What's your favorite song to sing in the car?

I don't do much singing these days. I listen lots and especially in the car. Currently one of my favorites to turn on and turn up is No Halo by Sorority Noise. It's a few years old now but will worth a listen. It's great energy for a car ride.

What's a song you only listen to when you're completely alone?

Not sure I should admit it. I listen to it alone because I shouldn't like it. Alas I do. Tate McRae's You Broke Me First. There was a season in life it made a lot of sense and was something of a comfort (as good pop music should be).

What is a song that makes you think of your first job?

We Will Rock You by Queen. My first job was cleaning up an arena after games. This was middle school or early high school and didn't pay much of anything. I think of it on occasion with rock anthems like this.

A song from the 2010s that you like or means something to you.

I had to make a smart playlist to list all of my songs in that time range - it covers a lot and is when I lived overseas so didn't have as much access to music. One song stood out though - The Woodpile by Frightened Rabbit. I first heard it on a visit back to the US to see family and friends. We were traveling around the country in a car and listening to an indie radio station and this came on. It became something of an anthem on that trip and similar after that. The whole album is fantastic but that's a real stand out song for me. This line in particular stands out:

I'm trapped in a collapsing building Come find me now, where I hide and We'll speak in our secret tongues

I'm an introvert and socially awkward and constantly being around people sometimes felt like being trapped in a collapsing building so to speak. In that car driving was solace with people that understood me (the secret tongues). If you haven't heard it - check it out, it's a great song!

A song from the 1970s that you like or means something to you.

Lots to pick from here. I grew up listening to a lot of music from the 70s even though I was born in the early 80s. When my family went on roadtrips we'd all play "Name that Tune" for control of the radio. It'd be on my parents choice - Classic Rock - to start. We became very conversant in the music of Boston, Kansas, Chicago, Fleetwood Mac, Heart, and on and on. If I was going to pick one stand out track I've always loved Led Zeppelin. In particular, their track Over the Hills and Far Away has always been a jam of mine. It came out in 1973 (had to look it up to make sure it fit with in the bounds of the prompt) and is well worth a listen.

A song in a language that you don't know.

This took me a minute to think about but one standout came to mind: 747 by Kent. They are Swedish as is the song if memory serves and it happens to be one I love. One online moniker I used in college came from this song actually. I'm pretty sure I'm linking to the Swedish version because they did release it in English. If it plays, and you can understand - look up the Swedish version too as it's well worth it!

If today were a genre, what would it be? Pick a matching song.

The genre: classic rock/pop rock. The band: Queen. The song: Don't Stop Me Now

It was a good day today. Some really good things happened to my wife and it marks the end of a challenging season and the beginning of a new, better season.

I'm a shootin' star, leapin' through the sky like a tiger Defyin' the laws of gravity

What song reminds you of your first love?

The first song that came to mind I've already used for a similar question (Umbrellas by Sleeping At Last) so I'll go with a current song that makes me think of her: Crush by Indigo De Souza. It's poppy, catchy and fun. It captures that excitement at the initial stages of dating that (hopefully) carries through with love.

Ooh, I think I got a crush on you Ooh, I think I got a crush on you

Sidenote: Precipice is an incredible album. It's a definite contender for album of the year for me. Check it out if you haven't yet!

Describe a concert that changed your perspective on music or life. Pick a song from that artist or band.

It was the summer of '98 I think (maybe '99). The End of the Ring Wars had just come out and The Appleseed Cast were playing at a small festival of mostly christian bands in OKC (I don't think TAC ever identified as such though). I talked the youth minister at our church at the time into going and a small group went.

I was mesmerized by The Appleseed Cast. It was everything right about the merging of emo/post-hardcore/post-rock. I was even more deeply moved by the final song. The bassist put down their bass and grabbed a saxophone and I was done. I played several years of saxophone in junior high/high school, did a some ska stuff a couple of times with a pop-punk band my brother was in but never heard it in this sort of context. I was blown away. They are a go-to band to this day.

Today's song is Untitled 1/2 from The End of the Ring Wars which I think is the only studio recording they did with a sax.

What artist or band changed your music taste forever? Pick your favorite song of theirs.

I grew up as a PK - Preachers Kid - so was limited in my music exposure to worship stuff and classic rock. My dad was a youth minister still when I was growing up in the 90s (middle school/high school for me) and got sent boxes of CDs for the youth group that ended up with my brother and I mostly (they were at the church but didn't really get play outside of us); it included a little known at the time but destined to be really important label called Tooth & Nail. MXPX was one of those early bands and was one of my first exposures to more of a punk sound and, more importantly, opened the door to harder genres. They aren't my favorite band by any stretch and I don't listen to them all that often anymore but I do credit them with changing my music taste in this way and they are the band that immediately came to mind when reading this question.

My favorite song of theirs is probably Middlename off of "Life in General". It's not one of those rough-around-the-edges early songs but it's probably my favorite of theirs. They also have a great cover of Take on Me if you are interested - look it up!