Anyone share hatred for genres?
 

Does anyone hate how music is supposed to sit neatly into some sort of category?

I personally get really irritated when people start rambling about some genre like "grind-core" or "dream-pop". Please, please please STOP trying to find a home for everything.

Any one?

Do you find categorizing music helpful, or does it irritate you?

It kinda irks me. Cos I think of music as well..music. I like it or I don't. And I don't want to be made fun of for liking a "funk-dance-alt-prog-dance-soft-rock" band, you know? It's like,"Shut the f*ck up. They are a band. They have songs. I like their songs."

I totally agree.

It's almost elitist eh? Like, "Ohhh you like new-wave-bossa nova-jazz-progressive-folk? You have poor taste in music..."

Um, what? I like MUSIC. I don't ONLY search the "thrash" section in a record store. I don't only check out Top 40. What's the point.

It's like saying "All country is garbage. I would NEVER listed to it." Really? Have you heard EVERY country recording on the face of the planet? People shouldn't deprive themselves of good music just because it doesn't sit well in their neatly organized top drawer.

They're useful up to a certain extent.

I don't have a problem with grindcore or dreampop because if someone uses them as a term of reference then I have a pretty good idea of what i'll be hearing. Calling something ____pop or ____ rock is more a help than a hindrance.

When it gets ridiculous is when it gets broken down even more into unnecessary sub sub genres and people start arguing over something being post organic blastbeat punkcore post organic blastbeat metalcore. That's when it becomes stupid.

Or the notion that one band has to belong to one of these ridiculous labels and can't be anything else.

Right, but would you say that it's also segregating music as well?

This pisses me off so much. People should be able to make their own music, without hindrance. I think that's when you get the best music; when you aren't trying to fit into a certain molding that everyone wants from you.

That's all down to the individual

I use them as a term of description not as a filing system.

I think it's funny when people get over huge arguments over metal subgenres.

(I'm totally not arguing with you, I see your point) -- but why not describe the actual elements of the music itself - rhythm, timbre, melodic content, etc.

Because in most cases it's quicker.

If I was to describe Blur's first album people would get a much better idea of it by me saying it's shoegaze/dreampop than by me trying to think up and type out a whole bunch of adjectives to describe it.

and even if some people think that doesn't describe it there's still enough elements in that album that it shares from other albums from that genre.