What Kind of Music Do You Like?
“Oh I’m into a bit of everything.”
As a person inclined to ruminate over inane ideas — for example, why do people say “like a broken record” when a scratched record is responsible for the vinyl skipping — this behavioural curiosity got me thinking.
I appreciate that descriptors are helpful in giving people an indication as to what they may get from listening. All things being equal, I listen to two basic styles of music:
- Hideous guitar music. That encapsulates everything from The Birthday Party to Morbid Angel.
- Stuff that defines description. That bundles everything from Diamanda Galas, Einstürzende Neubauten, Merzbow, Bat For Lashes, and Tom Waits.
But it’s not particularly compelling when I’m asking you to take my word for it, nor does it do justice to the actual breadth of music that piques my interest.
The following article attempts to identify the characteristics that qualify a listener as inclined towards a bit of everything.
What do people mean when they say they’re into a bit of everything?
It suggests that the respondent is open-minded, or that they would at least like to be perceived as such.
You could make a case that this is the perspective of the musical tourist, an individual with no serious convictions about style or genre, but I think that’s a marginalist’s* perspective.
You need to harbor eclectic tastes to be willing to engage with different styles and sounds, but the spirit of receptivity isn’t limited to people with expansive music collections or encyclopaedic knowledge.
How would an expansive musical taste be qualified?
A simple method is considering a listener’s ease and comfort with dissimilarity between styles.
The premise that someone can listen to everything is obviously absurd, but a more useful barometer is a person’s natural inclination towards disparate styles. You could add an additional qualifier that factors the breadth of their musical palette and their ability to switch from one style to the next with unparalleled immediacy. The musical equivalent of switching from rum to whiskey, as easily as the inhale follows the exhale.
What might that look like? An illustration, if you will.
Dissimilarity might manifest as:
- All the gold of Bat for Lashes with the triumphant gleam of Darkthrone as a chaser.
- The double barrel prayer of Diamanda Galas contrasted with getting closer to Tegan and Sara.
- A hammer party with Big Black standing off with that suspicious mind of Elvis on the flip.
- The religious vomit spewed by the Dead Kennedys or the ooh la la of Goldfrapp.
Contemporary examples that illustrate the point, even if failing to consider simple variations like culture or history. People tend to reference music from centuries past primarily as classical, but that is more an acknowledgment of what is popular and enduring rather than what stirs the soul of the global population.
Why would people be attracted to a diverse array of styles?
A vast array of influences inspire our musical interests, and of those critical motivators — emotional, social, and political- I experience the emotional current as the primary inducement. In other words, selecting music because I want to feel a certain way. The hidden benefit of this approach is that it encourages you to maintain a quality music collection — especially if you’re a physical media collector — you know, Records, CDs, and Cassettes with a linear listening expectation — more or less.
You could argue that it’s a useful barometer of emotional stability.
Well, not really, but it is novel to assess the sequence of records listened to and not find much in the way of linkages between one and the next. If I listened to The Bad Sees, then The Birthday Party, and on to These Immortal Souls, there’s a clear personnel thread there, but if I go from Bat For Lashes to Slayer, chances are I need a little bit of a rush to push myself along. That’s not the only reason to listen to Slayer, but it's illustrative of an emotional charge that comes from listening to electrifying music.
It explains why Friday has its own vibe and sound.
In the same way that Friday has a mood all of its own, a designated playlist for this specific day of the week sounds like no other. If you’re fortunate/unfortunate enough to find yourself working in an office* these days, coordinate with your peers to get a Friday playlist together. It’s a positive bonding ritual for teams, but more importantly, it will be comprised of a sequence of songs that feel like no other day.
Can a diverse musical taste be qualified?
It’s definitely relative. If the person you spend most of your time with is completely disinterested in any of your recommendations, it suggests one of you is kinda conservative when it comes to listening habits.
I’ve adopted the idea that a diversified musical palette is indicative of an emotionally intelligent being and someone who is able to utilise music to enhance whatever experience they are supporting it with, but the most compelling idea is the ability to switch efficiently between arguably erratic styles. That seems to be the most definitive tell.
Note: *Marginalist is a term belonging to a theory within economics, but I’m wanting to use it to describe a person who marginalises. If I use it often enough and for long enough, maybe it’ll catch on.