To what extent do you make the music you listen to?

The Lounge General Discussion
#23

I listen to a lot of black metal, video game soundtracks and IDM. A bit of jazz, house, jungle and various other things. Most of my music is pretty squarely in the 90s/2000s Warp Records camp, and I’ve been trying to expand into jungle lately.

I’ve made a couple of black metal(ish) songs. I would love to finish a full EP of those, but writing metal songs is a pretty laborious process for me. It’s nice to write music with lyrics, and I’ve always loved doing harsh vocals.

It’s always interesting to me when people make music that in styles they don’t listen to - like, I’ve somewhat internalized the genres that I stated above, but I can’t write an actually good techno track, largely because I’m not familiar with the genre.

1 Like
#24

Not sure if I’d ever buy music I make and yet it sounds like all the music I’ve ever bought. It’s confusing. Don’t really listen too much to my music due to hypercritical tendencies, but after a couple beers I’m the first to yell at the top of my lungs hey this is the shit!!!

2 Likes
#25

Similar to other answers I here I do not really try to (or want to) emulate the music I listen to.

But it does clearly inspire the music I make. I would say I try to make the music I would want to listen to :slight_smile:

1 Like
#26

It’s a much better alternative to yelling “hey this is shit!!!” though :wink:

2 Likes
#27

I don’t believe I have any narcissistic tendencies (quite the opposite, really) but I probably listen more to my own music than other people’s, and I doubt anyone listens to it more than I do… Not sure why, it sort of serves as a way of staying sane, keeping track of time (almost like a journal) and I find I enjoy listening more than creating much of the time.

I don’t listen to much similar stuff from other people either. :slight_smile: At least on a surface level. I definitely take influence from other music so there’s some connection. I find that as time goes on I’m less into ‘IDM’ and similar stuff that, from an outside POV, might sound similar to what I do. I don’t categorize my music as IDM, or anything really, most times. It’s hardly experimental, it’s probably closer to a quirky take on techno or electro than anything.

1 Like
#28

In listening to your own stuff it can be difficult to separate your enjoyment at having made something from your enjoyment of the thing itself.

#29

Totally, I think this is called creator’s bias. It cuts both ways. That’s a pro when you’re listening (you like it!), but a con when you’re trying to make something that other people will like.

#30

I currently make stuff that has elements of house, nu-disco, robot rock, synthwave, funk, etc. And I do listen to those genres and have favorites on playlists. Plus I go to a fair number of Burning Man type events or underground-ish house music events as a listener, or I will actively DJ some house, funk and disco for clubs, special events and private parties. So there’s a lot of listening and selecting there to put together good setlists and remixes tailored to each event.

However, for general pleasure, I listen to a lot of jazz, prog, metal, a fair amount of pop, soul, some classical, rock and more, along with the afore-mentioned electronic genres. I also like a fair amount of other electronic genres or dark wave or industrial or whatever.

I also perform live sometimes on vocals and guitar, with a backup band or solo, depending on the gig. That can range from old jazz to modern rock and anything in between, depending on the gig, so I’m often listening to a lot of different music in the context of gigging there as well.

I guess what it boils down to is, good music is good music. Your idea of “good music” may vary. :wink:

1 Like