Top 10 songs to inspire, get over your past to and move foward to

Do we all need songs like this? I don't know... I'd guess? I will admit that I think I do. People experience bad stuff in their lives and need help getting over those things and moving on. Therapy through music is a great way to help with this, hence this list :)

1. Monty Python - Always Look On The Bright Side Of Life

Taken from their hilarious film Life of Brian xD

It's a really simple and catchy song but, maybe the simplest delivery of positive pop psychology out there. Hum along to this and you're sure to instantly brighten up your day or night. Unless of course you're actually being brutally executed or something like in the film xD ahh that dark comedy.

2. 2pac - Me Against The World

At number 2 we have 2pac. Why not right? In the final verse, this song contains the awesome lyrics, "Always do your best, don't let the pressure make you panic and when you get stranded, and things don't go the way you planned." Nice huh? I'll always remember these. As long as you did your best and all that, don't you remember people saying that all the way back to your youth? The best is all we can do, and it's OK. It's OK.

3. Pearl Jam - Alive

The chorus is simple, catchy and powerful. Whatever happens at least you're still alive right!? Whatever doesn't kill us, makes us stronger... well, I'm not sure if I'd go that far... perhaps a more refined version of that saying would be, "Whatever doesn't cause us permanent injury will make us stronger"? I'm reminded of David Brent's funny seminar in The Office, you should definitely look it up if you don't know what I'm talking about.

I actually listened more closely to this song recently, and apparently it's about the singer being told his father isn't his real father and just his adoptive father? I suppose this news and the event of its telling could be fairly crushing and monumental to a young boy (to the point where the writing or listening to this song would help him), but it's not that bad I would say... I'd like to think this song has helped people (older people and stuff) through situations worse than that, like I don't know losing money or relationships or important things like that.

4. Katy Perry - Firework

"Do you ever feel like a plastic bag? Drifting through the wind, wanting to start again?" sings Katy in the first line to this song. And if you're reading this blog list with seriousness, and it means something to you, then yes the answer probably is - you have felt like this at some point, maybe even often sadly that you do.

But you are worthy of course! And if you want to really feel someone telling you that passionately then this song is for you. Katy really digs deep into you to pull out the hope and light and confidence you still have (and must always have) within you. Listen to this one as you step out your house for a walk somewhere.

5. Jimmy Eat World - In the Middle

"Every thing will be all right" and "It just takes some time" he sings in the chorus; aww it's so comforting. I also used to think he sang, "a little bit, little bit of alkali" - this made sense to me, as alkali is the opposite of acid, and it neutralises acid,  so for me it was a metaphor for maybe a bitter (acidic) feeling inside being soothed by a "little bit of alkali." In other words, "chill out a little bit" I guess, "calm yourself" etc. Maybe also I thought of a more direct type of metaphor of taking drugs? Alkali is a chemical after all. Yeh, I guess, maybe, who knows.

Apparently he doesn't say though but yeh this song is still a really uplifting pop rock emo song help you in your life.

6. Oasis - Don't Look Back in Anger

I never used to actually like this song much when I was younger. But yeah as I got older I realised the message and the song were quite fantastic, "Don't look back in anger," - fairly excellent advice from the Gallagher boys.

Top 7 Rap Metal or Nu Metal CDs

Is rap metal the same as nu metal? Yes? No? Kind of? I would say kind of, I would say nu metal for sure started off as rap metal, then perhaps some nu metal became harder to indentify as rap metal e.g. it only used rap metal style beats and riffs, or the raps became more alternative rock-like.

Before anyone tells me, "Nah dude, nu metal started off with Korn's first album blah blah blah" to quote Seth in Dusk Till Dawn, "That's a matter of opinion and I don't give a fuck about yours."

Oh yeh I decided to do a Top 7 for this one. Why the hell not?

1. Rage Against The Machine debut album

Yeh I had to put this in at number 1 really, everyone knows this is an excellent album. As far as any rap-rock list goes, this should probably always go in at 1. Every track is really good in some way or another, except for maybe track 8 Fistful of Steel (despite having a cool name). Not only a testament to fantastic rap rock but also a really amazing album for it's time. It came out in 92 but the production was quite excellent, and sounds just as good as music put out today. The actual music on the album too still sounds quite fresh to this day e.g. the 7th track Wake Up (which was used for film The Matrix), still sounds hip and rockin' today! OK maybe some of the lyrics don't quite sound quite so contemporary, but they're still relevant in my opinion, with some simple adaption.

All of RATM albums are very good tbh, though they only had 4 of them so I suppose it's not a totally incredible feat. IMO it's better a great band only have few albums, 5, 4 or even 3 and they're very good rather than embarrassingly put out consistently bad or mediocre albums.

2. Limp Bizkit 3 Dollar Bill Y'all

OK Fred and his band picked up their clown reputation around about their 3rd album (which actually wasn't that bad). Their second album was good, though I've chosen their first album here, which I thought was a really good rap metal album.

Rap metal I'd say is pretty hard to do well consistently which is why I'll say that this album unfortunately did have 1 or 2 filler songs which I can't even remember how they go looking at the track list. They must have been pretty bad as to have eradicated them from my memory, but also looking at the back cover track list I must say I've listened to this album alot and enjoyed the songs very much.

3. Deftones Around The Fur

Yeh OK, here is where the term 'Rap Metal' gets stretched some. If you were looking for some 'purist' rap metal, you probably wouldn't find what you were looking for in this album. This album is excellent though. It's very alternative sounding, but you could definitely say the lead singer Chino is kind of rapping on many of the songs. Alternative Rap Metal? Why the hell not, it sounds great.

A song to pluck as an example is the track that featured Max Cavelera (I'd bet that maybe these nu-metal guys got the idea to feature fellow peer musicians maybe from rap artists that worked with each other alot around this time). Kind of a hardcore style of rap-rock rapping at the beginning of the song. "We're rocking through this world!" an apt quote from the song :D

4. Korn Issues

Yeh I guess the 'rap' from rap or nu metal goes out the window on this entry (I had to put it in there though). Everything else, save the vocals, on this album are funky and hip hoppy, blended incredibly well with heavy metal. Kinda like Korn's massive hit 'Freak on a leash' from their album before this one, kinda like they took that song and remade it a bunch of times to make this amazing album. Did that sound negative in any way? It shouldn't as this is Korn at their funkiest best.

5. Papa Roch Infest (Special Edition)

This was like a Top 10 (possibly even no. 1) album when it came out, I don't think I need to say much about it. I had to add it though, even I'd admit it was really pretty good. You have to get the Special Edition version though (released in UK and I think in other parts of Europe)! The extra song Legacy is up there with the many great songs of the album, and the live track is good too.

6. Cypress Hill Skull and Bones

Only half (well, more like a third really) of this album was rap metal (the rest was simply rap, which tbh wasn't that good). But it was awesome enough of course to top off the list.

Their albums one before and one after this had one or 2 rap metally songs on them too. Actually I'd say their album before this (called IV) is maybe their best album, it was pretty cool.

7. Bloodhound Gang Hooray for boobies

I recently saw a guy doing Mope at a kareoke (weird I know), and I was impressed. To me it sounded like ICP, and when I heard the song for real it also reminded me of ICP (which I'm also a fan of). I guess this is more kinda weird rap rock than rap metal. I only knew em before for their Chasey Lain and Discovery Channel songs heh.
But yeah I since went and bought the album, it's dope as hell.


Runners-Up
Linkin Park - almost but not quite
Slipknot - first album was hardcore, perhaps too hardcore to put on this list
Machine Head - I used to think their Burning Red album was really good I guess, there album after (Supercharger) also I thought was pretty good
Twiztid - Freek Show album, ICP affiliates really rocked it with this album