Back in early 2006, as I'd been settling into fresh surroundings both physical (East Bay, California) and digital (Notebook of DESTINY!!!), I decided I'd 192k MP3 (or reMP3) my CD collection over the course of eventuality. As a result, I was able to precisely identify the spectrum of my musical taste.

Anime, Hip-Hop, Rock, Videogame and Miscellaneous soundtracks. Rap & Rock is pretty easy to figure (Wu-Tang Clan & Dream Theater), but when it comes to the rest, it's a whole other kettle of fish--and since I hate fish, I'll break it down like this:

Amongst the scores of great Japanese animation scores that've graced my ear, my favorites come from Evangelion (both of them), Macross (MANY of them), and Yami to Boushi to Hon no Tabibito; their moods, flavors, and instrumentations are various and dynamic. Their soundtracks jam one minute, flirt the next, pull at your heart, and fling you headlong into battle. I especially dig how Shirou Sagisu (Evangelion, Macross II) tells that electric guitar to ROCK with a full orchestra behind it. MADD HUUGE RESPECT to Yoko Kanno (Macross Plus, Escaflowne, Cowboy Bebop). I enjoy quite a few chirpy and poppy J-Pop songs, too; my collection of H-Game themes is thick. And the jazz-rockin' tunes of Steam Detectives are extremely pimp.

Long before live instruments, CD Audio, and XA Files helped improve the quality of the mood, videogame music had been a long-established favorite. (Super Marioland. Chai Kingdom. Summer 1990. 'Nuff said.) The best game music perfectly sets the aural stage for the task at hand: the fight of your life; futuristic racing at blinding speeds; anticipating the stick that'll complete a Tetris. Videogame music is FUN. My favorite game tunes have come out of the CastleVania (Super IV's remaining absolutely MIRACULOUS to this day), Mega Man, F-Zero, Ghouls 'n Ghosts, Joe & Mac, Metroid, Donkey Kong Country, Thunder Force, and Parodius series...to name a batch.

Movie soundtracks (Aliens, The Lion King, Twister) compose the bulk of the Miscellaneous collection. On that note, Igor Stravinsky and Sergei Prokofiev are two of my favorite composers of the Classical way. WQXR on the FM-side locally runs Classical music all-day-e'y-day, and I pretty much enjoy all of it.

Can't say the same for Hot97, though. From late 1998 'til the dawn of spring in 2003, this childhood pop station was my go-to for Hip-Hop, Rap, and R&B; enter KROCK until its demises in 200V and 20IX. (Meanwhile, iTunes began to move in on WinAMP and even my poor MixCDs...)

Following the World Trades Affair in 2001, I discovered (for a few years) Talk Radio beyond The Howard Stern Show (THE MAN!!!), and enjoyed Kurtis and Kuby, Art Bell, Shawn Hannity, and John Batchelor & Paul Alexander.

That should just about cover it. To wrap things up, my turn-of-the-century list of favorite Hip-Hop and Rap artists upon which this part of the Epitaph was founded:

I miss Howard.

I never got Eh-EHT-Eh... -_-