When Free Radicals Become Free Agentts

[paul barrett]

A friend of mine used to talk about the "chin-stroking" crowd, both in 
free jazz and minimal techno - these were people who instead of enjoying 
the music, stood on the sidelines thinking analytically about it.

I think those are the kind of fans you mean, the ones who think 
themselves cooler and better than others because of their "greater 
understanding of true art," and yes they produce themselves.  Other 
people just enjoy the music.

This is not to say no one else understands what the artist does, just 
that there are some who think they are extra-cool because they 
understand, and the understanding becomes more important than the music, 
something to show off as proving you know more about art than the people 
who just "think" they like <insert obscure or not so obscure genre name 
here> but "don't really know anything."

The same happens with any form of art.

Personally, I find John Cage unlistenable and largely very boring as 
well.  But I am not going to judge people who appreciate what he does as 
being "arty snobs more into being different than liking good music," 
which is the flip side of how SY fans have been described, as long as 
they like him for more than just the "cool" factor of liking difficult 
music, and don't use their liking of him and my liking of "lesser" 
artists as a reason to look down on me - in which cases I am not judging 
their music taste, but their way of looking at other people based on 
music taste.

I also prefer SY to Velvet Underground, although VU wrote a few great 
songs.  If they'd had a longer career I might prefer them,  but overall 
SY have more good songs In My Opinion. (!and my opinion only! - you are 
not required to agree, and arguing is just silly.  People telling me 
Pynchon is crap have not reduced my enjoyment of him one bit.)

I believe that art is primarily meant to be experienced.  If the 
experience is not good for me, then I don't care how "arty" or 
avant-garde something is.  I still won't like it.  I won't just give up 
first time round, but if after repeated tries I still don't enjoy it, 
why should I not just move on to something I do enjoy?

I'll re-iterate - just because someone doesn't like something doesn't 
make it bad.  More people need to learn that taste is subjective and 
does not and should not follow any rules.  If it did, then we would 
never have any experimental music at all and would all be forced to 
listen to only classically composed pieces for all time**.  Always 
remember that there is a whole old school who think all 
avant-garde/noise/whatever music is pure crap that is only appreciated 
by people with absolutely no taste.

There are a couple of people on that list who I haven't heard, and I do 
enjoy Throbbing Gristle, so I'll try the ones who are new to me.  Thanks.

Paul

**we probably also wouldn't have Joyce and Pynchon, since they both 
broke the "rules" of what makes great literature.

Keith wrote:
> Bands don't produce them. Listeners do.
> 
> On Sep 25, 2007, at 8:30 PM, Daniel Julius wrote:
> 
> On 9/25/07, Keith <keithsz at mac.com> wrote:
> the avant-noise aren't we so hip because we're so out
> there audience.
> 
> 
> What bands, in yr opinion, Keith, produce these fans?
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
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