Best Ever Albums

Re: Do your musical preferences have a 'default setting'?

mozzmozz — Fri, 8 Dec 2017 17:54:42 GMT

Author: mozzmozz

Posted: 12/08/2017 22:54

Tilly wrote:

Definitely NOT 0-12. ......

Hmmmm. Yes, I agree with Tilly. (and rkm and AAL2014 and JimmyDread)
I reckon it's the ages of 15/16/17 when the "Default" kicks in.
I was listening to heavy rock, jazz, blues, prog and weird psych then (Led Zepp, Soft Machine, Fleetwood Mac, Pink Floyd, Van der Graaf Generator, Incredible String Band)
... and guess what ... it's rough equivalent for the current era is what I'm still listening to. (Although what category Mark Kozelek fits into I'm not sure :wink:).

(0 to 12? I think I was still just moving on from Andy Pandy - slow developer, see)

Re: Do your musical preferences have a 'default setting'?

Anonymous — Tue, 5 Dec 2017 12:43:13 GMT

Author: Anonymous

Posted: 12/05/2017 17:43

Yann wrote:

glad you guys liked. Michael1981 use of that expression "musical dna" made me scan my mind..

Seems like you were introduced to some really good music in your early life. Its cool how specifically you can identify the things you like. My tastes are not really like my parents, but it surprises me how I do quite like the music they played me and radio hits from my earlier life. That said, I hope my parents Tina Turner and Chris de Burgh albums aren't too much in my musical DNA 😕

Interesting responses from all you guys on this thread btw 😁 .

Re: Do your musical preferences have a 'default setting'?

Anonymous — Tue, 5 Dec 2017 07:36:18 GMT

Author: Anonymous

Posted: 12/05/2017 12:36

glad you guys liked. Michael1981 use of that expression "musical dna" made me scan my mind..

Re: Do your musical preferences have a 'default setting'?

Repo — Tue, 5 Dec 2017 06:56:07 GMT

Author: Repo

Posted: 12/05/2017 11:56

Yann wrote:

AAL2014 wrote:

So through this rambling, I've realized that my default setting is nothing more than a high level of emotional connection.

High level of emotional connection, yes. Which is compounded if it’s associated with (preferably happy) memories. The power of reminiscence of music keeps fascinating me. My earliest musical memory was the theme (by Vangelis) of a french radio broadcast my mother used to listen regularly when I was around 2 or 3. And when I heard it years later, yes, that was indeed an emotional connection (with the past) !
In Christmas 1988, my elder brother received the White Album and Sgt Pepper on CD, and made me discover them. These two became "default setting".

And, in my personal « musical dna », I could also probably find :
Mc Cartney’s voice (childhood memories of Wings harmonies)
Dave Gilmour’s guitar
Robert Smith’s voice
Andy Summer’s guitar (and The Police alchemy)
Barney Sumner’s (weak) singing
DX7 and other 80’s synths (intro of Everybody Wants to Rule the World, for example)
Some Supertramp songs (that Wulizter piano)
Some Supergrass songs
Ella Fitzgerald’s voice
Cold wave sounds
Paddy McAloon
Etienne Daho’s Live ED
Everyday is Like Sunday’s intro
The little piano on Rock the Casbah
Kinky Afro’s intro
Leave Them All Behind
Sirius & Eye in The Sky
Michael Jackson produced by Quincy Jones
Lou Reed (New York)
The Nightfly.
Brian Wilson.

�'�

Awesome post! It's like your very own Sound of Music's "favorite things". 😁

Re: Do your musical preferences have a 'default setting'?

AAL2014 — Tue, 5 Dec 2017 03:41:47 GMT

Author: AAL2014

Posted: 12/05/2017 08:41

Yann wrote:

AAL2014 wrote:

So through this rambling, I've realized that my default setting is nothing more than a high level of emotional connection.

And, in my personal « musical dna », I could also probably find :
Mc Cartney’s voice (childhood memories of Wings harmonies)
Dave Gilmour’s guitar
Robert Smith’s voice
Andy Summer’s guitar (and The Police alchemy)
Barney Sumner’s (weak) singing
DX7 and other 80’s synths (intro of Everybody Wants to Rule the World, for example)
Some Supertramp songs (that Wulizter piano)
Some Supergrass songs
Ella Fitzgerald’s voice
Cold wave sounds
Paddy McAloon
Etienne Daho’s Live ED
Everyday is Like Sunday’s intro
The little piano on Rock the Casbah
Kinky Afro’s intro
Leave Them All Behind
Sirius & Eye in The Sky
Michael Jackson produced by Quincy Jones
Lou Reed (New York)
The Nightfly.
Brian Wilson.

Can you please make a new thread on Musical DNA.

Re: Do your musical preferences have a 'default setting'?

AfterHours — Mon, 4 Dec 2017 20:10:09 GMT

Author: AfterHours

Posted: 12/05/2017 01:10

My tastes are very eclectic. I guess my "default setting" would be "everything on my Greatest Rock/Jazz list" and "everything on my Greatest Classical list". The higher the rating/ranking the more likely it is to be my "default" at any given time.

Re: Do your musical preferences have a 'default setting'?

craola — Mon, 4 Dec 2017 18:46:39 GMT

Author: craola

Posted: 12/04/2017 23:46

0-12 is def not my comfort zone. i'm 4th of 5 kids, but up until i was 9, alls my folks mom* exposed me to was:

ccm
children's
classical

older siblings listened to ccm and osts. weirdos.

when i was about 9, my dad got me into celtic folk and classic (hello the beatles, talking heads, peter gabriel, hendrix, grateful dead, rolling stones, et al), but it wasn't until i was 11-15 before i was listening to radiohead, which i guess is my comfort zone?

tbf, my comfort zone goes through cycles. it tends to go something like:

alternative>jazz>electronic>shoegazing>jazz>classical>alternative>witchhouse>vap0rwav>ambi ent>alternative>etc. comfort today is nuisance tomorrow is comfort again next month.

but yeah, if i have a default it's... probably the only music that you can play to me any day of any week of any month of any year since i was 14 is thomas yorke & the radioheads.

*my dad tends to enjoy just about anything i show him so long as it don't go too ambient or hip-hop, and he's pretty well listened from about 1955 to 1985, so i don't get why he didn't show me nothin' til i was really popping. i think my mom objected to a lot of the stuff he like(s/d).

Re: Do your musical preferences have a 'default setting'?

CharlieBarley — Mon, 4 Dec 2017 17:43:43 GMT

Author: CharlieBarley

Posted: 12/04/2017 22:43

AAL2014 wrote:

Giving more thought to the 0-12 idea, I'd be willing to go with 12-18 as the main age group in which you develop any kind of default setting.

0-12 can still be impactful of course, but I think 12-18, 12-15 especially, is when we as shit head humans branch off mentally and try to find our own things merely for the sake of saying its our own. It's hard to connect to anything around that age (at least it was for me until I found the drums) so I can relate first hand that 12-18 is that age group in which we are convinced we've found the holy grail. Not only is this music I've discovered good.. but it's mine. I feel connected and comforted by it so I'm going to take as much as I can of it in.

As we grow older, we realize that there is much more out there, but there's always going to be that part of us in the comfort zone. For me 19-22 has offered some immense growth in terms of listening habits, but I always return to my 12-18 music in reverence.

I agree with this. Ages 0-12 had a massive impact on me, largely in hearing pop/rock and Motown. Certain songs/artists still make my ears prick up like Boney M, Gerry Rafferty, Supertramp, Michael Jackson or Abba. But it was the years between 12-18, or maybe 12-20 that my musical tastes really began to develop and mature. Not only was I getting into the various styles of music the 90s had to offer, but through the help of friends and music magazines I also got into 60s-80s music. Remember we had no internet back then people, if you wanted to hear an album you had to buy or borrow it or tape it off someone.

Or you could ask to listen to an album on headphones at a record store. Or in a listening booth if you were lucky enough to have a record store which had one. I can remember many times just buying records or CDs blind on the strength of their reputation or reviews. I did this with Abbey Road, Ziggy Stardust and Innervisions although I may have been familiar with one or two tracks. Who would do that today?

So, yeah, those formative teenage years had a massive influence on me. I would consider the music I grew up on to be the types of genres I return to again and again. Although I did hear loads of rap and hip-hop as a teen too through friends, like NWA, Ice T and Beastie Boys. And I still like it today.

I am trying to get into jazz. I never had the patience for it as a younger man but my tastes are broadening and changing a bit. I like the Davis, Coltrane and Mingus albums I have heard. I even bought a few. It's great but it's never going to be my favourite genre. Still I will continue listening to it.

Also I am getting right into electronica at the moment. I always liked a little bit of it but here is a new genre for me. I love it.

One genre I could properly get into is reggae, ska and dub. The little bit I have heard I love.

Re: Do your musical preferences have a 'default setting'?

Anonymous — Mon, 4 Dec 2017 17:33:50 GMT

Author: Anonymous

Posted: 12/04/2017 22:33

AAL2014 wrote:

So through this rambling, I've realized that my default setting is nothing more than a high level of emotional connection.

Re: Do your musical preferences have a 'default setting'?

RoundTheBend — Mon, 4 Dec 2017 12:35:47 GMT

Author: RoundTheBend

Posted: 12/04/2017 17:35

Curious of those with the 0-12 being a ridiculous time to review... are you the oldest in your family? Did your parents not play a lot of music? Did it suck? Is it ridiculous because of the maturity level of a child? I mean 0 might be near impossible to have an influence one might argue, but as soon as the intro to "What A Wonderful World" comes on my son always smiles. I think it is making a decent impression on him.

I mean there's an obvious place for maturity in the conversation, but I find myself lucky to not have older sisters or brothers or parents for that matter listening to crap music. They listened to basically the BEA soundtrack pre 1995. So yes, my 5 to 12 years of age that I can remember was filled with fantastic music, which totally shaped my musical identity.

But as I say that, maybe that's exactly what all ya'lls mean. BEA soundtrack is immature and now I'm onto better things?

But yes, great question like AAL2014 mentioned. Basically what makes things click easily for us and what doesn't.

Re: Do your musical preferences have a 'default setting'?

AAL2014 — Mon, 4 Dec 2017 12:12:30 GMT

Author: AAL2014

Posted: 12/04/2017 17:12

Giving more thought to the 0-12 idea, I'd be willing to go with 12-18 as the main age group in which you develop any kind of default setting.

0-12 can still be impactful of course, but I think 12-18, 12-15 especially, is when we as shit head humans branch off mentally and try to find our own things merely for the sake of saying its our own. It's hard to connect to anything around that age (at least it was for me until I found the drums) so I can relate first hand that 12-18 is that age group in which we are convinced we've found the holy grail. Not only is this music I've discovered good.. but it's mine. I feel connected and comforted by it so I'm going to take as much as I can of it in.

As we grow older, we realize that there is much more out there, but there's always going to be that part of us in the comfort zone. For me 19-22 has offered some immense growth in terms of listening habits, but I always return to my 12-18 music in reverence.

Re: Do your musical preferences have a 'default setting'?

AAL2014 — Mon, 4 Dec 2017 11:56:26 GMT

Author: AAL2014

Posted: 12/04/2017 16:56

Daydreamer wrote:

Speaking of great soundtracks

Re: Do your musical preferences have a 'default setting'?

Daydreamer — Mon, 4 Dec 2017 09:58:02 GMT

Author: Daydreamer

Posted: 12/04/2017 14:58

Michael1981 wrote:

Yeah, no matter how much you like something you still get sick of it and need to try something new. But then its nice to back to the old familiar thing as well.

Re: Do your musical preferences have a 'default setting'?

Anonymous — Mon, 4 Dec 2017 08:38:24 GMT

Author: Anonymous

Posted: 12/04/2017 13:38

bobbyb5 wrote:

My default setting is more like the default setting on your computer. You can take it out of default setting mode, and change it up for a while. Kind of like your favorite ringtone on your phone. You just get sick of hearing it, so you switch it up.

Yeah, no matter how much you like something you still get sick of it and need to try something new. But then its nice to back to the old familiar thing as well.

Re: Do your musical preferences have a 'default setting'?

Jimmy Dread — Mon, 4 Dec 2017 08:30:53 GMT

Author: Jimmy Dread

Posted: 12/04/2017 13:30

Yann wrote:

I suppose the default setting is the music one listened from 0 to 12 year old ?

I'm with Tilly on this as I don't feel my infant/pre-pubescent listening habits have any influence on my current preferences. Back then everything I loved was 80s chart music - the first record I ever adored was Uptown Girl by Billy Joel, the first album I bought was Go West's S/T. I haven't (nor had the inclination to) listen(ed) to either since my balls dropped.

I do however agree that your 'default' taste (if you could call it that) can be linked to a specific record, track or musical event in your life. Personally I have two - discovering The Smiths when I was 14 (which explains how anything vaguely indie-pop tends to make my ears prick up) and listening to Blue Monday for the first time, which opened my eyes to strong basslines and syncopated drum beats and therefore inadvertently (coupled with my voyage in all things Jamaican) made 70s-80s dub my music of choice.

Re: Do your musical preferences have a 'default setting'?

Anonymous — Mon, 4 Dec 2017 08:27:57 GMT

Author: Anonymous

Posted: 12/04/2017 13:27

@SethMasden and @Puncture Repair

🤣

Also, the Forrest Gump soundtrack was awesome. I'm remembering Hendrix, Byrds and Buffalo Springfield I think. That film was pretty educational for me.

Re: Do your musical preferences have a 'default setting'?

Anonymous — Mon, 4 Dec 2017 08:22:21 GMT

Author: Anonymous

Posted: 12/04/2017 13:22

@rkm and @AAL2014

Really insightful responses. 😄 I get where you are coming from in hearing similar things across different genres and styles. It's interesting to think about how different people listen to music. I have particular aesthetics I come back to I think, but I'm definitely drawn to a similar sort of feel across different genres. That's interesting to think about. Personally, I've always liked things that sound quite light but have a darker/quirky sort edge to them.

Re: Do your musical preferences have a 'default setting'?

Anonymous — Mon, 4 Dec 2017 07:35:11 GMT

Author: Anonymous

Posted: 12/04/2017 12:35

Tilly wrote:

Definitely NOT 0-12. My father exclusively listened to elevator music. I always thought it was because he was old, but now I realize that he was in his 20s & 30s!! 😮

😄 When was it ? before the 60's ? What kind of elevator music ? tropicalia or something ?

Re: Do your musical preferences have a 'default setting'?

Anonymous — Mon, 4 Dec 2017 05:25:28 GMT

Author: Anonymous

Posted: 12/04/2017 10:25

I only listen to good shit.

Re: Do your musical preferences have a 'default setting'?

bobbyb5 — Mon, 4 Dec 2017 04:33:52 GMT

Author: bobbyb5

Posted: 12/04/2017 09:33

My default setting is more like the default setting on your computer. You can take it out of default setting mode, and change it up for a while. Kind of like your favorite ringtone on your phone. You just get sick of hearing it, so you switch it up.