Your boss piss you off? A bug with the Second Life Client annoys you to death (*cough*http://jira.secondlife.com/browse/VWR-4567*cough*)? The grid crashes? Your life is not aligning properly? Someone dressed up as a cute but infuriating cartoon character randomly appears on your front door unannounced? What I do when silly, irritating issues occur is that I listen to music help me deal with the frustration. Usually this is angry, hard, loud music that contains if not one, but several curses stringed in a row to form a sentence (example: I’m soo *censored word* right *this word is censored* *so is this one* *yep, this word is definitely not pg-13* you *oh dear someone has been called a really naughty word here* *and here* *yep, still cursing someone out* *explicative*!)
This made me think, what music do other people listen to when they are upset? I asked the same question on twitter (names were removed to protect the innocent) and here’s some of the results (and my own rating of each choice):
- Rage Against The Machine. This is a really good choice, particularly Bulls Like Parade and Calm Like a Bomb. (Anger Rating: 8)
- Stiff Little Fingers, a group I’m not particularly familiar with, but they are a UK Punk Band from the 1970’s. If you’re angry with someone, they have a great song called “Can’t Get Away With That” (http://songza.com/listen?z=j0k8-605E4651505C) that you can send via e-mail or stand outside of the house and play until they say uncle. (Anger Rating: 6)
- The Original Matrix Soundtrack. Really, this doesn’t scream angry as much as it does “fight the man!” I always want to hover in mid-air or bend a spoon with my mind when I listen to this sound track. (Anger Rating: 1)
- Cake. Not really angry music, their popular hits “The Distance” or “Short Skirt, Long Jacket” doesn’t speak to the anger that I may have inside. They really just make me want to take a really long car ride or find a girl wearing said attire. (Anger Rating: 3)
- Willie Nelson. Okay, what has Willie Nelson done to anyone to make them want to listen to while angry? Willie is one of the most un-angry people, right next to Elton John. (Anger Rating: -100)
- Suicidal Tendencies. ‘Nuff said. (Anger Rating: 7)
- Mindless Self Indulgence. A really peculiar pick, this group is a mix of rap and rock, whose lyrics and song titles are profanity laiden. Their sound isn’t as hard as some of the other groups on the list, but their style definitely screams “I’m SOO angry right now!” (Anger Rating: 10)
- Slayer. A traditional angry pick from the heavy metal genre. Slayer is great angry music. (Anger Rating: 10)
- Fear Factory. This industrial metal band is quite popular, especially for having been on the Mortal Kombat Soundtrack. This is great angry music, it is not over the top yet still hits that core of anger. (Angry Rating: 9)
- Slipknot. This is the best nu-metal, angry music ever. When I first hear of this group, I was blown away by how loud and angry they were. When I heard them while angry I instantly realized that they were way more upset than I could ever be! (Anger Rating: A Billion. They will always be angrier than you!)
I wonder, what are your picks?
Black Lab, The Kooks, Vincent Black Shadow, Mars Volta, Garbage, things that are energetic and lyrically complex but still have a bit of upbeatness, with full albums that I enjoy without having to skip anything, so I can just sit, listen, keep going, and get it out of my system ^^
I am truly puzzled. I love music. When I am angry, I generally do not want to listen to music. When I hear music that is angry, I feel tense. At work, I am subjected to loud, angry music for hours at a time. I can't wait to get away from it. Not unlike watching someone explode in rage, the experience cannot end soon enough. If I was really angry and then listened to angry music, I would probably become furious. How can that be a good thing? I realize that others find this music enjoyable. I just can't empathize with them. Finding enjoyment in anger seems pathological.
I suppose, the root of most anger is a feeling of being hurt. If I had to choose something to listen to when feeling that way, I would choose some Moody Blues. If I do that, it has a tendency to result in me turning the feeling inward and that leads to depression. I would much prefer to assertively work through my anger with the person who hurt me than to use angry music as a means to magnify the feeling until I exhausted my anger.
@Matt that's a really interesting spin on the topic. When I'm angry, I need to find a way to release that anger. For me emotion and music are very much attached to one another. It's like a workout; expressing my anger through music is a release in a way… but I've never thought of it in the sense of someone being surrounded by angry music all of the time. That and angry music being a major sense of pain, hurt.
I dont understand why they weren't mentioned sooner but I must say when I am on the edge of furious "Tool" works for me. I think Eulogy is my favorite "You enrage me" song. Aenema is another great angry song.
Also System of a Down is one of my "go to" angry bands.
I find angry music is the only thing that acts as a good muffler for all the chaos that goes on in my mind when the anger is first sparked. By Chaos I mean the thousands of "things you should have said", hurtful remarks, hurtful actions and emotions bottle necking from your brain to your mouth so you feel out of control. When I am at this point there is no sense in talking because the right things are never said. Usually, there are hurtful remarks thrown back and forth and nothing conscructive comes of it. I get all the blood boiling chaos and tensions out with the music. Then when I have calmed down I think things through rationally and I am able to address the situation with all parties involved. To each their own, right?
Thanks for the suggestions. I have been exausting Tool and their anger. I will check out some of the others I haven't heard of.
Cheers