There's a saying I was told which is that it takes an interviewer 3 seconds to make their mind up about an interviewee. After which, it takes another 27 encounters to change their mind.
I was thinking how much does this relate to albums? For example, a lot of albums in my top 20 such as ITAOTS and Marquee Moon are one which I have liked within the first minute or so. Others which I don't like such as Daydream Nation I have tried to listen to again just won't click. Is liking an album just about perseverance?
There's a saying I was told which is that it takes an interviewer 3 seconds to make their mind up about an interviewee. After which, it takes another 27 encounters to change their mind.
I was thinking how much does this relate to albums? For example, a lot of albums in my top 20 such as ITAOTS and Marquee Moon are one which I have liked within the first minute or so. Others which I don't like such as Daydream Nation I have tried to listen to again just won't click. Is liking an album just about perseverance?
Any thoughts?
It depends entirely upon a whole host of variables, such as what mood I'm in when I listen to an album, outside biases such as something friends have said about it, previous experiences with the artist in question and subsequently what I expect (or don't expect, as may be the case), whether it fits nicely into one of my musical comfort zones or not (and whether I'm willing at time of listening, be it first or fifteenth listen, to allow those comfort zones to be expanded), what the surroundings for listening are (perhaps at a friend's house in a social situation where the music acts as background noise or perhaps conversation starter, or possibly in a car on a long journey, or on my own in bed at night, etc.), whether something grabs me or makes some sort of emotional connection right away and whether I feel it ever will, how much time I'm actually willing to devote to an album in order to enjoy it and whether I believe there even is any potential enjoyment for me in it, and so on and so forth. There is no right or wrong answer. There are some albums that click with me immediately, and some that take a while to fully work their magic on me. Sometimes I find albums that I loved on first listen become less and less interesting over time, whilst sometimes loving an album initially has just been the jump-off point for an intense obsession. Similarly, some albums that I have tried and tried to enjoy never quite click, whilst others that I thought I'd never like have grown to become firm favourites. Perhaps most strange of all are the albums which I fall in and out of love with on a whim. Everybody will have their own preferences and their own answers to your question, but for me I don't really feel like there is a pattern or a preference. I would say that if you feel like an album might have something that will one day reveal itself as great to you, don't give up on it completely, but similarly don't force yourself to like something because you think you should if you really don't see a potential for emotional attachment. A great album is an album that you are in love with at present, be that present today, tomorrow, or in twenty years time (and I've no doubt that your favourite albums will forever be changing and expanding). A great album is a great album regardless of which route you take to come to that discovery.
It depends entirely upon a whole host of variables, such as what mood I'm in when I listen to an album, outside biases such as something friends have said about it, previous experiences with the artist in question and subsequently what I expect (or don't expect, as may be the case), whether it fits nicely into one of my musical comfort zones or not (and whether I'm willing at time of listening, be it first or fifteenth listen, to allow those comfort zones to be expanded), what the surroundings for listening are (perhaps at a friend's house in a social situation where the music acts as background noise or perhaps conversation starter, or possibly in a car on a long journey, or on my own in bed at night, etc.), whether something grabs me or makes some sort of emotional connection right away and whether I feel it ever will, how much time I'm actually willing to devote to an album in order to enjoy it and whether I believe there even is any potential enjoyment for me in it, and so on and so forth. There is no right or wrong answer. There are some albums that click with me immediately, and some that take a while to fully work their magic on me. Sometimes I find albums that I loved on first listen become less and less interesting over time, whilst sometimes loving an album initially has just been the jump-off point for an intense obsession. Similarly, some albums that I have tried and tried to enjoy never quite click, whilst others that I thought I'd never like have grown to become firm favourites. Perhaps most strange of all are the albums which I fall in and out of love with on a whim. Everybody will have their own preferences and their own answers to your question, but for me I don't really feel like there is a pattern or a preference. I would say that if you feel like an album might have something that will one day reveal itself as great to you, don't give up on it completely, but similarly don't force yourself to like something because you think you should if you really don't see a potential for emotional attachment. A great album is an album that you are in love with at present, be that present today, tomorrow, or in twenty years time (and I've no doubt that your favourite albums will forever be changing and expanding). A great album is a great album regardless of which route you take to come to that discovery.
Nailed it ! _________________ That's right, I'm an Asshole
Do you listen to albums you like more often because you know you like them? Or do you like albums more the more times you listen to them? Many of the albums in my 100 just happen to be the ones that I owned, with other albums in the artists' catalogs barely glanced at.
I'm going to try an experiment. I'm going to listen to the highest ranking album that I've never heard 10 times in the next two months, and we'll see if, by the end of that time, it becomes one of my favorites.
Let's see that would be....
Loveless, by My Bloody Valentine (BEA Rank #32)
Never heard it before. I've heard Isn't Anything as part of the Best Debut tournament, rating it 30 out of 100. I think that would be a good test.
I was thinking how much does this relate to albums? For example, a lot of albums in my top 20 such as ITAOTS and Marquee Moon are one which I have liked within the first minute or so. Others which I don't like such as Daydream Nation I have tried to listen to again just won't click. Is liking an album just about perseverance?
Liking a great album is all about perspective, IMO. If you naturally approach it from the same point of view as those who love it, you'll love it right away. If not, perseverance will sometimes allow you to pick up on subtleties that you missed the first time around, but it's not always enough to make you change your perspective.
Sometimes "trying" to like an album is more effective if you try to understand it rather than simply listen to it over and over again.
Last edited by sp4cetiger on 10/29/2013 20:30; edited 1 time in total
I think some albums just click and some don't. I like you have tried listening to daydream nation many times and I just can't see the appeal, yet with some such as Ágætis byrjun and OK Computer they took a fair while to get but once you do they're incredible. But it will also have to do with taste, your current mood and whether you are prepared to dedicate time to listen to it in.
some albums are just so heavily layered that it takes repeated listens to grasp upon what makes them so special. Pop records are built for immediacy. They generally use familiar melodies, tuning and song structure to win over the listener. No matter how many layers of production there is in a big pop song, it's still simple in many other ways.
Meanwhile, many other types of music involve odd time signatures, key changes, counter melodies, complicated poetic lyrical structure. These things take time to really appreciate. Many of my favorite records still provide me with new intricacies with each listen _________________ http://jonnyleather.com
People will decide, at times, whether they dislike or like an album before they have even begun. Whether they are 3 seconds, 6 seconds or 7 seconds into the record doesn't really matter.
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