Do Online Fan Forums do a Disservice to music as a Whole?

[Tick]

Just my own opinion...

Remember the good old days (unless you are too young to relate) before the days of the internet, that like it or not bend and sway your opinions on music.
Before online forums you had no outside interference and static forcing to to ponder things you ordinarily might not.
Remember when a favorite of yours put out a new album and you accepted it for what it was and loved it warts and all.

Now its all....

"Well the first have of the album drags, the second half is better!"

"Track 3 sucks hard"

"I hate the ballads"

"Its the worst album they'll put out in years"

You get the point. I read this stuff and even though I'm a free thinking person, not a robot, its enters my consciousness and tries to change my perspective, when on my own I'd be perfectly content.

Now I know some will disagree and that's the point of this thread, but for me music was in its purest untainted form when yours and only your opinion was the one that mattered!

Have a great day, y'all be cool!

[ChuckSteak]

Even before the internet people talked about music and mentioned the same things that they do on the internet.

[Tick]

Even before the internet people talked about music and mentioned the same things that they do on the internet.

I wasn't so connected to hear that stuff.
The other side of the coin is I have been turned on to some great stuff I ordinarily would have never found on my own, so its certainly not all bad.

[Zook]

So the only reason people dislike certain songs, bands or genres is because of the internet?

[Aythesryche]

I'm sure the opinions of others has some sort of bearing on those that are impressionable or have difficulty formulating and sticking with their own opinion on things. Call it the bandwagon effect, argumentum ad populum, social facilitation, etc. I've noticed that a lot of people will change their opinions on something if they hear either someone more popular than themselves suggest something that goes against their original thought process, or a lot of people say/suggest the same thing. It's bizarre to me. I see a lot of this in politics and religion, too.

Fan forums is just another means for a bunch of random people to get together to share their opinions on matters. Where it can go wrong is when it causes you to change your opinion about something because of how someone else feels about it. Sure, it works out if you're not so familiar with an album/song/band, and your ultimate feelings on the matter can mirror someone elses already established and voiced opinion... Perhaps it's challenging for some to separate what you may genuinely feel about something without external influence vs how you feel about something based on the influence of the crowd. I'd imagine it's different for everyone.

For me, I couldn't care less how many people argue the same points about something. If it's something with a subjective design by nature, I'll come to my own conclusions and simply recognize those around here that might agree with me. Now, that doesn't mean in the slightest that I will ever feel the need to force someone to feel the way I do about what I do. I may toss my opinion out there for all to see, but my opinion on subjective things usually won't waiver solely based on whether or not people disagree with me, or feel differently. Regardless of whether or not it's due to the fact that the majority may feel differently, or some really high posters around here that might be confused as absolute authorities on all things DT/General discussion.

Anyway... Random thoughts. Cheers.

[Tick]

So the only reason people dislike certain songs, bands or genres is because of the internet?

Is that what you think I wrote? Ok...

[Tick]

I'm sure the opinions of others has some sort of bearing on those that are impressionable or have difficulty formulating and sticking with their own opinion on things. Call it the bandwagon effect, argumentum ad populum, social facilitation, etc. I've noticed that a lot of people will change their opinions on something if they hear either someone more popular than themselves suggest something that goes against their original thought process, or a lot of people say/suggest the same thing. It's bizarre to me. I see a lot of this in politics and religion, too.

Fan forums is just another means for a bunch of random people to get together to share their opinions on matters. Where it can go wrong is when it causes you to change your opinion about something because of how someone else feels about it. Sure, it works out if you're not so familiar with an album/song/band, and your ultimate feelings on the matter can mirror someone elses already established and voiced opinion... Perhaps it's challenging for some to separate what you may genuinely feel about something without external influence vs how you feel about something based on the influence of the crowd. I'd imagine it's different for everyone.

For me, I couldn't care less how many people argue the same points about something. If it's something with a subjective design by nature, I'll come to my own conclusions and simply recognize those around here that might agree with me. Now, that doesn't mean in the slightest that I will ever feel the need to force someone to feel the way I do about what I do. I may toss my opinion out there for all to see, but my opinion on subjective things usually won't waiver solely based on whether or not people disagree with me, or feel differently. Regardless of whether or not it's due to the fact that the majority may feel differently, or some really high posters around here that might be confused as absolute authorities on all things DT/General discussion.

Anyway... Random thoughts. Cheers.

Good thoughts. Cheers to you

I do find myself being influenced by others opinions to a degree. That's just me.

[Zook]

So the only reason people dislike certain songs, bands or genres is because of the internet?

Is that what you think I wrote? Ok...

That is what you wrote.

You Not Me was my favoritest song in the whole wide world, but then I got dial up, browsed to see who else loved that song as much as me, only to find a dark figure lurking in the shadows. He whispered to me, "do you like You Not Me?" I replied ecstaticly, "yes! I love it." The dark figure let out a sinister cackle, "well I don't!" He exclaimed. "It's the worst thing they've ever done!" I sat there white as a ghost, speechless. My fingers trembling.

He continued, "they sold out. Before they were writing technical masterpieces, not pop garbage." I couldn't believe my eyes. I've never read such a horrible thing about Dream Theater before, and none of my friends like the kind of music I do so their opinions don't matter. I felt my heart sink, and a cold sweat befell me. Could this anonymous voice be right? Could the song I loved so dear simply be a mediocre attempt at mainstream success?

The figure shouted, "IT WAS CO-WRITTEN BY DESMOND CHILD! HA. HA. HA. HAHAHAHAHAHA" I quickly logged off, and ran to my bed, tears flowing from my eyes. "He's right," I wept. "You Not Me isn't a good song at all!" My world had been turned upside down. I quickly grabbed Falling Into Infinity out of my discman, returned it to the CD case, and... "wait, is that a penis?"

[lonestar]

In the 80s,the only thing I got out of being a prog fan was a shit ton of solitude, forums and the Internet allow me to connect with people who are as passionate about it as I am. It's a fucking Godsend.

[Anguyen92]

Depends, I mean if someone close to the band occasional posts and provides great insight on what's happening with the band, and a couple of people feels very provoked about a certain topic and make some "harshly critical" posts at that someone (nothing wrong with being critical, but like in the business world, with how you present your thought to said someone is key and how that someone present their thoughts is key as well and should be handled in a relatively professional sense).  That could scare off that someone and the forum loses that connection, so in that sense, maybe it is a disservice to music.

[KevShmev]

To answer the question, no.

Granted, on the one hand, music forums result in more dissection of music, and that can not always be for the good, since many of us are probably guilty at some point of picking nits instead of just enjoying the music, but on the flip side, music forums result in more people becoming fans of more music, which does a tremendous service to music as a whole.  If internet music forums never existed, there are countless bands I might never have heard of or checked out, including favorites like Porcupine Tree/Steven Wilson, Devin Townsend, Opeth, etc.

[King Postwhore]

I never let anyone sway me face to face or online.  I will make my own decisions if I like it or not.

[twosuitsluke]

I think the answer to that question, to me at least, is no.

Years ago I used to discuss music with lots of my friends and you always had differing opinions, which led to heated debates (one of my closest friends, Robin, and I still get into drunken arguments, over whether Metallica or Megadeth are better, whenever we see each other  ). Back in the day I would read a lot of magazines, like Metal Hammer and Kerrang! They were where I read up on bands/albums and decided which bands to spend my money on. It was all still just peoples opinions though. I missed out on some great albums back in the day due to them getting terrible reviews (but I ended up loving said albums once I finally got them years later).

Nowadays most of my friends don't have the passion for music like they used to, plus I listen to loads of bands they've never heard of now. I can't debate like I used to be able with my friends so forums are great. I'm not swayed in the slightest by other peoples view so I'm not effected by negative views on bands or albums I love.

The only way this sort of thing effects me know is when the majority of people sway one way or the other on an album that I haven't heard. This can lead to me either buying an album that I end up disliking due to popular views on it, or ignoring an album because of negative views only to find I love the album. As I mentioned before though, that used to happen when I read music magazines anyway. I learnt years ago that I need to make my own mind up about an album. The plus side of forums like this one is it helps me work out what is worth listening to in the first place. In this day and age there is so much music at our finger tips that finding the perfect bands for me is not easy.

This forum has been invaluable to me and I have discovered so much great music, which is good for me and good for the bands as I spend my money on them 

I mean, at least the views expressed on here are usually pretty anti inflammatory. This is hardly like the Youtube comments section is it?

[Kotowboy]

When I was in school - you liked an album or film or you didn't.

Now if you don't like an album or film - it has to be the shittest thing ever created

[TAC]

Just my own opinion...

Remember the good old days (unless you are too young to relate) before the days of the internet, that like it or not bend and sway your opinions on music.
Before online forums you had no outside interference and static forcing to to ponder things you ordinarily might not.
Remember when a favorite of yours put out a new album and you accepted it for what it was and loved it warts and all.

I don't know. I didn't always accept albums by bands I liked. I didn't need a forum to tell me what I liked about it.

  but for me music was in its purest untainted form when yours and only your opinion was the one that mattered!

This is still the case. Nothing has changed.



I wish there were forums when I was younger. It's a great exchange for fans. It's like hanging with a couple (of hundred) friends and talking music. What could be better than that?

[Mosh]

I will say that there have been times where I like or dislike a song and can't put my finger on why exactly, but then someone on a forum feels the same way as me and I can identify with their reasoning. That's not the internet influencing the opinion, but helping me articulate it.

If anything the internet tends to exaggerate things. Not much middle ground between best thing ever and worst thing ever.

But fan forums do more good than bad. Discovered a lot of great music and met some really cool people through these forums.

[Crow]

tbh you get a lot more honest opinion from people on a website than you do actual critics a lot of the time.
and if not for DTF i wouldn't really have much of a place to talk about paramacore since nobody i know irl listens to metal as far as i know

[cramx3]

But seriously, no I think online forums are better for music as a whole.  Increased discussions mean increased interest.  Sure the internet in general has lead to a lot of negativity, but that doesn't mean there aren't plenty of positives.

[NoseofNicko]

In a way yes. When I was younger I didn't use the Internet and I bought albums based on the fact that I liked the bands/artists. I had no idea what most people thought about the albums. I even bought St Anger when it came out. If I would've seen all of the negative reviews/comments about it all over the Internet I would've never bought it.

[Skeever]

Depends on the fan-base. In some cases, a thing's online community can really ruin it. Other times, not so bad.

My example is anime - I *love* it. Grew up watching it. Still love it now. But online anime communities suck. The fans are out of control, ravenously critical of things they don't like, all the while driveling fanboys about stuff they think is good.

[rumborak]

I don't think online forums make people love or hate an album they would otherwise have felt the other way around.
What it *does* though is amplifying the word of mouth factor, good or bad. A bad album will likely see its sales drop much faster than back in the day, and conversely a good album will spread much faster too.

[Zook]

It sucks when people point out ligitimate problems with your favorite bands or songs. It sucks more when you see those faults and agree, but it's never ruined my experience. There have been times when I read up on a band I haven't heard yet, reading all the negative comments about them, and avoid listening, only to listen to that band later and like them. Dream Theater is one example. Before the internet, I would blindly take the opinion my older brother had. If he thought X sucks, I did too. I grew out of that pretty quickly though.

[Tick]

I started this thread because while I agree music forums do add a lot as far as people guiding me to stuff I would have not found otherwise they sway me at times in a negative way. Does the good outweigh the bad? Yes, I will say it does.
 
The negative for me...
I do find myself going into something I was looking forward to hearing with a slightly skewed thought process going in due to negativity before I've heard it for myself. It happened recently with the new Marillion album. Some fans loved it but others were ripping it up. I found myself pondering comments I read while listening the first time. I guess it didn't really change my view all that much it just kind of messed with me a bit.

Same thing was the case with, The Astonishing. Such polarizing views. So many hated it, and I really liked it a lot. It caused a major shit storm in the Dream Theater thread on "The Rush Forum" board.

The same goes for live shows before having seen a show you have tickets for. The feedback beforehand can people a downer if people you trust and respect are highly disappointed with the show.

Just my view, wanted to know yours.

[Fluffy Lothario]

The negative for me...
I do find myself going into something I was looking forward to hearing with a slightly skewed thought process going in due to negativity before I've heard it for myself. It happened recently with the new Marillion album. Some fans loved it but others were ripping it up. I found myself pondering comments I read while listening the first time. I guess it didn't really change my view all that much it just kind of messed with me a bit.

The easy solution there is to not read what anyone else thinks until you’ve listened to it yourself. I generally avoid reading too much about music I haven’t gotten around to yet, particularly if people are hyping it right up, as then there’s more chance I’ll go into the album expecting something that I don’t end up hearing.

I don’t think the internet has ever really affected what I like and don’t like too much though. I got into Lulu despite it being considered a laughing stock and the most hated album in the world at the time..

I’m also don’t care for endless discussion of minute details, but because I get bored of it more than anything. But the problem solves itself. Once I have nothing much more to say or hear about a band, I’ll tune out most discussion of them.

[Stadler]

I don't think my OPINION is any different, but I do think my EXPERIENCE is.   

I know when I bought Sabotage by Sabbath, way back in '84 or whenever, that's all there was.  No "Ozzy's on drugs". No "Ozzy's bangin' his hairdresser".  Hell, Ozzy didn't even HAVE a hairdresser back then.  No "Iommi is the Riffmaster General, even though he slugged Lita in the mouth on a flight once".   It was what it was, and you got 19 minutes of hard ass metal, a minute or so break, and 19 more minutes of simply bone-crushing metal.

In other words, there was mystery. Ace and Peter were still playing in Kiss (even if they weren't), and the music spoke all that you needed to know.  We never got a "libretto" or "plot synopsis" for "The Lamb", except what was in the liner notes.  We didn't get "Making of..." documentaries for the making of documentary.   We didn't get "Star Search"-ripoff videos for the selection of, say, Bruce to take Paul's spot.  You just bought the record and there was a new guy singing.  Maybe you'd buy Kerrangg!!  to get a little more dirt, but nowadays, if you don't have a track-by-track synopsis, including the relative size of their genital warts, it's like the whole album release is incomplete.   And I haven't even mentioned that then, there was one or two releases a MONTH that mattered; now there are four or five EVERY TUESDAY.  I know for me, I would live with an album for sometimes MONTHS before a new one came to take it's place, and now I have a stack of about ten CDs I haven't even gotten to once yet. 

[TAC]

 
The negative for me...
I do find myself going into something I was looking forward to hearing with a slightly skewed thought process going in due to negativity before I've heard it for myself. It happened recently with the new Marillion album. Some fans loved it but others were ripping it up. I found myself pondering comments I read while listening the first time. I guess it didn't really change my view all that much it just kind of messed with me a bit.

 

But it's really not all that different than listening to a new album with a couple of friends. One may like it and the other doesn't. Just on a larger scale. I hear what you are saying. Sometimes I read one negative comment after another, and it's like ENOUGH ALREADY!!

The same goes for live shows before having seen a show you have tickets for.

Glory were the days when you didn't actually know the setlist ahead of time. Hell, you didn't even know the other tour dates unless you bought a shirt!

[cramx3]

Music is one form of entertainment that I don't really care what everyone else's opinions are.  I think as prog fans, we are all aware that we like a genre of music that most don't.  It's been a way of life for me.  If I took people's musical opinions to form my own, I'd be a pop fan.

For me, online forums (and yea I still remember the time before there was an internet, it was then word of mouth or seeing a band at a show) never had and likely never will sway my feel for music.  It's only allowed me to find more music so it has very much been a positive to music as a whole, for me.