In a message dated 98-04-02 18:05:04 EST, spacecake@earthling.net writes:
<< Anyway, the point of my
>letter - perhaps there are no bad albums, just albums that haven't been
>listened to enough to discover their secret pleasures (or have been
>listened to way too much).
hmmmm. i can kinda see where you're going with this...
you're saying that if i listen to the SpiceGirls
enough times i will eventually go deaf and might percieve the muted
tones and muffled beats as 'wicked off-kilter experimental techno'...
...either that or get severe braindamage... :-)
(actually i like the spicegirls, parts of 'wannabe' remind
me of autechre's 'dael'... the beats and synth bass squiggle
that is)
anyway, i would disagree. bad is still bad and no amount of listening
can make it good. >>
Actually, I think the Spice Girls would fall into the "have listened to way
too much" category. Even you admitted (I believe very sarcastically) that
part of the Spice Girls was enjoyable. My point is that all music has high
points that are rewarding. Hey, I liked "Spice up your Life" the first time I
heard it. The last 28 times found the song on a descending trajectory of
pleasure. Good in my terms does not mean "rewarding for all eternity" but
instead "pleasurable in the limited run." For some albums, the span of
goodness is very short (re: Spice Girls). For others, it takes me a while to
discover the goodness (re: Roni Size's "new forms" which took me many
exposures to savor). I think Jack Dangers (God O.D. forewarned!!) said it
best on "subliminal sandwhich" - hear twice, listen the third time. For some
albums, it takes several listens, something that I don't think anyone on this
list would disagree with. For other albums, the pleasure is more immediate,
and generally much more limited as a result. I promise to shut up on the
subject now.
James
np: my own creation: silence and my ferret sniffing (a most immediately
displeasing experience - maybe I should listen a few more times ???)