Corb Lund goes 5 for 20

When you’re an influential musician, people tend to ask you what you’ve been listening to lately. Here at 5 for 20, we’re just as keen to find out what records loom large in our favourite artists’ memory banks. So, we’re asking folks for their top five records of the last 20 years.

This week we hear from popular Alberta country star Corb Lund, who’s touring across Canada behind his acclaimed new LP, Cabin Fever. Before his gives the Maritimes what for this week, we caught up with Lund and asked him to do us a solid and go 5 for 20.

“The last 20 years pretty much covers the exact footprint of my musical career, so this is going to be records that I’ve witnessed coming out as I was also playing music, which is a little different than formative records I would have listened to as a youth,” he explains. “Hmm. Tough narrowing it down. I know I’m going to have light bulbs going off the second I submit this, reminding me of records I should have included, but here we go.”

Dresden Dollsby Dresden Dolls (2004)

“I think Amanda Palmer is a great songwriting piano player and this is one of my very favourite records for years and years. I think her talent has been overshadowed by all the tweeting and everything.”

Gone by Dwight Yoakam (1995)

“I’ve always liked DY both because of the music itself, and because of his outsider/fringe status within country music. This is his seventh record and possibly my favourite. Gotta respect guys that can keep it up that long.”

To Ride, Shoot Straight and Speak the Truth by Entombed (1997)

“This is my favourite metal album of the last 20 years, especially ‘Like This with the Devil.’ It was a tough call between these guys and Witchery. This stuff speaks to my Viking roots.”

Dan Carlin's Hardcore Historyby Dan Carlin (podcast)

“He’s my all-time favourite artist and I discovered him a number of years ago. Best use of historical stuff to tell personally enthused stories that I’ve ever found, and he’s inspired a lot of my work.”

Wild Young Hearts by Noisettes (2009)

“I love the fusion on this between raw rock band and, what is that? R&B? It’s tasty, whatever it is. I listened the hell out of this record the last few years.”