RE genres - would you refuse to listen to a band just because of genre label?

Hiya Danny. For a first listen, I guess it depends.. I've grown to know my tastes fairly well, which might be a nice way of saying I'm set in my ways, and tend to stick to what I like. That doesn't mean there aren't exceptions: just this week I purposely checked out Glass Harp despite knowing beforehand I was in for some Christian rock which was not their entire deal but is something I'm not very interested in. I had a specific reason though, I wanted to hear their guitar player Phil Keaggy, and I was very impressed. I'm not too interested in any of today's varieties of metal either, but will sometimes listen to a clip someone here has posted in the hope of finding something that resonates with me. I used to enjoy metal and don't want to give up on it entirely but it's gotten so I can't stand the vocals. They're either harsh and growling, which I've always disliked, or they have a wispy, ethereal quality that is phony, affected and so overdone it seems cliche. So I guess I'm willing to give some things outside my comfort zone a try. However, I'm very unlikely to click on a video link if I know it's shoegaze, dreampop or today's pop, I don't find anything remotely interesting about those and will drive a good ways to avoid them.

As for stopping listening to something I like simply because someone else says it sucks, no chance. If they don't like it, they don't have to listen to it but I'm not about to let them dictate to me what I do or do not listen to. If someone was so impudent as to even suggest it I'd be far more likely to drop them than I would be to drop the music, and that's a fact.

Every genre has it pluses and minus. My girl is from Vietnam and even that is very interesting.( The Asian music being so different.) Then there are so many other....zydeco, viking rock, blues from everywhere, Irish drinking songs and Irish tenors, Cuban music, Argentine tangos and rumbas, add the Twist and a thousand others from the 1950s, the classic rock ( Deep Purple, Grand Funk, Pink Floyd, Alice Cooper) the 1980s, ( T-Rex, Badfinger !).....from so many angles you get dizzy, ( Neil Young has been my fav for 40 years) folk music like the Mcgarrigles and Rufus Wainwright....and even today..it may seem like its all been done, but someone comes along and shows a bit of ingenuity

Hi Danny,

It's a huge no for me. The way I've always seen it, there is really good stuff in any genre. I have yet to find a genre that has nothing to offer. There are some genres where I don't dig terribly deep because they just aren't typically my bag, but it seems that enough random stuff finds its way "across my desk" as it were. I suppose if you found a genre called like "racism rock" or something like that I would certainly change my position to make room for that concession, but I'm not aware of anything like that so I'll just toss that qualifier out there as a hypothetical thing that would definitely apply.

I would also certainly never stop liking something because people around me told me that the genre, or even the artist is garbage. I mean, good for everyone to have their opinions and all, but it's my personal entertainment that we're dealing with. I have plenty of "embarrassing" songs in my library, but I embrace it. They give me joy. Why would I shut that down?

if i stopped listening to every genre someone said sucked there wouldn't be any music left to listen to.

i donno, man. we live in this society where we've all come to act like the only way to cut through the noise is to be hyperbolic and to think in absolutes. its out of fashion to have considered well weighted opinions about things.

First question: I think "refuse" is a bit too strong, but I would be quite significantly less motivated to look something up that was recommended to me if I knew it was contemporary pop / top 40 rubbish.

Second question: No. I don't care about genre labels (or the idea of identifying with certain types of music) and I don't care for others' opinions on my musical preferences.

No. Labels mean absolutely nothing to me. Outside of a general map of the type of music they perform. Some bands and artists change categories so much , that labels in a way become obsolete. The music plain and simple. If I like it I listen if I dont I dont. There is so much music out there, that if one band I like changes I have other stuff to listen to. Labels are just a rough guide. There is a lot of fluidity to it. Nothing is set in stone. Never judge a book by its cover. Books can have many covers.

If it's crunkcore yes.

I would not stop liking something I already liked, I went through this already with Slipknot, people have been saying that band sucks for nearly 20 years.