Music is incredibly powerful for me. I'd go as far as saying that it's not only helped keep me relatively sane, it's actually helped to save my life.
I'd say that punk helped me pop the boil of anger and resentment I had festering in me at that time. Then Replicas by Tubeway Army in 1979 helped me greatly with my deep sense of alienation. I found a place where I could more effectively get my head around living in what I felt was a nightmarish dystopia I neither belonged in or wanted to be in.
By 1981 Faith, by The Cure arrived. I was barely surviving at this point in my life. Crippled by extreme anxiety that virtually paralyzed me. This was a dense, claustrophobic album with soundscapes that perfectly matched my mood. Deeply depressing for most casual listeners, but I found it comforting.
1982 brought Pornography by The Cure. A relentless, unforgiving trawl through the endless depths of psychological breakdown. A migraine on vinyl with a horror movie cover. Angry, dark yet utterly beautiful and cathartic to me as I slid further into the black hole that was my mental state.
Amazingly, I'm still alive in 1989 when Disintegration by The Cure arrived. An absolute masterpiece of an album. This one has some lighter moments though, but not too many. The opening chimes of Plainsong still give me goosebumps today.
I've got hundreds of albums and so many have played a real part in helping me to get through. But Replicas, Faith, Pornography and Disintegration have been soundtracks to my life. More than just music. Therapy, companions, comforts and deeply cathartic. If not for them, I doubt I'd be alive today.
For me, that highlights the power of music.