Six Songs of Me: Mikala Taylor of Backstage Rider

Mikala Taylor writes a blog at backstagerider.com . What was the first song you ever bought? Duran Duran – Planet Earth It's funny, I don't actually remember buying singles because I used to tape stuff off the radio all the time. Some of the earliest albums I owned, I was given as gifts (such as Abba's Voulez-Vous and Van Halen's 1984. WTF?). But I will never forget the day I took my allowance into a record store in Toronto (Records on Wheels, a great little indie spot) and bought Duran's first album. They had to pry it from the plastic cassette-rack thing, and I ran home with it, along with a copy of the Smash Hits. Planet Earth was incredible. That bass line … still amazing. Thanks John Taylor. What song always gets you dancing? GusGus – David I'll never forget the first time I saw GusGus, back in 1997, but this is from a later album, Attention, and is a perfect little dance song. The line "I still have last night in my body" is sublime. And when that build kicks in? Perfect electro anthem. Reading on mobile? Watch here What song takes you back to your childhood? Cat Stevens – Pop Star My dad loved Cat Stevens and we played the album Mona Bone Jakon all the time in our house. I even remember having conversations with him, while he pruned his roses about whether Lady D'Arbanville was just sleeping or actually dead. Cat Stevens is my childhood. What is your perfect love song? The Cure – Just Like Heaven It's poppier than all of the stuff I love by the Cure (I'm still a bit of a goth and prefer the darker stuff such as Faith), but this was such a crazy joyful ode. And the Dinosaur Jr cover? Awesome. What song would you want at your funeral? Lamb – Gorecki I'm being quite literal with this one. The first line is "If I should die this very moment", but I associate this song with death and life. The night I first saw it performed was on my dad's birthday in 1997. He passed away three days later of cancer, but that night I went out, full of guilt, but needed to let off some steam and was transformed by the uplifting spirit and hugeness of this song. So beautiful. A few years later I told Lou and Andy from Lamb about this, backstage at a concert, and their response was warm and kind. It's kind of a full circle song for me. A love song, too. Time for the encore. One last song that makes you, you Sebadoh – Forced Love Not the "nicest" of songs lyrically, but it's a cracker from Sebadoh's amazing album Bubble and Scrape. Always been my favourite. In 1993 I was fascinated by Sebadoh and met Lou Barlow in Vancouver and we hung out. We've stayed in touch for nearly 20 years and now I work with the band. They taught me how to love experimental/soul-searching/kick-ass/lo-fi indie rock and to this day, I'm still a fan, and proud to call them my friends. • Listen to Mikala's six songs and join in the project by telling us which songs mean the to most to you at sixsongsof.me.