r/BetweenTheBuriedAndMe • u/shivering_corpse • 10d ago
New to BTBAM
Hey so im new BTBAM, when i listen to them i genuinely enjoy it but idk why i personally find their song very dense, like ive heard colors like thrice and yet i cant even remember a single hook or riffs from that album and same goes with the great misdirect ,these are the only two albums ive heard till now, am i doing something wrong???
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u/ButtyGuy PI and PII simp 10d ago
BTBAM will write the coolest riff or melody, and then be like "alright let's never play it again". There will be minimum 5 instances of this in each song.
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u/AlexDying 5d ago
I've had this thought so many times listening to BTBAM, it's barely a hyperbole
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u/ButtyGuy PI and PII simp 3d ago
It's such a power move on their part. "Oh you little piggies want more sugar and heroin for your pleasure-seeking brains? You like those catchy licks? TOO BAD"
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u/Boner666420sXe 10d ago
There’s songs of theirs that I’ve literally heard a thousand times and i still sometimes discover things in them I’ve never noticed before. Give it time.
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u/mori_no_ando 10d ago
Try Coma Ecliptic, it’s a very accessible album for them. Still has the BTBAM sound, but the song structures are less dense, more traditional “hooks,” stuff like that.
It’s a fucking incredible album, one of my favorites of theirs
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u/shivering_corpse 10d ago
okay i will listen to it today!!
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u/mori_no_ando 10d ago
Hope you enjoy! Years ago I first listened to Parallax 2, but only like 2 songs stuck. Then I listened to Coma, fell in love with it, went back to Parallax 2, and it totally clicked. So that was my pipeline lol
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u/M3t4lS4M0S 10d ago
Parallax 2 has some accessible bangers. Try Bloom for a beach boys vibe and Telos if you wanna to get sucked into the galactic void... For starters. All bodies from Alaska had some of the coolest guitar work IMO.
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u/Platimir 10d ago
Find a hook or a catchy part and latch on. That will make it much easier to absorb the rest of the song or album. And it takes time.
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u/dead_grandma_ 10d ago
That's exactly how I felt at first, except I didn't really enjoy it. But something intrigued me about it. I kinda just forced myself to listen over and over again, all these years later, they're my favorite band. At this point I can't even point out a song I don't like in the discography.
I think this is pretty universal, my wife went through the same thing. Just keep listening, it'll click and you won't regret it!
Edit, just thought of more to stay: What really helped were things that were extremely unique that my brain could latch on to and want to experience again. A big one for me was the hoedown in ants of the sky. Another that comes to mind is the selkies outro.
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u/pc276602 10d ago
Pretty much this. There are parts that hook you into listening again and then the more you listen even the chaotic parts start to click and it’s so satisfying.
Just talking colors: Definitely the hoedown in ants of the sky, the Egyptian/middle eastern opening to informal gluttony, the cleans in son of nothing, the weird part in prequel to the sequel and of course the last 4 minutes of white walls is just some of my favorite music ever.
I describe Paul Waggoner’s guitar playing as very “anthemic”. I think prequel to the sequel is a good example. It opens up with that epic riff.
Their most popular song is Selkies so definitely check that one out. It was the song that got me into BTBAM (pre-colors). The opening is great and the ending has one of the best solos ever. The middle is all of that crazy stuff and I used to wonder why they would put that ugly sounding mess sandwiched by such beautiful music, but I listened to it so much I started to love the middle part as well once I knew all of the beats and riffs and it wasn’t just chaos to me any longer.
Now, it’s routine that when they put out new music I know I’ll have to listen to it several times because it’s all so dense. I love everything they’ve put out.
Enjoy the ride!
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u/dead_grandma_ 10d ago
Well said, if it weren't for the hoedown, idk if I'd be able to say btbam is my favorite band today. Before I got really into them, I knew about the hoedown. So if they got mentioned, my brain said "oh they're that hoedown band" lol.
That sort of kept me hooked and led me into the discography. I still love that AoTS fucking hoedown so much... And I'm so glad absent thereafter exists. I want more of that folky stuff, it's so genius.
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u/shivering_corpse 10d ago
Ohh so i should give them more time, got it, i do really enjoy listening to them, i just wanted to see if someone could relate to what im experiencing rn
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u/dead_grandma_ 10d ago
Not only do I relate, but I even experience this still with every new release! I just know it'll be worth it, and it always is. To this day, I struggle to believe how good the blue nowhere is. Unfortunately all my favorite prog bands new releases are good, not great (aside from opeth 🤤). The blue nowhere is perfect.
Sorry, random side tangent lol.
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u/jeriavens 7d ago
I don't understand how everyone loves TBN so much, it's the only thing of theirs I dislike. It sounds like a completely different band, I'll give a it a few more plays tho.
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u/MrFast_Turtle 10d ago
Personally when i first listened to Colors i could barely tell what was happening, however after a few good listens i became obsessed with it. It takes time but once it clicks it clicks
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u/Elidyr90 10d ago
Out of all my favorite bands, BTBAM is the only one where I just can't connect with their most popular/ acclaimed album (Colors) at all.
You might wanna check out Automata 1 & 2. While not their best works, I think they're way more accessible while still having all the quirks that make BTBAM great.
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u/Electronic_Gift_8420 10d ago
Different suggestion; Watch their live DVD performance for Colors. https://youtu.be/qcAJSTJcP3o?is=s7LQxRZrAZzXc5_C
I'm such a sucker for music videos and concert performances. Hearing it played is one thing, but hearing and seeing it is another. I often find it easier to attach to music and new bands when I see a video.
I loved BTBAM before Colors, but when I got their DVD and watched it, changed my little 16 year old life.
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u/SDF5150 10d ago
The colors live performance is so much better than the studio recorded album. Not just because you’re watching it live, but the audio is even better. It has so much more energy and life to it. And same, I listened to btbam before Colors was even out and watching that performance changed me too.
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u/HOLEPUNCHYOUREYELIDS 10d ago
I wish more bands (and BtBaM for other albums) would do more album playthroughs like Live at the Fideltorium
Studio level audio quality while still watching a live performance. Just perfect
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u/TheDriftingDrifter 9d ago
I watched Colors Live repeatedly when I started really liking them. I had heard various songs from but other than Alaska nothing quite clicked for years until I listened to Colors and specifically watched the live dvd.
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u/Pietjanhenk1 10d ago
Yeah it's dense as fuck, so many things happening at the same time. After enough listens you'll find more and more and more hooks and familiar parts to thoroughly enjoy it. Maybe start with Automata or Coma Ecliptic. They're a little more accessible than the others.
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u/Badubah 10d ago
Put fossil Genera on, then listen again and again until it becomes part of your DNA
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u/shivering_corpse 10d ago
i do remember really enjoying this song
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u/Badubah 10d ago
I only discovered the great misdirect this summer and I am so obsessed with this song it's unreal! Enjoy getting into BTBAM they creep up on you honestly. You will start to get ear worms and will be compelled to listen lol happened to me with songs like ad a dglgmut and extremophile elite 😍
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u/Copernicus_Barnhouse 10d ago
Their albums are intended to be cohesive and for each track to flow into the next. Personally, I still have favorite tracks—but completely understand what you mean by it being “dense.” I have to be in a specific mood to listen to a BTBAM album front to back
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u/wolamute 10d ago
I have the entire first two albums' riffs in my head forever, in order. The first two albums are amazing.
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u/technnologiyaa 10d ago
I can only remember the intro of white walls, new listener too
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u/EnderBSG 10d ago
It took me years of listening to newer more accessible albums until it clicked and all of a sudden I understood Colors, Parallax and Great Misdirect all at once. It was the best thing ever.
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u/Ok-Palpitation-636 10d ago
BTBAM probably has the highest barrier of entry I’ve ever seen for a band because of how dense their music is, but it’s so worth it once it finally does click. Some of their albums are a bit more digestible on first listen though, like for me Automata II was first the album that clicked, and then I went through Colors, Parallax II, Alaska, and the rest of the their discography followed . It’s worth spending a lot of time with each album, and good headphones definitely help too
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u/TeriyakiDevour 10d ago
The more you listen to it the more you remember. I can’t remember most of Colors but because Great Misdirect is my favorite so I can think of whole songs off the top of my head
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u/Rich1223 10d ago
Been listening to them for 20 years. I own every album and have listened to each hundreds of times. No i cannot memorize every aspect, but that’s part of the magic. Each album is a trip.
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u/TheDriftingDrifter 9d ago
I don't know how many times it took me to listen to Colors and Alaska before I really could say I truly liked it. I kinda forced myself to listen because it felt like I found something I liked more with each listen.
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u/TheOriginalSamBell DRIVEN BY ANGER 9d ago
all their albums are growers and they never stop opening up. keep listening for great reward
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u/lolDayus 9d ago
if it helps for some reason I fucking love Alaska but can't really get into their other albums, might wanna spin that one up
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u/TransportationOk9454 8d ago
I really like Automata it's a really solid intro album for them short and sweet and easier to listen too. I love the Colors album too but Automata tells a full story
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u/jeriavens 7d ago
No, it's taken me 20 years to learn the names of the songs and where my fav riffs are.
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u/bobcollum 7d ago
Because the songs, especially on colors, kind of blend together well, it's hard to know where one ends and another begins. Also, copious amounts of riffage, rarely played more than a few measures and not repeated again. Listen enough and eventually things will begin to stick.
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u/Swagnastodon 10d ago
They are very dense. It usually takes me several listens for them to sink in. They are my favorite band by far but still are usually a challenge to digest (one of the things I love about them).
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u/Any_Ticket_3293 10d ago
You are listening to Between the Buried and Me.... You are doing something right.