J SELLAR

I absolutely loved Parachutes by Coldplay. It was different to any other mainstream album going around at the time, and I really enjoyed the laid back, relaxed feel of a band making way in a music industry filled with the remnants of nu-metal (don’t get me wrong, I LOVED nu-metal haha) and crap pop. A Rush of Blood to the Head was a great followup. I can be a bit of an elitist sometimes in my music tastes, but A Rush of Blood is still a great album. Back in the day where Coldplay wrote music that actually meant something.

I fell in love with Something for Kate in May 2000. A latecomer to the works of Paul Dempsey and his band, I was fortunate to have been introduced to their work at the dawn of their 3rd album, Echolalia. The first gig I ever attended was at the Adelaide Unibar with Something For Kate and Big Heavy stuff. Two bands that for the entirety of my adolescence and adulthood have remained close to my heart. Paul’s solo work is equally as special to me as his work in SFK. The intricacies of his guitar playing, perfectly structured arrangements, the absence of ‘love’ in the themes of his songs (more of a sci-fi theme, or general introversion to his lyrics), and his general presence continue to wow me everytime I hear or see him live. 

It was the early 2004 and I had just formed a new band with a new mate. I’d never really got into the Emo scene, but in gauging what my band-mate wanted to do, he introduced me to Taking Back Sunday. A band who quickly influenced my writing and playing style. The first song we ever jammed to was Cute without the E, strangely, a typical TBS 2 lead vocal song. For many reasons, I never really ended up singing with my band, hence why this blog now exists; to track my development as a singer, then, hopefully a singer songwriter again. Just need to get my lyrical juices flowing - new territory for me.