 All the World’s a Stage, 1977 A Farewell to Kings, 1978 Hemispheres, 1980 Permanent Waves, 1981 Exit… Stage Left, 1981 Moving Pictures, 1982 Signals, 1984 Grace Under Pressure, 1985 Power Windows, 1987 Hold Your Fire, 1988 A Show of Hands, 1989 Presto, 1991 Roll the Bones, 1993 Counterparts, 1996 Test for Echo, 1998 Different Stages Live, 2002 Vapor Trails, 2007 Snakes & Arrows, 2012 Clockwork Angels) — Ah, Rush. I actually actively disliked Rush when I was a kid, as all my guitar-playing friends were gaga over their musicianship, and for whatever reason I was feeling ornery. When I went to college and met my wife, I discovered she was into Rush, so I decided to give them another try and was kind of surprised to discover how much I liked them. My personal favorite period is probably the 1980-1984 era when they introduced the synthesizers, but before they started to overwhelm the sound. Honestly, however, I love pretty much all their stuff top to bottom now.

Rush - Subdivisions

Partial Collections

R.E.M (1986 Life’s Rich Pageant, 1987 Document, 1988 Green, 1991 Out of Time, 1992 Automatic for the People, 1994 Monster, 1996 New Adventures in Hi-Fi) — I picked up Document when “The One I Love” became a big hit in the late 80’s and quickly fell in love with the unique sound of R.E.M. Of course, then their popularity skyrocketed, but I still enjoyed most of their releases until my interest started to flag after their 1996 release. Ironically, I think my favorite album is the one they released before Document: Life’s Rich Pageant. Check out young Michael Stipe in the video of my favorite song!

Red Hot Chili Peppers (1989 Mother’s Milk, 1991 Blood Sugar Sex Magik, 1995 One Hot Minute, 1999 Californication, 2002 By the Way, 2006 Stadium Arcadium, 2011 I’m With You) — Picked up BSSM a few years after it came out, but was really sold on these guys when they hit their more soulful period starting with Californication and its two follow-ups. Based on the sample size I have, I’m pretty sure John Frusciante is a critical component to my enjoyment, as the albums without him just don’t do much for me. I should probably just pare back to those 5 and call it good.

Red Hot Chili Peppers - Californication [Official Music Video]

Greatest Hits

Ratt (1990 Flashback With Ratt) — Ratt, Dokken, and Def Leppard are all that remain of my hair metal phase from early high school. For some reason these guys were always my favorites.

Ratt - Lay It Down [HD]

The Final Rip: O-P

Here is where I talk a little about various artists whose music I own. (S/T means self-titled.)

Since MTV was a big part of my early music experience, I tried to find videos of one song for each band just for fun. Apologies in advance for some of the more lurid examples, I mostly picked them based on the song, not on the video content!

Other segments: A B C D E F G H I J K L M N O P Q R S T U V W X Y Z

Complete(ish) Collections

The Offspring (1992 Ignition, 1994 Smash, 1997 Ixnay on the Hombre, 1998 Americana, 2000 Conspiracy of One, 2003 Splinter, 2008 Rise and Fall, Rage and Grace, 2012 Days Go By) — In the mid-90s there were two factions: the Green Day fans, and The Offspring fans. I was the latter, by far (always hated Green Day). There’s nothing particularly complicated about The Offspring, but every few years they put out another album of solid punk/pop music that I enjoy, and hope they keep doing so on into the future.

The Offspring - "Self Esteem"

Orbital (1991 Orbital, 1993 Orbital 2, 1994 Diversions, 1994 Snivilisation, 1996 In Sides, 1999 The Middle of Nowhere, 2001 The Altogether, 2004 Blue Album) — Another mid-90s discovery for me, along with The Chemical Brothers. These two were my “gateway drugs” into the wider world of techno, and I am happy that I got the chance to see both of them perform in San Francisco in late 1996.

ORBITAL - The Box (1996) [HD] Remastered

The Paper Raincoat (2009 Safe In The Sound) — Picked up this EP after hearing them play at Bumbershoot. As far as I can tell, that’s all they ever released.

the paper raincoat - Sympathetic Vibrations

Perturbator (2012 I Am the Night, 2012 TERROR 404, 2014 Dangerous Days, 2016 The Uncanny Valley) — Randomly came across this darkwave band just a couple of years ago and immediately picked up all the albums because I love the sound.

Perturbator - "Sentient" [Music Video - UNCENSORED - "The Uncanny Valley"]

Pet Shop Boys (1986 Disco, 1986 Please, 1987 Actually, 1988 Introspective, 1990 Behaviour, 1991 Discography: The Complete Singles Collection, 1991 How Can You Expect to Be Taken Seriously?, 1993 Very, 1994 Disco 2, 1995 Alternative, 1995 Paninaro ’95, 1996 Before, 1996 Bilingual, 1996 Se a vida e, 1997 Somewhere, 1999 Nightlife, 2002 Release, 2003 Disco 3, 2005 Battleship Potemkin, 2006 Fundamental, 2009 Yes, 2012 Elysium, 2012 Format: B-sides and Bonus Tracks (1996-2009), 2013 Electric, 2016 Super) — Clearly I love the Pet Shop Boys. They were actually the first synth-based crack in my hair metal phase during high school, when I discovered songs like “Opportunities” and “It’s a Sin.” Lots of people seem to think they were one hit wonders but they just keep on putting out great album after great album, mixing uptempo dance music with more contemplative works. My favorite album is probably 1993’s Very, with the 1-2 punch of “Dreaming of the Queen” and “The Theater” creating just an amazing mood.

The Theatre - Pet Shop Boys

Poe (1995 Hello, 2000 Haunted) — Probably most well known for “Angry Johnny,” Poe landed quite a following with her debut album, and the follow-up was also very good, but since then… nothing.

Poe - Trigger Happy Jack (official video)

Pop Will Eat Itself (1987 Box Frenzy, 1989 This Is the Day… This Is the Hour… This Is This!, 1990 Cure for Sanity, 1992 The Looks or the Lifestyle, 1994 Dos Dedos Mis Amigos, 1995 Two Fingers My Friends!, 2011 New Noise Designed by a Sadist) — When I discovered these guys in college I was over the moon. The ultimate mash up of techno/industrial with copious samples and pop culture references all done in an edgy British rap style. As the 90s progressed they had to reduce the samples but still put together a great string of albums.

Pop Will Eat Itself - Wise Up Sucker

Portishead (1994 Dummy, 1997 Portishead, 1998 Roseland NYC Live, 2008 Third) — Coming up on 10 years since the last — can’t we have a new Portishead album, please? Pretty please?

Portishead - Only You

The Postal Service (2003 Give Up) — This is an utterly charming mix of Ben Gibbard‘s vocals backed electronically. People keep saying they should do another one, but I think they’re smart to keep this one-off project as a standalone.

The Postal Service - Such Great Heights [OFFICIAL VIDEO]

The Prodigy (1992 Experience/Expanded: Remixes & B-Sides, 1994 Music for the Jilted Generation, 1997 The Fat of the Land, 1999 The Dirtchamber Sessions Volume One, 2004 Always Outnumbered, Never Outgunned, 2009 Invaders Must Die, 2015 The Day Is My Enemy) — Man I love this band. Picked them up starting in the mid-90s with “Firestarter,” of course, but I love pretty much everything they’ve put out. Always intense and in your face, this is great music to listen to when you need to get yourself moving.

The Prodigy - 'Breathe'

Propellerheads (1998 Decksandrumsandrockandroll) — Another techno band famous for a track from The Matrix soundtrack, I really wish they had released some more stuff as this is one of my favorite albums.

Propellerheads feat: Miss Shirley Bassey - History Repeating

Purr Gato (2013 Heart Beat, 2016 Our Electric Universe) — Very recent discovery, a nice little bit of local darkwave techno.

Purr Gato - Heart Beat (Official Video)

Partial Collections

Joan Osborne (1995 Relish, 2000 Righteous Love, 2002 How Sweet It Is, 2008 Little Wild One) — Always loved her voice and style, ever since “One of Us” hit it big in (again) the mid-90s. The only reason the collection is incomplete is due to lack of time.

Joan Osborne - St. Teresa

Papa Roach (2000 Infest, 2006 The Paramour Sessions) — Just dabbling at this point.

Papa Roach - Last Resort (Censored Version)

The Perfect Gentlemen (2003 4 Beers & A Tag) — Saw this group perform a really funny classic barbershop set when we went to see The Baudboys and was happy to pick up this fun collection.

The Perfect Gentlemen Quartet - Los Angeles LA Orange County OC Entertainer

PIG (1991 Praise the Lard, 1995 Sinsation, 1996 Wrecked, 1999 Genuine American Monster, 1999 The Swining: Red Raw & Sore) — Raymond Watts is a fascinating singer/songwriter. After doing some early work as part of KMFDM, he left and went off on his own pretty wild tangent. With a deep, menacing growl of a voice, haunting music, and visceral lyrics, he’s pretty much unlike any other band I’ve experienced. Unfortunately, his stuff is pretty hard to get ahold of unless you’re in Japan, where he seems to have secured a following of sorts.

Powerman 5000 (1999 Tonight the Stars Revolt!) — I never got into Rob Zombie, but his little brother headed up this band which was worth a look, at least for one album.

Powerman 5000 - When Worlds Collide

Pretty Girls Make Graves (2003 The New Romance) — Part of the Seattle local indie scene when we first moved here. Listening back on it, has that very early aughts Seattle sound.

This Is Our Emergency

Puscifer (2007 ‘V’ Is for Vagina, 2015 Money Shot) — Tool‘s Maynard James Keenan with a bit of a different feel, more synths but the same angstiness and funky time signatures.

PUSCIFER "THE REMEDY" official video

Greatest Hits

Pantera (2003 The Best of Pantera: Far Beyond the Great Southern Cowboys’ Vulgar Hits!) — Picked up a copy of Vulgar Display of Power back in the day and was blown away by the crazy aggressiveness of it. Used to own everything from that album onward but eventually scaled back to this collection.

Pantera - This Love (Video)

The Police (1995 Every Breath You Take: The Classics) — As a kid I owned Synchronicity and Ghost in the Machine, but never picked up any of their earlier stuff. Apart from the wholly unnecessary “Don’t Stand So Close To Me ’86” and the missing “Synchronicity II“, I guess I decided that this collection covered most of my favorites.

The Police - Don't Stand So Close To Me

Prince (1984 Purple Rain, 2016 4Ever) — I will admit to ignoring Prince for many years between the mid-80s and his untimely death. Revisiting his catalogue now reveals a bunch of good stuff I missed, though “Batdance” is a terrible song and doesn’t belong anywhere near the words “Greatest Hits.”

Prince - When Doves Cry (Official Music Video)