Developing tastes in music.

There used to be a time when I would be extremely moved by listening to some music, that now when I play it doesn‘t have quite the same effect on me.  I’m thinking specifically of a Phil Collins album I have, ’….But Seriously‘.  I used to sneak this cassette into school on my walkman and when the tutor took register I’d furtively put one earphone in my ear and push play.  The opening track would begin in my ear and my day would’ve started off in the best way I knew how.

I remember particularly loving ‘I Wish It Would Rain Down’ and the guitar on this song, played by Eric Clapton, would make my stomach ache with emotion and the intro alone was enough to make the hairs on my arm stand up on end.

I played this album again recently and despite enjoying it immensely, perhaps for the nostalgia more than anything else, I was surprised to not feel the music as deeply as before.

This got me thinking about the years that have passed since I first heard this album and how it started to lose some of it’s impact from overplaying even back then.  With the passage of time, familiarity and my developing musical tastes, I guess it is inevitable that I won’t feel so moved by some music anymore.

Over time and by tuning my ear in, I have started to listen to rawer blues, more ‘out there’ jazz, heavier metal and more unusual musical genres that would have left me cold when I was a teenager.  I think you grow accustomed to a style of music and have to go rawer or heavier etc to get that same spark of musical adrenaline or thrill.  Kind of like becoming used to the effects of drugs and having to take more extreme doses to reach the same high state.  Thinking of music as my drug, this analogy isn’t that far off.

I can still enjoy the music I used to listen to as I grew up, like Phil Collins, but it doesn’t make my insides clench anymore.  But, the wonderful thing is, I am still able to get that feeling from other music that I discover, whilst still getting pleasure from the music I started out on.  I suppose this way I will never get bored by music and as some albums become like familiar friends that comfort and support me, other albums are more like those people you find that are new, exciting and challenging.  Having both types of people in your life is stimulating and rewarding for you and this also applies to the music I already have in my life and will gradually find as well.