It's unfortunate...

[Jmac 10+ year member]

I'm a big fan of music. I'm always looking for something new... something exciting. I use stuff like Pandora to find new music, I ask friends what they like in hopes of finding new stuff. I browse other peoples' iPods and whatnot.
It kills me, though, when people just take whats given to them on the top 40 radio station. For example, I could be in my car with my girlfriend listening to Brothers in Arms, by Dire Straits. The most popular song on that album is "Money for Nothing". The only song that my girlfriend is interested in hearing is... you guessed it, Money for Nothing. There's 8 more perfectly good songs on that album that she could care less about. But it's not just that album; Dire Straits has lots of other albums, also with great music on them. Mark Knopfler (Dire Straits lead singer) has some amazing solo work. (Thanks, Thieroff)

It just bugs the crap out of me that every time a song that has been on the radio plays, my girl will go "OOO! I like that song!" Why are so many people so content just listening to what the DJ hands them? Especially with newer music... the stuff on the radio sucks and blows HARD. Your best bet for finding good new music is finding stuff that isn't on the airwaves.

/rant

I have 4.5 words for you ...

This is why I'm hot

 

[elementxero 10+ year member]

My trouble is I listen to music in an odd fashion. Most people, I am guessing from experience, are lyrics people (GF is one of them), they listen to the words and get a reaction from the words. I am this way with some artists; Tom Petty, Tom Waits, Steppenwolf, Porcupine Tree etc etc. But, mostly I am a instrumental guy. That doesn't mean I like songs with just instruments, I consider the voice to be a instrument. I am moved more by the sheer composition of the music and the way that everything binds to create a 'sound' than by the lyrics. I guess this is why I can be equally moved by SRV (however Tin Pan Alley and Little Wing are two of the most powerful songs SRV does IMO) and by Kronos Quintet.

One of the only people I've heard experience music this way other than me. I have always said the same thing about the instrumental elements including the vocals and building a general feeling. The only exception of course is rap lyrics, but even then the vocalist makes a huge difference.

 

[jco1385 5,000+ posts]

I have 4.5 words for you ...
This is why I'm hot

thats 5.5 //content.invisioncic.com/y282845/emoticons/fyi.gif.9f1f679348da7204ce960cfc74bca8e0.gif

 

[ThomasG 5,000+ posts]

Before I get going I would just like to mention that it is hard for me to put what I feel about music into words. So this might be a little wordy.

Yes jampc, it is unfortunate. I myself, can not stand the most of the top 40 garbage. Music is more than just noise to me. To me, music is the most powerful way of communication. I see Pink Floyd's Dark side of the moon more than just an album. I take the message into my daily life, the beauty of instruments and voice give me chills and a feeling I don't know how to describe.

This part really got to me

The goal is not to hear the music, I hear music everyday, it is to be the music. To disappear into a mental state where there is nothing but beautiful wonderful sound. When this is done properly there are no walls, floors, ceiling, CD Players, Pre-Amplifier, Loudspeakers, Amplifiers, Chairs, people, only music.

I understand exactly what you are saying. I have always tried to word this out, but can never quite get it out right.

 

[perfecxionX 10+ year member]

There is a lot of elitism, which I guess I'm guilty of from time to time as well. But some of these posts are horrendously jaded. If people really love music, then they should be able to appreciate other people's tastes for music. You're allowed to have your opinion on whether it's good or not, but that doesn't mean the other person is necessarily wrong.

devil driver you are an asset to this board

 

[1991Brougham 10+ year member]

Music appreciation for me started at a young age. We had a Magnavox hifi cabinet model and a collection of various records. I found music gave me such a rush of energy and that made me want to listen to more of it. Music was like a drug in it's effects!

Since this was long ago in a galaxy far away, all we had for radio in my hometown was 3 AM stations and I received a 5 tube AM radio when I was 8 as a birthday present. One station played Top 40, one played some Top 40 and various scheduled programs from ABC's radio network and one played a mix of Top 40 and country hits. Now that I knew what the hits were as a child, I wanted the albums.

That is when music got to be really fun! I'd listen to the whole album to see what new discoveries in terms of "unplayed on the radio" music would turn up. Groups that became stars without much airplay also got my attention. Groups that were known for big hits but came out with non-Top 40 albums got listened to. My tastes expanded but the energy content of music remained high and so did the emotional content.

As to what floats anyone's boat in music, I'm fine with that. The important connection between the other person who loves their music and me is that we both love music. I'll listen to quite a different selection of styles. In Louisiana, one of my stepsons introduced me to "the jams" on a New Orleans station. Pretty mellow stuff it was! I didn't care for rap too much but when I heard KLF, I really dug all the different things they did in their album "The White Room", which showed how rap could fuse quite well with rock. "Delta Dawn" by Tanya Tucker always gets me going even if it is a country song and since I like politically inclined music, ol' Merle Haggard came across my way one day with his song "America First". It really gets a point made and you can listen to it at:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6jrHPjm4qKM

Variety is the spice of life and what more spice could one want for one's head than all the different kinds of music out there...and a decent stereo system to enjoy it on!

Rick

 

[wu36ca 10+ year member]

This reminds me of a couple of weeks ago I was riding in my friend's car. He only listens to popular bands. He was going through the radio and couldn't find anything to listen to and said the radio sucked. A couple of week's later he was in my car and I was listening to some Mobb Deep and he was kept asking me to play their mainstream songs //content.invisioncic.com/y282845/emoticons/confused.gif.e820e0216602db4765798ac39d28caa9.gif

I do not mind what people listen to, but I do mind when people question what I listen to. I like hip hop, heavy metal, punk, and some new wave/80's stuff. And I will give credit where credit is due. I can see the catchiness of stuff like country and indie rock even though those are not my particular tastes. Whenever I wear a shirt of one of the bands I like I always get how can you listen to that shit. I do not like the mentality that if its not on the radio it's not good music. I hear it all the time.

I was always kind of the angsty type and that molded my musical tastes. I needed to hear music that was angry. it made me feel better. It started with gangsta rap surprisingly and moved onto the heavy forms of guitar driven music. I probably would have given up on life if I did not have headphones to bury my head in to vent frustration. After awhile I decided I want to play music. I started playing guitar. I started kind of later in life after the time where I had all the time in the world to practice (I started at the end of undergrad in college and I am currently working full time and going to grad school), but you better believe every free moment I have I have my guitar in hand.

I understand the power of music that is why I appreciate all music even if it is not something I particularly care to listen to. I think I can seriously say I love music. Unfortunately those who just use music as a disposable commodity have the nerve to question.

To those who say music has changed for the worse over the last 50 years has to remember that most music until around the 70's was sponsored by big labels. And most of the major artists had writers for a lot of their music. There was very little in the way of underground. Now there are 10 million labels putting out music no one has heard. Music is probably the least commercial it has ever been.

Hopefully someone reads a tenth of this rant.

 

[joetama 5,000+ posts]

devil driver you are an asset to this board

When Neil posts, everyone should stop and think about what he has said...

I don't always agree with him, but he makes me think and always brings up relevant points..

 

[jer_stud56 10+ year member]

I play guitar hero III quite a bit, and I liked the In Flames - Take This Life song. I now have most of their albums. I love listening to stuff not on the radio, but also stuff that is on the radio.

I'll listen to the whole cd though. No point in just listening to just one song just cause everyone else does the same...

 

[plushDJ 10+ year member]

I'm a music lover but way different from what you guys are posting.

It's gonna be hard to explain for me but music is different, for me I can't listen to the lyrics and get a meaning out of it. I can definately understand their message but it doesn't touch me for some reason. I'm a state of mind person, the kind of music I listen to will reflect my mood. For example; Pink Floyd will chill me out, metal will pump me up and fill me with adrenaline. I listen to and spin a lot of dance music (hardstyle, hardhouse, and hardtrance specifically) because it lifts me up, lets me focus, and gives me more natural energy than any Red Bull or drug ever will.

btw: I hate the radio. 100% of the time when I'm at work I listen to sports talk radio (Jim Rome FTMFW!!) because I find a lot of the top 40 makes me dumber.

And when you talk mainstream, I can't even find my music in stores, I have to buy it ALL online //content.invisioncic.com/y282845/emoticons/frown.gif.a3531fa0534503350665a1e957861287.gif

 

[faulkton 5,000+ posts]

i disagree that to enjoy music you need to understand music theory.

That is stupid.

I really enjoy music, and probably buy more than most people here, but do not play any instrument. For me, music is 100% enjoyment and i do not want to add any amount of frustration (learning to play) to something that is 100% pleasure.