“Where do I begin?” As I near my 32nd birthday this year, I feel lucky to have had such a musical family background throughout my life and such a diverse array of musicians and artists that I have been able to meet, discover, and some I even had the opportunity to work with. Music has contributed to so many important aspects of my life that it not only influences the music that I play or even enjoy, but how I even feel for a certain moment in time.  

Growing up, there were always records, cassettes and eventually CDs around the house and a LOUD stereo to enjoy them on. I definitely had my share of air guitar “concert” performances and “rocking out” with my brothers and friends. Still do actually. From my earliest memories, music was always on, talked about, played, and eventually it helped develop the person that I am today. 

That being said, I had to really think about what music and albums influenced me the most. I know that I can say that so many of the KISS album covers influenced the way I looked at album art. Also, there was something special about the way music sounded in different formats as well. From one cassette I listened to over and over, diluting the quality of the tape time after time, to the popping of scratches on vinyl, music will always continue to influence who I am as a musician and also a person.  

Being the huge vinyl collecting nerd that I am, having the opportunity to work in record stores, as well as playing in very active bands for nearly 20 years, I have acquired quite a large amount of music over the years. Coming up with only 10 albums is quite difficult, but I had to think of what bands really played a huge influence in my life or why I have played certain records to death. These are 10 albums that define myself as a musician and have influenced me to be the artist I am. (Not sure if these are really in a specific order.)

1. Shout At The Devil by Motley Crue (1983)

"The notion that this was “devil music” or Satanic didn’t matter to me, and luckily, my parents were cool enough to not care about that either, but I know it looked cool and seemed “bad”! This was HEAVY METAL, and still is."

I swear I have this memory of being in my parent’s black van with my two older brothers (both are nine and 10 years older than me) and my brother had purchased this tape at K-Mart. I had to be like 5 years old or something. Anyway, this is a perfect example of minimalism cover art that is completely effective (although the cassette version had pictures of the band members).  

This is one of those cassettes that when you opened it, it had that cassette smell! (Some of you will know what I’m talking about.) The notion that this was “devil music” or Satanic didn’t matter to me, and luckily, my parents were cool enough to not care about that either, but I know it looked cool and seemed “bad”! This was HEAVY METAL, and still is.  

From the opening introduction of "In The Beginning" and how it transitions to the guitar riff and drum beat of "Shout At The Devil" is classic. This music seemed heavy, dark, and while they dressed glam and wore makeup, it was TOUGH! Every song was meant for headbanging and fist pumping! I was OBSESSED with these guys throughout my childhood and managed to see them as my first concert in 1990. This album is still heavy 30 years later!

2.  Siamese Dream by Smashing Pumpkins (1993)

"It didn’t have the “anybody can do it” appeal, and there was much more structure to the writing and how the instruments were played. They kept the guitar solos that grunge was taking away and the attitude of the band didn’t seem so “heroin chic” during this era."

During a time when Nirvana was still making their presence legendary, and grunge was the “alternative” to pop music while still being Top 40, Smashing Pumpkins took that “loud, quiet, loud” songwriting approach to a new level.  

This album is SO heavy without being metal. The guitar tones are deep and fuzzed out while still holding a warm quality to them. What I think really got me was that the songwriting was technically something more than Nirvana was doing. It didn’t have the “anybody can do it” appeal, and there was much more structure to the writing and how the instruments were played. They kept the guitar solos that grunge was taking away and the attitude of the band didn’t seem so “heroin chic” during this era.

At the time, I was playing guitar in my first band, and the sounds of this album really changed the way I thought about how I wanted to sound and even play the guitar. It became more about being heavier and noisier rather than being generic and simple. The drums were so much different than all of the alternative bands at that time as well. As much as they were about hitting the drums hard, it had style and was more than just a rock beat.  

Another thing I liked was how the lyrics were abstract and for some reason didn’t seem so dark and hopeless. In 1994, I managed to meet Billy Corgan while walking around Lollapalooza. I was so star struck that the only thing I could say was, “Do you have a marker?” He seemed like a giant! To this day, I still give this album a few spins a year.

3.  La Revancha by Spazz (1997)

"This record is punk, hardcore, death metal, speed metal and thrash all put into one piece of plastic with hilarious soundbyte movie samples and weird hip-hop beats in between this 26-track platter just under 23 minutes."

I had already been somewhat of a fan of this O.G. power violence band out of the Bay Area, but I can still remember the day I bought this album. Being 16 years old in small town Nebraska, I felt that I was the only kid around that knew what this was.

I was already collecting vinyl by this point, mostly because of the fact that records like this were only coming out on vinyl, on clear red vinyl to be exact! This record is punk, hardcore, death metal, speed metal and thrash all put into one piece of plastic with hilarious soundbyte movie samples and weird hip-hop beats in between this 26-track platter just under 23 minutes.  

The start/stop flow of these songs is relentless! There are so many different elements of “underground” music to this that it still intrigues me to this day. I used to play this record over and over and obsess over the hilarious lyrics and how fast the drummer was. I’m sure my parents have heard this album a million times as well.  

This band is THE reason I play drums. (I’ve made sure to tell each member of this band that!) Everything about this band seemed so over-the-top PUNK but without looking like crusty gutter punks. Instead, they were more about skateboarding and kung fu movies and being goofballs.

That’s the fun element of this kind of band, not to take it so seriously but yet remain brutal and heavy musically. This band makes me want to MOSH!

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4.  Armatron / As Good As Dead – split 7” (1995)

"Bands like this made it important to me to play the music that I do in Lincoln and to keep heavy, underground music alive in this town. Armatron was creative, innovative, and eye-opening to music like this all over the world."

Now this record is a Lincoln or even a Nebraska staple for heavy music. Both bands shared two of the same members, but played different styles of “hardcore” in the early/mid '90s. As Good As Dead was a four-piece that played a very screamy style of dark heavy hardcore while Armatron was a two-piece bass and drum duo (eventually adding a third “noise” member to the group) that played a more power violence style hardcore metal. 

While I do love both sides of this record, I have to say that I’m more influenced by Armatron because they were still playing shows when I first started seeing punk bands in Lincoln. Armatron played these extremely heavy yet short bursts of brutality with some of the sickest screams around, not without mentioning a dancing robot that performed with the band in live settings.  

Everything about this record blew me away. From the simple cover art to the scratchy handwritten lyrics, pentagrams and contrasted-out photos of the band, I was intrigued to find out more and get to know these people. This was one of those records that seemed hard to believe that music like this was coming out of Nebraska. It seemed more extreme than punk, too weird for metal, yet heavier than any band I had heard before.  

Over time, Armatron became a four-piece band (two bass, drums and noise) that played more of this weird electronic style of grindcore, cyber grind as some people call it on the Internet. This band seemed to always bend the rules of heavy music and remained hard to define as a certain genre-specific band.  

The influence these guys had on me goes further than just a favorite record. Bands like this made it important to me to play the music that I do in Lincoln and to keep heavy, underground music alive in this town. Armatron was creative, innovative and eye-opening to music like this all over the world.

5. Immense Ovary Reject by Men’s Recovery Project (1996)

"This band was like if Pee Wee Herman beat up the Sex Pistols with Kraftwerk’s synthesizers in order to make music with broken machines and wear high-heeled shoes on their faces."

From the very first time I listened to this band, I knew I was hooked and a fan for life! This was a record and/or sound unlike anything I had ever heard before.  

Being a fan of political punk pioneers Born Against, I was recommended to check out this band by a friend because it was one of those “you HAVE to check this out!” kind of bands. They played this weird electronic based “punk” that had costumes, artwork and ideals that were as strange as their lyrics. (Example: “My body is a jerk / I wish I had a beak / If I had a beak, I would gnaw on my hand.”)  

While all of this seemed like some off-putting joke on reality (which it was), this was exactly what I was looking for as a teenager uninterested with the regular “normal” world anymore. This was a post-modern approach on avant-garde music and performance art. It touched on electronic music, punk, hardcore, spoken word, literature and most importantly, ART!  

This band was like if Pee Wee Herman beat up the Sex Pistols with Kraftwerk’s synthesizers in order to make music with broken machines and wear high-heeled shoes on their faces. This group changed the way I thought about music and what music really was.  Men’s Recovery Project was a band of no authority, no rules except their own, and a passion for being more than mediocre.  Their art was confusing, offensive, weird, funny, and intelligent all in one.  GET YOUR DICK OUT OF MY FOOD!

6. (GI) by Germs (1979)

"This band pushed the boundaries of punk music, puked on it and threw it in your face. What I love about this record is you would never guess that these guys didn’t know how to play instruments when they first started."

Hardcore before there was something called “hardcore.” This band pushed the boundaries of punk music, puked on it and threw it in your face. What I love about this record is you would never guess that these guys didn’t know how to play instruments when they first started.  

When I was in middle school, I managed to see a dubbed copy of Decline of Western Civilization and although I liked X and Black Flag, the Germs stood out like a sore thumb. They had such attitude and aggression, but didn’t have this “tough guy” kind of look or aesthetic to them. (GI) captures a raw element of the band but the production quality is what stands out to me.  

There’s something to the way the drums sound on this record. It’s that '70s style of studio recording but capturing much more of an aggressive sound, yet remaining clean. This is the kind of record that every time I listen to it, I still get all worked up and it gets my blood pumping faster.  

The total punk attitude to it is a huge influence to me and keeps me on my toes to never be boring musically or during a performance. These guys brought an element of danger to them that I love about punk music or underground music in general. It’s not supposed to be safe or enjoyed by everyone.

7. Actually by Pet Shop Boys (1987)

"This was one of those albums that opened so many new spectrums of music in my life, to really understand how to listen to music."

I know what you’re thinking. This is album is not metal or punk. Yet, the Pet Shop Boys had punk attitude in a pop music form.  

As I got older in life and got more into record collecting, my musical tastes changed a lot and I started to accept pop music and other styles beyond everything punk or metal. I’ve always been interested in new wave and electronic music because it still had punk elements to it, and I’m also a sucker for a good dance song.

I had always known about the Pet Shop Boys growing up, I mean, "West End Girls" was a HUGE hit. This album was just one of those things that after really listening to it, I totally understood it. The songwriting was catchy, lots of hooks, lyrics were dark, and this album had a concept to it. This wasn’t your typical '80s dance/party album. It had real feeling and emotion put into it and went beyond the characteristics of dance music.

This was one of those albums that opened so many new spectrums of music in my life, to really understand how to listen to music.

8.  The Language of A Dying Breed by Power Of The Spoken Word (1984)

"This is Lincoln’s earliest document of EXTREME underground music."

When I was about 15, I had come across a little booklet magazine called Capitol Punishment. It was a complete introduction to me of Nebraska’s punk scene, specifically Lincoln during the late '70s and early '80s.

There were pictures of this band called, Power of The Spoken Word. The singer wore spikes, leather and chains, makeup, had long hair, and even wore a studded codpiece. I knew right away I had to find out more about this band and saw they had an “ad” for their full-length album. So I knew this record existed somehow.  

I was so naïve that I asked my brother to find this album for me for Christmas. Luckily for me, my brother ended up getting a dubbed tape copy of that album off Garth Johnson (the original owner of Zero Street Records in Lincoln). I was blown away, but confused at first. This didn’t sound like what I was expecting. I thought it was going to be this super hardcore punk album, but really it was this weird metal album that had really fast punk parts and elements to it.  

From then on, this album hit me hard and I had to find an actual copy. Years later, and a couple Zero Street owners later, I had managed to get an unopened copy of this record. This is Lincoln’s earliest document of EXTREME underground music. The artwork is evil and twisted, the lyrics and very dark, and the music is so much different than any other punk or metal album of the time. This is what hardcore was in 1984? … from Lincoln, Nebraska of all places?

This band influences me even to this day. Unfortunately, I never got to see this band, but their legacy lives on in my heart. Totally brutal and fast punk!

9.  Paul’s Boutique by Beastie Boys (1989)

"I’m pretty sure that I have bought more copies of this album than any other records I listen to. Tapes wear out after awhile."

I have probably listened to this album, in its entirety, thousands of times. To me, this album is totally innovative and flows naturally. Each song sounds totally different from one another and basically lacks this commercialized style of songwriting that most mainstream rap or hip-hop utilizes.  

It feels like these songs weren’t really meant to be chart-topping “hits” (with exception to maybe "Hey Ladies"), which makes me respect this album even more. This is the kind of album that has an underground flare in the mainstream music world. Albums like this are important to me and definitely influence the way that I write music and keep a creative flow going.  

Plus, this album’s production just sounds cool, the samples are great and it never really seems outdated. I’m pretty sure that I have bought more copies of this album than any other records I listen to. Tapes wear out after awhile. 

10. D.o.A: The Third and Final Report of Throbbing Gristle by Throbbing Gristle (1978)

Thinking of why an album would be influential to me or in my top 10 list, I had to think about what elements make these albums important. Now with that in mind, Throbbing Gristle creates unsettling and terrifying music, period.  

It’s hard for me to actually pick one Throbbing Gristle album that I enjoy the most because each album has unique qualities to them.  I picked this album because it seems to be the most varied in their style of Industrial music. While this album has a heavy noise and experimental feel to it, songs like "AB/74" have this carefree dance aesthetic to it. "Hamburger Lady" still remains as one of the creepiest songs ever written.  

Throbbing Gristle have this very tongue-in-cheek intellect to them with an absolute “fuck off” attitude. All of their ideals and concepts play huge roles in the music I play and perform today, keeping it artistic and fresh, and always going against the rules of what being a musician means. Throbbing Gristle also exemplify forward-thinking as an art form.  

Everything about their albums is important to the group… the art, the packaging, the concept, the product, the propaganda, the sounds, the politics, the terrorism, etc. I was lucky enough to see and even meet Throbbing Gristle at their Chicago show in 2009. It was a mind-blowing experience!

HONORABLE MENTIONS:

Scum by Napalm Death
Man Machine by Kraftwerk
First Album by Tubeway Army
Among The Living by Anthrax
Fools Gold by Ssion
U.S.A. For M.O.D. by M.O.D.
Homework by Daft Punk
30 Song 7” by Agoraphobic Nosebleed
Dirty Mind by Prince
Unknown Pleasures by Joy Division