On Music: A Poll of Sorts
At the Joe Moon Invitational Texas Hold 'Em Tournament/Seafood Barbecue I was asked what kind of music I liked.
As most of you know, my taste in music is mostly non-existent. Mostly I just like They Might Be Giants, Weird Al, video game music and the like. The traditional hard-core nerd stuff, without anything that anyone would consider "serious" music. When I was talking to Chris about this, I mentioned that when I was a kid I decided that most songs weren't about anything that I was interested in. So I simply didn't listen, thus missing out on the traditional formative period in one's musical tastes. As I told him, I recognize now that I'm probably missing something, but it doesn't really matter to me enough to try to fix it.
But then I was talking to Dave a few days later and it occurred to me that this isn't really right. I have always had a musical taste - it is just almost totally dependent on content. For example, I like the Star Wars Gangsta Rap, but I don't really like gangsta rap. I like The Picard Song, but I don't like techno in general. And I like Finite Simple Group (Of Order Two) without caring for a capella. Despite the differences in form, these songs all share one peculiar characteristic: they are centrally concerned with some topic that I care about.
But then I got to thinking some more, coming to the point of this post. Up to this point I had been assuming that I was simply freakish (not a terrible assumption, I'd wager). But then I thought that maybe deep down this is much the same for everyone. I suppose people want music that speaks to them. As best as I can tell, for most people this is love or its lack, alienation from society, or meditation on "the scene". So I'd like to ask any readers of this post if I'm coming anywhere near what motivates you (or other people that you know) to listen to the music that you like. Would you consider yourself more attracted to the content or to the form of a song? And if I am on the completely wrong track, do you think that there is a way to explain it to me? Or is it as futile as describing color to a blind man; without the requisite equipment I'm just never going to get it?
-Nick
05/10/2005: Edited for correctness.
As most of you know, my taste in music is mostly non-existent. Mostly I just like They Might Be Giants, Weird Al, video game music and the like. The traditional hard-core nerd stuff, without anything that anyone would consider "serious" music. When I was talking to Chris about this, I mentioned that when I was a kid I decided that most songs weren't about anything that I was interested in. So I simply didn't listen, thus missing out on the traditional formative period in one's musical tastes. As I told him, I recognize now that I'm probably missing something, but it doesn't really matter to me enough to try to fix it.
But then I was talking to Dave a few days later and it occurred to me that this isn't really right. I have always had a musical taste - it is just almost totally dependent on content. For example, I like the Star Wars Gangsta Rap, but I don't really like gangsta rap. I like The Picard Song, but I don't like techno in general. And I like Finite Simple Group (Of Order Two) without caring for a capella. Despite the differences in form, these songs all share one peculiar characteristic: they are centrally concerned with some topic that I care about.
But then I got to thinking some more, coming to the point of this post. Up to this point I had been assuming that I was simply freakish (not a terrible assumption, I'd wager). But then I thought that maybe deep down this is much the same for everyone. I suppose people want music that speaks to them. As best as I can tell, for most people this is love or its lack, alienation from society, or meditation on "the scene". So I'd like to ask any readers of this post if I'm coming anywhere near what motivates you (or other people that you know) to listen to the music that you like. Would you consider yourself more attracted to the content or to the form of a song? And if I am on the completely wrong track, do you think that there is a way to explain it to me? Or is it as futile as describing color to a blind man; without the requisite equipment I'm just never going to get it?
-Nick
05/10/2005: Edited for correctness.