[Diamond Dog]

Ever experience a musician or group for the first time and feel absolutely repulsed by them but eventually grow to love them? On the other hand, ever love an artist but then gradually feel the love fade until they start to give you the same feeling as chewing on tinfoil ?
Share your stories here...

The first exposure I had to the Manic Street Preachers was seeing the video for the single " If You Tolerate This ( Your Children Will Be Next )" from their album This Is My Truth Tell Me Yours and it really struck me. The unusual subject matter ( Spanish Civil War ), the really distinctive and beautiful voice of the lead vocalist, the overall vibe - the thing just haunted me. I had to special-order the album in from Europe. When I got it, I was admittedly ambivalent. Too wordy, too strident, some gorgeous melodies but the whole thing just kinda put me off. Gave 'em another try with Know Your Enemy with the same basic outcome. Walked away from the Manics but later I ended up taking one more kick at the can with an earlier album, Everything Must Go, intrigued by the backstory. Put that sucker on and just lived with it for a while and everything just clicked in. I got what Manics fans were always going on about. Now they're a personal favourite.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cX8szNPgrEs

On the other hand...

I first heard Muse on a Canadian public radio program called Definitely Not The Opera. The program's British music correspondent was talking about some new music she had encountered on the other side of the pond. One of the bands who got a nod and got a song played was this band called Muse. They had just released their third album, Absolution and while they were already gaining popularity in Europe, in North America they were completely unknown. The correspondent spun an absolutely incendiary tune from Absolution called "Hysteria" and I was sold, baby. Had to get me some of that ! Again, had to order it in from Europe and I listened to that sucker forever...Raved about them to friends, got the back catalogue, and then - the miracle: These guys who were filling stadiums in Europe were going to tour North America to try and break here. I saw them in a 1500 seat hall here for like $20 and there might have been 300 people there. They tore the place up - one of the best shows I've ever seen. Short and powerful with no encore - they were obviously struggling with idea of grinding it out in small rooms to tiny crowds ( on the US leg of the tour they were playing bars ). Still, we were in heaven. Then the next album came out...With the first spin of Black Holes & Revelations, we all felt the first creeping suspicion that all was not well. A little too slick, too poppy, too restrained and where was the rock ? Oh well, we looked at each other nervously and thought " Well, Knights of Cydonia, dude, it's got that pumpin' Thin Lizzy riff happening - all is not lost..."

But it was.

Twilight soundtrack ( and every other movie and TV show you saw ), Goldie Hawn's daughter, every new album slicker and cheesier than the one before but without the old quirky charm or anything resembling edge, all the while crooning about fighting the power and joining THE RESISTANCE, man... Omigawd...a frickin' "symphony" ???
Shame spiral. Sigh...We'll always have our memories, i guess.

    http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rPyhCNoS-Sc

So this is my truth. Tell me yours...

D.D.

[jarcher]

I used to detest a lot of jazz fusion - thought it was "musical masturbation" - i.e. Pat Metheny / Jean Luc Ponty / John Scofield / etc etc.  Now in the last year or so I've come to really like it.

On the flip-side, I liked the early R.E.M. albums, then grew to detest them & their whiney lead singer.  Recently listened again to an early album & remembered what I liked about it, but it was hard to overcome prejudice due to their later albums.  Felt similar things about U2, but to a lesser degree : I still really like & listen to the early tracks.

Sorta hand a similar experience with Beck - but here went from love to hate and back to love again : the hate being the overly slow / moody / introspective albums "Mutations" and "Sea Change".  All the others are great.

Lastly : Metallica. Starting with the black album I started to loose interest and never really regained it.  I can understand that they don't want to go back to the super long power ballads (they may not even be capable of playing these anymore), but they've lost me.  Wouldn't call it a love to hate - more like a love to out of love. 

[soundbitten1]

Loved Led Zeppelin in the late '60s, early '70s with their big heavy sound. They then fell out of favor when I got into punk and new wave bands, liking the genre's shorter songs and no endless guitar/drum  solos. Couldn't take Robert Plant's wailing anymore either. The Led Zeppelin BBC Sessions got me back into the band in the late '90s and I have started liking them again ever since.

[Diamond Dog]

Loved Led Zeppelin in the late '60s, early '70s with their big heavy sound. They then fell out of favor when I got into punk and new wave bands, liking the genre's shorter songs and no endless guitar/drum  solos. Couldn't take Robert Plant's wailing anymore either. The Led Zeppelin BBC Sessions got me back into the band in the late '90s and I have started liking them again ever since.

Judging from your posts here, you listen to some really cool music. 

D.D.

[Tyson]

Hated Bowie, Radiohead, Bjork, Tool, Wilco, Coltrane, Tyner, Shostakovich, Bartok, Prokofiev, and Mahler at first, love them all now. 

[neekomax]

Hated Bowie, Radiohead, Bjork, Tool, Wilco, Coltrane, Tyner, Shostakovich, Bartok, Prokofiev, and Mahler at first, love them all now.

Those are all completely understandable... well maybe not Bowie, his stuff is basically accessible, mostly.

[WC]

I used to detest a lot of jazz fusion - thought it was "musical masturbation" - i.e. Pat Metheny / Jean Luc Ponty / John Scofield / etc etc.  Now in the last year or so I've come to really like it.

On the flip-side, I liked the early R.E.M. albums, then grew to detest them & their whiney lead singer.  Recently listened again to an early album & remembered what I liked about it, but it was hard to overcome prejudice due to their later albums.  Felt similar things about U2, but to a lesser degree : I still really like & listen to the early tracks.

I have had similar feelings about R.E.M. and U2 albums. For R.E.M. I really liked the early albums, but once Green came out, I couldn't stand to listen to them. For U2 I loved the early albums, but couldn't stand Rattle and Hum. I have since picked up later albums and find they are fine to listen to now, but my taste in music has broadened some.

Not sure I have any that go the other way from hate to love.

[decal]

How about a loathe em/loathe em/loathe em story? I couldn't stand Springsteen when he came out, I couldn't stand him when he became "the boss" and I still can't stand to hear him. Oh well, to each his own. Bash away !!!!

[MaxCast]

Hated Bowie, Radiohead, Bjork, Tool, Wilco, Coltrane, Tyner, Shostakovich, Bartok, Prokofiev, and Mahler at first, love them all now.

  so what genre did you listen to?

I loathed the Beatles.  I had Peppers and Mystery tour on cd but never really listened to them.  Now that my two boys are diggin vinyl we have acquired 90% of their albums.  I'm lovin' it now.  Glad I didn't back then.

[charmerci]

How about a loathe em/loathe em/loathe em story? I couldn't stand Springsteen when he came out, I couldn't stand him when he became "the boss" and I still can't stand to hear him. Oh well, to each his own. Bash away !!!!

   When I was a teen, I didn't like Springsteen at all - but I wouldn't admit for possibly being attacked.

I've mellowed over the years and he's fine. Don't go out of my way to listen to him but if it's on, I'll listen.

Used to hate Bohemian Rhapsody when it came out. I like it now.

[decal]

  When I was a teen, I didn't like Springsteen at all - but I wouldn't admit for possibly being attacked.

I've mellowed over the years and he's fine. Don't go out of my way to listen to him but if it's on, I'll listen.

Used to hate Bohemian Rhapsody when it came out. I like it now.

Don't get me started on Queen,please!!!!!!!!!!!!!

[pumpkinman]

How about a loathe em/loathe em/loathe em story? I couldn't stand Springsteen when he came out, I couldn't stand him when he became "the boss" and I still can't stand to hear him. Oh well, to each his own. Bash away !!!!

Decal I feel the same way about Springsteen. Never could understand why he was so popular and I feel that way about many artists and groups. Another that comes to mind is The Cars to this day I still can't listen to them. I don't how popular this will make me but I can't stand Billy Joel either. Back in the day I won't listen to Bob Dylan at all. Now a days I don't mind him at all.

[etcarroll]

Hit Syracuse U. as a freshman in '75 as Born To Run broke, and simply loved Springsteen. But cannot stand listening to him talk. Same with REM, loved the early work, hate Stipe and can't listen to the band anymore.

Love all the Early U2, can't take the later stuff or Bono today.

Couldn't deal with Pink Floyd in my youth, but Pman corrected that and now I dig 'em.

Hated both Classical and Jazz as genres in my youth, really like jazz now, and have many favorite classical pieces to listen to today.

[bside123]

Well alright... since we're "confessin'"...

Depending on the day, or the weather, I'm never really sure just how I'll feel about Eric Clapton.

Bruce "The Boss" Springstein has got one gear, he strips the teeth off of it, and if you really want that itch scratched, it can pretty much be taken care of in a single play of a record. Sometimes, I gotta scratch... and then not again for a very long time!

I've always really, really wanted to like Jethro Tull, Queen, Moody Blues, ELO & Roxy Music. Really, but it hasn't happened yet. I still keep playing them.

I'm amazed at the expanse of material and song writing prowess of Burt Bachrach, and yes, now I like him and can even admire a Karen Carpenter rendition. Would have scoffed at them as a kid and did.

I love about 3 songs of early Todd Rundgren. I think Todd's an innovative studio and musical concept master, but can't stand much to listen to him.

Lucinda Williams has really grown on me, but Emmy Lou Harris' voice grates on my nerves, even though she's a country goddess. Sure wish Graham Parsons was still around.   

This is enough for now; I could rant on the subject for far too long. 

PS. George Jones 

[bside123]

Oh... Oh... Oh... gotta do this... gotta get this off my chest... I'll probably get strung up!  :roll

Early to mid sixties Miles Davis, John Coltrane, after they "got out-a-the-box" period, makes me crazy. Not good.

But... I absolutely adore and venerate their post-bop 50's material and have never ever tired of listening to it.

[Tyson]

Oh, 2 more to my hate-to-love list - Neil Young and Bob Dylan.  Mostly because of hirez - the remasters make their music a LOT less like nails on chalkboards.  In fact, hirez has also made me re-evaluate other artists too, like Toscanini and John Eliot Gardiner, both have a rep of being sort of brutal based on their standard rez recordings, but the come through with a lot more flexibility and humanity in hirez.  George Szell too.  And George Solti, especially in the bluray remaster of Wagner's "The Ring" - what just sounded like a bunch of hectoring and screeching before, now actually sounds like great music.

[WC]

Some of you feel the same way about Bruce Springsteen as I feel about the Rolling Stones, who I still can't stand to listen to. I lived with a guy in college who just loved the Stones, I just couldn't get into them. Even today I have no desire to listen to their albums.

[Diamond Dog]

I used to detest a lot of jazz fusion - thought it was "musical masturbation" - i.e. Pat Metheny / Jean Luc Ponty / John Scofield / etc etc.  Now in the last year or so I've come to really like it.

Sounds like me but with prog. Listening to The Lamb Lies Down On Broadway as I post this. There was a time where the very idea of that would've made me laugh and laugh and laugh and swear and laugh...

D.D.

[decal]

Decal I feel the same way about Springsteen. Never could understand why he was so popular and I feel that way about many artists and groups. Another that comes to mind is The Cars to this day I still can't listen to them. I don't how popular this will make me but I can't stand Billy Joel either. Back in the day I won't listen to Bob Dylan at all. Now a days I don't mind him at all.

Got to agree with ya about the Cars and Billy Joel, P-man. I couldn't stand Zimmy until he went electric (Gasp,blasphemy). Count  Rush,Boston,Genesis and ELO in the loathe/loathe category also.

[oros]

Some of you feel the same way about Bruce Springsteen as I feel about the Rolling Stones, who I still can't stand to listen to. I lived with a guy in college who just loved the Stones, I just couldn't get into them. Even today I have no desire to listen to their albums.

+1 do have however have a soft spot for Kieth Richards after reading his autobiography "Life" great read what a life what a guy.

Adele  gives me the hives, she honks.