Post by Irk on Sept 12, 2009 16:14:33 GMT -5
I got this idea for a little debate thread after an incident last night.
Recently (VERY recently, this was only my second time), I've been listening to a weekly live online radio show that comes equipped with a chat. Often, the DJs on the show will ask a question on air, people in the chat will respond, and the DJs will read off some of the answers and respond to them. Last night on the show, they played a few remastered Beatles tracks and asked the chat how they thought the remasters stood up to the original releases. A couple people responded, but since I'm not too familiar with The Beatles, I didn't respond. Eventually, one of the DJs typed to me in the chat, asking what I thought. I admitted that I didn't listen to the Beatles very much, hadn't heard an original Beatles recording in YEARS, and honestly, I didn't even know the song that was playing at the time. (STILL can't tell you what it was!)
He then proceeded to announce on the air that Irk Splee had cost him his faith in humanity by not being a Beatles fan.
I DID go on to explain that while I appreciate their contribution to music, the few songs I heard didn't inspire me to go out and check out an album, even what's playing now isn't giving me that urge, and besides, I got into 90's Eurodance when my age was still in the single digits and devoted so much energy into it that I haven't had time to wander out of the electronic genre much since then. I never once insulted The Beatles or their fans and never suggested they weren't talented - they just aren't my genre and after hearing a handful of songs, I'm not touched enough to go digging in when there's a million albums out there that I haven't listened to yet that match my tastes a bit more. I still didn't convince him to shut up on the air about how I have no taste in music, so I dropped it.
My question is this - do you believe there are albums that EVERYONE should listen to, no matter their musical tastes? Should a metal fan HAVE to listen to an ABBA album because they're so influential to pop music? Should a fan of heavy techno HAVE to go pick up a couple country albums, even though what he's heard has all had him reaching for an ice pick to jam into his skull? And the reverse - should a mellow country fan HAVE to listen to some pulsing rave music just to see where it's coming from?
My opinion is no - there's SO much music out there that I don't think time should be wasted on stuff you don't like just to save some face. It's not that I wasn't willing to try The Beatles because I just KNEW I wouldn't like them - it's that I heard about a dozen songs and none of them stood out to me enough to make me crave more or even remember them after they've ended. And this goes for pretty much everything. I'm a huge pusher for musical diversity, but headings like pop and dance and rock and metal are all so inclusive that someone can listen to "just metal" or "just dance" and still love a wide range of styles. If someone tries a few songs from an artist and decides that no, it's not to their taste, I don't think they should be forced to keep listening until they hopefully find something they like - if anything, that's probably a good way to make them resent this stupid artist who keeps getting shoved down their throats.
Do I respect The Beatles? Yes. Do I realize just what an impact they've had on rock music? Yes. Do I acknowledge they had talent and earned every penny and drop of fame they got? Yes. Would I rather be listening to something else? Yes.
I don't want to look like I'm picking on The Beatles, but, well, that was the example that got brought up last night and inspired this topic and I can't really think of any other SUPER INFLUENTIAL bands that I heard a few songs of, didn't like, and therefore I'm a crappy person because I don't listen to this certain musical act.
So, discussion: Should people listen to albums that fly completely in the face of their tastes just because they're influential? Is someone less of a music fan if they honestly don't care for certain popular acts? Is it wrong to keep your tastes under one genre umbrella, no matter how big that umbrella might be? Opinions! I want opinions!
Recently (VERY recently, this was only my second time), I've been listening to a weekly live online radio show that comes equipped with a chat. Often, the DJs on the show will ask a question on air, people in the chat will respond, and the DJs will read off some of the answers and respond to them. Last night on the show, they played a few remastered Beatles tracks and asked the chat how they thought the remasters stood up to the original releases. A couple people responded, but since I'm not too familiar with The Beatles, I didn't respond. Eventually, one of the DJs typed to me in the chat, asking what I thought. I admitted that I didn't listen to the Beatles very much, hadn't heard an original Beatles recording in YEARS, and honestly, I didn't even know the song that was playing at the time. (STILL can't tell you what it was!)
He then proceeded to announce on the air that Irk Splee had cost him his faith in humanity by not being a Beatles fan.
I DID go on to explain that while I appreciate their contribution to music, the few songs I heard didn't inspire me to go out and check out an album, even what's playing now isn't giving me that urge, and besides, I got into 90's Eurodance when my age was still in the single digits and devoted so much energy into it that I haven't had time to wander out of the electronic genre much since then. I never once insulted The Beatles or their fans and never suggested they weren't talented - they just aren't my genre and after hearing a handful of songs, I'm not touched enough to go digging in when there's a million albums out there that I haven't listened to yet that match my tastes a bit more. I still didn't convince him to shut up on the air about how I have no taste in music, so I dropped it.
My question is this - do you believe there are albums that EVERYONE should listen to, no matter their musical tastes? Should a metal fan HAVE to listen to an ABBA album because they're so influential to pop music? Should a fan of heavy techno HAVE to go pick up a couple country albums, even though what he's heard has all had him reaching for an ice pick to jam into his skull? And the reverse - should a mellow country fan HAVE to listen to some pulsing rave music just to see where it's coming from?
My opinion is no - there's SO much music out there that I don't think time should be wasted on stuff you don't like just to save some face. It's not that I wasn't willing to try The Beatles because I just KNEW I wouldn't like them - it's that I heard about a dozen songs and none of them stood out to me enough to make me crave more or even remember them after they've ended. And this goes for pretty much everything. I'm a huge pusher for musical diversity, but headings like pop and dance and rock and metal are all so inclusive that someone can listen to "just metal" or "just dance" and still love a wide range of styles. If someone tries a few songs from an artist and decides that no, it's not to their taste, I don't think they should be forced to keep listening until they hopefully find something they like - if anything, that's probably a good way to make them resent this stupid artist who keeps getting shoved down their throats.
Do I respect The Beatles? Yes. Do I realize just what an impact they've had on rock music? Yes. Do I acknowledge they had talent and earned every penny and drop of fame they got? Yes. Would I rather be listening to something else? Yes.
I don't want to look like I'm picking on The Beatles, but, well, that was the example that got brought up last night and inspired this topic and I can't really think of any other SUPER INFLUENTIAL bands that I heard a few songs of, didn't like, and therefore I'm a crappy person because I don't listen to this certain musical act.
So, discussion: Should people listen to albums that fly completely in the face of their tastes just because they're influential? Is someone less of a music fan if they honestly don't care for certain popular acts? Is it wrong to keep your tastes under one genre umbrella, no matter how big that umbrella might be? Opinions! I want opinions!
