Poseurism and the burden of the accuser

[indjaseemun]

It is a fact that people listen to some music to show off, feel important and smart, show to their friends and strangers on the internet.

But how come this website talks so much about this? Is this such common phenomenon?

Or is it that the people who enjoy a sound so much, find out there are others who do, and frequently share with them, without that meaning that they are merely following guidelines of popularity/uniqueness to gain attention?

Or is this website deliberately tackling that part of our-selves that does that (music for social reasons) in order to eliminate it, but in the process ends up judging a large percentage of people who enjoy sounds that are criticized (Pink Frothy AIDS, etc.) even if most of them just enjoy the sound?

[username]

Once you would go to the university to look for insight and truth. Today that is no more sensible than to go to anywhere else where people are not outrigth dumb. The reason is, that the university today has become an industry for the bureaucratic system, and lives off from spewing out as many papers and sub intellectuals as possible.

Everything drown in shit, even the good and true.

I listened to just a handful of bands on a returning basis. Surely I would never have listened to metal at all, if I today were to dig through all the crap in a record store or on Youtube.

[Humanicide]

It is a fact that people listen to some music to show off, feel important and smart, show to their friends and strangers on the internet.

But how come this website talks so much about this? Is this such common phenomenon?

Or is it that the people who enjoy a sound so much, find out there are others who do, and frequently share with them, without that meaning that they are merely following guidelines of popularity/uniqueness to gain attention?

To answer your first question - it's more common than you would think. Most people do this unconsciously, actually. The "show off" part comes when they're with a group of people; social behavior rarely is the same as behavior alone. There are entire scenes which exist around this, look at all that fashion/crunk-core bullshit like Brokencyde that was popular a year or 2 ago; that scene was entirely transient and a fad but people who liked it didn't care generally. Same deal with the modern hip hop scene, it's no longer about crafting poetry to a beat, but about "gettin' paypuh".

Most people aren't cognisant enough to realize that they are participating in a social group when they like these certain kinds of music. They simply think "oh hey these people like the music I like, cool!" The problem is that most of these people don't "enjoy the sound" on a level which could be defined as appreciation. They're concerned with aesthetics. Does it immediately grab your attention? Is there a phat beat, or a neat sample, or a strange hook? For many, this is what characteristics of music they latch on to. They don't have the capacity (or haven't discovered that they do) to appreciate music on a deeper level, since all they're concerned with is surface elements. I believe this has been covered by this site in retaliation to people "just enjoying it, man! don't be such a downer!" which you argued for (seemingly) in your last paragraph.

I've said it before and I'll say it again, you can like whatever you want. Personal taste is almost entirely subjective. But good music that deems respect and appreciation? Not so subjective.

[fallot]

but in the process ends up judging a large percentage of people who enjoy sounds that are criticized (Pink Frothy AIDS, etc.) even if most of them just enjoy the sound?

I suppose the implication is that there is nothing wrong with people just enjoying sounds? The problem with that is this kind of passive approach to music is the behaviour of cattle. It's like eating the shiny candy wrapper and throwing away the candy.

I have a difficult time believing superficially pleasant sounding but dull music can ever be enjoyed "so much". The peak of experience is just a lot lower. I suppose a lot of people just wouldn't know better, but that doesn't mean I can honestly believe they approach this stuff with the zeal reserved for the truly great.

[aquarius]

This thread calls to mind various points brought up in an article of this site entitled Music as an Expression of Abstract Form. Though I can't find a direct link, it is well worth a read when considering the value of music as a social or non-social medium of communication. Perhaps it would be either, depending on where a person fits into the grand scheme of life; they seek art or entertainment. To me it is not so unthinkable that there exist these divisions and inequalities occurring naturally in every facet of life.