Music Appreciation

So I gave Sonata Arctica's new album a nice review on Metal Music Archives, and now I get to watch as people in the forum for Prog Power are trashing the album. At the same time, this album gave me the desire to go back and listen to Days of Grays (which I was never really thrilled about) again, and this time I'm finding it far more enjoyable.  So I've been musing on this, and realizing there are some lessons I've learned about music appreciation from being on Metal Music Archives, Prog Archives, and the Prog Power forum, and from having two very good friends who share a lot of the same tastes in music, but occasionally have differences.  These are just personal musings that I wanted to write down as much for the benefit of thinking them through as for anyone who might actually read through this extremely wordy post, but hopefully someone will actually enjoy reading them. 

 

1)       Knowing more about music only helps you to appreciate it more.

 

Ok, that might have sounded pretentious, but hear me out on this for a minute, I want to tell you a story.  So I grew up in a very musical family.  A musically SNOBBISH family.  I wasn�t really allowed to listen to many forms of music � mostly classical and jazz.  When I was a young pre-teen, however, I found a record in the back of a drawer of old records that never came out � it was Emerson, Lake & Palmer�s �Pictures at an Exhibition.�  I was CRAZY about this album, because it combined something I was fascinated with (the sounds of loud, electric instruments) with something I already knew and loved: classical music.  ELP became the first band I was a fan of, and this was the start of my journey into crazy Prog Rock fandom.  But the story doesn�t end there.  I listened to a lot of Classic Rock radio when I was in my teens, and because I loved ELP I wanted other things like them, so of course I started checking out bands like Pink Floyd, Kansas, Jethro Tull, Yes, Rush, etc.  But for some reason, I never really �got� some of these bands, especially Yes � there were certain songs I liked, but most of their other stuff I thought was�weird.  Now fast forward to college.  I was a big fan of Joe Satriani in college, and had gone to see the G3 show with Satch, Vai, and John Petrucci.  Now, because of this I had gone and listened to some samples of Dream Theater stuff on Amazon (this was when that feature of Amazon was brand new, haha�shows how old I am), but never bought an album because I disliked the singer�s voice.  But the semester after going to the G3 show, I was roommates with the president of the film club, and one day this guy came to my room to return some camera equipment and as he did so he stopped and said �hey�is that Joe Satriani?�  We got to talking, and he asked me if I liked Dream Theater, and when I explained why not he insisted I had to try out some of their stuff, and later loaned me the Once in a Livetime album.  I remember not quite �getting� this album�but loved Take the Time � you know why?  Because on the live disc, they throw in the solo section from Freebird and Petrucci plays it better than the original EVER was.  That was enough for me to try to �get� them, and I found an appreciation for a few other songs from the album.  On a side note, the gentleman who loaned me this cd is one of my best friends, and has been for over a decade now.  Back to the story: I bought a couple Dream Theater cd�s, one of note being Images and Words.  I can remember HATING Metropolis Pt. 1.  But a strange thing happened: for some reason a piece of the instrumental section of this song got lodged in my brain, and kept playing on repeat.  So I had to listen to the song again.  I still hated it�but a little less now because I kinda liked this part of the song.  So I listened to it a few more times, hating it just a little less each time�until I had an epiphany.  I realized that there was some really funky stuff going on in that instrumental section � strange time signatures, and even parts where different members of the bands were layering different time signatures on top of each other.  Metropolis Pt. 1 became one of my favorite songs after this, and this is the point at which Dream Theater became my favorite band.  And over time I�ve noticed some other odd things in my changing musical tastes, such as the fact that these days I prefer Yes (which I formerly thought were �weird�) more than I do ELP.  This is why I say that knowing more about music, or understanding more about a piece, can give you more of an appreciation for it.

 

2)       Everyone wants something different out of a band or artist. 

 

Some people don't want their favorite bands to change at all - the people who seem to hate the new SA album seem to hate it because it doesn't sound like every other album that they've done.  The inverse of this is that I've watched in ProgArchives how people are extremely divided on the new Dream Theater album, and it's funny to see how some people are saying it's because DT has nothing new to offer (they haven't changed enough to keep these people interested), some people think Mike Mangini sucks (they've changed too much), some people think they didn't use Mike Mangini to his potential (they haven't changed enough), some people wanted "Train of Thought 2", some people wanted Metropolis Pt 3, etc. on wanting part 2 of a past album, some people think it's too show-offy (um...please go away, you bother me�cretin), and some people are like me and think the album is a culmination of the efforts over the last decade, bringing the band full-circle and showing the combination of their old style with the experimentation over the years.  But in any case, I think what this proves is:

 

3)        If you go at it with a �no expectations� attitude, music is far more enjoyable.

 

This is an extension of lesson #2 � so the reason I didn�t like �Days of Grays� at first, and now am finding it very enjoyable is because I came to the album with expectations.  I expected a certain sound out of Sonata Arctica, and the new album did not provide it.  But after that experience, I didn�t listen to much Sonata Arctica for a while, and when the new album came out I didn�t know what to expect, so when I went in with a fresh start, it was an amazing ride for me!  And so I thought �hmm�maybe I should give Days of Grays another try.�  This brings me to lesson #4:

4)        Listen to your music buddies � they can help you to appreciate music more.

Now, one of the reasons I thought I should give Days of Grays another try was because one of my good Prog buddies I mentioned earlier LOVES Days of Grays � it�s his favorite album by SA.  After hearing the new SA album and going back to Days of Grays, I gained a new appreciation for it and heard things I was missing the first couple times through that album.  Another good example of this one is the band Redemption.  I remember when I discovered them, I only just kind of appreciated them, and told my Prog Buddies about them mostly because they were creating a big stir in the Prog communities.  Well, one of my two buddies latched on to them right away, saying they were in his top 5.  I didn�t get it, and I told my friend that I always felt like Redemption had no dynamics � they were always loud and driving and never held back and had quiet moments.  I also used to tell him that I felt like the band was 5 instrumentalists soloing at the same time � no coherency.  Well, I kept buying their albums and giving them a chance because my buddy loved them so much, and I wanted to understand why.  And then Snowfall on Judgment Day came out and something clicked.  I started to understand why this band was so special, and that album became one of my all-time favorites.  It gave me a new appreciation for the band, and I was able to go back to the old albums and really, really enjoy them now.  My buddy and I don�t always see eye to eye on music, but I�ve found over time that often if I can figure out why he likes something, I gain an appreciation of it myself � this is especially true if it�s a band I already like (though not always true if it�s a band I never liked in the first place).  But that�s ok because:

 

5)       There isn�t enough time to appreciate EVERY band or artist out there.

 

Pretty self-explanatory.  But to expound on that � there isn�t enough time to appreciate every band or artist out there, but you can respect that other people appreciate them.  Now, please understand something�this does not mean I am going to respect every single artist the exists�*cough* BIEBER! 

 

6)       Give an album a few chances, especially if it�s a band that has already earned your respect.

 

This is kind of expounding on #4.  I�ve been talking about Sonata Arctica a lot here because they are a great example � I did NOT like Unia when it first came out�but then I saw the band live, and when they played songs off of the album they were so great live, that I went back to the album and discovered�I LOVED it!  It�s now one of my favorite albums.  I mentioned a similar thing happened with Days of Grays.  And it�s happened with countless other bands and albums.  So I�ve learned that if I don�t like an album or band right away, but someone I respect does, I probably ought to put that one aside for a while, and then give it another chance later on.

 

7)       Seeing a band live gives you a whole new appreciation / perspective.

 

This goes along with my experience with Unia � I didn�t appreciate the album until I saw the band live, and saw how great it translated.  And this has happened so many times with other bands � for example: Voyager.  I�ve gone to Prog Power USA 7 years in a row.  The last few years, I�ve tried to at least sample every band that is going to be there.  This is partly because I have to know when a good time is to go get a bite to eat, so I want to know which bands are �skip-able�.  Last year, Voyager was one of the bands I sampled, and I decided that they didn�t sound unpleasant, but they probably weren�t my style of band either.  But I decided to give them a shot and stay for at least part of their performance.  That was one of the most fun performances I�ve EVER seen!  I went and bought two of their albums, and absolutely LOVED them!  This probably never would have happened had I not stayed for their performance.  Now the flip side of this lesson is:

 

8)       Live performances are the true test of a band�s worth.

 

In this day, there are so many tricks a band or artist can use in the studio to make themselves sound better than they really are.  The live arena is the true test � is this band fantastic, or mediocre? 

 

9)       Reviewing music helps me understand why I like or dislike something.

 

I think many people have no idea why they like or dislike things, or even why they are for or against other things.  I�ve found at times that analyzing this has changed my opinion on things.  For example, I will give one of my now favorite bands: Haken.  I did not like their debut.  My buddies did�so I analyzed things, and realized that really the only thing I didn�t like about them was the singer.  For some reason I just didn�t appreciate his voice.  But as I listened to their music again, I realized I LOVED the instrumentals.  Analyzing why I disliked them helped me to realize that I could get past those reasons, which I did, and now they are not only one of my favorite bands, but I have also been able to appreciate the singing as well (still not my favorite vocalist by any stretch�but I like him quite a bit more than I did).  So I�ve found that as I�ve been reviewing albums on this site and on Prog Archives, I�ve been listening to music with more of an analytical ear, and I�m finding this helps me to appreciate more music.

 

10)       Pandora is an AWESOME tool for music appreciation.

 

I�m going to use Opeth as an example for this one because it is a recent occurrence: I never really appreciated them, until recently I set up a mixed station on Pandora that contained Riverside as one of the handful of bands I put into the station.  Because of this, Pandora kept selecting some of the quieter songs with compound time signatures by Opeth, and without knowing who it was, I�d say to myself: �hmm, this is cool, who is it?�  And I�d look up and be surprised that I was really enjoying�Opeth!

 

11)       Your current life situation changes how you appreciate music.

 

I�m thinking of two particular examples for this one.  One was in college � I was depressed, but mostly angry over�surprise�a girl.  And this was right after a certain album by one: Linkin Park.  The angst in that album spoke perfectly to my situation at the time.  Now, on the flip side of this, I had a very different experience with a Redemption song: Keep Breathing.  This album came out when my son, my first born, was about 9 months old.  The song, Keep Breathing, was written by one of the two guitarists, Nick Van Dyk, about his daughter Parker, who has a degenerative disease causing her to lose her eyesight. The lyrics explain how as a father he can't stand to see his daughter in pain, but at the same time is amazed at her strength and bravery and tells her that it inspires him to go on.  Listening to this song at this point in my life was like perfect timing, and something rare (for me) happened: I had to pull over as the tears began to flow.  Thinking about my love for my own son, and my desire to protect him, made the song so much more beautiful to me.

 

Ok, so how am I going to wrap up these ramblings?  Well, I may come back here and add more thoughts to this later, but for now I will finish this long, wordy ramble off with this last final lesson:

 

12)       Music is meant to be enjoyed in community.

 

Having two good buddies who enjoy much of the same music I do has enriched the experience of music in so many ways.  I don�t think music should be enjoyed alone � I think it should be shared!  If you love a band, tell your friends about them!  Try to get them into the band!  Find someone else who loves the band and befriend them!  It makes the experience so much better.

 

 

Well, that�s it for now � hope I didn�t bore anyone.  But after I wrote these, I was thinking about them and realizing some of these apply in many other areas: for example, the lessons on knowing why I feel a certain way about music, and taking time to develop my opinion on it, are applicable to so many more situations, like politics, for example.  I mean, so many people seem to have opinions on politics that they are so vocal about, and yet seem to have no idea why they have these opinions.  *cough* Tea party�I�m looking at you right now, that�s right.  How many videos have you seen where a news guy has gone and interviewed people at a tea party rally and asked �did you know that if that was put into place you�d lose [fill in the blank]?�  And the tea party person says �um�well�no�I wouldn�t like that�.�  They look like a complete idiot!  Yeah, I�m not an expert on applying these lessons as I�ve looked equally the idiot too many times, but I know I OUGHT to take more time to develop my opinions, examine the other side�s opinions, and if anyone asks what I think about the subject in the meantime say things like �I don�t think I know enough about the subject to take an opinion either way right now.�

 

6) That sword cuts both ways you know.  I loved Days of Grays on the first listen; but after a few more, I reconsidered.  Eventually, I expelled it from my CD collection.  As you probably understand, writing a review for an album on the first listen is a bad idea.  The more solid your opinion, the better off you will be when reviewing.  That said, I really find that the "I hated [x album] the first 999 times I listened to it, but I absolutely loved it on the 1000th listen." idea almost never applies to me.  Hit your hand a thousand times with a hammer and yeah it will eventually stop hurting, but you'll have seriously fucked your hand up.  If an album gets a 2.5 or less from me on a first listen, I find that on subsequent re-listens my score actually goes down.  Such an occurance happened with Gorguts' Obscura in my case.

7) I never liked internet radio.  I don't like not having control of what I listen to, because if something comes on that I already do despise like Suicide Silence when I want Immolation or Incantation I'm going to flip shit.  I prefer my music played in the order it was intended to be set in on the album it appears on.  If I need new bands, all I really need to do is ask around.  This is all personal preference though.

11) As most of the rest of you may know, angst ridden lyrics are often a reason for me to give the middle finger to a band.  I am turned off by "whiny" lyrics about how shitty the lyric writer's life is, especially if it's a mallcore band who uses these themes to milk money from the music industry.  Now do I like depressive and sorrowful atmospheres?  Yes, I do.  Black metal in particular tends to be an ideal place to project this atmosphere with acts like Coldworld, Xasthur, Drowning the Light, and Shining; and death doom/funeral doom metal acts like Katatonia's debut, Bethlehem's debut, October Tide, Skepticism, Funeral, and Ea.  I like all those bands because I think their music fits much more ideally with this type of theme than metalcore does and I feel that I can take them more seriously because of that.  And not all of them even have lyrics dealing with depression; Skepticism for example mixes nature in to make a simple, but effective set of lyrics.  Here's the lyrics to "Sign of a Storm" as an example:

By the healing waters
of my lovely shores
I laid
The air so bleak
so cold
I breathed with my eyes
with my ears
Through aeons went my journey

From these mountains
I swear the world
I am the hammer
I am lightning
By the signs I shall return
To burn all land
beyond the seas

  Added to them are bands like Esoteric and Leviathan who partner the depressive atmosphere with misanthropy to create an atmosphere of pure hate of the world.  They've succeeded in making their music not exactly sorrowful sounding, but more along the lines of being full of animosity.

What does all that bullshit have to do with your original point?  There's definitely a sizable age difference between the two of us, but I've got too much pride to let angst bother me.  The last time I was frustrated, played a couple of songs by some death metal bands with lyrics about killing God, which, being the Christophobe I am, made me feel quite powerful and ended up forgetting about the frustration.

Again, this is personal preference. 

My point is why waste time continuing to listen to music you don't like after the first few listens on the off chance that you'll like it more after another ten listens when you can find music infinitely more deserving of your time?