Bands who are underrated ... And you couldn't be happier

[thomas697]

A lot of the time when someone claims a band is underrated there is usually and un happy tone that comes with it. The kind of tone that suggests you are truley un satisfied with the fact that they are underrated.

So I thought it would be interesting to see what bands you think are underrated and you secretly (or maybe not so sectrely) love it, Basically a band or bands that are underrated and you genuinely prefer it that way.


The bands that inspired me to bring this up: Cocteau Twins, and probably first on my list

Nico
Soundgarden
Ride
Clint Mansell
Neutral Milk Hotel (I know they're popular here, but elsewhere they're relatively un heard of)
Beach House
Kraftwerk
Sigur Ros
Animal Collective (until recently)

I'm sure there's plenty more, I dont have many older bands on this list because quite frankly most bands in the 60's and 70's got the acclaim they deserved
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Having a family is the kind of thing that could be held against a person

[purple]

It's funny, I actually first heard of Neutral Milk Hotel first day of freshman year, from several people, but wrote them off until I found this site and saw it all over the place. And I've continued to have people bring them up, almost randomly, in conversation. I guess people in San Antonio (at least the college kids) really love their Mangum.

I like your Soundgarden pick, though they are a little less satisfying to me whenever I put them on; I mainly only listen to Day I Tried to Live unless I get some urge to listen to both Badmotorfinger and Superunknown back to back (has happened recently). They were also the big daddies in Seattle before Nirvana came around... but I wouldn't say they're underrated by normal people who are into grunge, just the critics

Also don't think that Animal Collective are underrated; they've made some great sounds but MPP is really their first mature album, and Strawberry Jam was damn good too (not a fan of Sung Tongs on the whole, or any other from them before it). All I'm saying is that they haven't really deserved credit until the past couple years... and now they're all splitting up, doing their own thing!

Anyway, I know the sentiment you're trying to convey, but I don't think you have fuzzy feelings because a band is underrated and you like them. I imagine you feel good because, because they're not popular, you can introduce the bands to your friends (since they probably haven't heard of them) and both have a personal connection to it, rather than everyone buying it on iTunes and listening to it without a connection to other people. Maybe... I don't know, I think Talk Talk is underrated, and am not happy that no one else off this site enjoys it as much as I do

[Guest]

I like the fact that Roc Marciano is underrated, it stops him from collaborating with commercial artists who would lessen his qualities. Usually when a band is underrated it just annoys me though - such as Popup, who pretty much no-one has heard of and therefore there's never any demand for new material or tours. Also, it really gets on my nerves how underrated pre-'Soft Bulletin' Flaming Lips are, because it means they never play any material earlier than that live. I like the sort of level Larrikin Love got to - they were underrated, but there was always a big enough fanbase to support regular touring to fairly packed venues, and it suited them (and me) perfectly.

[purple]

now what you mean with the Flaming Lips... I saw Spoon about a month and a half ago, and they played maybe four songs total from Kill the Moonlight and Transference, which are their two best in my opinion... it was pretty much a run through Ga Ga Ga Ga Ga, which is not a favorite, though it is good

[Wombi]

@lethalnezzle
on the UFO's at the zoo live dvd they play she don't use jelly and love yer brain but i guess the focus would be on their most recent work as I think most crowds would be pretty dissapointed if certain songs from the Warner Bros catalouge weren't played. Though it is surprising that they don't play anything off clouds taste metallic as most of the stuff on there is pretty catchy.

@thomas697 So I take underrated to mean people know of it but don't rate it very highly. but I wasn't sure whether you meant people haven't really heard of it. And I don't think Sigur ROs are underrated by either definition.
for ages I would've said Coldplay were pretty underrated only because people would rip shit out of them but more and more people seem to be coming around which is good.
also
So divided into 2 groups
Artists that not enough people know
- the frames
- Marillion
- XTC
- Lisa Mitchell
- Stars
- Yo La Tengo
- Children Collide

Artists that people know but don't get rated as high as they should be
- Christina Aguilera
- Electric Light Orchestra (Big time underrated)
- Elton John (no, really)

as for being happy their underrated that always seemed like a d-bag hipster thing you know the whole "I'm into bands that don't even exist yet" thing.

[thomas697]

I really hoped that the credibility this site comes with and liking an underrated band and being happy it, wouldnt get the same treatment as a random fanboy posting the same thing on a genuine douchebag site.

I have to ask though, what is the criteria you have for Christina Aguillera being underrated. I thought she was rated perfectly.

And Elton John I completely agree with. I also thought Queen were underrated but after listening to A Night At The Opera, I can understand how someone could find them unlistenable.

@purple I dont know if its because we are in different countries or something like that, but if im lucky 1/10 people have heard or listen to Sigur Ros and Animal Collective. From what ive got from people, these bands just dont exist. Maybe I should find new friends
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Having a family is the kind of thing that could be held against a person

[Wombi]

I guess i consider Aguilera underrated because people seem to have a certain respect for certain pop princesses (Rihanna, Beyonce, Gaga) but Christina AGuilera seems to get lumped in with Britney spears as mindless bubblegum pop. I could have it wrong but that was what I had gauged.

[purple]

Because I'm in college, people tend to like and know newer, 'indie' music like Animal Collective. I've played songs from various Animal Collective albums for some friends that haven't heard them, and they usually enjoy those from Strawberry Jam and MPP the most, which partly led me to my earlier comment that they haven't deserved credit until relatively recent years.

I'm not even a fan of Sigur Ros, only a couple songs appeal to me, but tons of people in U.S. know them because Svegen en Enflgur (or some shit like that) is a theme song for a television show over here...

Also, to Jhereko, many young people in the U.S. are a fan of Stars, my girlfriend and one of my better friends being a couple

[purple]

Also, pop princesses need to be appreciated, because there are few women with as sexy a voice as Xtina, Britney, Kesha, or Katy Perry making decent music. I can only think of the Yeah Yeah Yeahs, Pixies/Breeders, and PJ Harvey

[SquishypuffDave]

Sleepytime Gorilla Museum

For me, their underratedness/lack of wider appeal is part of their charm. They are an exception though, not a rule. Usually I'm saddened when others don't appreciate the lesser known bands I like (@ Purple, I share your sentiments on Talk Talk).