I guess I should mention that my list does not contain a lot of 70's-80's rock, of which is the norm. I grew up listening to 100% country music radio. My dad listened to a lot of George Straight, Keith Whitley, and Merle Haggard. My mom listened to Shania Twain, Martina McBride, and Dixie Chicks. I went out and bought Green Day's Warning when I was in 3rd grade, and my parents bought me Weird Al's Running With Scissors for Christmas one year; essentially starting what was my musical independence. I went through a heavy rap phase in 7th grade where I was fluent in Nelly's Country Grammar, Ludacris' Disturbin Tha Peace, and 50 Cent's The Massacre. It wasn't until 8th grade (2005) that I really started growing into my own. I was washing dishes at a local restaurant for $5.25 an hour under the table. I would cash my check every 2 weeks and go and buy CD's. I feel like it's important to mention that this was a time where I couldn't just look up music on Spotify or Youtube if I wanted to know about a band or how they sounded. You had to buy it or borrow a cd from a friend. The rise of MP3 players and iPods weren't until a couple of years later. And I was too poor to afford it.
Although I do feel like some albums were a little more shaping in my later years of high school, these are the few that stick out as the ones that started it all; mostly ranging from 2004-05 in their release. We'll start backwards from 10.
10.
Metallica - Self Titled
I was hesitant about adding this one to the list because of how I feel about Metallica now (RIP Napster) but I felt like that would be disingenuous. My cousin burned me a bunch of Nirvana, and Metallica CD's when I was quite young. This ended up being my favorite of the bunch (Although I did also really like Nevermind by Nirvana.) I listened to this album constantly. I am even wearing a Metallica shirt in my 10th grade school photo. Metal.
9.
Between The Buried And Me - Alaska
I purchased a different Victory Records CD and it included a DVD with various music videos on it. I watched that DVD so often that I had the videos memorized in what order they would appear. The song Alaska off this album was number 3. I went and found this CD and listened to it a lot. Part of it was because I enjoyed the music. The other part was that it was heavy as hell, and I liked feeling bad ass.
8.
System Of A Down - Mezmerize
To be totally honest, I have no idea how I became a S.O.A.D. fan. I saw their music video for B.Y.O.B. one morning on VH1 and decided to go buy that CD. (I actually made my sister take me to FYE and buy the unedited version, thanks Amanda. Now I know a whole bunch of damn swear words because of it.) I became a huge fan thereafter, and bought all the subsequent releases. I used to wear my System Of A Down shirt to wrestling meets to let everyone know I wasn't dicking around.
7.
Avenged Sevenfold - City Of Evil
Another one of those albums I am somewhat ashamed to admit that I still know almost every word off. This is also one of those bands I am not sure how I became a fan of. I saw someone wearing an Avenged shirt at school one day and he looked super bad ass. So I decided to go and purchase City Of Evil. It was all downhill from there.
6.
Senses Fail - Let It Enfold You
My brother actually bought this cd. I don't really remember when the time frame was. But, we used to live in a loft together when we were young and we would listen to this CD on a little boom box over and over again. I still quite enjoy it.
5.
Hawthorne Heights - If Only You Were Lonely
I remember my sister taking me to school one morning as a freshman and she was listening to Niki FM off Hawthorne's previous release "The Silence In Black And White" and thought it was really cool. I went to the store and couldn't find that CD, so I bought this one. I did not end up regretting it. This album was perfect for an overweight freshman at the time.
4.
Silverstien - Discovering The Waterfront
Again. This one totally stumps me as to how I stumbled onto this album. I know that they had a music video for Smashed Into Pieces from their prior release on the DVD I previously mentioned, but I can't be sure that that was the reason. I still love this album. I recently attended the 10 year tour where they played the album in full. It made Jake of yesteryear quite happy.
3.
Chiodos - All's Well That Ends Well
I remember stumbling on some kind of Equal Vision Records sampler that featured Baby You Wouldn't Last A Minute On The Creek. I went up to FYE later that week and purchased this album. I listened to it on my commute just the other day, it's still as good now as it is then. This was one of the first progressive bands I got very invested in.
2.
Underoath - They're Only Chasing Safety
I would say my most fond memory of this album is going and playing football at my friend Nick's house. He would put it on the outside speakers and we would just play football for hours. This was the very first album I put on my iPod when I had saved up and bought it years later. This album has stood the test of time. I can't wait for their reunion tour where they will be playing this front to back along with Define The Great Line.
1.
Coheed And Cambria - Good Apollo I'm Burning Star IV Volume One: From Fear Through The Eyes Of Madness
Anyone who knew me back then could have easily seen this coming from a long way off. I used to wear my Coheed shirt 2 times per week because I loved it so much. I usually get guff from fellow Coheed fans because most of them worship (oft times literally) their prior release, In Keeping Secrets. I do like that release, however this release had perfect timing for me. Trying to fit in in high school, not really having a place, being so tired of hearing the same rap music in the locker room, this album was a beacon of light. It has always felt like home to me. I still appreciate it in that light.
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