Music is not a status symbol
A few days ago I dug up a bunch of old cds that were still at my parents' house, and upon an inventory check I realized that I might be embarrassed that people I know might find out I own many of the titles included in the collection.
Then I wondered why should I care what other people think of the music I like, or more importantly, the music I listened to ten years ago?
Maybe it's because some of my friends can be considered "music snobs." These are the people that tell you your taste in music is bad because you don't listen to the music that they like, implying that they are somehow the appointed authority on what's "good," even though the definition of good can be debated.
Music snobs can be found everywhere, some claiming divine providence to a certain genre, while others simply deride what's popular. A few friends of mine are partial to the 'jam' band category of music. This includes bands such as Grateful Dead, Phish, String Cheese Incident, and Widespread Panic. Although I don't know everything about them or own albums recorded by these bands (the best music available are recorded live shows usually in bootleg form), I like them a lot. In fact, my tastes range greatly across many platforms of music (as anyone's should). But my friends who listen only to this genre believe, since I don't listen to them exclusively my musical tastes are questionable. And I thought the people who subscribed to this lifestyle were supposed to be the most open-minded.
Another kind of music snob is the 'indie' snob, who belittles anyone who likes bands or artists that are the most popular due to overexposure by the media. One of the worst examples of this is Eman Laerton of youhavebadtasteinmusic.com. He makes personal appearances at concerts of bands he doesn't like, steps up onto a pedastal of delusional grandeur, and proceeds to announce to the patrons waiting in line that their musical tastes are questionable while he stands in front of them in a brown judge's cloak and an oversized helmet from World War I. He naturally sparks unrest as a result of insulting the intelligence of the waiting fans by quoting false statistics from an imaginary publication called "Scientific Proof Magazine". Notice on his website he only points out bad music, there is no mention of music that he considers good.
Then I wondered why should I care what other people think of the music I like, or more importantly, the music I listened to ten years ago?
Maybe it's because some of my friends can be considered "music snobs." These are the people that tell you your taste in music is bad because you don't listen to the music that they like, implying that they are somehow the appointed authority on what's "good," even though the definition of good can be debated.
Music snobs can be found everywhere, some claiming divine providence to a certain genre, while others simply deride what's popular. A few friends of mine are partial to the 'jam' band category of music. This includes bands such as Grateful Dead, Phish, String Cheese Incident, and Widespread Panic. Although I don't know everything about them or own albums recorded by these bands (the best music available are recorded live shows usually in bootleg form), I like them a lot. In fact, my tastes range greatly across many platforms of music (as anyone's should). But my friends who listen only to this genre believe, since I don't listen to them exclusively my musical tastes are questionable. And I thought the people who subscribed to this lifestyle were supposed to be the most open-minded.
Another kind of music snob is the 'indie' snob, who belittles anyone who likes bands or artists that are the most popular due to overexposure by the media. One of the worst examples of this is Eman Laerton of youhavebadtasteinmusic.com. He makes personal appearances at concerts of bands he doesn't like, steps up onto a pedastal of delusional grandeur, and proceeds to announce to the patrons waiting in line that their musical tastes are questionable while he stands in front of them in a brown judge's cloak and an oversized helmet from World War I. He naturally sparks unrest as a result of insulting the intelligence of the waiting fans by quoting false statistics from an imaginary publication called "Scientific Proof Magazine". Notice on his website he only points out bad music, there is no mention of music that he considers good.
posted by James at
11:42 AM
1 Comments:
I don't know, I think that guy's site is really funny...
I also feel like he didn't pick any borderline bands to bash.. It seems that they are all the type of bands that "fit the suits," but possibly lack genuine musicianship.
It's interesting that he doesn't list music that he likes... He's probably worried that people would bash *his* taste.. I'm curious as to what his taste entails.
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Anonymous, at 12:41 AM
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