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menawati View Drop Down
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Direct Link To This Post Topic: Prog Snobbery
    Posted: October 23 2012 at 11:07
I got accused of being a music snob today at work because I told this guy all I listen to is prog, jazz, classical, folk and some metal. I explained to him that some of the pop-punk and indie sort of stuff he likes is ok but I'd never buy it or choose to listen to it because it bores me.

Now it isn't quite true that I limit myself to those genres. I have loads of stuff I bought over the years from many genres including hard rock, punk, post-punk, alt, indie etc  that I still enjoy but whenever I hear something new now it is VERY rare that I REALLY like something outside of prog, jazz, classical or maybe folk.

Am I narrow-minded ?
Or maybe am I jaded from hearing so much simple 3 chord music before that it all sounds the same now ?
Or maybe I really am a snob who subconsciously limits myself ?

I'm not sure any more.
Do you think that prog fans can become elitist snobs ?
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Direct Link To This Post Posted: October 23 2012 at 11:19
You might be narrow minded if you rely too much on categorization of music to guide you on what to listen to.  Just let go and trust your instincts, you might discover something fresh from an unexpected source.  We can't all enjoy all the music in the world, so it is ok to have preferences and likes and dislikes, actually; it is inevitable. 

As for whether prog fans can become elitist snobs, it could happen with just about any genre of music.   Not appreciating enunciation in hip hop could become a point of snobbery over others, just as a hypothetical example.  Snobbery is basically a "my opinion/tastes are better than yours" syndrome and it happens w.r.t lots of things, not just music, let alone specific genres of music.
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Direct Link To This Post Posted: October 23 2012 at 11:35
it's really just a matter of if you act conceited or not.. Nothing wrong with standards. I won't hesitate to tell people I don't care for the music they're playing but if they get butthurt I'll explain that I don't think it's bad or they shouldn't like it, i just know what i like and i like what i know :P
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Direct Link To This Post Posted: October 23 2012 at 11:37
I'm a music snob. But I like Lady Gaga and ABBA, so go figure.
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menawati View Drop Down
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Direct Link To This Post Posted: October 23 2012 at 11:39
Nowt wrong with liking ABBA, they did some of the best pop music ever made.
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Direct Link To This Post Posted: October 23 2012 at 11:42
I mean with listening to new music though.
There's only so much time you have to listen to new stuff and you have to limit yourself because of that.
I'd love to be able to listen to every pop-punk release in the hope that there might be something new and appealing in there but the chances are very slim. This is snobbery I suppose.
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Direct Link To This Post Posted: October 23 2012 at 11:57
Originally posted by menawati menawati wrote:

I mean with listening to new music though.
There's only so much time you have to listen to new stuff and you have to limit yourself because of that.
I'd love to be able to listen to every pop-punk release in the hope that there might be something new and appealing in there but the chances are very slim. This is snobbery I suppose.


Not anymore than it's snobbery to mainly read books in genres you already know you enjoy, eat foods you already know you like and watch movies that look good based on their trailers. You obviously can't try everything, so it's just an intelligent use of your time to focus in on what you think you'll have a better chance of enjoying.
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Direct Link To This Post Posted: October 23 2012 at 11:58
Here is the thing. You should never have to limit what you may like in terms of other music, but when you have decerning tastes that's what makes you an individual. Music tastes or affiliations should never really be subjective when you are trying to explain to someone. For example, when I'm asked 'hey man. What music do you like or what's your sound these days???' I simply say I love progressive music. Prog in itself is incredibly diverse and has a multitude I genres that fall under it. I don't start listing off genres to people because it usually goes over the head of a lot of people. Also, I am very affirmed in my music tastes because I know I'm listening to some of the most incredible, diverse music on the planet. When people ask me to check out a band or a specific song I do it because I'm often very curious to hear what others really like. I ask myself questions like 'do they get goosebumps when they listen to this stuff? ' where is the appeal? Anyway, to tell you the truth I guess I'm a hard man to please because 9.5/10 I am very dis interested in other peoples sound. I guess the people that I know in life listen to a lot of sh*tty music......I shouldn't say that though cause what's sh*tty to me is everything to them. I've learned to control my rages with that.

Above all, I don't think we as proggers are really limiting ourselves in any way because of the diversity of the prog genre itself. I hope that going forward nobody feels jaded about that statement. Prog leads to other things. Prog led me to DAFT PUNK for crying out loud. Lol. It's endless. Prog is thee most sophisticated music on the planet to me, so In a sense   I AM A SNOB!!!
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Direct Link To This Post Posted: October 23 2012 at 11:58
yeah i don't know if that's snobbery.. I feel like I don't have to listen to every pop punk record to know that I'm not gonna like any of them :P
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Direct Link To This Post Posted: October 23 2012 at 12:03
Hi,
 
Honestly?
 
The pop music world is the snobbiest and most offensive of all the genres. And it's really simple ... for those people to not consider their music good, it would mean they are not very intelligent!
 
Why bother ... it's an endless discussion about weewee size and everthing else in between!
 
I do not talk about "progressive" ... because it is all MUSIC! ... and yeah anyone coming up to me saying they like progressive ... I usually look at them ... it's ok child ... you don't know music anyway ... but you might as well say that you like American Idol, because your comment fits there better!
 
Tongue
 
Wink
 
Cool
 
It's almost like asking if you are black, or white, or green or blue, and your music can't be good because of it ... I really believe we need to get better than that ... "our" music was about this "better", not a style, btw!
Music is not just for listening ... it is for LIVING ... you got to feel it to know what's it about! Not being told!
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Direct Link To This Post Posted: October 23 2012 at 12:07
Originally posted by menawati menawati wrote:



  1. Am I narrow-minded ?
  2. Or maybe am I jaded from hearing so much simple 3 chord music before that it all sounds the same now ?
  3. Or maybe I really am a snob who subconsciously limits myself ?


  1. No, you aren't you "Know what you Like"
  2. IMO all 3 chord music sounds the same
  3. If you are a Hiop Hop or rap´fan and don't like anything else, it's OK for everybody, but if you dare to like Prog, then you are an elitist b*****d guilty of crimes against music. 
Bollocks, you have a God given right to like or dislike anything, go on and listen what you like.
When people say that I'm a snob for listening MAINLY Prog, I say Yes...isn't that cool?

Iván
            
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Direct Link To This Post Posted: October 23 2012 at 12:32
IT'S GREAT TO BE AN INDIVIDUAL!!! Never forget that ladies and gents. Also FYI the pop world is a joke. It's not music it's an entertainment industry. Nothing more!
Gimmie my headphones now!!! 🎧🤣
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Direct Link To This Post Posted: October 23 2012 at 12:32
Some Prog fans accuse other Prog fans of being elitist snobs (those who like the more mainstream Prog compared to the more avant-garde Prog) -- it's  a big umbrella.  I love lots of pop music, plus classical, jazz, easy listening Tropica etc.  I was once called a snob because I preferred the more obscure names under the Prog umbrella to the big names, and because my tastes in progressive rock were more experimental-oriented than the majority.

If one disses more mainstream music, and seems to make it clear that one holds one's tastes as superior to others, than one could be expected to be called a snob. 

Sorry to snip your post:

Originally posted by menawati menawati wrote:

I got accused of being a music snob today at work because I told this guy all I listen to is prog, jazz, classical, folk and some metal. I explained to him that some of the pop-punk and indie sort of stuff he likes is ok but I'd never buy it or choose to listen to it because it bores me....


Did he call a snob just because you mentioned what you liked, or was it after you mentioned that the music he listens to bores you, and that you would never choose to buy it?  If it was after you made comments about how much you like the music that he likes, then he may have called you a snob as a reaction to you seemingly dissing the music he likes. 

There's nothing wrong with liking what you like, and telling people so.   In real life more than here, I try not to say anything negative about other people's tastes in music, or film.... I've never been called a snob because of my tastes in music outside of the internet prog community, but then I tend not to talk about music away from the internet.  I do seem to remember someone be in so-called real life being called a snob since he only liked so-called classical music (Western Art Music/ Academic Music), and was dismissive of pop/rock generally (as "base", unsopisticated music that appealed to the lowest common denominator).


Originally posted by thellama73 thellama73 wrote:

I'm a music snob. But I like Lady Gaga and ABBA, so go figure.


Lots here like ABBA, including myself.  Very talented group, and this is proggy: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YB1Om-L_O2Q


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Direct Link To This Post Posted: October 23 2012 at 12:35
I think that people that listen to prog, jazz, classical etc. generally have alot more musical knowledge than most folks, and this might scare people off the conversation already...they dont understand it when I start talking music...or alot of them anyway.
So I learnt that, when someone asks me what music I listen to, I mention a band, like for instance Pink Floyd or Rush (to make it easier Wink)...often the other person will not even know the band, and just accept that...and sometimes they recognize it and might start talking about it...but each time I tried to explain the genre of progressive music I listen to, I found that mostly it does not quite gel that well Smile
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Direct Link To This Post Posted: October 23 2012 at 12:37
Originally posted by Logan Logan wrote:


If one disses more mainstream music, and seems to make it clear that one holds one's tastes as superior to others, than one could be expected to be called a snob. 



Is it not then equally true that those who diss non-mainstream music (avant garde, musique concrete, noise, free jazz) are equally snobbish, since they hold their taste superior to others'?
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Direct Link To This Post Posted: October 23 2012 at 12:39
Originally posted by Logan Logan wrote:


Did he call a snob just because you mentioned what you liked, or was it after you mentioned that the music he listens to bores you, and that you would never choose to buy it?  

I told him I'd heard all that stuff before in other music and that it bores me because it is totally unchallenging. That's when he said I was a music snob. I suppose that is acting a bit like a snob but it was the truth.
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Direct Link To This Post Posted: October 23 2012 at 12:47
Originally posted by thellama73 thellama73 wrote:

Originally posted by Logan Logan wrote:


If one disses more mainstream music, and seems to make it clear that one holds one's tastes as superior to others, than one could be expected to be called a snob. 



Is it not then equally true that those who diss non-mainstream music (avant garde, musique concrete, noise, free jazz) are equally snobbish, since they hold their taste superior to others'?


Certainly could be, why not? As a generality, yes.  Depends a bit upon how equal the disses are, if you know what I mean.   I've seen people who have called those types of music inane garbage, which is very snobby.  Or called it non-music in a similar way to how some people call abstract art non-art.

Originally posted by menawati menawati wrote:

Originally posted by Logan Logan wrote:


Did he call a snob just because you mentioned what you liked, or was it after you mentioned that the music he listens to bores you, and that you would never choose to buy it?  

I told him I'd heard all that stuff before in other music and that it bores me because it is totally unchallenging. That's when he said I was a music snob. I suppose that is acting a bit like a snob but it was the truth.


I'm not at all surprised that he called you a snob then.


Edited by Logan - October 23 2012 at 12:48
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Direct Link To This Post Posted: October 23 2012 at 12:51
Originally posted by progbethyname progbethyname wrote:

Also FYI the pop world is a joke. It's not music it's an entertainment industry. Nothing more!

Disapprove

And this in a thread called "prog snobbery"...
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Direct Link To This Post Posted: October 23 2012 at 12:52
I agree with what others have said, that being a "snob" is more a question of your attitude than of your preferences.

Theoretically, we should all be open minded and give everything a chance before we pass judgment on it.  But practically speaking, there are only so many hours in the day, and we tend to avoid (or at least postpone) listening to things we don't think we will like.  No shame in that, I don't think.  Someday I may give bluegrass music another chance, for example, but I'm in no hurry, and there's 18 other things I'd rather listen to right now.
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Direct Link To This Post Posted: October 23 2012 at 12:57
Originally posted by HarbouringTheSoul HarbouringTheSoul wrote:


Originally posted by progbethyname progbethyname wrote:

Also FYI the pop world is a joke. It's not music it's an entertainment industry. Nothing more!
DisapproveAnd this in a thread called "prog snobbery"...


Yup. My snobbery just came out in full force there! Whoops. I admit I feel so strongly by how great prog is in general, so sometimes when I hear the word 'POP' I get scared. . No no just kidding. There is a few pop elements that I like in music or more commercially sounding sound. Examples would be Genesis's DUKE and the Cure's DISENTEGRATION. Awesome stuff indeed.
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