Does a Band's Popularity Affect Your Taste?

Merkaba · 02-15-2011, 01:22 AM

Sometimes when the band you love makes it big you can end up resenting all the people who put on the tshirts and name just the singles as favourite songs.

You say, you're not that much of a fan.

Gavin B. · 02-15-2011, 02:01 AM

There's always been a tendency by indie music fans to worship bands with cult followings. I have my own obscurantist leanings because I spent several years listening to blues and reggae musicians that nobody ever heard of.

Quote:

I remember my dad telling me that he liked The Beatles until they really blew up. After that he couldn't be bothered with them.

The Beatles were wildly popular from their first album release in 1963 and unless your father was following the Beatles from their Hamburg/Liverpool days of 1960-1962, I'm wondering what he's complaining about. To the Beatles credit, they refused to be predictable and continued to develop as artists, even if they were successful.

By contrast, Sting has become a boring middle of the road "adult alternative" artist since his days in the Police and has completely made me forget that his music once meant something to me.

Thom Yorke · 02-15-2011, 02:17 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Gavin B.

The Beatles were wildly popular from their first album release in 1963 and unless your father was following the Beatles from their Hamburg/Liverpool days of 1960-1962, I'm wondering what he's complaining about. To the Beatles credit, they refused to be predictable and continued to develop as artists, even if they were successful.

I never really delved into it too much with him. I'll have to ask him what he meant.

Howard the Duck · 02-15-2011, 05:59 AM

never

unless they only started to stink when they hit big-time i.e. Depeche Mode

i love Duran Duran, i love Nirvana

i do dislike most current pop, but I still listen to them, anyway on the radio, just for the sake of "gettin' jiggy wit it" with da youth of today

TockTockTock · 02-15-2011, 06:10 AM

Nah. Albeit, sometimes when people never shut up about a band or when it's played nonstop on the radio, THEN I may not like it. But for the most part, popularity never really affects me.

Raust · 02-15-2011, 10:56 AM

It doesn't necessarily effect my taste. However, when a group of people say on here favor a certain artist and you can't help but hear them I think that has some influence. My musical tastes have definatley changed since I went on here and I'm sure a lot of it is cause of peoples influences I've adapted to on here. So I guess if music is popular with my friends or people on a forum and I just so happen to like it then to that extent I guess it does effect my taste. Otherwise most of the time I discover my music outside of the influences around me.

Ska Lagos Jew Sun Ra · 02-15-2011, 11:13 AM

One thing I'd like to point out, is that sometimes you can still have a passionate rant about something being overrated. I like Nirvana, but I will EASILY go into detail how I feel they're massively overrated. That doesn't mean I don't put on "Lithium" or "Milk It" or "Come As You are" ever once in awhile, and enjoy it.

**Scarlett O'Hara** · 02-15-2011, 11:22 AM

People who say Nirvana are over-rated annoy me, I mean yes they were popular for perhaps the wrong reasons but their music was still damn good. I think sometimes we get wrapped up in other parts of the band and lose our focus on the quality (and sometimes influence) of the music.

I'm one who is not going to shy away from something just because they're well known. A large number of my favourite groups are well known and 'big'.

alli-oop · 02-15-2011, 12:57 PM

I hope you don't think I'm saying they are overrated, because I didn't, and don't think so in the least. Just that i grew very very tired of them as they got extreme radio play.
Same as the killers. good band, but i can't listen to a cd anymore because I'm overexposed to the point of irritation.

EvilChuck · 02-15-2011, 01:49 PM

I dont think anyone really allows a band's popularity to affect their taste, I certainly dont. I judge on the music, if the music sounds good to me then I like the band, its as easy as that.

What I do think happens though is we judge other fans based on how long they have been fans for, and then judge them as fans based on that. Obviously we use ourselves as the measure by which true fandom is judged, anyone that started listening after us are bandwagon jumpers, and anyone who started listening before us are elitists.. where as we ourselves are neither lol

02-15-2011, 01:22 AM	#21 (permalink)
Merkaba Whitewater! Join Date: Apr 2005 Location: New Zealand Posts: 2,885	Sometimes when the band you love makes it big you can end up resenting all the people who put on the tshirts and name just the singles as favourite songs. You say, you're not that much of a fan. __________________ She thinks I'm a reclusive genius, she's going to be very disappointed when she finds out i'm a reclusive wanker

02-15-2011, 11:22 AM	#28 (permalink)
Scarlett O'Hara Make it so Join Date: Oct 2005 Posts: 6,181	People who say Nirvana are over-rated annoy me, I mean yes they were popular for perhaps the wrong reasons but their music was still damn good. I think sometimes we get wrapped up in other parts of the band and lose our focus on the quality (and sometimes influence) of the music. I'm one who is not going to shy away from something just because they're well known. A large number of my favourite groups are well known and 'big'. __________________ "Elph is truly an enfant terrible of the forum, bless and curse him" - Marie, Queen of Thots

02-15-2011, 05:59 AM	#24 (permalink)
Howard the Duck Live by the Sword Join Date: Jan 2011 Location: Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia Posts: 9,075	never unless they only started to stink when they hit big-time i.e. Depeche Mode i love Duran Duran, i love Nirvana i do dislike most current pop, but I still listen to them, anyway on the radio, just for the sake of "gettin' jiggy wit it" with da youth of today

02-15-2011, 06:10 AM	#25 (permalink)
TockTockTock They/Them Join Date: Nov 2010 Posts: 1,914	Nah. Albeit, sometimes when people never shut up about a band or when it's played nonstop on the radio, THEN I may not like it. But for the most part, popularity never really affects me.

02-15-2011, 10:56 AM	#26 (permalink)
Raust Music Addict Join Date: May 2008 Posts: 1,411	It doesn't necessarily effect my taste. However, when a group of people say on here favor a certain artist and you can't help but hear them I think that has some influence. My musical tastes have definatley changed since I went on here and I'm sure a lot of it is cause of peoples influences I've adapted to on here. So I guess if music is popular with my friends or people on a forum and I just so happen to like it then to that extent I guess it does effect my taste. Otherwise most of the time I discover my music outside of the influences around me.

02-15-2011, 12:57 PM	#29 (permalink)
alli-oop Groupie Join Date: Feb 2011 Location: vancouver, bc Posts: 42	I hope you don't think I'm saying they are overrated, because I didn't, and don't think so in the least. Just that i grew very very tired of them as they got extreme radio play. Same as the killers. good band, but i can't listen to a cd anymore because I'm overexposed to the point of irritation.

02-15-2011, 01:49 PM	#30 (permalink)
EvilChuck #based Join Date: Feb 2011 Location: (Near) London, England Posts: 443	I dont think anyone really allows a band's popularity to affect their taste, I certainly dont. I judge on the music, if the music sounds good to me then I like the band, its as easy as that. What I do think happens though is we judge other fans based on how long they have been fans for, and then judge them as fans based on that. Obviously we use ourselves as the measure by which true fandom is judged, anyone that started listening after us are bandwagon jumpers, and anyone who started listening before us are elitists.. where as we ourselves are neither lol