Michael Fremer said :-

[anthonyTD]

Indeed!

I tend to switch off whenever anyone starts talking about music they don’t like, to be honest.

It’s such a changeable thing, for me at least. My preferences change with age, with mood, with environment, with weather....whatever!

If you’re going to talk about music, tell me what you like now with passion, not about what you don’t like.

Life’s too short for that shit.

There’s too much good stuff (past, present and future) for any one human to listen to in a single lifetime, so I only want to hear what you think is worth listening to, not reasons why it’s not.


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[Pharos]

Name just one then. This is the same bollocks as the myth that there are people with massively expensive systems but who only own a handful of recordings. They don't exist. The reality is the people with massively expensive systems also have huge collections of vinyl and CD, more than they could ever have the time to listen to.

The reason people still listen to - and bang on about - The Eagles, Steely Dan, Led Zep and so on is because they were brilliant, a cut way above the average. So their music remains popular and timeless. Funnily enough you could say the same about The Beatles, but Beatles fans never get accused of living in the past, or having limited taste or any of that nonsense. There's more content on this site about the Beatles, and the zillion re-issues of the Beatles, than about any other band put together.

Likewise people listening to classical like Bach, Beethoven, Mozart also never get any of this sort of grief, and yet that music has been around for hundreds of years. Talk about living in the past! Once again, the continuing popularity of their compositions is down to their genius. No doubt there were a thousand other composers running around at the same time as they were and who have disappeared into obscurity. The cream always rises to the top and stays there forever. Mediocrity gets forgotten.

I disagree with the last point, much mediocrity gets loved and cherished for all sorts of reasons.

Taste in music provides a sociological insight into the aficionado.

[Pharos]

Yes Anthony, but the point it there's LOADS of great music produced today, some of which I've posted videos of, which is far from being mediocre. You just have to be willing to widen your horizons a bit and not get stuck in a rut.

Marco.

I think what made much music great, at least initially, was that it did widen our experience by revealing new concepts.

[Pharos]

I tend to switch off whenever anyone starts talking about music they don’t like, to be honest.

It’s such a changeable thing, for me at least. My preferences change with age, with mood, with environment, with weather....whatever!

If you’re going to talk about music, tell me what you like now with passion, not about what you don’t like.

Life’s too short for that shit.

There’s too much good stuff (past, present and future) for any one human to listen to in a single lifetime, so I only want to hear what you think is worth listening to, not reasons why it’s not.


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Yes, we change and grow, and so music's relationship with us changes.

[Joe]

Is there a list somewhere that I can check my music collection against to ascertain which of it is great, good, mediocre or shite?

[anthonyTD]

Just list it all here, and i am sure someone will tell you what's what!

Is there a list somewhere that I can check my music collection against to ascertain which of it is great, good, mediocre or shite?

[mightymonoped]

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[Marco]

I do give that impression I suppose but it's mainly to wind people up.

About the only genres I don't listen to are country/western, classical, acoustic folk and World. I've got a fairly extensive collection of rap and hip hop, that seems to be a pretty rare thing - on this site anyway. And it only scratches the surface of what is out there in that genre. Same with jazz. There isn't enough time to listen to all the really good stuff that has already been done, let alone spend it seeking out new bands who are really just re-hashing what has been done before. Sometimes I think people just do that for the sake of it, or so they can say that they do it as some sort of musical taste virtue signalling. Music for me is not a commodity to be consumed, and I don't want to accumulate shelves full of obscure music by obscure artists that I'm never going to play again once the novelty has worn off because, frankly, it wasn't much cop to begin with.

There are bands/artists I really like from years ago and I haven't got anything like all the stuff they ever did yet. Curtis Mayfield for example. I'd rather spend my time exploring what remains to be got at there than chase about looking for something new that might be worth bothering with. The way I see it, if a new band/artist is really good, and genuinely creating new and exciting sounds, I'll hear about them anyway. The cream rises to the top. I won't need to seek them out.

Lol... Well, I don't think you're really winding anyone up, certainly not me, but for what purpose would you portray an image of yourself that's false?

I don't do 'yee-hah' country and western, but quite enjoy the likes of Johnny Cash, and wouldn't really rule out anything on the basis that it was classed as 'country'. I certainly listen to 'acoustic folk' and love lots of world music. However your complete ruling out of classical music does surprise me, as aside from anything else, so much other great music and film scores have been inspired by it.

So what's the deal then with you not liking classical - what is it about it that doesn't float your boat?

Rap and hip-hop was a genre I wasn't much into until recently. I've always liked some of it, but never really explored it properly, but that changed when I installed the car system, with a 12" sub in the boot, which pumps out levels of bass that can make you feel queasy! For me, you need a system that can genuinely shift air and deliver huge dollops of sphincter-tight, controlled and extended low-frequencies, in order to properly appreciate the likes of rap, hip-hop and reggae.

In that respect, all three genres are what I reach for first when playing music in the car, as it's just a riot!!

In terms of time for listening to all the good music that's out there, well when you're retired you'll have all the time in the world, so why not use some of it to discover some new music you might really like?

I certainly do, and it can be a very rewarding experience. I spend around half my time listening to the great music I've got (on various formats), and the other discovering new stuff. I just get a buzz out of finding new music that hits the spot, sometimes from the unlikeliest of places, especially if I've heard it live, which otherwise I may never have known existed.

For me it's not about 'accumulating shelves full of obscure music', just to be 'different', trendy or whatever, but rather expanding my musical horizons and broadening my 'palate', much in the same way as I do with food or wine, and so would no sooner stick to eating chargrilled steak and chips, because I liked it, and not experiment with tasting other types of food/flavours, than I would listening to <insert your favourite band here> all the time, because I like them. Variety is the spice of life!!

And in terms of this bit, I completely disagree:

The way I see it, if a new band/artist is really good, and genuinely creating new and exciting sounds, I'll hear about them anyway. The cream rises to the top. I won't need to seek them out.

In reality, that's not often the case, as whether the music of any talented musician(s) becomes well-known or not, depends on a number of factors, not least of all luck and also how good your promoter is... There are 1000s of very talented bands/artists out there who have never became 'famous', and aren't likely to either, simply because the music that they produce doesn't really appeal to mainstream audiences, but if I liked it, I'd still rather own their output, or take active steps to discover them in the first place, than wait until they (if ever) made it big.

So quite simply, by not seeking out such music you're potentially depriving yourself of discovering stuff that you might absolutely love, or grow to do so, more than anything else you've EVER heard before - yes even Steely Dan!

No, much like the food I eat, my musical diet *must* be suitably rewarding and diverse, as otherwise I'd get bored, and listening to music would not be the emotionally rewarding and special experience it can often be.

Marco.

[anthonyTD]

In reality, that's not often the case, as whether the music of any talented musician(s) becomes well-known or not, depends on a number of factors, not least of all luck and also how good your promoter is... There are 1000s of very talented bands/artists out there who have never became 'famous', and aren't likely to either, simply because the music that they produce doesn't really appeal to mainstream audiences, but if I liked it, I'd still rather own their output, or take active steps to discover them in the first place, than wait until they (if ever) made it big.

So quite simply, by not seeking out such music you're potentially depriving yourself of discovering stuff that you might absolutely love, or grow to do so, more than anything else you've EVER heard before - yes even Steely Dan!

Marco.

[Pigmy Pony]

Is there a list somewhere that I can check my music collection against to ascertain which of it is great, good, mediocre or shite?

No need - if it's in your collection, and you like it and play it, then it IS great. Easy to discern which is the shite, it's the stuff you can't be bothered with. And sod everyone else