Does a Band's Popularity Affect Your Taste?

The Batlord · 02-14-2011, 11:34 AM

It's not the popularity, it's the current popularity I think. I can't stand modern mainstream rap, because I think that it dominates the music scene and I every dumbass who thinks he's a music fan listens to it and talks about it constantly. Yet, I love Motley Crue and Poison, even though they did the same thing decades ago, but, nobody goes around saying that they're the **** any more. Neither Yin Yang Twins nor Motley Crue are legitimately creative, but I don't have to live through the annoying **** of Motley Crue ruining the current music scene so they don't bother me as much.

captaincaptain · 02-14-2011, 12:20 PM

I've been listening to Kings of Leon years before they hit it big with Only By The Night. They've been on a decline since Aha Shake Heartbreak though.I think now they've realized how successful they've become in the United States and are now trying to appease to different kinds of fans: the fans that have always been around and the fans that can only think of Use Somebody or Sex on Fire. This does not affect the way I like them, I will always like them though the creative change they make might turn me off of future releases.

I just hope The Black Keys continue to make albums on their own terms now that they have achieved some level of success over the past year.

CanwllCorfe · 02-14-2011, 01:05 PM

I think for me it's about the social factor. If a lot of people like a band, I almost feel uncomfortable when I listen to them. I'm not sure why. I feel intensely nervous watching something like the Grammys or Superbowl, knowing a LOT of people are as well. I remember for the first time figuring out that if I was the only person on a roller coaster, I probably wouldn't be scared. It wasn't the heights or the coaster itself, but all the people talking about it and all the people in the long lines that scared me.

clutnuckle · 02-14-2011, 02:20 PM

It does when I'm looking for new sounds. I built up my respect for popular artists a long time ago, so there's little need to revisit that stage. Nowadays, when it comes to modern forms of music, I genuinely seek out music that's a little less popular than whatever is on Top 40 Radio. Not because I seek to become an obscure-loving nutcase who spits upon pop fans, but for a few others: a) I'm a sap who thinks that less-appreciated musicians are due their chance to shine. b) My favorite genre is likely drone, which, for completely understandable reasons, doesn't get much airplay. c) Mainstream music has its gems, sure, but it's saturated with a lot of filler. In the underground music world, there is even more filler, but usually you can follow the guidance of a few knowledgeable people who've stepped through that terrain before. I can get a lot more out of my favorite genres this way.

However, when it comes to actually listening to the music, there is no elevated opportunity for an underground album to amaze me when compared to a popular one. Sure, I'd gladly check out an obscure free improv. artist before, say, the next Katy Perry album, but if I heard both, I would judge them both equally on how much objective/subjective merit I feel they have. In some cases I may question the simplicity of the pop arrangement of Mrs. Perry's music, but I won't bring her popularity into the mix. Bringing 'popularity' into actual musical discussion is one of the main reasons why I hate talking about The Beatles. Popularity to get to new music? That's great. Popularity to talk about it? Not so much.

Thom Yorke · 02-14-2011, 02:32 PM

To be clear I wasn't talking about bands changing their sound to be more mainstream. I'm just talking about either not liking a band anymore after (and because of) a sudden influx of fans, or purposely avoiding getting into a band because they're already popular.

Paedantic Basterd · 02-14-2011, 02:56 PM

I'm inclined to say no, though in some roundabout way that also considers major label influence and how annoying the fans are, I'm sure popularity can bring a band down for me.

Quote:

Originally Posted by Thom Yorke

To be clear I wasn't talking about bands changing their sound to be more mainstream. I'm just talking about either not liking a band anymore after (and because of) a sudden influx of fans, or purposely avoiding getting into a band because they're already popular.

In that case, no.

alli-oop · 02-14-2011, 07:55 PM

In some cases for sure. Not because of ridiculous stubborn reasons, but because they are so over played and overused to where it just gets annoying. Nirvana was like that. Really good when it was only on college radio and the one alternative station on the am dial. Then the top 40 and rock sites got into it around the early-mid 90s, and they just got nauseating.

Stone Birds · 02-14-2011, 08:06 PM

truthfully a little but i'm happy listening to mainstrem, indiestream, and underground

The Bullet · 02-14-2011, 08:31 PM

Now? I'm more open minded than to hate an artist just because they're famous. When I first started listening to music? My God.

I use to not want to listen to artists who didn't write their own music, or who autotuned their lyrics because of them not genuinely expressing themselves (and, in the autotune case, their voices), so I taught myself to hate them. For example, I literally use to want to kill Rhianna because i saw her as manufactured and taught myself to hate her music.

Now, I admit to her being "eh" for the most part with a few good songs. I'm still not a fan, but I definitely wouldn't kill her. Don't get me wrong, I DO hate it when an artist puts songs on an album that were almost scientific attempts at reaching a certain demographic, with no personal connection whatsoever, that the artist his/herself probably hates, weather that was written by them or someone else. If the artist is genuinely trying to champion someone else's composition that they found meaning in, then I have nothing against an artist using a songwriter. For example, up until Bad, Michael Jackson usually used songwriters, but his music was still high-end, cream-of-the-crop pop because he truely wanted to impress himself as well as others, and rejected a lot of the stuff that was written to him. And when he did sing someone else's composition, he made sure he could relate so he could put emotion into it. In contrast, someone like Britney Spears'll never sing about anything that relates to them. She'll sing love songs and whatever else the record company sees fit. And she literally has marketing experts behind most of the tracks, and probably doesn't care about them herself. Granted, I'm glad she was able to overcome her personal problems and borderline insanity, and I respect her for that, but I still can't listen to music that screams out "impersonal." It's not as black-and-white as my 11-year-old self thought it was.

Short form: the answer is "use to. Now, I don't care."

Hank The Drifter · 02-14-2011, 08:41 PM

Yes and no.

I don't mind what I listen to being popular. I do however have a problem with the popularity means its overplayed. I don't listen to much radio but there's songs that each and every time I turn the radio on is playing and that for me can unfortunately ruin a song or band even. I must admit there's times when a bands popular and often times that will keep me from checking out a band. Now not so much because I'm anti-mainstream but because I'm always scared I'll be let down and disappointed.

02-14-2011, 12:20 PM	#12 (permalink)
captaincaptain I Am Become Death Metal Join Date: Sep 2009 Location: Stankonia Posts: 695	I've been listening to Kings of Leon years before they hit it big with Only By The Night. They've been on a decline since Aha Shake Heartbreak though.I think now they've realized how successful they've become in the United States and are now trying to appease to different kinds of fans: the fans that have always been around and the fans that can only think of Use Somebody or Sex on Fire. This does not affect the way I like them, I will always like them though the creative change they make might turn me off of future releases. I just hope The Black Keys continue to make albums on their own terms now that they have achieved some level of success over the past year. __________________ LAST.FM RYM

02-14-2011, 01:05 PM	#13 (permalink)
CanwllCorfe Quiet Man in the Corner Join Date: Feb 2009 Location: Pocono Mountains Posts: 2,480	I think for me it's about the social factor. If a lot of people like a band, I almost feel uncomfortable when I listen to them. I'm not sure why. I feel intensely nervous watching something like the Grammys or Superbowl, knowing a LOT of people are as well. I remember for the first time figuring out that if I was the only person on a roller coaster, I probably wouldn't be scared. It wasn't the heights or the coaster itself, but all the people talking about it and all the people in the long lines that scared me. __________________ Your eyes were never yet let in to see the majesty and riches of the mind, but dwell in darkness; for your God is blind.

02-14-2011, 08:06 PM	#18 (permalink)
Stone Birds myspace.com/stonebirdies Join Date: Apr 2009 Location: Conor Oberst Was/is Here Posts: 1,401	truthfully a little but i'm happy listening to mainstrem, indiestream, and underground __________________ Silk & Tree Records //\\//\\/\\/\/\/\\\\\\\\///\/\/\/\/\\////\/\\\\\///\V //\\//\\/\\/\/\/\\\\\\\\///\/\/\/\/\\////\/\\\\\///\V soundcloud.com/stonebirds [Link removed by mod, no advertising] ... Damn those mods are always gettin ya :)

02-14-2011, 08:41 PM	#20 (permalink)
Hank The Drifter Take it easy, but take it Join Date: May 2010 Location: Georgia Posts: 213	Yes and no. I don't mind what I listen to being popular. I do however have a problem with the popularity means its overplayed. I don't listen to much radio but there's songs that each and every time I turn the radio on is playing and that for me can unfortunately ruin a song or band even. I must admit there's times when a bands popular and often times that will keep me from checking out a band. Now not so much because I'm anti-mainstream but because I'm always scared I'll be let down and disappointed. __________________ “If a song can't be written in 20 minutes, it ain't worth writing.” - Hank Williams

02-14-2011, 02:20 PM	#14 (permalink)
clutnuckle Music Addict Join Date: Sep 2009 Location: -_-_-_-_~__~-~_-`_`-~_-`-~-~ Posts: 1,276	It does when I'm looking for new sounds. I built up my respect for popular artists a long time ago, so there's little need to revisit that stage. Nowadays, when it comes to modern forms of music, I genuinely seek out music that's a little less popular than whatever is on Top 40 Radio. Not because I seek to become an obscure-loving nutcase who spits upon pop fans, but for a few others: a) I'm a sap who thinks that less-appreciated musicians are due their chance to shine. b) My favorite genre is likely drone, which, for completely understandable reasons, doesn't get much airplay. c) Mainstream music has its gems, sure, but it's saturated with a lot of filler. In the underground music world, there is even more filler, but usually you can follow the guidance of a few knowledgeable people who've stepped through that terrain before. I can get a lot more out of my favorite genres this way. However, when it comes to actually listening to the music, there is no elevated opportunity for an underground album to amaze me when compared to a popular one. Sure, I'd gladly check out an obscure free improv. artist before, say, the next Katy Perry album, but if I heard both, I would judge them both equally on how much objective/subjective merit I feel they have. In some cases I may question the simplicity of the pop arrangement of Mrs. Perry's music, but I won't bring her popularity into the mix. Bringing 'popularity' into actual musical discussion is one of the main reasons why I hate talking about The Beatles. Popularity to get to new music? That's great. Popularity to talk about it? Not so much.

02-14-2011, 02:32 PM	#15 (permalink)
Thom Yorke Music Addict Join Date: Jan 2011 Posts: 1,848	To be clear I wasn't talking about bands changing their sound to be more mainstream. I'm just talking about either not liking a band anymore after (and because of) a sudden influx of fans, or purposely avoiding getting into a band because they're already popular.

02-14-2011, 07:55 PM	#17 (permalink)
alli-oop Groupie Join Date: Feb 2011 Location: vancouver, bc Posts: 42	In some cases for sure. Not because of ridiculous stubborn reasons, but because they are so over played and overused to where it just gets annoying. Nirvana was like that. Really good when it was only on college radio and the one alternative station on the am dial. Then the top 40 and rock sites got into it around the early-mid 90s, and they just got nauseating.

02-14-2011, 08:31 PM	#19 (permalink)
The Bullet Music Addict Join Date: Nov 2009 Posts: 454	Now? I'm more open minded than to hate an artist just because they're famous. When I first started listening to music? My God. I use to not want to listen to artists who didn't write their own music, or who autotuned their lyrics because of them not genuinely expressing themselves (and, in the autotune case, their voices), so I taught myself to hate them. For example, I literally use to want to kill Rhianna because i saw her as manufactured and taught myself to hate her music. Now, I admit to her being "eh" for the most part with a few good songs. I'm still not a fan, but I definitely wouldn't kill her. Don't get me wrong, I DO hate it when an artist puts songs on an album that were almost scientific attempts at reaching a certain demographic, with no personal connection whatsoever, that the artist his/herself probably hates, weather that was written by them or someone else. If the artist is genuinely trying to champion someone else's composition that they found meaning in, then I have nothing against an artist using a songwriter. For example, up until Bad, Michael Jackson usually used songwriters, but his music was still high-end, cream-of-the-crop pop because he truely wanted to impress himself as well as others, and rejected a lot of the stuff that was written to him. And when he did sing someone else's composition, he made sure he could relate so he could put emotion into it. In contrast, someone like Britney Spears'll never sing about anything that relates to them. She'll sing love songs and whatever else the record company sees fit. And she literally has marketing experts behind most of the tracks, and probably doesn't care about them herself. Granted, I'm glad she was able to overcome her personal problems and borderline insanity, and I respect her for that, but I still can't listen to music that screams out "impersonal." It's not as black-and-white as my 11-year-old self thought it was. Short form: the answer is "use to. Now, I don't care."