Best Riffage Ever

Last fall (or winter) I took a History of Rock class. The next quarter I took part two. The first class was better - we learned about all the first rockers, blues dudes, and all the greatness that was the 60s (definitely my favorite music era, by far). The second class was iffy (heavy metal, eh, death metal, ugh, reggae, eh), but there were a couple highlights.

My favorite song BY FAR that we studied was "Marquee Moon" by Television. It is over ten minutes long, yet the entire song captivates me, time after time. I could listen to this song on repeat a hundred times.

So what is it that I love so much? I believe it's the guitar riffs. They are so jagged, cutting, edgy. Though they are elementally simple, they still sound so fresh and original. So important.

There's a bridge toward the end of the song that includes lots of other magic, but the best part comes right after the bridge. The same riff starts back up again. It's as if the riff is some kind of addictive drug. The bridge is good, but when it comes back to the riff, it's like you got another hit of the addictive substance of your choice. (For me it's chocolate, for some it's coffee, for some it's crack. You get the point.)

This song gets me every time. It kills.