1.27.2010

mmmmusic

180 artists, 389 albums, 5215 songs ... and counting.
Most albums per artist goes to Tom Waits with 11, followed by Pink Floyd with 10, Modest Mouse with 9 and Led Zeppelin with 8. Lately, my most played would be Tom Waits and Radiohead. A month or so ago it was Calexico and The Raconteurs.

It amazes me that almost my entire collection (some CDs I never bothered to put on although I have room to double my albums) can fit onto one little bit of electronic gadget no bigger than a small spiral notepad. I don't even consider myself a music lover. But it's so much nicer having it all in one spot that I can take with me, play on the stereo in the car or at home, my headphones at night, etc. I'm still mystified by and thankful for mp3 players.

My music tastes vary greatly, from Primus to Woody Guthrie and Neil Diamond to Gogol Bordello - and it used to be easier to list what I didn't like rather than what I do. But, music genres have gotten so overlapping and strange in the past decade that I can't even really say what I prefer anymore. My teens and I argue over genres all the time - what is punk to them is not punk to me, they call heavy metal "screamo" which, I'll agree, is apt - but we don't agree on bands. It is nice that we share music though. I never bought "kids' music" when they were little, they grew up singing Soundgarden, Presidents of the USA, Harry Belafonte or whatever else I was listening to at the time. "Spoonman" by Soundgarden is a cherished family sing-along song.

Growing up, I had an 8 track player with two tapes - Pink Floyd's The Wall and The Beatles On Abbey Road, which I listened to every night for about 6 years while falling asleep in junior high and high school. I had other albums and tapes, but those were my nightly preferences. I tend to be like that with my music tastes. I'll find an artist and listen them (not quite exclusively) for months on end - then either switch to something else or stop listening altogether for awhile.

I'm like that with all of my interests it seems. Wonder if there's a name for sort of behavior... Is it normal?

4 comments:

  1. name for this behavior... static tastes deficit disorder? eclectic OCD? fickle long term instrests syndrome? i have no idea, but as you're aware, i'm a fellow sufferer. i'm not sure how normal i am, so i can't really answer that part of the question. heh.

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  2. Ha! Good names for it, Brooke - I like "static tastes defecit disorder" or STDD .. wait, ew. Hmmm.

    It probably is normal. What is not normal is feeling GUILTY about your tastes moving on, maturing, changing. As if Modest Mouse gives a rat's ass whether or not they're my current fave after I've already shelled out money for the music.

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  3. I have the same level of amazement at digital music and gadgets. What used to occupy shelves now fits on a tiny card or in a small object. Amazing and wonderful.

    But then, I am still amazed and delighted by email. :-)

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