Favorite Bands

• The Beatles
  Always number one. They're so far up there that everyone should just leave them off lists. Like "Here are my favorite bands - oh, besides the Beatles, of course."
  
  
• They Might Be Giants
  The first group I really enjoyed as a fan, as early as middle school. Thought I would grow out of it, but the songs get even more intelligent the longer I listen to them. Some of their stuff is hit or miss, but they keep trying. A lot.
  
  
• R.E.M.
  Another band I liked early (with Green), and I'm very happy they turned out to be really good and not just a pop phase I went through. I'm in the minority, but I continue to like their current work immensely. Again and again, their songs I missed years ago turn out to be great on a relisten.
  
  
• Radiohead
  Unlike R.E.M., I think their work has deteriorated, but is still good. The Bends is a wonderful album, and OK Computer is a tour de force about our technological age.
  
  
• Ben Folds
  Their Sessions at West 54th is my favorite music DVD. Incredible to watch Folds on the piano, and amazing live.
  
  
• Wilco
  Screaming up the charts, I only got into Wilco in the past year. They are amazing, and I've tracked down all their albums, even their Woody Guthrie songs with Billy Bragg. Yankee Hotel Foxtrot is a great album, and everybody's favorite. I love it too ... but in my opinion, A Ghost is Born is even better. Not only are there great tracks, but the entire album works as a whole and it's groundbreaking and innovative. It demands many listens, and now serves me almost as some sort of meditative mandala.
  
  
• Cake
  Not really groundbreaking in any way, just an overlooked band that's a lot of fun and slips in some good poetry in their caustic, catchy beats.
  
  
• Dave Matthews Band
  Consistently good, though I'm only a casual fan - not enough to buy into their prolific live album racket.
  
  
• Bob Dylan
  One of the most important contributors to music history, and his recent work is amazing too. Also, recently read his Chronicles.
  
  
• Paul Simon
• Flaming Lips
• Guster
• The Dandy Warhols
• The Who
• Nirvana
• Tom Petty
• U2
• Soul Coughing
• Pearl Jam
• Modest Mouse
• Phish
• Ben Harper
• Beck
• Barenaked Ladies
• Moby

View some mixes featuring these bands and download samples!