music Musical Misconceptions/Stereotypes That Bother You

[MVC NVMXD JVRXD 2,406]

We all know what these are. Those moments when you say something about music to someone, and you cringe in response. But it's not just some one time occurrence; it's a recurring event that plagues you through out every music discussion. WELL LET'S SHARE THEM.

D-does anyone else get annoyed when someone feels the need to brag about how obscure a band they like is? I get how in describing something, it's easy to say "Well these guys aren't that known, but they're pretty good", but when you say something like "You won't like these guys, they're p obscure.", it's completely unnecessary. It's as if their obscurity will affect your listening.

Welp, how about you guys?

[Naphthol 7]

Varg Vikerness!

enjoyed his music muchly, many years ago.

bit of a nut.

 

I try to avoid those sorts of situations as much as possible by simply breaking a discussion of music down to it's primitives. The kinds of harmonies, or melodies, or rythmns in the music. The atmosphere it creates.

 

Decontextualising it from the brand-based system that most music falls into.

 

edit: I'm thinking now after posting, that this sort of thing goes on even with the primitives. People (like myself) sometimes becomes fixated on unusual scales or abnormal rythmns - it can derail a talk about music into a pissing contest of musical knowledge. The only winner is the bladder.

Edited November 10, 2012 by Naphthol

[Skullbuster 1,906]

theres two major ones for me

 

the first one is when people try to say the dubstep isnt music, just because you dont like it dosent mean its not music

 

the other one is when people claim brony music isnt "real music" what does that even mean? not real music, its rather ignorant, and then they feel the need to show me their music, going like "oh let me introduce you to real music" it just annoys me

[FoxyCryptid 4,330]

When people that obviously are pulling from small reference pools bash country. I don't how many people I've heard write it off as pointless music about trucks, dogs, and girlfriends leaving you(granted, songs about the first two can be fun, and songs about the third can be really heartfelt.).

 

It bugs me because some of the most heartfelt and meaningful lyrics I've heard are from country songs. it's one of the last genres that's not afraid to be down to earth and real. It shows the truth about having to take the good with the bad and look for the silver lining.

Edited November 10, 2012 by Shoboni

[DusK 1,264]

"All metal is angry and hateful." Most of the metal I listen to is Christian, which is hardly angry and hateful.

 

The "screaming takes no talent" crap bothers me too, but I usually laugh that one off.

[Magicon 468]

I have two:

 

1. When people consider I'm a snob and elitist because I simply listen to classical music. I'm neither of those. I just like the music more than the modern stuff.

 

2. When people don't know what a viola is. Seriously, guys? Come on! This is the 21st Century! You would think our population would at least know what a viola is, since they know what every other instrument in the orchestra is! Besides, it's not that rare of an instrument. It's common in many ensembles and yet people also misidentify it as a violin. It's not a violin! It's bigger and has a better sound (it doesn't squeak!)

[Envy 6,385]

I do not like how classical is stereotyped as 'relaxing'. How would you consider this relaxing?

 

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=N00XKtROddc

 

I can think of many pop music songs I would consider far more 'relaxing' than that. But I don't listen to music to 'relax'. I listen to music that I find entertaining, and there's plenty of entertaining classical music.

[Naphthol 7]

I do not like how classical is stereotyped as 'relaxing'. How would you consider this relaxing?

 

http-~~-//www.youtube.com/watch?v=N00XKtROddc

 

I can think of many pop music songs I would consider far more 'relaxing' than that. But I don't listen to music to 'relax'. I listen to music that I find entertaining, and there's plenty of entertaining classical music.

 

I hear you, though personally I would call that song relaxing. The elegance of how old style european art music approches harmony just inevitably creates a very 'hypnotic' atmosphere of tones. A good test for how 'relaxing' a kind of music is would be to play it at a loud volume - then listen to it from another floor of your house. All that remains is a sort of throbbing pulse of harmony with no real details to pick out. With classical - or baroque, or romantic era music for that matter, relaxing is probably a very fair judgement even for the more adventurous works. Even for Wagner or Holst.

 

it's a generalisation more than a stereotype i'd say. though, maybe a fair one. The elegance of the execution, and the synergy of all the different elements of an orchestra can definitely make for a very smooth, polished feel to music. Short of going into all the details above, if a person shothands the description to simply 'relaxing', thats cool. I understand where that comes from.

 

It may even just be because of the subtle sound of traditional instruments compared to modern sounds. Distortion, Compression and other naturally impossible sounds are everywhere in modern music.

[Twiliscael 3,962]

That metal is just random noise and screaming takes no skill.

That metal fans are all drugged-up teenag fuck-ups.

That obscurity and popularity have anything to do about quality.

That people aren't willing to give other genres a chance.

That pop and rap are the only genres on mainstream radio(I think if they expanded their music selections, alot more people wouldn't be so narrow minded about music)

It angers me thaat people argure over music. It's a personal opinion and nobody is ever going to change your true beliefs.

Edited November 11, 2012 by Twiliscael

[Party Cannon 876]

When someone asks you what kind of music you listen to, and you say all kinds of music, and then they are not satisfied with that.

[~Asuka <3~ 867]

I am not a druggie because I listen to stoner rock/metal.

 

I am not a musical elitist just because I love heavy metal.

 

Classical isn't for nerds.. It's for everyone.

[Kazuki Fuse 534]

Pretending to be a musical elitist is awesome. I'm not a sociable person, especially when I go to shows all I wanna do is watch the band and not talk to people I don't know. So if people come up and try and make discussion, I just ridicule their music tastes so they won't talk to me.

[Viscra Maelstrom 3,719]

oh, there are a few that gets to me when i see it.

 

that x genre of music isn't "real" music just because you don't like it.

that electronic music isn't "real" music because it doesn't use acoustic instruments and such.

that "anyone can make electronic music in 10 minutes" regardless of whether they never having touched a DAW in their whole life, know absolutely nothing about EQ, etc.

 

those are the three things that get to me the most about music.

[Treeboy 418]

OH VARG. Anyhoozle, my least favorite misconceptions are fed to me from my friends at least once every other day. Mostly the one that states that metal's musicianship is sloppy, and that harsh vocals are nothing but bullshit and misguided anger. People usually say that it's "just" or "nothing but" something, and those two phrases have done nothing but make the gears in my head come un-meshed. Ugh.

[Mephala 2,635]

I listen to a lot of pretty unpopular and/or unknown bands, so I like to try to share some of the music with my friends if I know that they'd like it. However, they snub it solely because "it's not on the radio; obviously it's not good".

ARGH, gets to me so much.

For example, I have a "friend" who I recommend Sleepy Kitty to, and she just stared at me and said "That sounds horrible." :/

[Dusty Soul 2,614]

When people say Dubstep is talent less While I used to think this, I now know that it takes a lot of talent. To say that those people who work hard to make electronic music are talent-less, well that's like saying Jimi Hendrix sucked at guitar. I also get annoyed when people start yelling that their genre of music is better then yours. (That's why it's good to like every genre like me )

[MVC NVMXD JVRXD 2,406]

Pretending to be a musical elitist is awesome. I'm not a sociable person, especially when I go to shows all I wanna do is watch the band and not talk to people I don't know. So if people come up and try and make discussion, I just ridicule their music tastes so they won't talk to me.

 

That's pretty annoying, when someone walks up to you, as if you care that they've seen this band x amount of times, or how the song their playing is their favorite... it's just uncalled for. http://mlpforums.com/public/style_emoticons/default/dry.png

that x genre of music isn't "real" music just because you don't like it.

Really true. Music is just something that people enjoy listening to, whether it be pop or misique concrete.

People usually say that it's "just" or "nothing but" something, and those two phrases have done nothing but make the gears in my head come un-meshed

Usually, when something like "This music is just..." is said, they probably have little to no knowledge of the music, and of what they are saying about it.

[Evilshy 5,093]

My biggest is probably when people say X doesn't take skill. Even something that may be musically simple, like drone or doom, still has difficulties behind it. Sure, it might be simple from a technical standpoint, but music is so much more than just playing instruments.

I'm not going to lie, I definitely get a lot of enjoyment out of listening to things that are complicated and hard to play, but the fact that a couple guys can throw together a really slow and repetitive song with like 6 different notes and shitty (if any) vocals and I still want to listen to it means something.

 

It especially gets me when people say electronic takes no skill, probably because I hear this the most out of any genre. I've had very limited experience making some, and takes quite a lot, just of a totally different kind than rock or classical or, really, just abou any other type of music.

[A Blithering Div 247]

Whenever people require vocals in music just to listen to it. It's absolutely mind numbing that people will write music off just because it doesn't have some half-wit mumbling crap into a microphone.

 

I also hate it when people assume the radio equals good music. Very rarely do I hear a good tune on the radio and its usually the same good tunes. EX: On a local "classic rock" station the play the same Rush tune, Same Yes tune, same 5 Led Zepplin tunes with the very rare Kashmir, same 8 Pink Floyd songs and the same 2 Doors songs over the span of a week. Some of them occur in an 8 hour timespan twice. I just want to drive down to the station, kick down the door and yell, "YOU KNOW THEY HAVE A LARGER DISCOGRAPHY RIGHT?!" Suffice to say, my car had a broken antennae when I bought it and its staying that way.

 

Another one as people mentioned is the big amount of hatred on dubstep claiming its not real music. Chances are they heard Skrillex and that was the end of it. If only they knew of the good stuff.

[K3WRO 79]

My Top Least Favorite Misconceptions of Music

 

1. "Metal / Punk is Satanic, and whoever listens to it will burn in hell" -Why? I mean, most metal music deals with more emotions than whatever meaningless crap the crowd listens to anyway, it's just image.

 

2. "People who listen to Classical are Snobs" -Just because they listen to classical doesn't mean they don't listen to anything else

 

3. "Electronic Musicians are virtually talentless,They can't play an instrument and what they do is just press random buttons"

-Not really, Everything in Electronic music involves technical mastering, so it does require talent but in a different form than what to be expected, FYI, most of them play real instruments, some just not write songs using them

 

4. "The original is always better/worse" -Not true, the resampled/ remixed / or remastered songs of the original can end up better or worse,

 

5. "Anything on the radio is good music" -How do you Explain Nickelback then

 

6. "Pop musicians have no skill" -No, If they don't have skill, why are they successful? Sitting on your butt all day won't take you to success, and I bet most pop musicians worked hard to reach such popularity. Even if their music can be terrible, it's not easy.

[Crispy 5,565]

"Metal these days is just noise and it doesn't take any skill."

 

 

"Electronica isn't music because no one is playing an instrument."

 

 

"This band isn't famous so they can't be that talented."

 

[Viscra Maelstrom 3,719]

It especially gets me when people say electronic takes no skill, probably because I hear this the most out of any genre. I've had very limited experience making some, and takes quite a lot, just of a totally different kind than rock or classical or, really, just abou any other type of music.

 

electronic music takes just as much practice to pull off as any other type of music does. really, go download a DAW like FL Studio or Reason, and tell me that isn't hard to make something decent in.

[Evilshy 5,093]

electronic music takes just as much practice to pull off as any other type of music does. really, go download a DAW like FL Studio or Reason, and tell me that isn't hard to make something decent in.

 

I'm just saying that using something like FL Studios to make good stuff takes a different skill set than using a guitar, trumpet, piano, etc to make good stuff.

[MVC NVMXD JVRXD 2,406]

"This band isn't famous so they can't be that talented."

Wait, people actually say stuff like that? I didn't know that exists.

Also, here's something that's been bothering me, don't think I've said it before:

"I like all music except country and rap"

:|

[Shiki 5,857]

(A legit conversation I had with someone before)

 

Noob: "wat kind of music do u lyke???"

Me: "I typically listen to the 'Hardcore Electronic' genres that are out there."

N: "o so u meen dubstep??? ^^"

M: "... No. I said Hardcore Electronic."

N: "ya exactly dubstep"