Musical Taste: Is it innate?
Graeme Thomson thinks musical taste is hardwired. While it’s true that our brains are wired to respond to certain musical stimuli, I’m wonder how much is down to early musical experiences.
I was exposed to a lot of classical music before discovering rock and roll, and I think it’s that which has left me both with a love of the much-maligned genre of prog-rock, and an inability to appreciate the vast majority of post-punk or indie, most of which sounds too musically shallow to hold much interest.
So nowadays I end up liking things from Odin Dragonfly, an acoustic duo with a lot of flute, to Opeth, who play prog-tinged death metal with Cookie Monster vocals. On the surface, those two acts don’t appear to have that much in common. But both bands are really into harmonies (in Opeth’s case it’s the twin lead guitars rather than vocals), along with a lot of songs in minor keys.
In terms of sounds, I love Hammond organs, Mellotrons, and the magical combination of Fender Stratocaster and a Marshall stack, combined with male or female vocalists that concentrate on staying in tune rather than expressing fake angst.
Put all that together and you end up with something like the closing section of Mostly Autumn’s Carpe Diem, which takes me to heaven every time I hear it.
What I cannot stand is indie-style jingly-jangly guitar, and ridiculously affected vocal stylings. Bob Dylan, Bryan Ferry, Morrissey and Damon Alburn’s mockney are like fingernails scraping on a blackboard to me. Opeth’s Cookie Monster is a possible exception to this.
I still think the inability to appreciate a good guitar solo is probably caused by a faulty gene. Sadly it’s so prevalent that the accountants that make all the important decisions in the mainstream music industry have all but banned guitar solos as a result because it might reduce sales to people like Graeme Thomson
September 23rd, 2007 at 4:31 pm
I don’t know. I grew up in a household with both a lot of Turkish and classical music, but in the end I gravitated towards stuff with a lot of drum machines. And then I developed a taste for jazz, so I guess anything is possible?
I blame my dad’s copy of “Switched-On Bach.”
September 23rd, 2007 at 4:47 pm
I suspect the Barry Gray orchestra, who did all the music for ‘Thunderbirds’ and ‘Stingray’ had more influence on me that I really want to admit. I was about 5 years old when Thunderbirds first aired….
My dad is into trad jazz. I cannot stand trad jazz. I can listen to some more modern jazz fusion, but trad (on scratchy 78s) just leaves me cold.
September 28th, 2007 at 1:11 am
Oh snap, you don’t like Bryan Ferry? I hate you forever.October 4th, 2007 at 12:18 pm
Somehow “Thunderbirds” seems the right music for the final minutes of my drive into the office. Perhaps it is all the technology involved in gaining access to the underground car park, perhaps I’m just trying to kid myself that I really am going to make a difference to something in the day ahead.
I didn’t think I liked jazz until I heard “Suite for Chamber Orchestra and Jazz Piano Trio” by Claude Bolling.
J.S. Bach, of course, defined music as we know it.
October 4th, 2007 at 8:00 pm
Surprising how much Bach you can hear in some rock music. And not just Yngwie Malmsteen either.