7. CrimpshrineDuct Tape Soup

This band was on [Green Day’s early label] Lookout Records, and they had some of the shittiest-sounding records of all time, but also some of the sweetest and best melodies that I’ve ever heard. That was right around the time where I left metal. I specifically remember having Metallica’s Kill ’Em All, which I still love, in my little cassette player, and taking that out and putting Duct Tape Soup in there. This album, and a couple of other demos from the East Bay that I’d been given, never left my cassette player. To me, Duct Tape Soup was, “This is who I am”. It was completely relatable, with shitty instruments and shitty-sounding amps, but great melodies and great songs. My father used to tell me that he could never listen to our early records because they were such bad quality, but I’m glad I have an ear that can listen to albums that aren’t recorded in super hi-fi, because you find a lot of diamonds in the dirt.