I've got a ton of single songs that I love without really caring about anything else a band or artist has done, but I guess I'll ignore those for this thread. In alphabetical order rather than preference order, here's a list of some of my favorite bands and a link to one of my favorite songs from each. I'm limiting myself to 20 picks because otherwise I'd probably go full Brovo and just list my entire fucking music collection.
After Forever - I like a lot of metal of various types with female singers. This is one of them.
Transitory
Amanda Palmer - I was sad when The Dresden Dolls went on an indefinite hiatus, but I ended up liking her solo work better overall, so that was a nice surprise.
Runs In The Family
Bat for Lashes - Listening to this band, particularly the linked song, does amazing things for my creativity and desire to write. It's my go-to counter to writer's block.
Glass
Bo Burnham - I enjoy a lot of comedic music, and this is one example. He's also one of my favorite comedians.
Art Is Dead
Cradle of Filth - Pretty damned great music to listen to while writing dark scenes.
Nymphetamine
Diablo Swing Orchestra - This one is weird. It's sort of a mix of metal and jazz? I can't explain it, but I love it.
Bedlam Sticks
The Dresden Dolls - I mentioned above that I liked the singer's solo work better, but this stuff is also really good.
Bad Habit
E.S. Posthumus - Some of the best general purpose writing music I've ever found, and it's still damned good for general listening.
Unstoppable
Epica - Another metal band with a female singer that I like a lot. They've got a great mix of the classic heavy guitar and drums of metal with lighter elements like piano and violin.
Martyr of the Free Word
Florence and the Machine - This one used to be my go-to pick for #1 favorite band of all time, but challengers have appeared. Still great though.
Howl
Les Friction - I still don't know what genre this band should be listed under. It's part orchestral, part rock, all awesome. Would definitely be on a top 5 favorites list.
Torture
Metric - I think this is the band that first got me to explore various indie subgenres, which you can now see heavily populate my list of favorites. It's pretty great.
Help I'm Alive
Mother Mother -
@Holmishire introduced me to this band like a year ago, and now it's a contender for a top 5 favorites spot.
Body
Paramore - This one might qualify as a guilty pleasure if I felt guilt about liking music that other people dislike, but I don't, so it's not. I like the sound of their music, and that's all that matters.
Brick by Boring Brick
Serj Tankian - His solo music shares little aside from lyrical style with System of a Down, but it's damn good. Notable for me for being one of the few artists that consistently make me actually pay attention to the lyrics.
Praise The Lord And Pass The Ammunition
Slipping Tongue - Hnng, the singer's voice... They only made one album before breaking up, and I don't care for the band the singer joined after it. The title of my favorite song they made is rather apt.
Bitter
Stephen Lynch - Comedy songs of a generally fucked up nature. I love it.
Priest
System of a Down - One of the few bands I listened to as a kid that I still like regardless of any nostalgic influence. Similar to The Dresden Dolls, their indefinite split made me sad until I found that Serj's solo music was great.
Violent Pornography
Within Temptation - Another female-fronted metal (of the symphonic variety) band that I like a lot. I think this was actually the first band that swung my interest in that direction.
Dark Wings
Woodkid - So apparently the genres people use to refer to Woodkid are baroque pop and neofolk. This amuses me for some reason. Dude's voice is strange but good, and the music itself is amazing.
Run Boy Run
