People's Instinctive Travels And The Paths Of Rhythm
A Tribe Called Quest
You could argue that The Low End Theory is a better overall album. You might be right. I might even agree. That being said, the song Can I Kick It? was my introduction to A Tribe Called Quest (thanks Tony Hawk!) and was a further introduction into boom bap - a genre which I'm still exploring. ATCQ (and this album) sent me out into the world looking to better my understanding of hip hop and its rich culture. A gateway album if ever I've heard one.
Comment by Nicholas Whittemore
London Calling
The Clash
I "discovered" London Calling in high school. *Maybe* middle school? Either way, I knew The Clash as an angry, political, edgy punk band. What I got from London Calling was not what I was expecting. But that wasn't a bad thing. What I learned from listening to the CD on the drive home was that I really appreciated the jazz elements and the fusion of genres throughout the album. It felt like a truly special album and made me more genre curious.
Comment by Nicholas Whittemore
Harmlessness
The World Is A Beautiful Place & I Am No Longer Afraid To Die
One could easily make the argument that TWIABP's debut album Whenever, If Ever is a better album than Harmlessness, their sophomore album. My personal ranking goes back and forth depending on the time of day. That being said, Harmlessness was the album that introduced me to TWIABP... which also introduced me to math rock and Midwest emo. I'm still discovering new artists and genres 10 years later thanks to the road this album sent me down.
Comment by Nicholas Whittemore
The Book About My Idle Plot On A Vague Anxiety
toe
Toe completely opened my eyes to something I wouldn't have even been remotely aware was a thing over in Japan. That beautiful blending of math rock and post rock. Something I've found to be a unique fusion of genres that seems to be prevalent in Asian countries with bands like Toe and Elephant Gym. Something about this band puts me into a perfect zen state and helps me really connect with my inner self.
Comment by Nicholas Whittemore
We Stitch These Wounds
Black Veil Brides
Another album that opened me up to a world of music I didn't even know existed. Ironically, I remember hating the portions of the songs with screaming in them, but really enjoying the guitars and overall tone and lyrical content as an edgy teenager. I liked it enough to stick with it until the screams became an acquired taste and I decided to dive into post-hardcore and metalcore.
Comment by Nicholas Whittemore
As Daylight Dies
Killswitch Engage
Killswitch Engage was a huge player in my journey of discovering my tastes in music as a young 'un. I instantly knew I needed to hear more when I first heard the song "This Fire" playing through the TV as CM Punk walked up to that WWE ring. Without this album, without that song, I might not have gone down the metalcore rabbit hole. I might not have developed a taste for headbanging and mosh pits. This is the definition of a gateway album.
Comment by Nicholas Whittemore
残響リファレンス
ONE OK ROCK
A friend showed me ONE OK ROCK in high school. We were taking Japanese as an elective, and were discussing our favorite Japanese media (music and video games, particularly). When he played OOR, I was blown away. I couldn't believe I had been missing out on such good music. I believe Zankyo Reference was the first Japanese album I ever bought, so it earns its place as a gateway album. To this day, I am still finding and importing Japanese music.
Comment by Nicholas Whittemore
恋人へ
Lamp
Another group I was introduced to by a friend. (Share music!) Lamp was my introduction to what my friend referred to as "city pop," but which I'm still not sure how to aptly describe. Regardless, she opened my eyes (to use that term again) to yet *another* world of music I didn't know about. There's so much music out there, and it's so cool to constantly be finding new stuff. For Lovers set me down a path of finding even more niche foreign music.
Comment by Nicholas Whittemore