My Music Indulgences: The music I enjoy and listen to.

“Music gives a soul to the universe, wings to the mind, flight to the imagination and life to everything.” ― Plato

Music is a very vital aspect of many people’s lives. It is a language comprehensible beyond barriers. It is an art form that gives light and color to this occasionally dark and cruel world. It is capable of uniting people with a message, a cause, or a purpose in life. Music can help inspire, brighten, and enliven the spirits of people who listen. I can say the same for my self. For too many times, I’ve often faced a problem or two. But it’s nothing that can’t be solved with the help of music. Listening to music brightens my mood and brings out emotions in me that I never thought existed. That is why I dare say, music is the greatest accomplishment of humankind to date. And that’s why I’ve written this blog, in order to share with the people the deeper side of music. There’s more to be discovered in music, much deeper than the mainstream and pop culture that has dominated the music industry. I will share the genres of music that I have come to know and love over the years.

Original Pinoy Music (OPM)

OPM is a term used to describe a broad variety of genres, that are created by Filipino artists. OPM can include any kind of genre such as hip-hop, rap, rock, pop music, etc. as long as it was created and written by Filipino artists. I was introduced to this genre at an early age, because naturally I am a Filipino. I grew up listening to bands from the 90s and early 2000’s like Parokya ni Edgar, Rivermaya, Eraserheads, and the like. At my current age, I’ve even started listening to local artists such as Kyle Anuncacion (whom I’ve discovered thanks to my friends and classmates). But for now, I’m starting to immerse myself in less-mainstream OPM genres, more particularly folk-music. Thanks to Munimuni and Ben&Ben, I’ve gained a better understanding and appreciation of the genre. You wouldn’t regret listening to OPM, I highly recommend it.

Hiphop/ Rap

Now this is a genre I haven’t listened to in a long time. There came a time in my younger years when I started to like foreign songs. And that’s when I’ve discovered Hip-hop and Rap. People often hate rap for it’s frequent profanity, and also because they think that it’s themes usually revolve around drugs, violence and money only, but that isn’t the case. There are still a lot of rappers out there who can produce thought-provoking lyrics, and still create a damn good beat. People should give this genre a chance.

Rock/Heavy Metal/Blues

Because of their similarities and links in their origins as a genre, I will discuss these three genres: Rock, Heavy Metal, and Blues into a single explanation. I’ve been casually listening to some songs from these genres over the past years. But it was only last year, when I started to build a genuine fondness for this type of music. Rock is the pop music of the generation before us. Most of our parents, (mine included ) probably grew up listening to bands such as The Who and The Beatles (rock music pioneers), Guns and Roses and AC/DC (80’s) and Nirvana from the 90’s. These bands paved the way for the modern bands today, serving as musical influences to the generations ahead of them. Heavy Metal is the genre that took the most time for me to warm up to. I was initially repulsed by it’s excessively loud and heavy sound, and I was at first scared by all the masks and dark themes but I eventually got over it. Blues meanwhile, is the root of it all. It served as the foundation of many musical genres today. It was popularized by African-American musicians in the 50’s and it kept on growing since. Despite its popularity back then, Blues no longer holds now the degree of fame it had back in the day. I would highly recommend listening to these genres of music.