Comments on: Discovering Your Taste

By: Alex Temple

Alex Temple — Wed, 05 Sep 2012 02:45:11 +0000

Matt, I agree with all of that. It might have sounded like I was trying to make a purist statement against the avant-garde, and that’s certainly not the case. I also like some Ferneyhough — and even more so, some Lachenmann — for exactly the reasons you describe.

My experience with open- and closed-mindedness has been like a pendulum: in high school and college I was way too eager to reject things based on superficial first impressions, and then for most of my 20s I’ve been way too hesitant to reject things even after many listens. Hopefully I can find a happy medium.

By: Matt Marks

Matt Marks — Tue, 04 Sep 2012 13:06:15 +0000

Great post. I think it’s important to have a rich and varied listening life. I try not to become too entrenched in music that’s instantly appealing to me or in music that’s more difficult for me to appreciate. The best thing about ones private listening is that you can really make it work for you (consumer power!). For example: I was listening to versions of The Mysteries of Love by Angelo Badalamenti (from the Blue Velvet soundtrack) yesterday on the subway –in particular the Julee Cruise and Antony and the Johnsons versions. I was really digging on them, but I noticed after a while that I was becoming a bit depressed (pretty emotional music I suppose). I then switched to some Frank Ocean, which is still emotional but with a bit more swagger. I found I got a similar catharsis, but without the dreary pathetic aftertaste. That got me thinking about how to make ones private listening ‘work for you’.

Similarly, I listen to a ton of music that is purely indulgent (which if you ever see my Spotify listening is pretty clear), because I think it’s important to indulge yourself in music you find instantly attractive. Not doing so would be like depriving your sex life of those activities that easily get you off and only engaging in difficult, meditative tantric sex or something. You gotta keep it diverse: push your limits from time to time, rock the easy stuff when you crave it or just feel like keeping it light, and stay receptive to new perspectives on things you might have dismissed in the past.

[Sidenote: The open-mind thing is something I've struggled with a lot. I think too much open-mindedness can be counter-productive or even dangerous. I like the idea of being "receptive to new things" instead. Forcing oneself to always keep an open mind can let in all sorts of conceptual riff raff]

What’s funny is when serious/academic/esoteric music unexpectedly becomes superficially indulgent. For some reason, I really dig Ferneyhough on a purely sensual level. Something about the prickly scratchiness of it affects me very viscerally. Not sure why. I listen to Ferneyhough for the same reasons I listen to Doris Day; I have cravings that are practically physical.

By: Alex Temple

Alex Temple — Sun, 02 Sep 2012 19:49:25 +0000

I’m thinking mainly of vocal music where the words suggest some kind of painful emotion and the music seems to be trying as hard as possible not to acknowledge it. Schumann’s Dichterliebe is full of examples; “Rent” by the Pet Shop Boys is another. If you’d like an example from my own work: http://www.alextemplemusic.com/2009/02/imogene/

By: Joanna B

Joanna B — Sun, 02 Sep 2012 19:40:34 +0000

My curiosity is piqued by “emotional repression” as a musical characteristic. What does that sound like?

By: jeff myers

jeff myers — Sun, 02 Sep 2012 07:46:14 +0000

I totally agree!!!

By: gurdonark

gurdonark — Sun, 02 Sep 2012 01:59:18 +0000

Tinkertoy melodies.
Music as daydream about sound.

By: Alex Temple

Alex Temple — Sat, 01 Sep 2012 21:39:40 +0000

Yeah, cliché is another thing that gets me excited.

By: Eusebius

Eusebius — Sat, 01 Sep 2012 20:52:33 +0000

Cliché.