I will say that experience in listening to music (and, particularly, specific genres) is very valuable. Also, some people naturally are more analytic and critical of everything. A few friends took me to this new taco place they were raving about the other day, and my reaction was, "This is really good, but I still prefer the other place more." They were annoyed because I criticize everything. That's who I am.

My mom loves classical music but probably couldn't decide on a favorite composer, favorite piece of music or even favorite period. She's not wired like that. She doesn't really take time to analyze what she's listening to, or what she's eating, or what she's watching, etc. Things are good or bad to her. She enjoyed them, or she didn't enjoy them. I can't do that. The My Documents folder on my computer basically is a storage device for lists in Notepad files.

I'm with you in that regard. I kind of take personality to be one of the biggest factors in musical tastes and how someone is as a musician. Some people naturally look for more intellectual challenges, like yourself and our boy Mael. It's been so cool during the past few years seeing how music's just a part of that. Please, both of you keep it up.


But I can't really stand genre labels. Most music (until more recently) was so cross-pollinated and personal that there was an element of something else everywhere. Black Sabbath was about as 'jazzy' as Coltrane's earlier years, and late Coltrane was so much more 'metal' than they ever were... lately pop music seems to be talking down to its consumers, and while there's nothing wrong with some mindless enjoyment (it's made specifically for us to like it after all) that kind of critical thinking that you have puts you like 2 steps from understanding Charlie Parker and Wagner to a degree that would make it accessible to you.

All I mean to say is that any sort of music that gets you to think or want to challenge yourself further, regardless of 'genre', is a valuable listening experience.


and that you're all great



I'll shut up now and save my crap for essays and papers lol

Saying late-period John Coltrane was more metal than Black Sabbath is the most music-student statement ever.

lol and yet nothing pisses off sax majors more... I just needed an on-the-fly example for a non music major friend and it stuck

I really shouldn't say late period tho... more middle, giant steps-era

Well, if you're talking strictly about tempo, you might be confusing metal with thrash.

I don't really mean tempo at all, more motive, feeling behind it etc. the saying is something like 'if charlie parker went out and shot the first 10 white men he saw he never would've played a note

but i can't count on people to know parker :(

Don't condescend to me. Who's being pretentious now? I own Bird & Diz.

Apologies, I was actually expecting you to recognize charlie parker

but the average 20 year old, not so much. Coltrane just became stuck in my mind for that example