What I listened to in 2010: Artists

Much like in 2009, I’ve kept using last.fm to keep track of what I listen to. My music listening in 2010 has not been what it used to be though, because of various reasons (primarily non-working CD drive at home followed by a lack of address to order CDs to) I haven’t been listening to even remotely as much new music as I usually do. A lot of what I did get around to listen to wasn’t scrobbled, but looking at my last.fm charts they do seem to present a reasonably fair image of what music I enjoyed the most during 2010. Numbers here.

Anna’s Most Listened to Korean Artists 2010

1. Apollo 18 (3)
One of my very favorite bands already in 2009, that position was further reinforced during 2010. The re-recorded version of the Red EP that came out early January is my most favorite release ever and as if that wasn’t enough they also offered a brand new EP a couple of weeks later, so naturally their numbers would have to be a bit inflated. On top of that Apollo 18 is the best live band I’ve ever seen (the May 1st show with The Plastic Day was far beyond awesome) and they’ve provided material for plenty of other memories I’m more than happy to revisit. I wish them all the best in their endeavors to take on the world in 2011.

2. National Pigeon Unity
Early spring 2010 I went more than a month without access to my music collection. At the very beginning of this period I was sent the first NPU album and it was so good I barely missed listening to anything else. My opinions on the album in question were already expressed here, so suffice it to say that as of 2010 National Pigeon Unity became a new favorite band for me.

3. Firestorm
Hardcore act Firestorm disbanded very recently. Though the reason was that the leader opted to play bass for Ninesin instead, when I heard the news I couldn’t help but feeling a bit guilty over stealing their vocalist a couple of months ago. While it’s a safe assumption that what started as a crush on the vocalist in question is the main reason why I listened to them so much in 2010, I’d like to point out that Firestorm did have some really good riffs too.

4. Sunkyeol
In 2010 Sunkyeol finally got around to releasing some old demos. I did some extensive listening to I’ll Write When I’m There already last year and had eagerly awaited a chance to hear more without having to bother with MySpace. The only disappointment there I’d say was that there weren’t enough tracks, so I still have to go on MySpace every now and then.

5. Tearliner (1)
The Tearliner listening statistics were probably those that suffered the most from the forced change of my listening habits, being the artist I usually put on when I can’t figure out what else to listen to. I still like his music as much though. And in 2010 I finally got to see him live for the first time, a performance during which he played a song I really, really hope to hear recorded on CD before long.

6. Noeazy
Noeazy impressed me a great deal when I first saw them live back in 2009 and I was very excited to hear their first full length album. Although the songs were a bit uneven – sometimes making me wonder what it was that made me put one on repeat before just a short while later being struck by some fantastic passage – they offered an intriguing variety in and between songs to make it an album to come back to over and over again.

7. Donawhale (9)
To me Donawhale has come to mean comfort music. When listening to Apollo 18 does nothing but make me wish I was in Korea, I turn to Donawhale. When something I don’t want to do requires my attention, I turn to Donwhale. When I want to calm down just a little bit, I turn to Donawhale.

8. Julia Hart
I’ve enjoyed listening to Julia Hart since my very first year of my Korean indie music listening, but I rarely (last year’s 한국 소녀의 겨울
/돌아와 single being the exception) did it with much intensity. Then suddenly I learned from a friend that a few Julia Hart albums are available on Spotify. During 2010 I went from not using Spotify at all to listening every day from work, and that meant feeding my ears with a healthy dosage of Julia Hart just about ever week.

9. Mot
To be honest I have no idea what put Mot on this list. I’ve considered myself a fan since 2004 and am still very, very fond of non-linear in particular, but can’t recall anything specific that would explain why I would’ve listened more to them than something else further down the list. Still, I love their sound. A third album should happen eventually, and till then I’d definitely recommend anyone that wasn’t already aware of Mot to check them out.

10. Every Single Day
I’ve liked Every Single Day a great deal for many years – I’d recommend their second album in particular – but as I finally caught a glimpse of them live during February’s Club Day I was quite surprised by their adult/contemporary rock sound. Since then listening to Every Single Day hasn’t quite been the same, although I do still get somewhat excited over my old favorite tracks. The reason why they’re on this list then, is Spotify. In addition to attempting to gather all k-indie on Spotify in a playlist, I’ve also tried to do some more (yet to be shared) themed playlists of my personal selection and it took me quite a while to settle on if & where those Every Single Day songs fit.

A list on the 10 Korean songs last.fm claim I listened to more than any other during 2010 will be posted within the next few days.

4 Comments What I listened to in 2010: Artists

  1. Anonymous

    Hello, great work in your blog !
    I listen a rock band (T-OK) but impossible of find informations or web site from thems …

    Please help me !
    Band : T-Ok
    Music (MV) : Why

    Reply

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