Anyone else (say they) listen to/like "everything"?

Terrapin_Station · 09-14-2016, 12:02 PM

I do. It always seems weird to me when I run into people who seem to believe that no one can listen to or especially like "everything."

Obviously, that doesn't mean that one has heard every album, every artist, etc.--there's too much music in the world for anyone to have heard literally everything.

And I know that a lot of people who aren't big music fans will answer "everything" when you ask them what music they listen to or like.

Also, I have preferences of course.

But I listen to a like a huge variety of music, stuff from every genre, really, maybe with the exception of some genres that are extremely obscure that have only a few artists in them. In those cases, I just don't know about the genre. But I'm familiar with a ton of obscure stuff, too.

I regularly, equally collect music from 39 to 50+ genres depending on how you count them--those are my favorite genres, and I listen to and like plenty of music from plenty other genres aside from those, too. Some of my favorite genres are extremely broad--they have tons of subgenres. I like all of it.

I have thousands of artists in my collection and many thousands of albums. I've yet to run into a genre where I don't like some music that falls under it. I like the vast majority of music I hear at least a bit. There are really no artists I hate. Even the few things that I'm more indifferent towards I regularly listen to if they're in my collection, because almost everything grows on me/I've gone from not caring very much for something to liking it a lot plenty of times in the past. In fact, that almost always happens.

I also don't really have any clear hierarchy of favorites. I tried to make a list of all of my favorite artists one time and it ended up being somewhere around 2000 different artists. If I try to say my "top 100" of those, it ends up being at least a few hundred. I can't narrow it down more. I like a ton of stuff equally. I can't really name favorite albums by particular artists because if I like them, I usually like all of their albums about the same amount. There are a bunch of artists I like with large discographies where I'd give every album a 10/10. It's the same for songs. It's impossible for me to name favorites. I'd have to just randomly list songs. I tend to get into whatever music is playing at the time. My only requirement is variety.

So it's way easier to just say that I listen to/like "everything" when someone asks, because it's pretty accurate--and who wants a list of 50+ genres and thousands of artists?

duga · 09-14-2016, 12:06 PM

I can say I'm open to everything. Chances are, I will find a way to appreciate it even if it's something I won't reach for everyday. For example, country is still the one genre I have the hardest time getting into, but I definitely have a handful of country albums that I think are pure classics.

Personally, I think this is what separates an audiophile from - say - a metalhead or hipster. Those labels apply to people who like a particular type of music and close themselves off to others (exceptions exist, but this is true for the most part). I pride myself in being an audiophile and if I find a style of music I've never heard before, I will most definitely give it a chance.

**Janszoon** · 09-14-2016, 01:36 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by duga

I can say I'm open to everything. Chances are, I will find a way to appreciate it even if it's something I won't reach for everyday. For example, country is still the one genre I have the hardest time getting into, but I definitely have a handful of country albums that I think are pure classics.

Personally, I think this is what separates an audiophile from - say - a metalhead or hipster. Those labels apply to people who like a particular type of music and close themselves off to others (exceptions exist, but this is true for the most part). I pride myself in being an audiophile and if I find a style of music I've never heard before, I will most definitely give it a chance.

I think that's a good way to put it. I obviously haven't heard every genre of music out there, but I listen at least a little bit of every genre I have heard and I'm always open to hearing new genres.

Tristan_Geoff · 09-14-2016, 01:46 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Janszoon

I think that's a good way to put it. I obviously haven't heard every genre of music out there, but I listen at least a little bit of every genre I have heard and I'm always open to hearing new genres.

I never thought it'd happen but I found a crunkcore album I more or less tolerate. Maybe someday that'll happen for bro-country too.

Kinda unrelated but I was meaning to post this somewhere.

**Frownland** · 09-14-2016, 12:07 PM

I think that a lot of casual music listeners will say that they listen to everything simply out of ignorance of the many genres outside of what they hear on the radio. I have preferences as well and there are a few genres that I don't know of anything that I like in them, but I say everything for pretty similar reasons to the last paragraph of the OP.

duga · 09-14-2016, 12:10 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Frownland

I think that a lot of casual music listeners will say that they listen to everything simply out of ignorance of the many genres outside of what they hear on the radio. I have preferences as well and there are a few genres that I don't know of anything that I like in them, but I say everything for pretty similar reasons to the last paragraph of the OP.

I say everything unless I'm talking to someone I know will understand what I'm saying. Most acquaintances probably don't realize just how into music I am. The few times I've attempted to explain what my favorite music is, their eyes glaze over.

Terrapin_Station · 09-14-2016, 12:09 PM

Haha--I like the graphic

Ol’ Qwerty Bastard · 09-14-2016, 12:11 PM

I can't stand when the topic of music is brought up, and the person replies with "oh, I listen to everything."

Not only is that statement highly unlikely, but it also makes it basically impossible to progress the conversation.

What the **** am I supposed to say next?

"Oh, well if you've heard everything, what are your thoughts on TMR?"
"Everything? Huh. What's your favourite Eric Dolphy album?"

Nah bitch, give me a few bands/genres/artists that you're particularly fond of and we'll go from there.

duga · 09-14-2016, 12:32 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Qwertyy

I can't stand when the topic of music is brought up, and the person replies with "oh, I listen to everything."

Not only is that statement highly unlikely, but it also makes it basically impossible to progress the conversation.

What the **** am I supposed to say next?

"Oh, well if you've heard everything, what are your thoughts on TMR?"
"Everything? Huh. What's your favourite Eric Dolphy album?"

Nah bitch, give me a few bands/genres/artists that you're particularly fond of and we'll go from there.

This is assuming the person actually wants to have a conversation about music. I've gone the route of listing bands or genre's I'm into at the moment only to be met with those glazed eyes I was talking about. If they really want to talk about music, I ask them what they listen to and I can work from there.

Thelonious Monkey · 09-14-2016, 01:23 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Qwertyy

I can't stand when the topic of music is brought up, and the person replies with "oh, I listen to everything."

Not only is that statement highly unlikely, but it also makes it basically impossible to progress the conversation.

What the **** am I supposed to say next?

"Oh, well if you've heard everything, what are your thoughts on TMR?"
"Everything? Huh. What's your favourite Eric Dolphy album?"

Nah bitch, give me a few bands/genres/artists that you're particularly fond of and we'll go from there.

Dude, this was one of the most popular things to say doing ice breakers at college.

09-14-2016, 12:02 PM	#1 (permalink)
Terrapin_Station Music Addict Join Date: Nov 2015 Location: NYC Man Posts: 877	Anyone else (say they) listen to/like "everything"? I do. It always seems weird to me when I run into people who seem to believe that no one can listen to or especially like "everything." Obviously, that doesn't mean that one has heard every album, every artist, etc.--there's too much music in the world for anyone to have heard literally everything. And I know that a lot of people who aren't big music fans will answer "everything" when you ask them what music they listen to or like. Also, I have preferences of course. But I listen to a like a huge variety of music, stuff from every genre, really, maybe with the exception of some genres that are extremely obscure that have only a few artists in them. In those cases, I just don't know about the genre. But I'm familiar with a ton of obscure stuff, too. I regularly, equally collect music from 39 to 50+ genres depending on how you count them--those are my favorite genres, and I listen to and like plenty of music from plenty other genres aside from those, too. Some of my favorite genres are extremely broad--they have tons of subgenres. I like all of it. I have thousands of artists in my collection and many thousands of albums. I've yet to run into a genre where I don't like some music that falls under it. I like the vast majority of music I hear at least a bit. There are really no artists I hate. Even the few things that I'm more indifferent towards I regularly listen to if they're in my collection, because almost everything grows on me/I've gone from not caring very much for something to liking it a lot plenty of times in the past. In fact, that almost always happens. I also don't really have any clear hierarchy of favorites. I tried to make a list of all of my favorite artists one time and it ended up being somewhere around 2000 different artists. If I try to say my "top 100" of those, it ends up being at least a few hundred. I can't narrow it down more. I like a ton of stuff equally. I can't really name favorite albums by particular artists because if I like them, I usually like all of their albums about the same amount. There are a bunch of artists I like with large discographies where I'd give every album a 10/10. It's the same for songs. It's impossible for me to name favorites. I'd have to just randomly list songs. I tend to get into whatever music is playing at the time. My only requirement is variety. So it's way easier to just say that I listen to/like "everything" when someone asks, because it's pretty accurate--and who wants a list of 50+ genres and thousands of artists?

09-14-2016, 12:06 PM	#2 (permalink)
duga MB quadrant's JM Vincent Join Date: Dec 2009 Location: Washington, DC Posts: 3,762	I can say I'm open to everything. Chances are, I will find a way to appreciate it even if it's something I won't reach for everyday. For example, country is still the one genre I have the hardest time getting into, but I definitely have a handful of country albums that I think are pure classics. Personally, I think this is what separates an audiophile from - say - a metalhead or hipster. Those labels apply to people who like a particular type of music and close themselves off to others (exceptions exist, but this is true for the most part). I pride myself in being an audiophile and if I find a style of music I've never heard before, I will most definitely give it a chance. __________________ Confusion will be my epitaph...

09-14-2016, 12:07 PM	#5 (permalink)
Frownland SOPHIE FOREVER Join Date: Aug 2011 Location: East of the Southern North American West Posts: 35,541	I think that a lot of casual music listeners will say that they listen to everything simply out of ignorance of the many genres outside of what they hear on the radio. I have preferences as well and there are a few genres that I don't know of anything that I like in them, but I say everything for pretty similar reasons to the last paragraph of the OP. __________________ Studies show that when a given norm is changed in the face of the unchanging, the remaining contradictions will parallel the truth. d e a f b o x

09-14-2016, 12:09 PM	#7 (permalink)
Terrapin_Station Music Addict Join Date: Nov 2015 Location: NYC Man Posts: 877	Haha--I like the graphic