Help?

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My blog typically revolves around some sort of album or film review, and while this blog still has something to do with music, I am going to be addressing an issue I have had forever. I feel like this is a pretty weird problem to have as someone who genuinely loves music, but I have an incredibly difficult time getting into new artists or listening to new albums. Even if its from an artist I occasionally listen to. I have to really like the artist. Its almost like they have to already be established as listenable to me. I don't think I'm the only person who deals with this or something similar but I'll discover a new song, think it's pretty good, add it to my playlist, and then proceed to never listen to it again. Meanwhile, I'll listen to a song I've heard so many times without thinking twice about it.

It's not like I'm against discovering new music. If anything, I wish I could do it more often. There are so many artists and albums I want to explore, and I know there are probably hundreds of songs out there that I'd absolutely love if I gave them a proper chance. But actually getting myself to sit down and listen to something unfamiliar is a completely different story. I think part of the problem is that I've become so comfortable with the music I already know.

My first thought was that I'm just lazy. I'm too deluded to think that but I'm honest enough to think that might be part of it. When I already have so many albums and artists that I know I love, why would I go out of my way to listen to something that I might not even enjoy? I know that sounds like a pretty terrible mindset to have, especially as someone who considers music such a big part of their life, but it's the truth. Sometimes I'd rather listen to an album I've heard a hundred times than spend forty minutes trying to get into something unfamiliar. And the worst part is that I know I'm probably missing out on some incredible music because of it. It's not that I don't want to discover new artists, I just find it difficult to convince myself to actually give them a chance.

I also think part of my problem is that I've completely stopped listening to music on the radio. And when I say that, I mean the kind of music you'd hear on your average pop radio station. I honestly couldn't tell you what half of the most popular songs are right now, which is kind of funny considering how much time I spend listening to music. It's not that I necessarily dislike mainstream music, but I've become so comfortable with my own taste that I rarely feel the need to explore what's popular anymore. I used to discover songs just by hearing them in the car or having the radio on in the background, but now I almost exclusively listen to my own playlists. As a result, I've created this little bubble where I'm constantly surrounded by music I already know I enjoy. And while there's nothing wrong with having your own taste, I do think it's interesting how disconnected I've become from what's currently popular. I can tell you all about an album that came out ten years ago, but ask me what's topping the charts right now, and I'd probably have absolutely no idea.

I think this is only an issue if I consider it a bad thing. On one hand, I know I'm probably missing out on some incredible artists. There's so much music that I would love to listen to and I don't want to limit myself to the same handful of bands forever. But on the other hand, isn't the entire point of listening to music to enjoy it? If I genuinely love an album enough to listen to it hundreds of times, why should I feel obligated to move on to something else?

What do I really think it is? I have certain artists that I've been listening to for years, and somehow their music never seems to get old. I can listen to the same album for years and still enjoy it just as much as I did when I first discovered it.

Sometimes I'll open Spotify with every intention of finding something new only to end up playing the exact same songs I was listening to the day before. And the day before that. It's almost impressive how predictable my listening habits have become. But I think there's something comforting about knowing exactly what you're going to get from a song. You know when your favorite part is coming, you know the lyrics, and you already know how the music is going to make you feel. There's no uncertainty involved. And I think that familiarity becomes even more important when you associate certain songs with specific memories or periods of your life.

There are albums I can listen to that immediately remind me of a particular summer, a certain person, or even a random day that otherwise wouldn't have been memorable. The music becomes connected to those experiences and eventually you're not just listening to the song itself. You're revisiting everything you've come to associate with it. Maybe that's why it's so difficult for something new to compete.