JUMPING DARKNESS PARADE: EYAL ON GETTING BURNT OUT ON MUSIC YOU LOVE
I’m in my bunk. Everyone else is asleep. We’re riding through some windy dark mountain roads somewhere in Germany on the way to the next show. I’ve got “Ghost of Perdition” by Opeth blasting on my headphones. Figured that I would give that a spin. I haven’t really listened to them very much lately. I kinda burned out on them for a while. I never stopped loving their music, but I think I just had more than my brain could handle. When I got into after the release of Blackwater Park, all the way through the release of Ghost Reveries, I’d say that Opeth were on my iTunes at least once a day. They are a band that I’ve listened to, and listened to again, and again, and again. There’s always something new to find in their music. Not only did I listen my ass off but I went to their shows whenever possible. I saw them at least six times before I even met them. I ended up dating a member of their crew for a little while, so that meant more and more Opeth shows. Basically, I know my Opeth, and from the musicianship to the composition I think that they are one of the greatest bands of all time.
That said, I haven’t decided to listen to them in about a year before tonight. I just couldn’t bring myself to do it. Albums that I just absolutely love, I would consider and just be like, naaah. Maybe it’s the mental equivalent of a water-soluble vitamin like C. Once you have your dosage, the rest just gets released with your urine. Maybe your brain can only handle so much of one type of stimulus for so long before it shuts off to it. I mean that’s happened to me with other bands.
It happened to me with Muse. Same deal. I listened and studied my ass off with that band for a few years, and for awhile now I haven’t been able to put one of their records on (besides the new one). Thing is, I ALWAYS will go back to bands like Muse and Opeth. Or The Beatles, or Pink Floyd, or Radiohead, or any band that is/was great that I just had an O.D. on.
Man, this Ghost Reveries record is so fucking great. It’s really been so long since I listened and I really remember why I love it.
Anyways, do you guys do this, too? I betcha that you do. What bands do you find yourself going back to? What bands did you wear out permanently? Do you find a difference? I usually think there’s a difference. It’s in how deep the music really is. Some bands just put out ear candy. Some of the big bands of today are nothing more than guttural ear candy. Sure, I like listening to them, and sometimes I listen to their better songs on constant repeat when I’m working out or something like that, but I eventually get tired of them. And I usually DON’T go back. There’s always a newer and better candy out there.
But timeless records are, y’know, timeless. You may need a moment or two away from them, but when you come back to them, they’re still there for you. You can still drown your sorrows and get lost with them, learn from them, love them.
I want to know what bands you guys have ditched along the way. Please don’t be afraid to admit which bands you’ve enjoyed in the past but won’t go back to. I also wanna know whom you always find yourselves going back to. Do you guys go through what I just described with the music you listen to?
-EL
Daath’s MySpace page is pretty timeless.
