I’m usually annoyed by these stupid chain surveys that make their rounds in the bulletins.
Name five albums that changed your life. Not necessarily your favorites (although they could be), we’re talking about albums that had a significant impact on your life.
Captain Beefheart & the Magic Band – Trout Mask Replica
Uncle left it at the house, first heard it at three years old, thought it was children’s music. Lurked in my subconscience until I was a teenager when I learned it was “avant-garde,” and that it could be fun and whimsical.
Electric Light Orchestra – Out of the Blue
As an nine year-old, they were the first band I became a huge fanatic of and scrounged for money to buy all their records like a crack addict. It was also the album that initiated the first common bond with my oldest friend.
Talking Heads – Fear Of Music
The paranoia and dread frightened me when I was ten, but later made a lot of sense in the tail end of the cold war. Planted seed for my taste in similar music.
Violent Femmes
Learned that some 20-somethings either never outgrew their 14 year-old pubescent sexual frustration and angst, or that perhaps they made it for us. And also that Jonathan Richman & the Modern Lovers felt the same things a decade before.
U2 – War
Coincided with my political awakening, learned that angry arena rock might not change anything, but can provide an encouraging soundtrack. Dug into their early post-punk roots and discovered even better music.
April 2, 2026
Fester’s Lucky 13: 1986
February 27, 2026
Fester’s Lucky 13: 1976
January 30, 2026
Fester’s Lucky 13: 1966
