Why are prog fans such music snobs?

mirco wrote: Fantômas wrote:   Of course, everybody thinks that like the best stuff, otherwise they would not listen to it! That's exactily what I mean, my taste is better than yours... for me and only for me!

Sure. In this point, I agree with you.

Prog listeners are intellectuals, and intellectuals do not mix up with riff-raff and imbeciles -- all intellectuals are more or less snobs. I am more  

 

Prog or die!

It all comes down to this: if you don't like it, don't buy it. There's no need for agression in terms of what kind of music you like best. If you're a "snob" is because of you. Music is music. You are supposed to listen it for fun, not to show everyone else how "superior" you are. Now, about prog rock: most bands are nothing but lame copycats of other bands or themselves.

Karnevil9 wrote:   Prog or die!

That's great!  

I'm liking this new KE9 more and more. Nobody with a healthy sense of irony can be ALL bad.

greenback wrote: hey! there are too many bloody avatars here!

 

Do us a favour change yours

Arsillus wrote: henri_ds wrote: And, you guys can try something : try catching someone who's listening to commercial rap/rnb sh*t, like 50 cent etc.... and ask them : So, what is that you find really good, and why do you enjoy it ? 99,999999999% of the answers you'll get will be something like : owh, it's *cool*, it makes me *cool*. Nothing more true could be said.

Its about bein pimp yo, its about hearing your subwoofer from down the block,its about having 30 inch rims - "rollin on dubs" , its about pimpin' all the young ho's at the cluub and drinkin bacardi yo.

Art is Dead.

God High School blows.

Jim Garten wrote: To: Jeremy Spade Out of the mounths of babes, sucklings and Newbies comes forth wisdom; your thesis is purest genius (especially point 3 ) and I bow my head to your intellect, wit and insight. Welcome to the Forums, Jeremy - don't be a stranger!

Thank you for your most un-snoblike hospitality. It is appreciated.

TBWART wrote: Snobbism is just a defence mechanism to cloak fear.

I have already had this argument with my psychiatrist, and have thoroughly proved him to be wrong. When he would not admit his gross incompetence, I fired him, proving I was superior.

hopelevre wrote: i think its threads like this that make the awareness of you people as snobs a self-perpetuating phenomena....and jeremy im sorry but if you bothered to listen to the love below side of the last outkast album im sure yud be very surprised at how progressive and anti-industry it is...i consider that a prog album ...maybe the best one of the year it came ou tjust because it seems to be soemething both innovative and seminal(introducing an entire genre to experimentation)

Those who have a hard time distinguishing my wit from reality, may have trouble communicating with me. I actually like OutKast. While it isn’t likely that I will spend any money on their albums, from what I’ve heard on the radio (when I’m forced to listen), they are extremely diverse for a hip-hop outfit. I thought the smooth-jazz guitar was a refreshing addition in I Like The Way You Move, and I welcome anyone who will come along and shake up an otherwise stagnant genre.

Has anyone noticed that hip hop has replaced glam-rock as the leading copy-cat, over the top, music industry product?

John Gargo wrote: A lot of people often ask me why I bother to buy so many albums, to which I respond back "Well, why don't you buy albums?"  Their response is almost always "because there are only one or two good songs on albums."  That's simply the way their genre functions...

Sadly this is true. It is not so much the genre, but the record industry in general. They scout out new bands, and find one that has maybe 7 or 8 radio friendly songs. Then they sign this band and have them put 2 good songs on the first release, then instruct them to write filler music for the rest. This way they can stretch a career out over a longer period of time and capitalize on the profits. It’s just business. I’ve done similar things in profit making ventures, but never with something so precious as music. And that’s ultimately what’s wrong with mainstream. It’s controlled by corporation, not necessarily by public opinion. I guarantee, if you spun the latest Spock’s Beard release on the radio 200 times a day, their album would go platinum.

Spanky wrote: This is a bad poll.  I was able to vote 40 times on it; therefore, it must be bad.

That certainly explains why 51% of the voters believe I’m a half-wit.

Yams wrote: The grammar argument doesn't really hold up. Many albums are grammatically incorrect. The ConstruKction of Light?

My grammar argument is as valid as my hygiene argument, that is all I have to say.

NetsNJFan wrote: Let's not forget Prog is looked down upon by purist Jazz and Classical music fans/snobs, since, in a way, we dilute they're music.

This is perhaps the most insightful response in the entire thread.

Karnevil9 wrote: Early prog in my view is the greatest form of music,for the greatest minds...be said.

I quietly think to myself... "How can music stay progressive if it never leaves the past?"

Hierophant wrote: Its about bein pimp yo, its about hearing your subwoofer from down the block,its about having 30 inch rims - "rollin on dubs" , its about pimpin' all the young ho's at the cluub and drinkin bacardi yo.

I don’t really mean to single out this post, but it’s a nice segue into my final thought. The only redeeming quality rap music has in my opinion, is the lyrics. I’m definitely not talking about pimping hos and smackin dat... well... anyway... I come from a low income area in Los Angeles. I think a few hip-hop artists actually spill their guts and convey true emotion concerning life on tough streets. This has my respect. Of course, the vast majority is simply regurgitated and trend-following garbage.

Jeremy Spade wrote: I can see by the responses this thread generated, that it is a valid topic. Perhaps it hits a little too close to home? Again, I hope my humor wasn�t lost (if anyone noticed, I made all possible responses to be snobish replies), but I do see the points expressed, and can agree with ivan when he says its because "we care for the music we like". With that said, I would like to present my definitive thesis on the topic at hand. Why prog fans are superior to all other music fans. By Jeremy Spade   1. Superior Intellect. It is apparent from the articulate and educated posts circulating on this site, that we admirers of progressive rock are in every way more endowed intellectually. Rap and RnB artists alike have atrocious grammar skills, and inspire the same traits in their fans. Just consider some of these embarrassing errors: 50 cent - The plurality of the number "50" demands cent to be cents, BAFOON! NSYNC - This is apparently an attempt to spell "In Sync" Sync being an abbreviation for "synchronization" which they so clearly do not have, with the exception of their sheer stupidity. OutKast - need I say more??? 2. Superior Skill. As noted earlier on this thread, a strong majority of progressive rock fans are musicians themselves. This would give listeners of the prog genre an obvious advantage in determining what music is "good" and what music is fit for ridiculing. Imagine regular laymen trying to dictate the engineering science behind NASA! This would result in terrible disaster! Leave the rocket science to the rocket scientists fools! Conclusion: Prog fans are the "Rocket Scientists" of music fans. 3. Superior Hygiene. While I have not accumulated enough evidence to argue this point sufficiently, it should be taken as fact nonetheless. 4. Superior Senses. Prog fans are able to pick up on every small detail in the music we listen to. When was the last time you heard a discussion on the subtle nuances of Green Day? Regular music fans have neither the finely tuned hearing, nor the receptive instinct that comes innate with prog fans. Final Conclusion: Just as man rules over animal, so the prog fan should rightfully rule over the inferior breed. The overwhelming evidence presented in this thesis is irrefutable. All disagreements of this thesis will be disregarded.

I agree only with 2. and 4., 3. missed the point. 1. is true only for the artists but not a requirement for a fan - you don't have to understand every detail of prog music to enjoy it. Averrage understanding (musical intelligence) is enough to like it. Being a good artist is a different thing - it requires more intellect... Final conclusion sounds a litle fascist but it's a joke anyway.

Fantômas wrote: you wanna know why? Because there are no parameters to point who is the best

Originality, composition, virtuosity, exploration, interplay, athmosphere...

 

You may like something the most, but that has absolutely nothing to do with who's best. A lot of people are confusing these things. As is evident from this thread.