I find myself endlessly fascinated with musicians - and music - that I donāt like. In fact I often find myself more interested in them than in music I do like. While a lot of Wikipedia users will end up down some strange wormhole after continually opening new tabs that piqued their interest, I use it in a much more focused manner: I find a musical artist who Iām familiar with, and then read absolutely everything about them. I go through their discography chronologically. But more often than not, itās an artist Iām not interested in, or even dislike.Ā
Perhaps because I donāt have much knowledge about them, so they seem far more unusual and fascinating. After a while, the type of artists Iām familiar with become potentially predictable. But then I suddenly find myself thinking:Ā āI wonder what the full discography of Yes is like.ā Iāve read the Wikipedia entry for every Yes album. I might do a Yes YouTube session one day (IāveĀ listened to a huge slab of terribleĀ ā90s andĀ ā00s Simple Minds material on YouTube on more than one occasion, just from a fascination as to why this music was even made).
I once read about Limp Bizkit on Wikipedia. Every album. I really enjoyed reading about it. I never went through a nu-metal phase as a teen so Iāve never gained any pleasure from their music.Ā
This probably ties in with why my own music can be hard to categorise. My record collection is surprisingly light on related artists. I have an absurdly large number of Tangerine Dream albums and a handful of Jarre ones, which is probably why I donāt own any Klaus Schulze, Ashra, or indeed any of the other Kosmiche/new age artists of the time. I donāt like getting an album that sounds too much like stuff I already own. Whenever I get obsessively into a sub-genre or a movement/scene, I end up selling two thirds of the albums Iāve bought six months down the line. I like every album I listen to be a completely unique experience, and if I own other albums that are very similar, it takes away from that. Iām the same when it comes to releasing albums: I hate putting out a record thatās very similar to a previous one. Thereās no point.
The main thing I seek when Iām listening out for new music is: does this sound new to me (or: is this a really fucking good pop song?, but thatās a story for another day). Iām fascinated by music that seems new and different to me. Which is probably why I like reading about music I donāt like. Thereās loads more to take in and learn, stuff about music and scenes and inspirations that Iām not already over-familiar with.
It doesnāt mean I end up liking the music any more, of course. But I feel like Iāve learned something and experienced something new.
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