Music Burnout in the Digital Age
Printed From: Progarchives.com
Category: Other music related lounges
Forum Name: General Music Discussions
Forum Description: Discuss and create polls about all types of music
URL: http://www.progarchives.com/forum/forum_posts.asp?TID=88908
Printed Date: November 27 2024 at 09:42
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Topic: Music Burnout in the Digital Age
Posted By: zumacraig
Subject: Music Burnout in the Digital Age
Date Posted: August 10 2012 at 12:10
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hello friends, the recent fripp interview got me thinking not only about burnout playing music, but also burnout listening to music. of course one can get tired of certain songs and record. however, i'm finding myself overwhelmed by the sheer amount of music available in moments time (iTunes, spottily, etc.). too much to choose from. new music, remastered old music, prog, alt country, classic rock? one thing i've discovered is that less is more. however, even with this mindset, it's nuts having music in so many formats. not to mention the perpetual BUZZ about bands on the internet (this forum included) that can lead to exhaustion worrying about missing out etc. oh, and don't even get me started on dynamic range and sound quality. I've tried to hone down my list of artists and stick with them. however, i'm even finding this group tiring. so, the symptoms seem to be too much music to consume, decreased attention span, decreased time to listen, and generally burnout from listening to music. anyone relate? just curious what folks' thoughts are.  ------------- Stardust we are. -Roine Stolt |
Replies:
Posted By: HolyMoly
Date Posted: August 10 2012 at 12:32
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This is almost exactly what's been gnawing at me lately. For the last couple of years especially, the sheer volume of new music I'm exposed to has greatly outpaced my ability to listen to it, let alone enjoy it. 20 years ago, I knew all of my albums backward and forward. Now, I've got tons of albums I've only heard once, or sometimes not at all. I'm not really complaining, though, because it's an embarrassment of riches that I'm grateful to be able to have. Now I have not merely a collection, but something approaching a "library". I just lament the fact that there aren't enough hours in the day to appreciate them properly. ------------- My other avatar is a Porsche It is easier for a camel to pass through the eye of a needle if it is lightly greased. -Kehlog Albran |
Posted By: darkshade
Date Posted: August 10 2012 at 12:36
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I was thinking about this very topic last night. I have these thoughts from time to time, and sometimes it's overwhelming. How do I have time to enjoy current favorites, keep up with what's new that may be my next favorite album, and occasionally go back to older stuff I haven't listened to in some time? All the while becoming familiar with it all without listening to something once and moving on to something else? It's especially rough for me, who enjoys many styles of music, both prog and outside of the prog realm. However, have you guys ever seen comments from an older prog fan like, "Ever since I joined PA, I've discovered all these new albums and bands that I hadn't heard of back in the 70s/80s!"? Back then, I believe there was just as much music overload as there is now. The thing is that it wasn't as easy to hear about, or find, these albums as it is now. Obviously there is more nowadays, but I think it's the easy exposure on the internet that makes it seem like there is too much. Best thing to do is try not to worry about it, and take your own musical path. Sometimes you'll cross paths with other fans, sometimes you won't. ------------- http://www.last.fm/user/MysticBoogy" rel="nofollow - My Last.fm 
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Posted By: Morsenator
Date Posted: August 10 2012 at 14:10
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Yes, the thing is you shouldn't take it all at once. There will always be more great music out there than anyone can know of (and especially if you count all the hidden gems in classical music, jazz, world music etc etc). It's great to be able to digest well whatever you like currently, before you move on to new music. It's not like you're responsible for anyone for listening to something and not the other (or maybe you can be, I don't know).
------------- You love the music, the music loves you! http://moonsofjupiter.bandcamp.com/" rel="nofollow - http://moonsofjupiter.bandcamp.com/ |
Posted By: richardh
Date Posted: August 10 2012 at 15:31
I will confess that there are gaping holes in my colllection mainly because of my deisre to own Brain Salad Surgery in about as many different formats/remasters etc that is humanly possible . I've only recently filled in the gap between ITWOP and Red as far as King Crimson (still have Starless and Bible Black to go) There is just far too much music out there that I want.
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Posted By: zumacraig
Date Posted: August 10 2012 at 16:53
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thanks for the responses. what makes it difficult is the 'shuffle' button on iPods. one can push forward endlessly and not find anything good. at the same time, as i get older, less and less 'blows me away' and i find myself listening to music in an intentional aesthetic way rather than to dance around the house:) also, now we can get just the songs we want with iTunes, so our collections get even bigger and more diverse. i remember when i was in high school and i'd save up for a CD. it would be something i really really wanted and i would listen to the sh*t out of those things. it was like no other music existed. i may need to get back into this mode. ------------- Stardust we are. -Roine Stolt |
Posted By: zumacraig
Date Posted: August 10 2012 at 16:54
being a completist is impossible
 i've tried. even my favorite artists have duds in their career. i used to try and try to listen to my favorite band's worst albums. yes Union is an example. no matter how much i tried, however, i only liked a few tunes. so, burn those to the computer and move on. if something specific doesn't grab you, it probably never will.------------- Stardust we are. -Roine Stolt |
richardh wrote:Posted By: darkshade
Date Posted: August 10 2012 at 23:03
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I thought this topic would have brought about more discussion.....
------------- http://www.last.fm/user/MysticBoogy" rel="nofollow - My Last.fm
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Posted By: A Person
Date Posted: August 10 2012 at 23:24
Maybe the music discussion is burned out too. |
Posted By: Mirror Image
Date Posted: August 10 2012 at 23:35
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My CD obsession is something that I've been seriously trying to reel in for years. I've got hundreds of CDs that I haven't even heard yet. Thankfully, I've got just about all the classical and jazz recordings I want, so when I came back after about a 12 years hiatus from progressive rock, I found that I was terribly out-of-touch and have been trying to find new music that I think I would enjoy based on my preferred tastes in this music. Anyway, I would say I have been blessed in the regard that I'm fortunate enough to obtain this music. I'm also thankful that YouTube exists so I can sample songs from albums I'm currently looking at. I've saved myself a lot of money by just relying on YouTube to weed out the junk that I simply would never listen to had I just took the chance on it. One thing I miss about record stores is the thrill of the hunt but one thing I don't miss are those stores like Borders who charge outrageous prices. Anyway, I'm rambling on a bit too much here but let me just say that music is neverending journey. Just when you think you've heard it all, something completely incredible is waiting for you just around the corner.
------------- “Music is enough for a lifetime but a lifetime is not enough for music.” - Sergei Rachmaninov |
Posted By: stonebeard
Date Posted: August 11 2012 at 00:04
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I find life is better when I'm not downloading 10 albums a night that I won't really listen to or care about if I delete them. Deleted 250+ GB of music recently, and you know what? Spotify fills in the gaps, or I find it on youtube if I really care. Otherwise, it's an endless game of music consumerism that always leaves you wanting. I'll dig things every now and then, but at most I'll listen to 60 minutes of music in a day, sometimes go a couple days without hearing any music. But then again I'm trying to make my own music as well as get on with life, relationships, drinking, and being social. I love playing music, but simply listening to it isn't quite as appealing 90% of the time. ------------- http://soundcloud.com/drewagler" rel="nofollow - My soundcloud. Please give feedback if you want! |
Posted By: rogerthat
Date Posted: August 11 2012 at 00:14
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When I was in college, I used to listen to just one artist - ok, one who was more prolific than Beatles, Floyd and Wonder put together - all the time. Often the same songs several times and sometimes twice-thrice in succession. After that, I had a phase when I listened to lots and lots of music, lots of new artists. I have slowed it right down again because I just don't feel like bombarding myself with more and more music all the time. Which is not to say I don't listen to new music - either actually new or just something I haven't already heard - anymore. But I make sure I take the time to appreciate what I am listening to deeply and derive a lot of pleasure from it instead of feeling compelled to 'move on'. I have lost count of how many times I heard the Idler Wheel in the last few months. I thought I am past the stage where I would repeat albums I love endlessly but it seems as if it is just a question of slowing down the pace and cherishing the experience. Nothing much is going to happen if I don't listen to something that people say is amazing, except I am going to miss out on some good music. Which I am going to anyway, given the sheer amount of music there is. I don't want to be in the position where I have had thousands of albums lying in my rack that I barely got through three-four times. Far more productive to squeeze the last drop out of what I have before moving on. Saves some money too. 
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Posted By: rogerthat
Date Posted: August 11 2012 at 00:19
For sure, there must have been lots and lots of music back then as well. As per some stats quoted in anti-piracy article that was circulated in the forum, the number of new releases and artists is actually beginning to decline in the last couple of years. I remember David/Atavachron mentioned listening to some 200 or so jazz rock/fusion bands in the 70s in a discussion. Heh, I am not sure if all those bands are archived in the forum. Even though the internet makes it much easier to rediscover a slice of history, we are still aware of the more popular representation of 70s or 60s music rather than the entire catalogue in minute detail. However, the lack of the self-release option may have put a finite ceiling on the number of releases back then (but we don't get around to all the self released albums anyway these days). |
Posted By: richardh
Date Posted: August 11 2012 at 02:24
| One thing I really like now is that you can download an album and burn a CD immediately. I did this recently with Chicago VII as it was so cheap and the sound quality is more than acceptable. It does become a bid addictive though. I probably still buy more CD's then I download (often they are cheaper) but the balance is now about 65% CD's to 35% downloads something I would never have imagined happening just a few years ago. |
Posted By: Dean
Date Posted: August 11 2012 at 04:27
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Back in the 70s whole discographies were hard to come by - poor selling albums would be deleted from the label's catalogues very quickly and many albums only ever had one pressing - limited editions by economic necessity. It took me years to build up my collection of Amon Düül II vinyls - leafing through remainder bins, import shops, record fayres and scanning the small ads in the back of NME and Melody Maker - pre-Internet, buying Record Collector was more or less the only way of knowing exactly what albums a band had released. But once you found that lost treasure you cherished and loved it - playing it constantly because it was so hard-won.
In the CD age that joy of finding music was lost and was only limited by funds - practically everything was available on CD if you could afford to buy them all. Occasionally a long forgotten gem would be issued on CD that evoked that joy (Kaleidoscope's White Faced Lady was one for me)
Now it is too easy to find and download anything and everthing. For a completist that's a good thing, for the rest of us I'm not so sure. ------------- What? |
Posted By: dtguitarfan
Date Posted: August 11 2012 at 11:11
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I've been listening to a TON of new music lately, and I have mixed feelings about the experience. In one aspect, I think it has made me more open to new music and styles I might not otherwise find enjoyable. But in another sense, I do find that I feel as if I don't KNOW my favorites as well as I'd like to. And I wonder if things do get lost - like maybe because I am listening to so much new music, I might be blowing right past a great album and only listening to it once because it just gets lost amongst all the new music I listen to. But all that being said, I like listening to new music - I like the novelty of listening to something new, so I'll probably keep listening to a lot of new stuff.
------------- http://tinyurl.com/cy43zzh" rel="nofollow - My 2012 List 
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Posted By: zumacraig
Date Posted: August 11 2012 at 11:57
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i just can't get into it all. been working on spocks beard lately. it's a no go. i give up. i'm with the dude above talking about all the downloading. it's a nightmare. i've done my explorations. i'm going to stick with my favorites on CD and download random tracks i like. it'll make for an eclectic collection and not just disposable sound bites...which is what i feel I've been focused on for a few years. thanks again for your participation in this discussion. i'm fascinated by it:) ------------- Stardust we are. -Roine Stolt |
Posted By: wilmon91
Date Posted: August 11 2012 at 14:34
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I started listening to internet radio in 2001, which became a big passion, I would hear different songs from different albums, and take a note of anything I really liked. Ever since then I've used text document to keep track of bands and albums, just because it's impossible to remember everything. And even when listebning to albums I like to paste the track list into a document, write a short description of every song, and then rate it with my own strange system. I don't know if it's the ideal way, but it works for me.
So I think my listening is divided into two ways, discovering/evaluating, or enjoying. (but I love to discover music, so of course it has its own enjoyment)
There's a lot of music out there, I agree, but I often find myself in situations were I don't know what to listen to. Maybe it's just that I'm in the mood of purely enjoying, not discovering/evaluating. And that's also related to mood. Sometimes I don't find the music that suits the mood.
Either you're too bombarded with sounds that you can't trust your own opinions anymore, or , maybe you just don't like spocks beard. I would guess the latter alternative. ------------- http://www.lastfm.se/user/wilmon91" rel="nofollow - last.fm |
Posted By: Dayvenkirq
Date Posted: August 11 2012 at 21:29
Why, of course! This issue was no big deal for me until about a month or two ago. Gentle Giant, Camel, Scott Walker, Caravan, poppy Genesis (late 70's and onward), Magma, some Bee Gees records I haven't yet heard ("Mr. Natural", "Trafalgar", "Odessa", etc.). A-a-a-a-a-a-ah! [pulling my hair] I'm at the crossroads now, not knowing which way to turn.
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Posted By: Ambient Hurricanes
Date Posted: August 11 2012 at 22:44
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I feel like this is a good problem to have.
------------- I love dogs, I've always loved dogs |
Posted By: Finnforest
Date Posted: August 11 2012 at 23:05
Yeah.....to me it falls under "what's not to like?" I love old favorites and looking for new music. The internet has been so great for seeing rare stuff I might not get the chance to elsewhere. I'll always prefer the physical format but I don't see the addition digital choices as a problem by any means. Today alone was a smorgasbord of format and content I indulged in, in the various places I went. CDs in the car, streaming at work, DVD on home theater, and finally YouTube tonight. I feel fulfilled, not burned out |
Posted By: Ambient Hurricanes
Date Posted: August 12 2012 at 21:55
I'm listening to Bob Seger on Youtube right now (not because I want to, but because each member of my band is taking turns sending out albums that we all have to listen to. Some of these songs are actually pretty good though). Really, the only difficulty I have with the abundance of music available comes as a performer, not a listener; even though it's easier than ever to record and put your music out for the public to see, with so many bands competing for attention it's hard to distinguish yourself from the crowd, no matter how good or unique you might be, simply because of the sheer volume of music available. ------------- I love dogs, I've always loved dogs |
Posted By: KingCrInuYasha
Date Posted: August 12 2012 at 23:39
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I remember as a kid, about 90 percent of the music I listened to was The Beatles. Not surprisingly, I got burned out to the point where I rarely listen to them these days. I still like them, but I don't want to overdo it again. ------------- He looks at this world and wants it all... so he strikes, like Thunderball! |
Posted By: Man With Hat
Date Posted: August 13 2012 at 02:03
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I don't really have this problem. Though I do have alot of music I haven't listened to yet. ------------- Dig me...But don't...Bury me I'm running still, I shall until, one day, I hope that I'll arrive Warning: Listening to jazz excessively can cause a laxative effect. |
Posted By: presdoug
Date Posted: August 13 2012 at 11:23
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I don't have a burnout problem, really. For the longest time, there have not been a lot of groups that are totally new to me that i have bought music of, instead, i have widened the discographies of existing ones already in my collection. Also, i only add music by store bought CDs only, so that limits things, and prevents me from getting overwhelmed or burnt out in listening and adding things. I basically pretty well have most of what i want already, and at this point, am not interested in adding totally new groups to my collection. (Not to imply that there are not good things that are new out there, but i think i have enough variety already) For me, these restraints are a good thing, really |
Posted By: Slartibartfast
Date Posted: August 13 2012 at 16:13
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I've built up a collection of over 1500 CDs. No handle on LPs and the cassettes (which I used to have). I don't really care for downloads. You Tube on the other hand... I can identify with the burn out. I started a thread a few years ago on the overload. I was invited to be a crossover evaluator a few years ago but had to step down. Found I was discovering too much stuff that I wanted to get. ------------- Released date are often when it it impacted you but recorded dates are when it really happened... 
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