Best Ever Albums

Re: Why do you like the music you like?

besteveruser — Tue, 6 Dec 2016 17:07:01 GMT

Author: besteveruser

Posted: 12/06/2016 22:07

Often it's just about immersing myself in a mood. It can be a catharsis of just letting myself feel a little bit existential dread like in radiohead or joy division. Or it can be the vibrant yearning nostalgic sound of Carly Rae Jepsen's last album. Or maybe I just wanna listen to some big ugly rhythmic beats and spacey electronics because I am thinking about a sci-if movie or show I watched recently and I wanna indulge in that atmosphere for a while.

Re: Why do you like the music you like?

paladisiac — Tue, 6 Dec 2016 14:48:44 GMT

Author: paladisiac

Posted: 12/06/2016 19:48

if doge likes it, i like it

Re: Why do you like the music you like?

Anonymous — Sun, 4 Dec 2016 02:34:05 GMT

Author: Anonymous

Posted: 12/04/2016 07:34

Tap wrote:

But there's so much more nuance to how I'm mad at the world now

🤣 🤣 🤣

Yeah, I'd definitely second a lot of your core points of learning ways to listen to music. Besides me as a person and my moods and things, I also think that experience with music is like getting into hard drugs or something for me, personally, where I desire more and more esoteric and extreme things the more I listen. It's easy for me to get bored with if not downright hostile towards complacency. I like AfterHours's label of ingenuity, though I might teeter more into using creativity as a criterion to separate the merely good from the great in different musical landscapes. I dunno. I think a big thing I like is the translation of disparate musical ideas into cohesive wholes, which is probably why DJ mixes are such a big thing for me, too. Just some random thoughts more than a full listening philosophy.

Re: Why do you like the music you like?

Tap — Sun, 4 Dec 2016 02:17:10 GMT

Author: Tap

Posted: 12/04/2016 07:17

oh man I love the birds playing guitar thing, the one in that second vid with the stick totally shreds. there was an album version last year but it sticks this delay effect on it to force it into this metered thing and I'm still mad about it.

as far as the main question goes, I think it's because our experience with music is about learning ways of listening, developing a number of ways to relate to it and engage with it, which have varying levels of accessibility depending on my mood and what I'm doing and whatever other factors. like if I am feeling physically unwell, I do not have access to the mode of engagement where I can listen to the overwhelming slab of noise on the new Borbetomagus album and see past the wholeness into all of the internal dynamics. some of these modes are tied to identity, like when I was an angsty teenager and listened to stuff to compliment how mad I was at the world. But there's so much more nuance to how I'm mad at the world now, I don't have access to the way I engaged with Nine Inch Nails anymore. So I like the music I like because of who I am right now and what I've learned I want to listen for.

Re: Why do you like the music you like?

AfterHours — Sun, 4 Dec 2016 01:59:17 GMT

Author: AfterHours

Posted: 12/04/2016 06:59

sethmadsen wrote:

AfterHours wrote:

sethmadsen wrote:

AfterHours wrote:

I have a page on listology.com that covers my criteria pretty extensively and if/when the site gets up and running again, I'll reproduce it on BEA. The gist could be summed up pretty well as follows:

Accumulation of the consistency and degree of ingenuity, emotional and conceptual depth across the time frame (as in music, film) or space (as in visual art) of the work of art.

ALL of my choices have the above as their common denominator. The higher the ranking/rating, the more extraordinarily/astonishingly it will be seen to be followed.

So to dumb this down for idiots like myself, basically if it is consistently creative (I think it is assumed that creative is a positive thing?) and has emotional/conceptual depth throughout the work, you dig it?

I think that is possibly the most succinct way of saying I like quality work (yet with intelligent detail), that I've ever seen.

Yes, thank you. Exactly 😄 Creativity is definitely a positive thing. Also, "ingenuity" (or creativity, which would serve equally well) is a very carefully chosen word in my explanation, in order to distinguish the concept from being misinterpreted as only "doing something new/that hasn't been done before". It has to be creative/have ingenuity too. It can't just be, say, "field recordings of cows grazing". The degree of ingenuity/creativity required to do that is extremely low, particularly in relation to, say, the consistency and extent of ingenuity Michelangelo produced in the Sistine Chapel (Ceiling and Last Judgment), or Bosch's Garden of Earthly Delights, or Bach's Goldberg Variations, or Beethoven's Piano Sonatas, or Robert Wyatt's Rock Bottom, or Van Morrison's Astral Weeks, or John Coltrane's A Love Supreme, or Miles Davis' Kind of Blue, or Orson Welles' Citizen Kane, or Ingmar Bergman's Persona, etc.

YES!

Reminds me of this project I stumbled upon that was exciting for about 30 seconds, but totally lacked the ingenuity you speak of... for me that ingenuity somehow speaks to the humanity in a universal way and somehow that makes it much greater. I think both have to be there: the creative/ingenious must meet humanity or it just won't be understood.

I thought I learned in 10th grade English that Emerson(while talking about transcendentalism) said something like: True genius is when you can explain something very complex in a way that all can understand it. I since haven't heard or seen that quote/misquote anywhere, so I'm going to take credit for it... haahaha.

Oh here's the project:

Link

Link

That's a great quote. I always thought it was Einstein's but maybe that's just this one:

Those videos were kind of interesting but I could see how that piece might get tedious if it were to go on in the same direction (or lack thereof) for very much longer.

Re: Why do you like the music you like?

RoundTheBend — Sun, 4 Dec 2016 00:23:12 GMT

Author: RoundTheBend

Posted: 12/04/2016 05:23

AfterHours wrote:

sethmadsen wrote:

AfterHours wrote:

Re: Why do you like the music you like?

AfterHours — Sat, 3 Dec 2016 13:20:46 GMT

Author: AfterHours

Posted: 12/03/2016 18:20

sethmadsen wrote:

AfterHours wrote:

Re: Why do you like the music you like?

RoundTheBend — Sat, 3 Dec 2016 02:41:59 GMT

Author: RoundTheBend

Posted: 12/03/2016 07:41

I mentioned albums I had a hard time understanding/getting into...

I'm curious to know why that stuff is liked? And not just cause or it intrigues me... give me more details. Give me a critique of it.

Maybe this thread turns into critique an album that maybe someone has a hard time understanding and put it in words that maybe help them understand it.... idk... seeking understanding.

Re: Why do you like the music you like?

RoundTheBend — Sat, 3 Dec 2016 00:11:24 GMT

Author: RoundTheBend

Posted: 12/03/2016 05:11

alelsupreme wrote:

I like Coltrane cos it makes me seem sophisticated and too smart to enjoy Meat Loaf, which I secretly end up listening to more.

🤣 🤣 🤣

Re: Why do you like the music you like?

RoundTheBend — Sat, 3 Dec 2016 00:10:07 GMT

Author: RoundTheBend

Posted: 12/03/2016 05:10

AfterHours wrote:

Re: Why do you like the music you like?

AfterHours — Fri, 2 Dec 2016 23:50:47 GMT

Author: AfterHours

Posted: 12/03/2016 04:50

[quote="sethmadsen"]

souplipton wrote:

I don't think I have the words to adequately express my opinion on this topic, but I'm gonna try anyways.

My closest approximation of what makes me like a piece of music is that it makes me think or feel something. Music, like all art forms, is media, and media is a form of indirect communication. Someone, somewhere, felt or thought something, some inspiration, and made a piece of media (in this case, the piece of music), which relates to that thought or feeling. I then receive that piece of music, and it either makes me think/feel something or it doesn't (what I get out of a piece of music won't always be what they tried to put into it). Music I like succeeds in making me experience something I can relate to; a thought, an emotion, a perspective, or maybe just the urge to dance. It doesn't have to be something profound, or something complex, or something positive, as long it gives me a genuine experience. Music I don't like either creates an impression which I can't relate to, or lacks the ability to create an impression, which I guess my definition of bad music. I think this bad music is created when there is no initial inspiration which sparks the creation of the music, but rather the music was made for some reason other than to give people that true genuine experience.

Personally I like this answer, because it can explain the rather expansive tastes of some persons, because it doesn't matter what the music is, all that matters is its effect on the listener. Does Coltrane make you feel something?? Good. Do Kraftwerk also acheive that?? Also good. Nine Inch Nails?? The Beatles?? Kendrick Lamar?? David Bowie?? Can?? deadmau5?? Miles Davis?? All good. And if Katy Perry or Taylor Swift also somehow affect you (how is beyond me, but lets just say that they do)?? Then good for you. Music is intensely personal because different people will have different things which they can relate to. I haven't lived in your shoes, so maybe you've had lived some event where now these things speak to you where they don't to me.

On a related note, I do think that some musicians bury their messages deeper in their music (such as progressive rock), whereas others display it on the surface (such as bubblegum pop, but also punk rock). I think some of the music that I like that others don't is because I take more seriously than others, and I'm willing to sit there with my headphones on listening intently, trying to get every last bit of detail out of a piece, whereas others I know aren't willing to look past the surface. I think that may explain some differences in taste, but that's just my guess. And your guess is as good as mine.

Anyways, that's my best attempt at an explanation. I welcome feedback if you've got any opinions on my perspective.

Excellent explanation. Definitely agree with this.

Re: Why do you like the music you like?

RoundTheBend — Fri, 2 Dec 2016 23:42:24 GMT

Author: RoundTheBend

Posted: 12/03/2016 04:42

indieshins wrote:

I've always thought lyrics mattered, but maybe I'm a bit like you, Seth. Great lyrics do elevate a piece, and I can't stand bad lyrics, but I can enjoy music without paying attention to the lyrics. I love Joanna Newsom, even though I've barely scratched the surface of her lyrics, and I can like a hip - hop album on the production alone. I suppose the music is generally the first thing I notice and fall in love with and then if there's great lyrics it increases my enjoyment.

I was thinking about what a requirement is for me to like an album, and the only criteria was: Transportation. It needs to take me some place when I close my eyes. The better it is able to do this, the more I like it. And it has to make me feel something as well. Music is where I go for emotional comfort. It can make me feel better when I'm sad or be cathartic when I'm angry.

I tend to like melancholy, so Radiohead paradoxically is uplifting to me. A great melody will hook me instantly, but it's not a pre-requisite. I've taught myself to appreciate more avant-garde music by removing it from the idea of traditional music. It's purpose isn't to provide melody, it's to create an atmosphere, often very dark. By thinking about the intended purpose of a piece of music, I find I can enjoy just about anything that's actually had care and thought put into it, to varying degrees of course. This is how David Bowie listened to music, and it allowed him to draw from a wide range of influences.

Very well said mate. You said what I meant when it came to lyrics.

Transportation is a fantastic way to describe what makes music GREAT. There's good music and interesting stuff I'll get into for a small amount of time, but GREAT music always transports me and changes me, so I'll never forget it.

Also, when I was younger, I thought I could only like certain kinds of music, and found, like you said, as long as it is quality, all types of music can have huge worth if you are willing to find it.

Re: Why do you like the music you like?

RoundTheBend — Fri, 2 Dec 2016 20:48:16 GMT

Author: RoundTheBend

Posted: 12/03/2016 01:48

Norman Bates wrote:

sethmadsen wrote:

Why do you like the music you like?

I wish I knew... or rather, on second thoughts, I'd rather not, I don't want to learn so many things about myself. I suspect analyzing the music I like would tell more hidden stuff about me than getting analyzed on a couch would.

Isn't this the truth!

I think this is kinda what RKM was getting at - probably the reason we listen to the music we listen to is psychological.

Re: Why do you like the music you like?

RoundTheBend — Fri, 2 Dec 2016 20:43:21 GMT

Author: RoundTheBend

Posted: 12/03/2016 01:43

souplipton wrote:

Wow, this was fantastic.

I especially liked how you went from the obvious of what is, to maybe the dialectical question should be of what isn't.

Re: Why do you like the music you like?

RoundTheBend — Fri, 2 Dec 2016 20:38:59 GMT

Author: RoundTheBend

Posted: 12/03/2016 01:38

HazeyTwilight wrote:

Because maybe it's not just a phase, dad.

🤣 🤣 🤣

Re: Why do you like the music you like?

RoundTheBend — Fri, 2 Dec 2016 20:38:36 GMT

Author: RoundTheBend

Posted: 12/03/2016 01:38

Gowi wrote:

Quote:

and some just don't get it (me).

Because they listen to it for more than one minute a song. O:)

I think you've misinterpreted something I said in the past. Thanks for adding to the conversation though.

I've listen to these albums in their entirety and really just haven't gotten into them. It's not my cup of tea. I guess I should be shunned though for trying... what an ass I am.

Karma by Pharoah Sanders

Thumbnail. Click to enlarge.

Arnold Schoenberg: Pierrot Lunaire, Op....us Artists

Atlantis by Sun Ra

Thumbnail. Click to enlarge.

Hot Rats by Frank Zappa

Thumbnail. Click to enlarge.

Monster Movie by Can

Just to name a few "amazing pieces" that just don't jive with me, but have listened to them in their entirety, yet I probably won't listen to again... it'd be a bit sadistic for me if I did.

Re: Why do you like the music you like?

indieshins — Fri, 2 Dec 2016 03:45:14 GMT

Author: indieshins

Posted: 12/02/2016 08:45

I've always thought lyrics mattered, but maybe I'm a bit like you, Seth. Great lyrics do elevate a piece, and I can't stand bad lyrics, but I can enjoy music without paying attention to the lyrics. I love Joanna Newsom, even though I've barely scratched the surface of her lyrics, and I can like a hip - hop album on the production alone. I suppose the music is generally the first thing I notice and fall in love with and then if there's great lyrics it increases my enjoyment.

I was thinking about what a requirement is for me to like an album, and the only criteria was: Transportation. It needs to take me some place when I close my eyes. The better it is able to do this, the more I like it. And it has to make me feel something as well. Music is where I go for emotional comfort. It can make me feel better when I'm sad or be cathartic when I'm angry.

I tend to like melancholy, so Radiohead paradoxically is uplifting to me. A great melody will hook me instantly, but it's not a pre-requisite. I've taught myself to appreciate more avant-garde music by removing it from the idea of traditional music. It's purpose isn't to provide melody, it's to create an atmosphere, often very dark. By thinking about the intended purpose of a piece of music, I find I can enjoy just about anything that's actually had care and thought put into it, to varying degrees of course. This is how David Bowie listened to music, and it allowed him to draw from a wide range of influences.

Re: Why do you like the music you like?

Antonio-Pedro — Thu, 1 Dec 2016 20:44:34 GMT

Author: Antonio-Pedro

Posted: 12/02/2016 01:44

Why do I like the music I like? Because I rarely like the music I don't like, so if I like something since the leak, my brain will take that as a likeable piece of music that I like, that I really do like, while not liking things I don't like since the live show. But liking something that doesn't sound like the things I like, are things I likely don't like liking like liking park. Also part of me is deeply affected by things other people like, so I like things that like...other people also like, like lykke li(ke). I like music that are made for me to like, because liking in the end is not like liking other's people like. Vote for ike.

Re: Why do you like the music you like?

mickilennial — Thu, 1 Dec 2016 16:53:36 GMT

Author: mickilennial

Posted: 12/01/2016 21:53

Quote:

and some just don't get it (me).

Because they listen to it for more than one minute a song. 😇

Re: Why do you like the music you like?

AfterHours — Thu, 1 Dec 2016 16:25:50 GMT

Author: AfterHours

Posted: 12/01/2016 21:25

I have a page on listology.com that covers my criteria pretty extensively and if/when the site gets up and running again, I'll reproduce it on BEA. The gist could be summed up pretty well as follows:

Accumulation of the consistency and degree of ingenuity, emotional and conceptual depth across the time frame (as in music, film) or space (as in visual art) of the work of art.

ALL of my choices have the above as their common denominator. The higher the ranking/rating, the more extraordinarily/astonishingly it will be seen to be followed.