"Music," Ayn Rand wrote, "is experienced as if it had the power to reach man's emotions directly."  Indeed, music moves us not by means of logic, but by appealing to what Rand called one's sense of life -- the subconscious view of existence one holds, including one's own metaphysical value judgments.  Listening to music that reinforces one's own individualistic sense of life is a gratifying and self-liberating experience.

      There is no one particular style of music that can be called individualistic.  Certainly classical music seems especially well-suited to thoughtful contemplation, but it is impossible to single out any single piece or composer that represents individualism per se.  Any evaluation of a particular piece of music will necessarily be very personal in nature.  However, lyrical music often presents clear, objective messages.  On that basis, I suggest the following albums, whose lyrics extol individualist themes.