Never been a normie. I grew up in the 70's and the sound track of my life was the same as everyone else. Whatever they put on the radio. Then one day, mom bought me a Count Basie record, while everyone was listening to the Police and the Who and I found jazz. Sent Columbia Arists one penny and they sent me 12 albums. Remember those days? Miles Davis, Freddie Hubbard, Grover Washington etc, etc, you got the point. By first year of college, I was listening to every major classical composer. I thought I was awakened. Little did I know, I was missing out on everything else. I got my advanced degree in NYC and discovered Salsa and Afro-cuban music back in the days of Eddie Palmieri and Tito Puente and a very rich mix of jazz and latin American music. Now I was cool? Nope. Then I saw these South American guys in the subway playing these wooden flutes. Pan Pipes, Quena, Quenacho and got interested. That opened the door to an entire new genre of folk music, Native American instruments and folk music from around the world. Irish Traditional Music, Bulgarian Music, AFrican Drumming, Hand drums from around the world, Traditional Japanese (Shakuhachi music) and Chinese traditional instruments (Dizi, xiao, Pipa, Yanqin), Indian traditional music, Pakistan and Sufi music. These sounds are not in our western ears yet millions find upliftment from them. It takes time to adapt to new sounds but once you figured it out, you can't spent your entire life listening to Pink Floyd or even Bach Piano Concerto's. It's a constant search for new sounds, new stimuli.
This is why I love the Spotify Wrapped thing — some people have the most bland and vanilla tastes, with such narrow genre, and share them like it’s totally cool to have listen to Taylor Swift, and only Taylor Swift, for 5,000 hours last year.
As someone who feel music and the creative process (writ large) is important I look for Spotify to NOT deliver artists I've heard of into my "weekly discovery" or other suggestions. The best artist you have never heard of probably lives within five miles of you (given you are in a somewhat populated area!). I still ask friends who they are listening to/watching. I listen to college radio and other listener supported radio so that I can have a steady stream of stuff I haven't heard of. And I'm getting old. I hear about super large pop artists and I've only heard the works of a few. I think the discovery part is really part of the fun. I like to be a patron, not just a fan.
Makes me think of this comic from XKCD about folks' favorite Christmas music basically helping Boomer-age humans relive their childhood: https://xkcd.com/988/
Nice article. In the first part you elude to the conservatism of people’s musical taste. This bothers me a lot, as if you’re making new and experimental music you need a daring audience to test it on. My worry is that even the most daring people now can’t give their full attention to recorded music anymore as they’re too distracted by screens. This is going to be a serious challenge for musicians making more intense and demanding music.
I'm glad to have found your writing on this. I have seen this whole "you stop listening to new music at age 30" conversation hanging around all kinds of music circles for quite a while now, and it always frustrated me how so many people seem to think that something just happens in our brain chemistry when we turn 30 that freezes our interest in music.
The original post that you reference seemed to take the same stance, a sort of fatalistic attitude: "Oh well, I'm 30 now. I guess it's time to throw in the towel and just listen to what I liked when I was a teenager."
Like what you said, it would be absurd to suggest that people's taste in movies, or literature, or art, or any other form of media freezes in their 30s, and yet so many people seem to think it's a scientific fact when it comes to music.
In my experience, our music tastes only freeze if we let it.
"an infantilized or at least arrested state of creative development"
Sorry, but this contains the assumption that the arts, including music, are on a constant upward trend, like science and technology. This is false. No one in the theater would claim that Shakespeare is "400 years behind the times" and no musician would say that Bach is 250 years "behind."
"Newness" is neither a good thing nor a bad thing. It's just one more attribute.
This is a good perspective too, I am over-indexing on 'newness' in this post as I want people to explore all the amazing new creative work being produced by unknown creators. But am also v bullish going back in time to works that have stood the test as well (frequently also not optimized by big streaming algos). Great comment
I accept the challenge. I grew up as a punk rocker, gothic rocker, going to Raves and using Limewire. In Los Angeles. You’ve awakened that part of me I had forgotten about. 🙏🏻
Every genre that's not pop continues! It just doesn't get surfaced to us. Digging through SoundCloud, Bandcamp, Beatport etc surfaces so much cool stuff. Even your local vinyl shop is a great visit. Glad to help even a little here
Never been a normie. I grew up in the 70's and the sound track of my life was the same as everyone else. Whatever they put on the radio. Then one day, mom bought me a Count Basie record, while everyone was listening to the Police and the Who and I found jazz. Sent Columbia Arists one penny and they sent me 12 albums. Remember those days? Miles Davis, Freddie Hubbard, Grover Washington etc, etc, you got the point. By first year of college, I was listening to every major classical composer. I thought I was awakened. Little did I know, I was missing out on everything else. I got my advanced degree in NYC and discovered Salsa and Afro-cuban music back in the days of Eddie Palmieri and Tito Puente and a very rich mix of jazz and latin American music. Now I was cool? Nope. Then I saw these South American guys in the subway playing these wooden flutes. Pan Pipes, Quena, Quenacho and got interested. That opened the door to an entire new genre of folk music, Native American instruments and folk music from around the world. Irish Traditional Music, Bulgarian Music, AFrican Drumming, Hand drums from around the world, Traditional Japanese (Shakuhachi music) and Chinese traditional instruments (Dizi, xiao, Pipa, Yanqin), Indian traditional music, Pakistan and Sufi music. These sounds are not in our western ears yet millions find upliftment from them. It takes time to adapt to new sounds but once you figured it out, you can't spent your entire life listening to Pink Floyd or even Bach Piano Concerto's. It's a constant search for new sounds, new stimuli.
love this
This is why I love the Spotify Wrapped thing — some people have the most bland and vanilla tastes, with such narrow genre, and share them like it’s totally cool to have listen to Taylor Swift, and only Taylor Swift, for 5,000 hours last year.
Deranged.
As someone who feel music and the creative process (writ large) is important I look for Spotify to NOT deliver artists I've heard of into my "weekly discovery" or other suggestions. The best artist you have never heard of probably lives within five miles of you (given you are in a somewhat populated area!). I still ask friends who they are listening to/watching. I listen to college radio and other listener supported radio so that I can have a steady stream of stuff I haven't heard of. And I'm getting old. I hear about super large pop artists and I've only heard the works of a few. I think the discovery part is really part of the fun. I like to be a patron, not just a fan.
Makes me think of this comic from XKCD about folks' favorite Christmas music basically helping Boomer-age humans relive their childhood: https://xkcd.com/988/
Yes nostalgia of eating frozen mac & cheese is fine but imagine how sick you'd be if you made that your whole diet (this is what many people do!)
Nice article. In the first part you elude to the conservatism of people’s musical taste. This bothers me a lot, as if you’re making new and experimental music you need a daring audience to test it on. My worry is that even the most daring people now can’t give their full attention to recorded music anymore as they’re too distracted by screens. This is going to be a serious challenge for musicians making more intense and demanding music.
I count myself among them, and set the challenge to listen to even on track from this album of mine without doing anything else! https://domaversano.bandcamp.com/album/the-code?search_item_id=944149488&search_item_type=a&search_match_part=%3F&search_page_id=3389603024&search_page_no=0&search_rank=3&logged_out_mobile_menubar=true
Very much a challenge ...unsure how it gets solved. Also very cool ambient works you have there Dom
Thanks Adam. I think the first part is for people to realise it’s a problem.
Yes sir, trying to do my part to help with posts like this
I'm glad to have found your writing on this. I have seen this whole "you stop listening to new music at age 30" conversation hanging around all kinds of music circles for quite a while now, and it always frustrated me how so many people seem to think that something just happens in our brain chemistry when we turn 30 that freezes our interest in music.
The original post that you reference seemed to take the same stance, a sort of fatalistic attitude: "Oh well, I'm 30 now. I guess it's time to throw in the towel and just listen to what I liked when I was a teenager."
Like what you said, it would be absurd to suggest that people's taste in movies, or literature, or art, or any other form of media freezes in their 30s, and yet so many people seem to think it's a scientific fact when it comes to music.
In my experience, our music tastes only freeze if we let it.
Love this comment, the brain chemistry thing is nonsense
"an infantilized or at least arrested state of creative development"
Sorry, but this contains the assumption that the arts, including music, are on a constant upward trend, like science and technology. This is false. No one in the theater would claim that Shakespeare is "400 years behind the times" and no musician would say that Bach is 250 years "behind."
"Newness" is neither a good thing nor a bad thing. It's just one more attribute.
This is a good perspective too, I am over-indexing on 'newness' in this post as I want people to explore all the amazing new creative work being produced by unknown creators. But am also v bullish going back in time to works that have stood the test as well (frequently also not optimized by big streaming algos). Great comment
Thanks, Adam. The other comment that talked about world music is great, too, and I WILL admit that I ought to explore more of that.
I accept the challenge. I grew up as a punk rocker, gothic rocker, going to Raves and using Limewire. In Los Angeles. You’ve awakened that part of me I had forgotten about. 🙏🏻
Every genre that's not pop continues! It just doesn't get surfaced to us. Digging through SoundCloud, Bandcamp, Beatport etc surfaces so much cool stuff. Even your local vinyl shop is a great visit. Glad to help even a little here