Who hit you between the eyes on first hearing?

[twistedAM]

Archers of Loaf
Dinosaur Jr
Superchunk
Slobberbone
Clor

 

[Hocus Eye.]

Emma Kirkby

 

[D'wards]

Pavement - Wanderinmg Star

White Stripes - Hotel Yorba

Moldy Peaches - On Top

Beta Band - Inner Meet Me

On hearing all these songs as an introduction to the band within 30 seconds i decided to buy the albums at earliest opportunity

 

[heinous seamus]

Mogwai.

First heard New Paths to Helicon on a random cd (select magazine giveaway I think.)
Completely floored me.

 

[gininteacups]

Bowie.

 

[Annierak]

The Smiths
The Cramps
David Bowie
Ramones
The Specials
Joy Division

 

[gininteacups]

Joy Division

A lot of people have mentioned Joy Division, but it honestly took me like year before I liked songs other than Love Will Tear Us Apart and Transmission. One day it just clicked they were fucking amazing, but I had substance for ages and just could not get into them. I think maybe my music taste just matured.

 

[upsidedownwalrus]

Nirvana

 

[Annierak]

A lot of people have mentioned Joy Division, but it honestly took me like year before I liked songs other than Love Will Tear Us Apart and Transmission. One day it just clicked they were fucking amazing, but I had substance for ages and just could not get into them. I think maybe my music taste just matured.

I just remember hearing 'Transmission' for the first time and was blown away by it and had to hear more so i bought everything they did and that blew me away too. Such a shame i never got to see them live

 

[boskysquelch]

Sweetest Girl - Scritti Politti THE NME Tape

 

[Wolveryeti]

Joni Mitchell - One of the most perfect and pure voices I've ever heard.

Wu Tang - Enter the 36 chambers... I was extremely obsessed with this.

 

[stavros]

Wu Tang - Enter the 36 chambers... I was extremely obsessed with this.

I still am I guess, although I was too young for it when first released. I'm doubtful it will ever be unsurped as my favourite album ever.

 

[Maurice Picarda]

John Otway. With a microphone that he'd served using his guitar as a tennis racquet. He was making some political point about tennis; Attila the Stockbroker probably put him up to it. It was in the now-demolished Ship Inn.

 

[ouchmonkey]

Birthday by The Sugarcubes.... I thought it the strangest, most exotic and other-worldly thing i'd ever seen and heard.

definitely. It seemed to come from somewhere completely different to everything else, it was so odd and so beautiful. People would compare it to Cocteau Twins, which looking back seems insanely wide of the mark but no-one really knew how to describe it.
from around the same time - Pixies. I'd heard 'I'm Amazed' on Peel, which I liked although it turned out to be hardly representative, and went to see them. They were unbelievably great.
more recent one 'So Much Wine' - The Handsome Family. genius

 

[Casidhe]

I love traditional Indian ragas but other music that just altered my neurological pathways forever are :
Sex Pistols
Prodigy
Cocteau Twins
CornerShop
Sundays
Echo and the BunnyMen
Toots and The Maytels
Pixies
Madness
Pulp
PIL
Human League
Dead Can Dance
Joy Division
Middle Eastern Music utterly transformed my life (And my hips) and inspired me to belly dance :Turkish,Egyptian
( AND a deep dark confession : Deep Forest )

 

[felixthecat]

1. The Damned - heard New Rose and wondered what had hit me! It was the antithesis of almost everything I'd ever listened to and I loved it. That started my ongoing love of all things punk

2. Prince Buster - Like nothing I had ever heard before - how can someone do that with their voice? Again, instant and long lasting passion for ska, rocksteady, dub and reggae.

3. Mark Lanegan - saw the Screaming Trees, who weren't the greatest band around I will admit, and I was completely mesmerized by this tall lanky bloke with long red hair and a voice that was like melted chocolate mixed with gravel - start of passionate but unfortunately one sided love affair still going on 16 yrs later