Poll

What's the minimum you keep from an artist?

Single songs
12 (19.7%)
At least the full album
40 (65.6%)
Always the whole discography
9 (14.8%)

Total Members Voted: 59

Author Topic: Your musical quantum  (Read 7229 times)

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Offline Xanthul

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Your musical quantum
« on: May 04, 2010, 06:46:05 AM »
I was wondering, what's the minimum piece of music you keep from an artist? Say you are told about this awesome band, you try their albums and enjoy some songs. Do you keep it all? Do you keep just the albums you enjoy the most? Do you keep single songs and get rid of the rest?

I ask this because I'm kind of OCD when it comes to arranging my library and on one hand I hate not having at least whole CDs (not necessarily the whole discography) but I also hate having to skip tunes. Maybe I should just downvote the awful ones and keep them there for sanity purposes.

Offline Zantera

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Re: Your musical quantum
« Reply #1 on: May 04, 2010, 06:49:52 AM »
I keep what i like, which is either the album or the discography. :P

Offline wolfking

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Re: Your musical quantum
« Reply #2 on: May 04, 2010, 07:03:26 AM »
I rarely just can't have 1 album from a band.  90% of my bands I collect the whole discography.  It's like a disease, I can't explain why. 
Everyone else, except Wolfking is wrong.

Offline LudwigVan

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Re: Your musical quantum
« Reply #3 on: May 04, 2010, 07:18:03 AM »
I rarely just can't have 1 album from a band.  90% of my bands I collect the whole discography.  It's like a disease, I can't explain why.  

I'm almost like this but not quite.  If a band has a bad (IMO) stretch of albums, I'll leave them out of my collection.  F'rinstance with Maiden, I've got everything from s/t debut through SSOASS, then skipped the next 4 albums (No Prayer for the Dying, Fear of the Dark, The X Factor, Virtual XI) but picked up everything from Brave New World to current.  As for Rush, I've got everything EXCEPT their s/t debut album.
« Last Edit: May 04, 2010, 07:26:46 AM by LudwigVan »
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Offline LTE

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Re: Your musical quantum
« Reply #4 on: May 04, 2010, 07:24:23 AM »
I won't go as far as ALWAYS having the full discography for an artist. But I never can just have one song from an artist, or even just one album. I always have the bulk of their material.

I cringe when I check peoples mp3 players and see something like "1000 songs, 1000 artists"
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Offline Super Dude

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Re: Your musical quantum
« Reply #5 on: May 04, 2010, 07:27:55 AM »
It depends on the artist.  For example I don't particularly enjoy full Train albums so I just keep certain singles.  But in the case of cKy, I really really loved IDR, so I proceeded to collect the whole discography (which I ended up not liking, but whatever).
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Offline AwakeFromOctavarium

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Re: Your musical quantum
« Reply #6 on: May 04, 2010, 07:59:28 AM »
I rarely just can't have 1 album from a band.  90% of my bands I collect the whole discography.  It's like a disease, I can't explain why.  

I got this disease too since the DT encounter. The only one album artist in my library is Meshuggah, the album being Chaosphere. But I can't boast my music library anyways because I'm still a beginner progger.

Edit: Oh, forgot about Marillion and Season's End.
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Offline Nihil-Morari

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Re: Your musical quantum
« Reply #7 on: May 04, 2010, 08:05:58 AM »
Full albums, at least. There was a time that I was really an mp3 collector, collecting everything that I could find, from every band that I liked. (Zappa, 150 albums, DT and related over 200 albums, Klaus Schulze over 200 albums)
But I'm glad that has changed ;)
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Offline RandalGraves

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Re: Your musical quantum
« Reply #8 on: May 04, 2010, 08:10:15 AM »
Full albums, usually.  I believe every artist should be rated by their albums, not their singles.  If I've been an album a bunch of listens and really cant stand the whole thing, I'll jettison it and keep the tracks I like.

Offline xterp

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Re: Your musical quantum
« Reply #9 on: May 04, 2010, 08:12:41 AM »
Discographies. I haven't listened to a lot of stuff in my library yet due to this but you never know what awesome stuff you could be missing by not having everything.

Offline Nihil-Morari

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Re: Your musical quantum
« Reply #10 on: May 04, 2010, 08:13:51 AM »
Full albums, usually.  I believe every artist should be rated by their albums, not their singles.  If I've been an album a bunch of listens and really cant stand the whole thing, I'll jettison it and keep the tracks I like.

I never do that. Even when I only like one or two track from an album, I keep the entire thing. Hoping that the album will click, or at least, when I really start to like the good tracks, that I've got more material from the same band.
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Offline Cool Chris

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Re: Your musical quantum
« Reply #11 on: May 04, 2010, 02:28:14 PM »
I much rather prefer to own a band’s albums than their random singles, but generally if I like a few of a band’s songs, I like most of them. Though there are a haphazard 20-30 songs I have on my computer where it is the only song I have by the band. I won’t purchase a band’s whole discography solely on principle, though. If a band I like has a dud of an album, I don’t feel obligated to buy it. Just as I will buy only one album from a band if it’s the only one I like, but that is much more rare.

On rare occasions, a band will have an extensive discography where I’ll only like a handful of songs, and will end up putting them on a CD myself so it can sit on the shelf with the others (as I tend to listen to listen to music off of CDs rather than on my computer).
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Offline Gadough

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Re: Your musical quantum
« Reply #12 on: May 04, 2010, 02:34:01 PM »
I believe every artist should be rated by their albums, not their singles.

Agreed. Especially since most of the time the best songs on an album aren't released as singles or given a video.
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Offline Darkes7

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Re: Your musical quantum
« Reply #13 on: May 04, 2010, 02:53:24 PM »
Full albums. If it's single songs, then it's only a starting point, or seriously the only songs I really like (might be the case with e.g. Slipknot eventually). But overall, a full album is when I really feel I'm listening to the band and see what they are capable of - what kind of atmosphere they try to create, what kind of message do they have (if any), how well the albums flow, what kind of a journey overall it is. If I really like one album, I'm going to eventually try out the whole discography - but I basically never just go for the entire discography at once, I do it gradually (the only exceptions ever were Dream Theater and Riverside - but it was around a year in case of the former, and around 4 months in case of the latter, so it's hardly "all at once"), and when I really get into a band's one, two, in rare cases three albums in a row, I decide it's time to give the band a break for a while and go for something else.

Something like this.

Offline Nic35

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Re: Your musical quantum
« Reply #14 on: May 04, 2010, 02:58:22 PM »
I always have at least on album. I find it funny when people are self-claiming themselves ''fan'' of an artist and have 5 songs of them of their mp3 player.
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Offline Darkes7

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Re: Your musical quantum
« Reply #15 on: May 04, 2010, 03:06:59 PM »
No offence to anyone but I don't see how anyone can call themselves a fan of a band and not buy even one physical release.

Offline Nic35

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Re: Your musical quantum
« Reply #16 on: May 04, 2010, 03:42:13 PM »
No offence to anyone but I don't see how anyone can call themselves a fan of a band and not buy even one physical release.
Being a student working to pay his car and his studies is a reason.
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Offline Darkes7

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Re: Your musical quantum
« Reply #17 on: May 04, 2010, 04:00:28 PM »
Regardless of anything I don't believe someone is unable to buy one album a month... especially if they have enough money to have a decent computer and a strong enough connection to download lots of music.

But let's not derail the thread...

Offline KevShmev

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Re: Your musical quantum
« Reply #18 on: May 04, 2010, 04:02:37 PM »
No offence to anyone but I don't see how anyone can call themselves a fan of a band and not buy even one physical release.
Being a student working to pay his car and his studies is a reason.

I don't want to get into a downloading war here, but that is always a piss poor justification.  Not being able to afford something doesn't give anyone the right to outright steal it.  If you hear something and like it, for goodness sake, go out and buy it.

To answer the question, if I really get into an artist, I will usually buy all of their studio records, unless they either have some that are panned by most of the fan base, or if they have too many to buy at once (see: Zappa, Frank :lol).  And when I say "buy," I mean buy the physical CDs.  

Offline Ultimetalhead

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Re: Your musical quantum
« Reply #19 on: May 04, 2010, 04:04:20 PM »
Always at least a full album. I think the only exception to this rule is Theocracy.
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Offline Nic35

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Re: Your musical quantum
« Reply #20 on: May 04, 2010, 05:58:04 PM »
Regardless of anything I don't believe someone is unable to buy one album a month... especially if they have enough money to have a decent computer and a strong enough connection to download lots of music.

But let's not derail the thread...
Don't worry, I do have at least one album of the bands I really like. I also have the complete discography of some of them. But it would be ridiculous (in my case) to buy everything I love, since I have other priorities in my life.
Jesus Christ himself* comes down amidst a choir of 2 billion angels singing Handel's Hallelujah chorus. As KrotchRaut shred randomly on guitars made of dragon bones using picks made from God's kidney stones, Jesus heals a blind woman who promptly gives birth onstage to a creation of pure light.

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Offline LCArenas

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Re: Your musical quantum
« Reply #21 on: May 04, 2010, 06:11:24 PM »
Albums. I jsut cannot allow myself to have just one song of one artist.

Offline Darkes7

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Re: Your musical quantum
« Reply #22 on: May 04, 2010, 06:20:11 PM »
Regardless of anything I don't believe someone is unable to buy one album a month... especially if they have enough money to have a decent computer and a strong enough connection to download lots of music.

But let's not derail the thread...
Don't worry, I do have at least one album of the bands I really like. I also have the complete discography of some of them. But it would be ridiculous (in my case) to buy everything I love, since I have other priorities in my life.
I said one album. :P Though another thing is, I don't see the point of getting lots of new stuff... How can you possibly get into the music listening to like 5 different albums a day, and listening to an album once or twice?

Offline Ultimetalhead

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Re: Your musical quantum
« Reply #23 on: May 04, 2010, 06:23:52 PM »
Regardless of anything I don't believe someone is unable to buy one album a month... especially if they have enough money to have a decent computer and a strong enough connection to download lots of music.

But let's not derail the thread...
Don't worry, I do have at least one album of the bands I really like. I also have the complete discography of some of them. But it would be ridiculous (in my case) to buy everything I love, since I have other priorities in my life.
I said one album. :P Though another thing is, I don't see the point of getting lots of new stuff... How can you possibly get into the music listening to like 5 different albums a day, and listening to an album once or twice?
It takes time, but it works like a charm.
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Offline chknptpie

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Re: Your musical quantum
« Reply #24 on: May 04, 2010, 06:24:42 PM »
There are so many artists that I really like one song, but can't get into the rest of their music. So I have lots of singles, a ton of whole albums, and several discographies. Just depends how much of their collection I like.

Offline Darkes7

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Re: Your musical quantum
« Reply #25 on: May 04, 2010, 06:32:28 PM »
Regardless of anything I don't believe someone is unable to buy one album a month... especially if they have enough money to have a decent computer and a strong enough connection to download lots of music.

But let's not derail the thread...
Don't worry, I do have at least one album of the bands I really like. I also have the complete discography of some of them. But it would be ridiculous (in my case) to buy everything I love, since I have other priorities in my life.
I said one album. :P Though another thing is, I don't see the point of getting lots of new stuff... How can you possibly get into the music listening to like 5 different albums a day, and listening to an album once or twice?
It takes time, but it works like a charm.
I find it really strange, personally. I listen to one album regularily, and it just follows me during the day, and it's like I'm waiting for the evening to listen to it again. It's more than just giving it a listen and then "neeext".

Offline skydivingninja

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Re: Your musical quantum
« Reply #26 on: May 04, 2010, 06:37:28 PM »
I do have a bunch of singles (like "All Right Now" by Free, "Barracuda" and "Crazy On You" and others by Heart, etc.) but usually when I'm checking out a new band, it'll be a full album nowadays.

Offline MetalManiac666

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Re: Your musical quantum
« Reply #27 on: May 04, 2010, 07:16:07 PM »
Bands release their material as albums, not single songs.  Therefore, I collect albums, not songs (unless they are singles).

Offline SPNKr

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Re: Your musical quantum
« Reply #28 on: May 04, 2010, 08:07:43 PM »
I need an album or two. If the band begins to slowly grow on me then I need like half their discography if it's a huge one, and the better half. Just don't know what you can miss out on that's also awesome.

For example, I have all the Ozzy & Dio era albums of Sabbath (including Born Again with Ian Gillan) but don't have the other stuff coz it's not so necessary. Heaven & Hell's album is pretty good too, it's basically the 4th Dio era album.


Younger bands I can easily obtain a few albums and say "hey I have their 2/3 album discography! XD", or just like a 5 album band is just as sweet.

Offline Dr. SeaWolf

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Re: Your musical quantum
« Reply #29 on: May 04, 2010, 08:29:42 PM »
When I'm getting into a new artist, I'll usually listen to their most critical or fan-acclaimed album all the way through.

Offline The Letter M

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Re: Your musical quantum
« Reply #30 on: May 04, 2010, 09:02:27 PM »
I rarely just can't have 1 album from a band.  90% of my bands I collect the whole discography.  It's like a disease, I can't explain why. 

For most bands I really like/love, I tend to try and get everything they've made and released, officially and perhaps unofficially (like DT's YtseJamRecords or Marillion's RacketRecords). Other bands I at least get all their studio albums, and maybe the good live ones, but not all the compilations and rarities. Others I just get a few studio albums, or even just a compilation (although I rarely start with those).

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Offline Global Laziness

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Re: Your musical quantum
« Reply #31 on: May 04, 2010, 10:26:16 PM »
When I'm getting into a new band, I tend to do a bit of research so I know which of their albums are generally considered to be the strongest. If I like those albums, I'll often pick up the rest of their discography.
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Offline SPNKr

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Re: Your musical quantum
« Reply #32 on: May 04, 2010, 10:30:09 PM »
When I'm getting into a new band, I tend to do a bit of research so I know which of their albums are generally considered to be the strongest. If I like those albums, I'll often pick up the rest of their discography.

This. I hate being kept in the dark not knowing about all this info that people don't know about.

Offline The Letter M

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Re: Your musical quantum
« Reply #33 on: May 04, 2010, 10:37:03 PM »
When I'm getting into a new band, I tend to do a bit of research so I know which of their albums are generally considered to be the strongest. If I like those albums, I'll often pick up the rest of their discography.

Ditto. I read articles, reviews, message boards, and more, just to see what many fans (or fans of music that I already like) think is a band's best album. Then after some research, I buy one or two albums by said band and explore their music further if I like it!

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Offline Xanthul

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Re: Your musical quantum
« Reply #34 on: May 05, 2010, 12:58:15 AM »
Though another thing is, I don't see the point of getting lots of new stuff... How can you possibly get into the music listening to like 5 different albums a day, and listening to an album once or twice?

Yeah I have a hard time with that too sometimes... right now I'm trying a lot of bands at once (Dredg, The Mars Volta, Oceansize, Beardfish, Riverside, the Flower Kings, Muse...) it's kind of impossible so I've decided to focus on Dredg and Riverside for now and get into the others later.