#513821 - 04/22/02 01:33 AM
Too busy creating to listen to new music?
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Kendrix
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This thread is a build on Tedster's "waxing philosophically" topic.
Some of us acknowledged the nearly compulsive nature of our musical habits.
Sometimes I find I'm so engrossed in my attempts to create that I have little time to listen to the music of others.
The fact that my day job leaves so little time for my musical passion is certainly a factor.
So is the dearth of new , interesting stuff that I'm aware of.
Lately, I've been forcing myself to listen to new stuff rather than endlessly tweaking my mixes / lyrics / arrangements.
I know some feel that receiving outside stimulation is key to their creative process. But, then again, Frank Zappa did without this altogether. It just all came out of his twisted little head.
Maybe the 40 years of accumulated stimulation I've received is enough to last for a while.
Comments junkies?
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#513822 - 04/22/02 03:39 AM
Re: Too busy creating to listen to new music?
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Virtual Jim
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I've actually found that the lack of stimulus helps me write better songs. For example, when I'm in a really hard rock phase, I'll start writing more experimental, less hard-edge music, but if I shy away from that stuff and listen to poppier stuff, I write the sickest riffs I've ever written.
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#513824 - 04/22/02 11:50 AM
Re: Too busy creating to listen to new music?
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WFTurner
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I found it a life struggle, between being caught up in my creative endeavors and finding time to listen to other stuff. With most of my work being based at home, there ain't many times when I have the luxary of having free time to listen to what I'd like to here. When family ain't around I work. When they are, my listening agenda is quite different from there taste and if music is being listened to by them, the stuff they like.... standard corporate radio broadcast... which when I can I'd rather go out and putter or sit in the garden.
I will say, since I've been more inclined to learn more about the recording/technical side of thingts, I have more tolerance for listening to standard radio stuff... cause even if it is somewhat bland musically, there's good and interesting engineering going on out there. So even from that stand point hopefully I'm getting some kind of useful influence on what I want to acomplish.
In the mornings, when I'm getting awake and ready to start working I try to spend an hour finding stuff I haven't listen to just to try to keep my mind open.
_________________________
William F. Turner Songwriter turnersongs Sometimes the truth is rude... tough shit... get used to it.
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#513825 - 04/22/02 05:04 PM
Re: Too busy creating to listen to new music?
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Lee Flier
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Well, in the past I never really had that problem except when I was a commercial engineer. After listening to someone else (often a really bad hair metal band  ) for 14 hours a day the last thing I felt like doing when I got home was picking up the guitar or writing a song. This began to be detrimental in the extreme so I quit the fulltime engineering gig.
After that I was always able to listen to other music without it conflicting with my own. I also love to go see other local bands and concerts. I'm really glad that the bass player in my band who's also the other songwriter, is like that too. The two of us very often go out to hear other music, or hang out all night listening to records, and it spurs us on to do our own work. A couple of weeks ago we saw Patti Smith and that was VERY inspirational!
That said, I AM finding it a little tougher to hear new music these days. This particular band has really been taking a lot of my creative energy, which is all good. But the amount of time I can spend listening to other music HAS gone down because I've always got new song ideas in my head or am kicking around arrangement ideas. If there's other music on it's often distracting. I used to listen to Internet radio nearly all the time while working, for example, but now I leave it off a good part of the day. And I limit my club going somewhat - if it's a local band where I've seen them recently, I might not go to every show anymore. I wouldn't get much writing done if I did!
--Lee
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#513826 - 04/22/02 05:12 PM
Re: Too busy creating to listen to new music?
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Tedster
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I know a lot of people who like this constant musical "wallpaper". My wife is one of 'em, she's gotta have some dumbass radio station going all the time. So, for the most part, I don't listen to much music at all. I hardly ever play a CD or the radio in my car. Not that I'm expecting to write the next "world's greatest song" or anything, but, I want to keep the clutter out to be able to hear something new, if it stumbles along.
_________________________
"Cisco Kid, was a friend of mine...(WAH WAH WAH WAHHH!)"
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#513827 - 04/22/02 06:23 PM
Re: Too busy creating to listen to new music?
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Lee Flier
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UUgggghhh, I know what you mean Ted. I can't stand "musical wallpaper" myself, it drives me nuts. Ditto for people who have the TV on all the time just to hear or look at something. Either one of those is a definite creativity killer for me!
--Lee
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#513828 - 04/22/02 07:01 PM
Re: Too busy creating to listen to new music?
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strat0124
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Well I never get tired of discovering "new" music, in fact I take a personal pride in finding cool stuff before it catches on. Of course most of you bohemians know full well that commercial radio does not satisfy your musical palette. It gets difficult wading through the crap to find the diamond. But I'm process oriented, so its part of the journey.
I am with you on the wallpaper analogy. My spouse listens to commercial radio all day at her work, in her car, and if itsn't the radio its the @#$%ing TV, and if it ain't that its the @#$%%^&%$# phone ringing off the hook!
But I think its bad juju not listening to music, to me it charges me up when I hear something I think is super cool. Not for emulation, but just the energy gained from it. Everybody from the Stones to the Beatles were doing the same thing, the albums say it musically as well. I recently heard Sam Phillips' Fan Dance on NPR....it still got me hooked, also relistening to old albums does the same thing. Too bad most folks my age decided to become old, cause I miss listening to music with people like we used to.
_________________________
Down like a dollar comin up against a yen, doin pretty good for the shape I'm in
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#513829 - 04/22/02 07:03 PM
Re: Too busy creating to listen to new music?
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CMDN
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Lee & Ted...
"Musical Wallpaper" -- that's funny.
When I was writing and editing for my old music mag, I had to listen to music all day. It was a big part of my job. I did that for a long time, so now it would feel weird to sit in an office and NOT hear music all day. You should see the backpack I bring to work... I must have at least 60 cds in there at any given time. Since I still write about music for a couple of publications, I have a pretty nice stream of new music running into my place every week. Consequently, I hardly ever turn off my CD player.
The dangerous thing about this for me as a musician and songwriter is that I sometimes find myself subconsiously "borrowing" riffs or melodies from other artists. Luckily, I usually "remember" these riffs or melodies slightly incorrectly, so the songs are never what anyone would call a rip-off.
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\m/
Erik
Where are we going, and why am I in this handbasket?
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#513830 - 04/22/02 08:31 PM
Re: Too busy creating to listen to new music?
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WFTurner
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>>I am with you on the wallpaper analogy. My spouse listens to commercial radio all day at her work, in her car, and if itsn't the radio its the @#$%ing TV, and if it ain't that its the @#$%%^&%$# phone ringing off the hook!<<
Hehe yeah welcome to middle America. 
_________________________
William F. Turner Songwriter turnersongs Sometimes the truth is rude... tough shit... get used to it.
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#513831 - 04/22/02 10:39 PM
Re: Too busy creating to listen to new music?
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Sudden Light Project
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My bag is turning the radio down real low, so I can barely hear it, and writing a melody from what I think I hear.
I brought this up on a thread a couple of years ago, and we all discussed in detail whether or not this is indeed plaguarism. I think we all agreed it is NOT!!...Thank you very much!!!
But lately, I have made a point to listen to a local country station in a vein attempt to hear my newest commercial.
This has helped me to get an idea on what is playing on the country stations right now, more so to hear who is the artist de jour, rather than the drivel Nashville is putting out currently.
I have teenage kids to keep me current on the rock scene. In exchange, I have extolled the virtues of The Beatles, Pink Floyd, et. al.
EJ
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#513833 - 04/24/02 12:51 AM
Re: Too busy creating to listen to new music?
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Sudden Light Project
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Originally posted by DC_Jim: I have teenage kids to keep me current on the rock scene. In exchange, I have extolled the virtues of The Beatles, Pink Floyd, et. al.
My 13 year old son is picking up the guitar pretty good these days. I try to influence him with Clapton, Sheppard, Vaughn, and the likes, for a solid foundation.
He prefers to listen to Mud Vayne, Pantera, Slayer, the death metal variety....Lord help us...
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#513834 - 05/01/02 04:50 AM
Re: Too busy creating to listen to new music?
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sudeep
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The dangerous thing about this for me as a musician and songwriter is that I sometimes find myself subconsiously "borrowing" riffs or melodies from other artists. Luckily, I usually "remember" these riffs or melodies slightly incorrectly, so the songs are never what anyone would call a rip-off.[/QB][/QUOTE]
i read somewhere that Andrew Lloyd Webber has stopped listenign to music for fear of subconsciouly using something he hears.
Personally i dont believe you can grow and change as a songwriter unless you listen to other styles and other peoples music.
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#513835 - 05/16/02 11:55 PM
Re: Too busy creating to listen to new music?
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Belzart
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Listen, to say that listening to other music lowers your level of creativity is "What?". I mean where'd that come from? You need to stay on top if you don't want your music to sound like it's out-dated. I'm constantly changing drum beats on old music of mine to keep up. You don't need to copy anything, but at least know where music's headed. Listening to music has really helped me come up with my own melodies. I mean, come on people, the best song-writer out there gets ideas from other music (I've done research).
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#513836 - 05/17/02 12:10 AM
Re: Too busy creating to listen to new music?
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Lee Flier
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Well I agree that listening to other music helps stimulate creativity, but what's this "outdated" and "keeping up" shit? Keeping up with WHAT? I didn't realize songwriting was a contest or a race.
--Lee
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#513837 - 05/20/02 06:31 PM
Re: Too busy creating to listen to new music?
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Kendrix
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Building on Lees' comment about the relevance of not becoming "dated" and "keeping up".
I belong to the TAXI song forwarding service.
They are valuable in giving critiques on my stuff.
However, one comment that is often offered is "sounds dated".
I just dont get this at all. Firstly, I still think many pieces from 30 years ago sound brilliant. I really think good music is timeless.
If you think otherwise I dont think you really appreciate music. However, its is also an unfortunate fact that the commercial market for music operates this way. Its kind of like the musical equivalent of fast food chains closing down local restaurants or national music retailers closing down local shops. Sad to see but a fact of life.
Thats one reason I support Lenny Kravitz - he bucks the trend by sounding 70's-ish and he still sells records.
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