5 Music Albums that Changed the Music Industry

Some bands became immortal because they put out a song that no one can resist singing, while some write music that no one might have expected. In this blog, we aim to cover 5 famous albums that changed the course of the Music Industry.

1. Radiohead’s “In Rainbows”

“In Rainbows” shook the music industry's very infrastructure. They simply announced on their official site, "the new album is finished, and it's coming out in 10 days." With that, Radiohead completely invented a new promotional method in the digital era. Ever since, In Rainbows arrived in everyone's inbox simultaneously and listeners experienced those torrid first notes of "15 Step" together, many artists have tried to "pull a Radiohead,". Beyoncé and U2 succeeded in delivering their music in a similar manner. The album's "pay-what-you-want" offer that allowed diehards, casual fans and curious listeners to put their own value on music, was just another step forward in questioning how the music business does business.

2. Run DMC’s Self-Titled Album

This was the first classic hip-hop album that anyone can remember. This was the breaking point where the buoyant post-disco rhythms and future-shocked electro were introduced which ended up dominating the genre's first five years on record. The Hollis, Queens crew did nothing short of reinventing the still-new style in their own image: hard, raw, in-your-face and catchy enough to challenge anything else in pop. The rap-rock fusion "Rock Box" stands as a foundationally transformative moment for American culture itself, while the earth-shaking one-two punch of "Sucker MCs" and "It's Like That"  presented grandstanding to complex social realism. The album is minimal and stark, but was revolutionary for its time.

3. Michael Jackson’s “Thriller”

It is hard to imagine the present-day musical landscape without “Thriller”, which changed the game both sonically and marketwise. The album's courageous blending of pop, rock and soul would completely change the scene in radio. They introduced an intense guitar solo, in what was considered pop at the time. A lot of elements from different genres added up to spice up the sound of the songs in the album. The album's fun, cinematic videos attracted even more audience and forced MTV to incorporate black artists into its playlists. Its promotional strategy, which led to seven of its nine tracks being released as singles, raised the bar for what, exactly, constituted a "hit-laden" LP. It broke records, showing just how far pop could reach: the biggest selling album of all time, the first album to win eight Grammys in a single night and the first album to stay in the Top 10 charts for a whole year! This was truly game changing.

4. Black Sabbath’s First Album

When Black Sabbath released their self-titled debut in 1970, they didn't think they were starting a movement. But their sludgy take on psychedelic-blues and incorporating catchy riffs in songs, it became the core of what's now known as metal — whether modified by "thrash," "progressive" or even "glam." Part of the influence lies in the way Tony Iommi's guitars were tuned down, the result of a freak accident that resulted in him shearing off two of his right hand's fingertips, and having to play with their tenderness in mind. That contributed to a doom-filled atmosphere that was only enhanced by frontman Ozzy Osbourne, who was still refining his "prince of darkness" persona, and song titles grasping toward signifiers of evil. The album proved inspirational to generations of musicians, who used Black Sabbath's ideas of rock & roll - making it faster, slowing it down even more, adding orchestral flourishes — to create not just a genre, but a musical movement.

5. The Beatles Sgt. Pepper’s Lonely Hearts Club Band

Sgt. Pepper's wasn't the first album to blend rock music with high art, but it was probably the first time that musicians of the Beatles' stature and popularity decided to turn their back on the style that had made them famous. It was the first time the Beatles were free of the responsibility of being the Beatles. The irony is that no other album cemented them so firmly in the public's mind. The Beatles as a whole defined an era inspiring many generations and song writing that still inspires the current crop of artists.

Music Pandit brings you the best and the most effective way to learn music with a complete 360-degree approach to learning music.

Music Pandit offers Personalised feedback from our Music Pandits, curated step-by-step lessons, extensive content - you can choose multiple instruments 🎤🥁🎶🎸🎹with one subscription, carefully organised Practice routines, a Musical Community, Creative Challenges, Goal setting and so much more – so you can learn Anytime, Anywhere at your pace!

Reference : https://www.rollingstone.com/interactive/most-groundbreaking-albums-of-all-time/

How To Choose Your First Instrument

Are you the few ones who are eager to learn a music instrument but torn between which instrument to pick up? You want to emulate your idol and play like them? Or You want to compose your own music but not sure about which instrument will help you realising your dream? Here is a little information about the kind of instruments and a helping hand to guide you decide upon an instrument so that you can finally start your Music Journey.

Your Interest

First of all, what interests you? What are the kind of songs that you love to listen and would love to play yourself? Which instrument excites you the most? This can help you decide which instrument would best suit you.  Piano/Keyboard is very versatile and can help you compose without any limitations, whereas Guitar is the most compatible instrument you can learn. Drum would take some space but if you are a fan of hard hitting, letting your groove out on a beat, that’s the instrument for you. There are certainly many other instruments, but let’s talk about the common and popular ones. It completely depends on what you are looking for through music. You could learn vocals if you want to sing your heart out and touch a few.

Preference of Music Genres

If you are into Rock and Roll, Guitar might be the most popular choice but if you want to create rocking beats, you might as well go for Drums. Or, You are in to Pop, or electronic music, then Piano or Keyboard is the smartest choice for you. Every genre of music is dominated by an instrument or two, so do the research on your favourite songs and artists, learn about the process of making and you might discover love for a particular instrument. Which part of your favourite song would you like to imitate or learn? That will let you know what you really want to learn and play.

Practice Time Limitations

Before you begin to learn an instrument, map out your schedule. See, how you would manage the time for your regular activities and learning an instrument. Observe how much time you can give to learning an instrument, what kind of space you have for practice? If you are learning drums, make sure you have the space to occupy your drums and insulate your room so that neighbours aren’t disturbed. Also, if you are eager to learn vocals, you have to practice in a room where you can sing open heartedly with an open loud voice. There are many cheap ways to soundproof your room, you can do the research on that as well. At the beginning level, learning guitar may take some time, so make sure you have the time to regularly practice guitar. Keyboard/Piano are relatively easy in the beginning, however as you advance through higher levels, you will have to give time for any instrument to master the skills that is required to play the instrument to its fullest capability.

Budget

Different instrument would cost you differently. Although this shouldn’t be the factor that stops you from playing what you would love to learn, we will still discuss about how different instrument cost. The cheapest would be learning vocals as it doesn’t require any instruments in the beginning, as you begin to perform regularly, you might want to buy a microphone that would help you understand the dynamics of singing on a mic. Guitars can be very affordable, especially in the recent times with big brands producing low budget guitars with very decent quality, and it can serve you for a long time as well. Pianos are costly, however keyboards can be found in affordable prices but to get a good quality, long lasting instrument, you might have to cash in a little bit, but for composers, this is kind of a must have. The costliest of all the instruments can be the drums. Although you get affordable drum sets but if you are looking to invest on something that will last longer, it is an expensive instrument to buy. As it involves a lot of different parts as well, the price would depend on what are you buying in the drum set. As we discussed, Budget should not be a factor in deciding what instrument you want to learn, as the investment you are making will serve you for far more benefits than loss if you are really interested in learning and playing the instrument. One thing is for sure, if you have the desire to learn, you will not regret doing the investment on the instrument you would love to learn.  

Music Pandit brings you the best and the most effective way to learn music with a complete 360-degree approach to learning music.

Music Pandit offers Personalised feedback from our Music Pandits, curated step-by-step lessons, extensive content - you can choose multiple instruments with one subscription, carefully organised Practice routines, a Musical Community, Creative Challenges, Goal setting and so much more – so you can learn Anytime, Anywhere at your pace!