Strictly for interest’s (whose I don’t know) sake, here’s a scale of music styles, and my feelings toward them.
The Passionometer!
—LOVE
Rock
Lounge
Techno
Jazz
Classical
Folk
Country
Pop
Hiphop
Rap
Reggae
—HATE
Of course there are no absolutes, and of course these classifications can be further divided. For example, Punk Rock – Soft Rock. I like some of both. I love Nomeansno but Janice Joplin rubs me the wrong way. I’m not even sure how Blues and Soul are defined, so I left them off the list. Special notes on jazz: the “experimental” jazz that is all over the board and has no rhythm I’m not fond of, but bouncy jazz, such as that of Glenn Miller, I love. Tom Waits – wherever he falls – equals good.
I find the music industry to be offensive, even though my experience with it is limited, but I more or less know how it works “behind the scenes” and I know that what we are presented with on the radio and tv as “the hits” have less to do with musical talent and more to do with marketing, style, and sex. As such, I have programmed MuchMusic out of the tv/vcr, so that when I’m channel surfing it gets skipped over. The cons outweigh the pros as I find myself offended or at least appalled even by glimpses of most music videos. This usually leaves me feeling a little embarrassed when I’m at another person’s house and Avril Lavigne comes on and everyone seems to know who it is and when I ask “who’s that” I get laughed at and I have to ask again. But it’s all monkeys in the pudding, and I’m fine with that. I don’t mind taking a percuss to the ego occasionally as a tradeoff for living in a world isolated from that brand of crappiness. I figure listening to the radio in Shoppers Drug Mart and other public places is enough exposure for my needs. I’ll just have to rely on my friends to tell me if anything good comes out of any given “scene” while my back is turned to the media that ostensibly introduces music its fans.
Where’s the Rock-a-billy Ska??
I confess that I do watch (or tape and watch actually) MuchMusic for The Wedge and The New Music shows, otherise I can see strippers elsewhere. Being an old fart, I remember having to listen to late night FM for anything remotely interesting for music and then later reading Trouser Press and such religiously, because there was nothing on the radio that I listened to at all. Now it is the Internet and mp3’s and mix cd’s, which is really cool. I remember the days when a buddy took the time to make a mix tape of cool new stuff and give it to you and you’d listen to it over and over and go fuckin’ nuts about not hearing anything like it on radio. Now it is good friends making Mix CD’s and it is a VERY GOOD THING!
iPod and mix CD’s and the whole world listening is such a great thing. Music is dead, LONG LIVE THE MUSIC! 🙂
–michael
On your scale, I might say something like this:
Rock
Jazz
Folk
Hiphop
Lounge
Rap
Pop
Classical
Country
Reggae
Techno
…but there would be a million caveats all over the place. For example, “rock” has got to include both emo and punk. That hardly seems like a fair contest. And if “techno” includes “eletroacoustic” it would go higher on the list. Damnit, I’m making my own list.
Mike: I’ve yet to meet a ska song that I got along with.
Yvonne: But I like punk and emo so that works out great for me. You just go ahead and make your own list then! I give you my full support. And by support I mean sitting in my chair.
But Ska is just so dance-able!! The Specials, the English Beat “mirror in the bathroom….” aarrgh! Even Vancouvers Los Furios!
Of course the list is very limited, with catagories like “Classical” which is like saying I like literature, which is a little broad. Rock is so diverse as is Country or Jazz. And what exactly is Lounge?? It inspires visions of bad Bill Murray skits from SNL.
Lounge: Esquivel, Ernie Freeman, Les Baxter…etc.
smaller increments = more useful! If I didn’t already know you liked punk and emo, I might accuse you of equating “rock” with “GnR”.
And my point was, a category with both punk and emo in it is sure to win. For both of us.
Well I would prefer GnR to most country music, assuredly. And definitely any reggae/rap/hiphop with the exception of most (but not all) Beastie Boys. Depends on the GnR song to some extent.
Also, I fell of my chair to some extent. Oh, that’s right, you MISSED the last Knitting in the Buff!
Hey man, I’ve been a trooper. Even YOU missed one!