2/4/2017 7:38:49 AM
What is Music exactly?

1/28/2017 8:30:17 AM
Demographics and musical preference at indiemusicpeople.com ?

1/28/2017 8:30:17 AM ---- Updated 1/28/2017 8:37:15 AM

Demographics and musical preference at indiemusicpeople.com ?
You can never generalize about subjective arts like music but it has been proven that gender, age, geographical location or class can often affect listening choices.

It used to be much more defined - kids had kiddy songs, teens and twenties preferred easy choice Popular music, thirties and forties were more sophisticated or specialist and the older generation tended to prefer the music of their youth or mainstream easy listening.

Certain artists or types of music had and still have more female or male appeal and where/how you were raised may have an effect.

The lines are far more blurred now, some may say listening demographics are not relevant, so it's harder to create music with a specific audience in mind. However studies have been done and certain patterns do show up

As an example the top 2 artists (2014 stats) played by

64 year olds - - - - 13 year olds

Bruno Mars . . . . One Direction
Elvis Presley - - - - Bruno Mars

Elvis and 1D are miles apart but points for Bruno who obviously has ageless appeal.

In fact Bruno Mars is a good example of Male/Female listening crossover along with Katy Perry and Rhianna.... whereas Daft Punk and Jay-Z is are predominantly male choices and Beyonce and Pink are more for the ladies.

> So I wonder if you have any idea who your music appeals to mostly.

> What do you know about your audience, white middle class females, young black men, discriminating 30 somethings, well educated career people or who ?

1/28/2017 9:01:54 AM

Nice post and welcome!

I must say I am totally mystified by Bruno Mars' popularity. He's so boring and uninteresting melodically, it's so drippy derivative.

My audience if I have one is probably ex-hippies. Moreso I don't think anybody really likes my music, but the quality of such is irrelevant to that outcome. I think for many if they gave it a full chance they might, but before they get to that point they decide early on that they don't like the idea of liking my music, because they find something about me personally that doesn't fit with the kind of artist they like themselves liking.,

1/28/2017 10:12:49 AM

That's really interesting Father Time, do you have evidence to back up your theory I wonder. And do you think 'who you are' (your gender, age, appearance etc) or 'what you are' (your personality and sociability) has the most influence in determining your audience ?

If not yourself, who would you say represented the typical indiemusicpeople artist? Who would be accepted and liked across the board by most of your listeners.

1/28/2017 10:20:37 AM

Bruno Mars kicks ass, the guy as far as I am concerned lays down a fine happening vibe. outstanding musician entertainer performer. killer tunes. i love what he does

he rocks with charisma and personality. well trained musician and multi-faceted at many instruments and he possesses that je nais se quois quality. very appealing groove music

bryon

1/28/2017 10:21:36 AM

I think my age is a huge factor. I also think my persona online is a pretty big factor. I have seen indie artists who were not original at all get huge followings because they had the schmooze factor in their favor, people found them likable.

I don't know there is a typical IMP artist. I think an artist like DeMonicka, our reigning Female Artist of the Year appeals to many. That would be my best guess on the last question.

1/28/2017 10:26:07 AM

Well Bryon I know folks say he's a great performer, I just don't find the music original at all. I could hear his songs 10 times in a row.and it would have no basis for running thru my head.

1/28/2017 10:28:01 AM

indiemusicpeople artist that is likable across the board, undeniably Steve Ison. first choice, but there are many others I could name here that have as much incredible music and who are very accomplished musicians as any star in this world. Perhaps I will name some of the best songcrafters down the road , thanks for your questions, of course i did not address everything, got to go on a morning walk for a few hours

1/28/2017 10:31:11 AM

FT, your opinion, I dig it. that is all that matters man, and you know I listen to and appreciate a lot of talent here as well and do reviews and give huge props to many of the artists who reside here, including your self,. again what turns you on, is what you dig, doesnt mean it is the truth. your truth is different from mine. dig it, ok checking out

1/28/2017 12:24:42 PM

Bruno Mars is original and part of our time. So good to read about someone who was alive after 1990 and made records after 1976 on here.

1/28/2017 12:39:26 PM

Francesca, your tone, not to mention that this is something you talk about quite a lot, indicates that you appear to have a bit of an age hangup. Did somebody hold you down and make you listen to Journey in captivity or something? :D

How is Paul McCartney for instance not part of our time, exactly?

You sort of make me feel like an old leper. I'm not the only one btw who has stated this opinion of Bruno Mars. His biggest hit actually got headlines for the idea that it might have been plagiarized and this article displays the song in question that they're saying that about.

Meanwhile, it's simply a fact that more artists are influenced by the Beatles, Dylan, Hank Williams, older blues guys than are influenced by the top acts of 2017. You're maybe disrespecting the masters a bit.

1/28/2017 12:47:10 PM

History books tell me that George Harrison was judged to have plagiarised and Led Zeppelin stole lots.
I have no objection to the music of my forefathers, and enjoy it, but the chief posters here seem to do little other than sneer at anything that was popular after the Clash booted your heroes off the stage (which was 15 years before I was born)

1/28/2017 12:56:25 PM

Well there are a lot of older folks who post here. Personally I think the Sex Pistols did more booting than the Clash. :) Some blame Nirvana for killing hair bands but I know a whole lot of rock fans who love both.

A lot of folks who were around during the earlier times don't have that high of an opinion of new mainstream music from this era. I sneered a little at Bruno Mars but have tried to cut down on my sneering in general. :)

It's an argument that never goes away. There are some that think that every era has identical quality and all by definition love most the music that was popular when they were in high school. My daughter would disagree, she loves the Beatles and Stones and she's only 19. Look at the larger art world, and you will see quite clearly that eras are not identical. Art museums for instance have whole floors of paintings dedicated to one 20 year period in history while whole centuries get no representation at all within their walls. There is an ebb and flo in culture.

1/28/2017 1:05:54 PM ---- Updated 1/28/2017 1:54:50 PM

I agree totally, but, for younger people, like your daughter, and me, there is the benefit of being able to pick and choose, while for the more mature listener there seems to be a dismissive cynicism of anything new.
When I look back, the big stars are David Bowie, The Smiths, Joy Division and others who pioneered, even if not virtuoso musicians. There are some fantastic female singer songwriters moving and shaking things now and who influence me tremendously (Birdy for example) but as you say, there are empty walls in the IMP gallery.

1/28/2017 1:35:32 PM

Well I for one think I"m pretty open minded about new music. All my current favorites from that group are on this site though.

1/28/2017 9:34:47 PM

Bruno Mars Rocks in my opinion. He has a great tenor singing voice, huge persona, can dance his ass off and is a monster musician in the studio. I watched a documentary with him giving a clinic on songwriting and I was amazed at his keyboard prowess. I was captivated by the way he wrote several songs on the spot and demonstrated from chorus to bridge how he would build instrumental walls on to songs that became towers in the industry. He is a lot more talented than people give him credit for. I bought his latest CD and I literally cannot stop listening to it. It is full of the kind of shit I like. Dope beats, hard harmonic hooks, hood appeal and fun quality vocals. Of course, ones assessment of an act may be tainted by ones personal genre tastes. His latest CD has only 9 songs on it but every song is a potential hit. My assessment of a CD is usually judged by how memorable the songs are. I find myself walking around singing his songs everywhere I go. That is what proves to me that a CD is hot. Bruno Mars deserves a lot more respect than he is getting here but I understand that opinions are subjective in nature. So is mine! So, there you have it! A difference of opinion is an awesome way to promote someone. Not that Bruno needs any more promotion. I mean his latest hit is in every TV commercial and is being played on every show(including sports venues) . The guy must be rolling in doe! Thank goodness that musicians opinions are irrelevant when you are successful. The public is the the most important critic and the way they are buying up his music is indication that the public loves his work. I am not sure about the appeal of my music as I have never did a study as in depth as that but it would be fun to find out.

Respect,
Stoneman

1/29/2017 1:14:23 AM ---- Updated 1/29/2017 1:17:40 AM

Thanks for your contributions so far

I think we have evidence that Bruno has appeal across age and gender but obviously no artist can be universally popular, he just came closest in a limited survey.

Let's look at other artists with popular appeal at the moment.

Ed Sheeran is the most played and requested (BBC 2017). He somehow manages to appeal to the whole music listening demographic. He's doesn't have a 'Boy band' image but he is just 25 ; He is mostly a Folk and Pop singer/songwriter but has dabbled with rapping and acting. He is big on the awards scene and has been popular in the States and Australia.

Jax Jones is second most played, he is a multi-instrumentalist, record producer, songwriter and DJ. So at 29 he is covering all angles and it's paying off.

Now the
3rd most requested on this mainstream music arena is Michael Jackson, ageless, appeal in gender, age and culture and genre.
4th Rag 'n' bone man (weighty, tattood singer/songwriter) sings deep emotional songs with a powerful voice.
5th is Sean Paul (Dancehall with sunshine) has captured the Multicultural market.
6th, Zara Larsson, Swedish talent show winner has jumped on the Scandi Pop scene with sexy, catchy songs and visual appeal.
7th James Arthur is another talent show survivor with a pleasant mix of R&B, Soul and Pop. (maybe hasn't cracked the US yet)
8th at the moment is George Michael for obvious reasons and 9th is Madonna who is having a resurgence and still has universal appeal whether you like her personally or not.
Also in the top played are an eclectic selection of artists and bands - new and old - Little Mix alongside Mott the Hoople - Celine Dion and David Bowie rubbing shoulders with Clean Bandit (electronic music trio) and The Chainsmokers, (American DJ duo) Zayn, Jamiroquai, and Izy Bizu are also up there. Granted, some of these artists are more popular on the Pop scene but they are still acceptable to a wide range of listeners.

It seems there is a secret ingredient that certain artists have captured and often an audience like to know that their favorite has more to them them, more ambition, more vitality, more acceptability generally. Does that necessarily put them firmly in the 'middle of the road' and is that good or bad?

My question to you is :- Would you prefer to be popular across the board to a moderate degree or extemely popular with a niche group of listeners?

1/29/2017 3:26:26 AM

I would prefer the latter, a higher level of excitement I think.

I can't believe you mentioned Jamiroquai, in America they were a one hit MTV wonder. Too Shy Shy, Hush Hush

1/29/2017 5:58:52 AM

You made me smile Father Time

Too shy to shy, hush hush etc was actually Kajagoogoo 1980s NOT Jamiroquai who are a well respected funk aciz jazz band, they still touring Worldwide - they did have a song called Too young to die 1990s if that helps.

1/29/2017 6:42:16 AM

proving once again that I don't know squat! :D

1/29/2017 1:11:06 PM

Frank Sinatra was a tough sell in the 70s, now Dylan covers Frank Sinatra. Go figure!

There are stages on life's way.

Each phase will have champions, or musical lights.

Francesca makes good points, and I totally agree, that opining one generation monopolizes good music is a joke. Wrong headed imhv.

Hey, I like Florence and the Machine ("Built to Wreck" is a great song), 21 Pilots, "Blurry Faces", Lourdes, altj to name a few. There are plenty of talented contemporary stahs...

Rock on, Francesca, your music is among the best I've heard on IAC, or anywhere...

Also, shout out to the hope that the Mona Lisa Twins and their friends show up with new stations and a fresh outlook also...new perspectives are always welcome...

Music loves innovation, and new faces...

1/29/2017 4:05:14 PM

The music I listen to is nothing like the music I play. I listen to jazz, orchestral music, electronic, and world music, but not much 'pop' music.

1/29/2017 4:32:02 PM

IMHO, there is enough great music (in multiple genres) in every decade. Of course, there are decades of music that I like more than others, but the tendencies are not linear for me (like a constant decline, or anything like that). Also, certain genres were the strongest for me in different decades, obviously. But good music is good music, no matter when exactly it was written and recorded.
For example, my favorite decades of music are the '60-s, the '90s, and the early 2000s... I also like a lot of music from the '70s, and some from the 2010s (now, mostly independent artists like the MonaLisa Twins and Juliana Daily).
My least favorite decade, with its general tendencies and prevailing music genres and styles, is the '80s (though I do have some favorite bands and artists that were in their prime in the '80s, but not many)...

1/29/2017 4:35:29 PM ---- Updated 1/29/2017 4:35:58 PM

At the end of the day, music died when Peter Gabriel left Genesis. :D

1/29/2017 6:46:51 PM

Only if you're dismissing Nirvana.

1/29/2017 7:40:36 PM

I was never a huge Nirvana fan. They were a good band. I never disliked them, but I never got into them heavily.

1/29/2017 7:44:41 PM

Francesca you seem to have a double standard. You don't like being put in the "just a pretty girl" stereotype but don't have problems lumping older folks into stereo types of your own creation.

I enjoy many new upcoming bands Thrice, Stereoside, Seether to name a few

but I'm in the old crowd so I can't possibly like anything later than 1970

frankly I think your view is horse hocky.

As far as Bruno Mars goes I do like some of his songs and thought he did a good show at the "super bow_"
Cheers.

Two Silo Complex,
Ken

1/29/2017 7:50:48 PM ---- Updated 1/29/2017 7:53:39 PM

Bruno Mars was good at the Super Bowl, Ken! And I usually hate Super Bowl halftime shows. More often than not, they stink! But Bruno was really good. Easily in the all-time top five.

1/30/2017 12:46:15 AM ---- Updated 1/30/2017 12:46:55 AM

I'm getting the feeling that genre could be more important than artist for listeners, Larree's point about playing and listening to different genres was interesting, anyone else do that?

There is a thing called 'genre loyalty' and this has been measured (Spotify) Most people will flirt with different music styles (as is proved by posters here) but most of us stay true to one particular genre.

Stats indicate that the most genre loyal listeners are into Heavy Metal the World over. Next most faithful are Pop listeners, then Folk, Country, Rock, Hip Hop.

The fans who stray most often from their preferred genre are Jazz, Classical and Blues listeners. I think that could be to do with accessibility - less universally popular music is not promoted to the same extent as the big genres.

My question to you ;- could you limit your listening to just one genre (say on a desert island) and if you which one ?

1/30/2017 7:40:44 AM

I like all kinds of genres from rock to pop to metal to classical to folk to name a few. I have a varied taste. I don't personally care for rap or most country but a few old time country legends have some good songs.

If I had to chooses a single genre to listen to on a dessert island?
I think I'd rather listen to the waves and the seagulls and get nothing rather than be limited to one I think that would be too boring.

Two Silo Complex,
Ken

1/30/2017 10:54:41 AM

Well we agree on something!

1/30/2017 11:45:13 AM

One genre on a desert island? Forget that! I'll just take a guitar and an endless supply of strings.

1/30/2017 11:55:51 AM

A piano would be more problematic. I don't know how to tune it and don't think it would float.

1/30/2017 11:58:07 AM

Guitars don't do well in water, either. But it is a lot easier to tune. Not a bad skill to learn, piano tuning. One would always have plenty of work!

1/30/2017 12:10:42 PM

speaking of piano's I took apart the one I learned on, it is 60 years old, saying that, i must be older, lol I removed the harp section, (string and cast iron part, removed action sent it to my piano technician ,then removed all the keys and then began to refinished the whole thing, cleaned inside , amouse was at the bottom, somehow and spiders and bugs and mouse poop ,yech, stripped the whole outside , sanded , and redid it. still have it, then bought a new upright so have two. one for my studio teaching the other is going to be somebodies someday, and the other one when i kick the bucket and drift off the into the ether

1/30/2017 12:11:19 PM ---- Updated 1/30/2017 12:14:02 PM

@Stella Statsaver
I am probably the listener with the most diverse tastes in music around here, as I have favorite songs and artists in almost all possible genres (except for the extreme varieties of metal, like death metal etc., and some varieties of hip-hop that have no melody, but just rapping and beats) - basically, I am open minded to anything in popular music that has at least some melody in it, and I mostly like songs that have interesting and catchy chord progressions in the vocals and/or the instrumental parts, no matter what the genre is, and no matter if they are from the 1950s or the 2010s. I mostly prefer clean and bright vocals, preferably high-pitched (or, if they are lowered pitched, having some unique velvety and/or mellow timbre), and I love vocal harmonies. I don't like the so called "dirty" vocals, typical for the harder varieties of rock and metal. For instrumentation and backing tracks - I like them melodic too, especially if they add something to the song, e.g. - different chord progressions from those of the vocal parts... I like some hard and "punchy" beats, like those in '90s and '2000s hip-hop and R'n'B, and those in trip-hop, and some other drum-machine beats. So, an ideal song for me would have such beats, but also be very melodic and have the qualities I talked above. The beats are not a "must" though - obviously, my favorite bands and artists from the '60s and '70s (which I will mention below) didn't have such beats in their music :)

Obviously, I do have some genres and styles that I would prefer a certain song to be arranged in, but that depends on the particular song. Almost any song could in theory be transformed from one genre into another, if a cover artist is creative enough to take the core melodies and use them in a totally different vocal and instrumental arrangement, to fit the different genre. I value such creativity.

I seriously don't understand people, who only listen to one or two genres, and have a narrow minded, dismissive or even mocking attitude to anything else; especially - towards anything that sounds catchy. Like... if it's catchy, then it's too "pop", and too "shallow", so let's mock it, because we only listen to "clever" and "deep" music, don't we? Nonsense. Music is SUPPOSED to be catchy and pleasant to listen to!

Also, lyrics are not the most important thing in a song for me - if I wanted great lyrics, I would just read poetry. I listen to music for the music. A song can be great, if it has no lyrics at all (instrumentals), or the refrain is just "Na-na-na-na". This allows me to be open minded to songs in any language, even if I don't understand what the lyrics are about, so I do have favorite songs in quite a few languages.

My all time favorite bands and artists are the Beatles from the '60s, ABBA from the '70s (and I don't care which of their songs have a disco sound, or a pop-rock or Europop sound - I just care which ones of them are good songs), also - Welsh singer-songwriter Jem from the 2000s, the MonaLisa Twins from the 2010s, and I even like a lot of Eurodance music from the '90s, and some melodic hip-hop from the late '90s and early 2000s (Lauryn Hill and the Fugees, and Cuban salsa hip-hop band Orishas, who are my 3rd favorite band of all time, after the Beatles and ABBA). The rock bands I like the most from the '90s are the Cranberries and K's Choice, and from the '80s (the worst decade for music IMHO), I like the reggae-pop sound of UB40.

As you can see, even from this list of my all-time favorite artists, it is obvious how I don't care about genre restrictions, only about the music being good to listen too. :)

I wish more people were like that, so we could discuss music of all genres, without frowning at (or secretly or openly mocking) each other's favorite stuff...

1/30/2017 12:34:42 PM

I like UB40

1/30/2017 12:57:40 PM

And you are one of the few, who will admit to that, Ms Francesca T. ;)
For most people, music like theirs (and also ABBA, and most of the '90s Eurodance and Europop music that I like) is a so called "guilty pleasure", since they always try to appear so damn "intellectual" and "sophisticated" in their music tastes. Well, I don't have guilty pleasures, because I am not ashamed of anything I like. :P

1/30/2017 1:03:09 PM

What's not to like?

1/30/2017 2:30:21 PM

Have a street named after me, (two streets, actually), I'm honored and humbled. Catch em on google, April lane and April place, 1/4 mile or so from where I live. I was told by a real estate agent the developer liked my music. I thought she was joking at first. LOL

Music = news and entertainment imhv. A friend of mine, a writer, opined once there are three reasons for art;

1. to exorcise and catharsize (to express and free yourself)
2. to share with friends and contemporaries (community)
3. to celebrate (the glory)

Let's face it, the music biz is mostly a con, to separate kids from their $s.

I'm a high school english teacher (semi-retired), have been an attorney (did not last long). While during a hiatus doin' interviews (few and far between) for a patent attorney in nyc, a college friend wrote that he'd opend a music club, in upstate NY, I visited him, he invited me to co-mamage the club . We booked in late 80s John Phillips (did a video there), Rick Danko, Dave Mason, Richie Havens, Jerry Jeff Walker, Maria Muldaur, Shawn Colvin (before she was famous), and many more. I was too busy with work, but osmosis-wise I observed and absorbed, and only in my 40s began my music career.

1/30/2017 2:33:17 PM

@Christomir
Good that you have diverse tastes in music, thats is great and good to have you here as a listener, but pretty unlikely you are the only one who has a wide selection of musical likes and tastes, that is a pretty big assumption. There are many station managers like myself Steve April, Steve Ison, and many more who have been around the block here at IMP (formerly iacmusic 2004 or earlier) that are ardent listeners.(and artists) And Scott Stambaugh who I would say probably listens more then anyone else and himself has a very amazing listening ear, since he has been here almost since the beginning of this music place and essentially runs the organization.. dont discount the many of us who have well established stations, and are very skilled at what we do in the listening aspect, and who have diverse listening skill sets as well

Just like to take you to task here, and point out many of us who i know are very diverse listeners as well. Now as a pure listener you may have a point, although like I said, there are many who have a wide selection of tastes as well


cheers man

bryon

1/30/2017 2:58:13 PM ---- Updated 1/30/2017 3:00:12 PM

Hey, Steve! I have a street named for me in my hometown, too!

I even have my own playground!

Stoner Ave.

https://www.mapquest.com/us/ca/los-angeles/90025-1841/1835-stoner-ave-34.038810,-118.453220

1/30/2017 4:03:11 PM

I have a whole square named after me, it's called Asshole Corner.

1/30/2017 4:16:50 PM

Christomer,

I have a number of artist friends who love Abba. I get what you're saying though, I've taken a huge amount of abuse in certain corners for some of my favorites. Culture Club for instance, I think Boy George is a pretty great poet. I've also taken a lot of heat particularly in rock circles for being a fan of Bread and the Carpenters who are both in my top 25 acts of all time.

I agree with Bryon though, this crowd since it's mostly artists is probably far more open minded than the kind of folks you're talking about.

Personally I'm far more into soul music, particularly 70s soul, than pretty much anyone I know. I'm the kid who for his 13th birthday asked for Al Green albums and received all of them he had recorded up to that point for Christmas, At the same time if I was stuck on a desert island with one record, Never Mind the Bollocks by the Sex Pistols, I could subsist pretty well. :)

A lot of people hate Neil Young and Bob Dylan. For me they're 2 of the greatest songwriters in history and I also love their voices and Neil's guitar playing.

We have a lot of country music aficionados in the halls of IMP. Which is why we were pleased to land pages for Johnny Cash and family, Merle Haggard, Willie Nelson, Glen Campbell, Kris Kristofferson and Patsy Cline. Country artists who put their music here are kept company by these acts which in many cases have influenced them greatly.

1/30/2017 4:21:21 PM ---- Updated 1/30/2017 5:54:13 PM

Hey, Bryon
I didn't mean to say I am the *only* one, who listens to and likes a lot of different music, and I definitely didn't mean to sound big-headed and dismissive to other avid listeners here, like you - I apologize, if my post left that impression.
On the contrary - I'm sure most of you guys here know more about music than me, have a better ear for it (especially those who are actual musicians), and as veteran listeners have probably heard music and stuff that I can't even imagine. :)

I was just trying to say (and actually - laugh at myself a little bit for it) that I have the *most* diverse taste, genre-wise, out of anyone I know, because some of the genres I like songs from (and even have big favorites from them) are usually considered incompatible, or even polar opposites. E.g., I don't believe you will be able to find anyone else, who can equally love a '60s Beatles song, a late '70s reggae-disco song by Boney M., a 1994 trip-hop song by Portishead, a 1996 alternative rock / post-grunge song by K's Choice, a 1998 hip hop / neo soul song by Lauryn Hill, a 2000 latin hip hop song by Delinquent Habits (sampling a famous Argentine tango tune), and a 2015 electronica hit by a British-Norwegian DJ - all of these at the same time. Eh? :P

Greetings from Bulgaria,
Itso

1/30/2017 4:25:09 PM

Scott, I am sure you are right, and the listeners and artists (who are listeners themselves) on here are probably more open-minded than most people I know :)

1/30/2017 5:34:18 PM

Hey man, not to worry,no offense, just wanted to clarify the audience here is very educated. I so love your enthusiasm, it is boundless, thats a good thing, music is your passion, that is obvious, good on ya.we appreciate your input and your participation here and your expertise, I can see you are very knowledgeable and I am certain have the breadth and depth of understanding music of various styles. I think this community being so well established for some time has a lot to offer as listeners , that is what I was trying to convey, even though we probably spend more time thinking about our next project

thanks for providing the insight and artists in your posts that influence you and that you appreciate the most. We all have moments where certain artists got us connected to the music bug, for me being an ancient of days, it was seeing live at concerts bands such as, The Who, The Doors, Led Zep, Jackson Browne, Pat Benetar, and countless others during the 60s 70s and 80s. not so much rock since though, I am more into Jazz now and Blues on occasion, but dabble in ambient and classical as well. I am all over the place for making compositions so there is no one specific genre I am married too.

cheers

cheers

1/30/2017 5:57:01 PM

Thank, Bryon :) And yeah, it's good that you haven't "married" any genre - the lack of a "wife" like that means you have way more creative freedom... ;)

1/31/2017 1:02:24 AM

Well I came to the Pipeline as a 'stats' person and I'm also very interested in consumer trends and choices. I guess that indiemusicpeople by its very nature will be much more open / broadminded than the stats suggest.

My question today :- How much does peer pressure or politics (small p) affect the music selection of the masses.

1/31/2017 1:19:15 AM

My guess would be not at all.

1/31/2017 2:46:34 AM ---- Updated 1/31/2017 2:48:18 AM

I'm not good at guessing so that's why I like facts and figures.

I found a study where listeners were asked to rate a song on how much the liked it.

After a break, they were all asked to rate the song again, participants changed their scores 22 per cent of the time after finding out the tune was a hit on social media. More than three quarters switched to match the song's popularity rating.

These were young listeners but evidence shows that even older people like to feel part of a group and have common listening interests with peers.

Electronic scans show the brain is stimulated in different areas when relaxed compared with listening under more pressure and scrutiny.

1/31/2017 7:37:48 AM

@ Stella
Changing your answer to match what is popular is a sad trend in sheep mentality of today.

Blend in with the herd, don't listen to anything outside mass appeal.

sounds like a hideous way to "live under a rock" to me.

Two Silo Complex,
Ken

1/31/2017 10:10:05 AM

Well, Christomir,

Welcome, fellow music lover, your broad range of taste, welcome...

how do you come to know the MonaLisa Twins? They are out there doin' it, travellin', tourin' for years, my impression, is that right?

1/31/2017 11:04:22 AM

Hello, Steve :)
The twins, Mona and Lisa Wagner, are 22 years old now, and have been making music (with some help from their dad, who plays bass on the recordings, and helps with arrangements and production) ever since they were 13, so for almost a decade now.
I myself, and most other fans of theirs, discovered them on YouTube, where their channel is a gold mine - initially with just covers, then later with 12 creative and professionally produced music videos for all 12 of their original songs (11 from their debut album, released in 2012, and 1 from their upcoming new album, which they are still recording and editing right now). So yeah, most of their audience is from people, who have stumbled upon them on YouTube, but they did tour a lot too - initially in their native Austria in 2012 and 2013, and then, after their move to England, had many gigs there from 2014 to 2016, including a weekly residency at the legendary Cavern Club. They also joined Steve Harley & Cockney Rebel for a UK tour, and played some of their own songs (as a sort of opening act for Steve) during many of those concerts too. The only time I was lucky to see them live was when I traveled from my hometown (Ruse in Bulgaria) specially for one of their gigs, at the Aera Club in Vienna in September 2013 - that was one of their last gigs in Austria, before they moved to Liverpool...

1/31/2017 11:48:29 AM ---- Updated 1/31/2017 11:53:18 AM

they really can play lol...colorful, vibrant..

their bird song's great...love their music...

1/31/2017 11:52:36 AM

1/31/2017 11:53:08 AM

I think is what Steve was trying to link up

1/31/2017 12:01:00 PM

Thanks, Bryon...

1/31/2017 12:11:16 PM ---- Updated 1/31/2017 12:19:15 PM

Bird song? If you mean "I Don't Know Birds That Well", then yeah - that is one of my favorite ones ^_^ And you won't believe how difficult to sing that 2-part harmony sounds for me, as a non-musician...

I hope it will be added here on IMP soon :)

1/31/2017 12:17:11 PM

As for the Johnny B. Goode cover - that video was recorded exactly at that great gig at the Aera club in Vienna that I was lucky to attend in 2013. You can actually see me in some shots, when the camera shows some of the audience - I am the goofy guy with the grey shirt and the specs (close to the stage, on the left as you look at the stage, or on the right, if you look FROM the stage into the audience).

1/31/2017 1:03:01 PM

2/1/2017 11:02:07 AM

@Christomir, yes that's prob'ly my fav MLT video, I like their version better than Chuck Berries lol, and there you are dancing--what a coincidence...

What a neat video, and a synchronicity...

Cheers...

2/1/2017 11:53:30 AM

I was there.

2/1/2017 12:55:03 PM

I do like the MLT cover of Johnny B. Goode.

I like a lot of cover versions of Bob Dylan songs better than the originals. Love the originals, but I love hearing an artist's interpretation of other peoples' compositions. My all-time favorite cover of a song that is better than the original is Joe Cocker's version of "I Get High With a Little Help From My Friends" from Woodstock. I also love listening to jazz artists covering standards and different conductors interpretations of classical compositions. When I do covers I never copy. I interpret.

2/1/2017 1:28:37 PM ---- Updated 2/1/2017 1:30:54 PM

Yeah, Larree, I absolutely agree! IMHO, that is exactly the point of doing a cover (I think I mentioned it somewhere above here too) - to change a song completely and do it in your own style, sometimes even in a completely different genre; not to just "do justice" to the original, as some people believe. The latter is just copying, not doing a cover.

2/1/2017 1:31:49 PM

I never liked Cocker's version that much. On the other hand I really like Elton's Lucy In The Sky. And my all time favorite cover is this.

2/1/2017 1:34:42 PM

That's the voice of god in the post above.

2/1/2017 1:53:02 PM

Indeed, Scott, that is a creative arrangement, completely different from the original :)

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