juepucta
juepucta
Follow

On "taste"...

Posted over 4 years ago
First let me say that this is my first post, and I am not sure this is going to be a regular thing. But I’ve been discussing some of these issues for a while with friends in meatspace and online and thought this would be the perfect place to get some feedback. Especially since we are all music lovers here and there is a low incidence of trolls. One caveat, it will be kinda long and I ramble – you are all warned.So, first “topic” in what might become a series of sorts (I feel like Montel now)…TASTEOften times I see discussions on all sorts of art forms, music especially, where after somebody states an opinion all sorts of flames and insults start flying. It might be over coffee or on your fave band’s message board after someone posts some NME review. Things along the lines of “XYZ band sucks” and then replies of the “that is just your opinion, you a-hole”.It is as if because of the whole opinions = bungholes thing it is impossible to grade the art we “ingest”.I’ve give this a lot of thought and I think the main problem is that people do not differentiate between “what is good” and “what I like”. An example, I like AC/DC but I know they are not high art. On the other hand, the last two Bjork records are good but I dislike them. So, I am entitled to have any “likes” I want (opinion) but I should not confuse that with what is good “art”.Now, you will say “but what is good?” or “who decides what is good”? And those are good questions. But the answer is not that difficult to determine. Sure they are social constructs, somewhat arbitrary, but that doesn’t mean that one can’t tell. Lots of shades of grey exist but eventually at the ends of the spectrum you are bound to hit black or white.If I draw on a napkin with my crayons you can bet your ass I will not be able to get my “art” in the Louvre. So deep down we know we can “grade” art. We all know my napkin blows as art in this example.The main thing I think people don’t realize, is that taste can be educated. In music, wine, cars, architecture, clothes, the opposite sex, books, film, food – everything. So ideally, “my likes” and “what is good” should overlap as much as possible. Again, people just don’t realize it. For starters, most of us don’t listen to the same things we did 15 yrs ago when wewere kids. So that means our “taste” developed or at least expanded.Am I crazy? I know this sounds like snobbery but it isn’t. Again, one can like whatever they feel like liking. I am just saying, be aware of the quality of what you feed your ears (in the case of us music lovers).Ok, enough rambling. But before you give me your opinions, one last thing. Let me repeat: this is not a hamburger vs. steak issue. There are really great burgers and some horrible steaks. It is more like educating your palate.Is this snobbery? Should one be proud of having picky ears?Discuss! (And feel free to tell me if all the BS above didn’t make any sense)
0

Comments (4)

  1. Anna
    Anna says I had this conversation with 1234chainsaw not long ago. I was saying that art is subjective, he was saying that it is not. I was saying that there are no solid criteria based on which we can determine what constitutes good art, and he was saying that when you listen to, say, Fergie, you understand that it is not good music, so there must be some criteria. He also said what you said, that "the main problem is that people do not differentiate between “what is good” and “what I like” ", we keep confusing the terms. I think that you guys are right. And surely, you raise a valid point when you say that taste can be educated. If you put time and effort into it, it will blossom for you. And since that _is_true, there must be that thing that we call good art. And based on this thoughtful post of yours, I do hope that this will become a regular thing :)
    Permalink posted 08/28/2007
  2. davesonic
    davesonic says Good post, I'm guilty of this myself at times. The way I look at it time will tell, if an album I'm listening to now is still being talked about and listened to 10-20 years from now it's a bit of affirmation that I made a good choice and that it's a good album. How many of us are still listening to a Nirvana album while N'Sync or Backstreet Boys has just faded away. One comment I thought was odd was that most of us don't listen to music we listened to 15 years ago. I still pop those albums in with music I'm discovering these days and I think most music fans are the same. I didn't just discover the Cure but I still listen to Head On Door right after the new Band of Horses album.
    Permalink posted 10/23/2007
  3. juepucta
    juepucta says Yeah i am with you. I guess what i meant is that our taste should've have expanded in the last 15 years. Something along the lines of "you don't listen to the same handful of bands you listened to when you were 13, one would hope that at least your scope expanded". I still listen to a lot of my old crap too :) -G.
    Permalink posted 10/24/2007
  4. indiepixie
    indiepixie says "So ideally, “my likes” and “what is good” should overlap as much as possible." As a music journalist, I have to believe (and make a living) off of my tastes. With thousands of bands and 100s of shows a night in NYC, I pick and choose, follow certain threads, pitch to my editors, see if they like, and usually, between the two of us, we come up with something that the audience will like. It's quite a privilege and not one I take lightly. Like any art, the curation of that art is a gift on its own. My likes can define what is good. And that is also what Mog can bring people- 10 year old to 60- a voice to be heard - to define what is good. I like to think of every person as being their own museum. You see their dress, their eloquence (or lack there of), their resume, their music, their pets, their lovers, their manners, and you may like or dislike based on those observations. Sometimes, I'll go into a museum that is decidedly too sterile and white-walled for my bohemian taste- but it displays fine artwork and the stark walls complement the work. Same with some bizarre electronic music my colleagues listen to. Though some of Kompact's choices will not be like honey to my tongue- I can still appreciate the complexity and grandeur of that type of avante-garde music. Same with country; same with heavy heavy lorde lorde metal rock. I think in general, people know great. It is up to the curator to hone in one the few, take a gamble, but in the end, it is the art, in its truest, most emotive shape, that reveals itself and empowers itself. It seeps into another's ears; it twirls into someone's thoughts; it hypnotizes; or it crumbles and fades into the graveyard of our over-saturated minds. Everyone is their own curator. What is good is what you like. What you like is what is good- at least in the museum that is your head.
    Permalink posted 12/20/2007

Comment on this Post

Login using email and password below.

Forgot Password?

OR login using Facebook Connect

Connect

Don't have an account?
Join MOG. It's Free!

 

© 2006-2012 Mog Inc. All Rights Reserved