You listen 6,7 times and "meh" then 8th blows you away and your off-Why is that?

eclein · « **on:** 13 Oct 2011, 09:48 pm »

I hope you folks have had similar experiences like mine where you listen to a new piece of music several times and it just doesn't get ya then its like a switch went off, "and now you get it", and the next time the new album,CD,file grabs you and you suddenly need to hear it over and over like a few times a day if possible for the next few weeks...and your almost fanatical about the piece of music that a few hours earlier didn't make you stop and listen. Now, its like a religious experience!! Anybody else? and why does it happen??

Rclark · « **Reply #1 on:** 13 Oct 2011, 09:53 pm »

It's often the case that music I end up falling totally in love with is something I hated.

Heck most of the music I'm checking now is older stuff I wouldn't be caught dead listening to as a teenager.

AB · « **Reply #2 on:** 13 Oct 2011, 10:50 pm »

Happens to me all the time. I don't know why it happens.
One thing I have noticed is this: If I listen - casually - to a piece of music, I will not immediately like it unless it's pop or has some very typical hook. I know this and so try not to listen to new music without sitting and actually listening to it. Then I might like or not like it. If I don't like it, I'll give it a few more tries and eventually I will like it. Or not. I never know.

eclein · « **Reply #3 on:** 13 Oct 2011, 11:10 pm »

I've been listening to King Crimson for years and been like OK with it no big thing, lots of talent and very different music....then yesterday I put on Discipline then THRAK and followed them up with Red....now I like woke up real early like always and at 5:45 I got King Crimson blasting in my headphones...LOL....its a sickness I tell ya...LOL..hahahaha...

I had to go out to an early appointment and on the way back in the cab I'm jammin to them on my ipod, walk in and play them on my stereo, all afternoon...I was like this with Radiohead that one weekend here I asked everyone what was good-bought all the Radiohead stuff people suggested on Amazon that day!!!!!!!!LOL....hahahhahha

FullRangeMan · « **Reply #4 on:** 14 Oct 2011, 12:00 am »

ECLEIN:
You are with the audiophile bug. Not a problem or audio flu. Just you are in a long process of refinament and learning.
At least it is what happen to me.
Cheers

*Scotty* · « **Reply #5 on:** 14 Oct 2011, 12:37 am »

Ed, I'm thinking it's all in your head.
The Audiophile version of Mood Swings perhaps.
The only time this has happened to me, that I can recall, it has been a by-product of increased resolution which has rendered some heretofore unlistenable recordings worth a second listen and sometimes a complete re-appraisal.
I can't buy everything I see so I usually use the ability to preview what an album sounds like on Amazon before I buy. As a result of this approach I usually succeed in buying music I like that grabs my attention upon first hearing it.
On the other hand I think all of us have at one time or another "burned out" on a particular record as a result of over exposure. I frequently come back to an album after retiring it from heavy rotation and discover new nuances in the performance and a greater appreciation of the composer or artists work.
Scotty

Diamond Dog · « **Reply #6 on:** 14 Oct 2011, 12:50 am »

If an album ( yep, album...as opposed to three or four "hits" designed to sell on iTunes for a buck a pop and a bunch of filler crap ) gives up everything it's got to you on the first listen, you're listening to bubblegum...Good music is art and art should challenge you...and reward you for meeting the challenge of repeated listenings as you peel back the layers. Mind you. sometimes you listen to a piece of work repeatedly only to come to the final conclusion that it's crap after all... and sometimes, what appears to be bubblegum ( say, ABBA ) may eventually reveal itself to involve a fair bit of craft. Now I'm getting a headache...
At the end of the day, Ed, I have no bloody idea why the eighth listen locks 'er in for ya. I will say that what have turned out to be many of my personal faves were "growers"...

D.D.

won ton on · « **Reply #7 on:** 14 Oct 2011, 12:51 am »

well back in the 70's i borrowed return to forever,romantic warrior.i just could not get into it, then in the 80's i heard it again and it was wow this is great. also i got bill frisell's is that me same thing i don't know how many times i listened to it then one day it just clicked.my favorite music seems to be stuff that seems not so good at first

Tyson · « **Reply #8 on:** 14 Oct 2011, 05:19 am »

Coltrane and Bartok were both like that for me - years of "meh", then suddenly I GOT IT. Now they are both among my absolute favorite artists.

JackD201 · « **Reply #9 on:** 14 Oct 2011, 07:19 am »

It happens to me all the time too. Some music just needs time to sink in I guess.

Delta Wave · « **Reply #10 on:** 14 Oct 2011, 08:07 am »

Happens all of the time... I used to not be able to listen Slayer at all, hated them when I was a kid. But then I just got it. I hated the Soundgarden "Louder Than Love" when it was new, then whammo! I didn't like the newest Radiohead album too much but I had it spinning in my workshop as background music and then I perked up and finally heard it. But I loved "In Rainbows" the first time I heard it... I do still prefer their more "rock-fueled" albums but I dig the new one now.
The funny thing is, even at as a young teenager I "got" the complex stuff like old Yes, Rush, King Crimson, Jethro Tull, etc..., loved that stuff. Sometimes with a good modern band, they have to push the musical envelope as a creative process because, thankfully, not every modern musician can be satisfied with just dollar signs and mediocrity. So those unique progressions and arrangements don't take to the brain as fast as a Chuck Berry song would, it takes a while to process what's going on in there. I don't mind it so much.

FullRangeMan · « **Reply #11 on:** 14 Oct 2011, 08:35 am »

Music is like woman, after a while they may turn beautiful...

eclein · « **Reply #12 on:** 14 Oct 2011, 10:58 am »

Quote from: FULLRANGEMAN on 14 Oct 2011, 08:35 am

Music is like woman, after a while they may turn beautiful...

That is so true on so many levels.

timind · « **Reply #13 on:** 14 Oct 2011, 11:11 am »

Quote from: FULLRANGEMAN on 14 Oct 2011, 08:35 am

Music is like woman, after a while they may turn beautiful...

My first wife contradicts your theory

To Ed's question, Radiohead makes a perfect example. I was a fan from the start and when they released Kid A I thought WTF? I just couldn't hear it. It took a while but now Kid A is one of my favorites.

macrojack · « **Reply #14 on:** 14 Oct 2011, 11:36 am »

Does this phenomenon occur with equipment too? Have you been lukewarm on a speaker initially but grown to like or love it more with the passage of time?

This is why I always wonder about firm proclamations. We are, after all, the biggest variable in the listening chain.

lokie · « **Reply #15 on:** 14 Oct 2011, 11:51 am »

Interesting observation. I always thought this was a good phenomena as it increases the universe of compelling music. This hobby scratches allot of itches for me and as everyone here knows that the discovery process is one of the biggest payoffs. I think it's great that I can re- discover music I already know about and have listened to for years.

I saw a Beatles cover band and had a Beatles rediscovery epiphany. I have heard that music so much over the years it turned into elevator music. Hearing that music live with it's visceral impact made it fresh and interesting and really mind blowing great. I was scratching my head saying duhhh.... wow these guys are phenomenal: the lyrics, the harmonies, the endless creative and original melodies.

sebrof · « **Reply #16 on:** 14 Oct 2011, 01:46 pm »

Quote from: Diamond Dog on 14 Oct 2011, 12:50 am

If an album ( yep, album...as opposed to three or four "hits" designed to sell on iTunes for a buck a pop and a bunch of filler crap ) gives up everything it's got to you on the first listen, you're listening to bubblegum...Good music is art and art should challenge you...and reward you for meeting the challenge of repeated listenings as you peel back the layers.
D.D.

Yes, I agree. Applies in the micro (a specific album) and in the macro (music style). That's why children's music like Row Row Row Your Boat and Happy Birthday are so pop and easy for kids, but as we grow older and accustomed to them they get boring quickly. That's also why I believe that people who listen to a lot of music don't usually listen to pop or top 40 stuff. Top 40 is top 40 because most people do not listen to a lot of music, so its simplicity allows it to be popular with a lot of people. Poeple who listen to a lot of music get bored with pop top 40 because they are not challenged.
Consonance and disonance - You need both. The more consonance the less challenging, the sooner you'll get bored. The more disonance the harder it is to "get it." So for a new album that's perhaps a bit complex, it may take a few listens to begin to enjoy it.

*Scotty* · « **Reply #17 on:** 14 Oct 2011, 05:10 pm »

I stopped listening to the top 40 somewhere in the late 80s or early 90s, it might have been a generational thing or bad FM reception where I lived.
I grew up listening to classical music courtesy of my father. I cut my teeth on tubes and my dads DIY loudspeakers,SEARS Silvertone electronics and drivers. Yeah, my dad corrupted me early on with his "stereo hobby".
I have a limited tolerance for dissonance,12 tone music ala Schoenberg,it sets my teeth on edge and upsets my sense of pitch. I obviously don't equate musical complexity with how much dissonance is present in the composition.
I also prefer my jazz to have a passing familiarity with a melody which is probably why I have trouble getting into Miles' later stuff.
If art is about communication then it has to say something to YOU.
This is what makes experiencing music a personal thing which is why everyone doesn't share the same taste in music.
Scotty

eclein · « **Reply #18 on:** 14 Oct 2011, 05:26 pm »

Scotty thats an excellent point, nice........some groups like "YES", "Gentle Giant", and other progressive rock, like "Crimson" is labelled, were immediately taken in and enjoyed but "Crimson" took years. Its possible I've finally slowed myself down enough to actually hear the nuance and subtle inflections along with being able to interpret ones that slam you in the head and enjoy them rather then RUN away and hide!!! Miles to this day makes me run away and hide, but "Pat Metheny", "Peter Gabriel", "Tangerine Dream" send me to my happy spot...hahahahahaha..LOL. You know what I mean!!

*Scotty* · « **Reply #19 on:** 14 Oct 2011, 06:05 pm »

You might like Paul Desmond's Take Ten Album. It is probably best on vinyl,
I bought the CD from amazon and it is a really good transfer,one of the best sounding recordings in my library.
Scotty