An Xperience Article: Taste Freeze – by Art Fredette

Taste Freeze – by Art Fredette

You see and hear it all the time. “There is no good music anymore.” “Our music was better than today’s.” “I may be old, but I saw all the great bands.” Etc. HorseSH**!

Boomers and GenX have become insufferable about this, by the way, I am early GenX, so there.  You sound like your parents or grandparents, unable to realize that things change, as does music.  Our music wasn’t better; it was ours, and we are stuck in our comfort zone. A comfort zone reinforced by tight commercial radio formats and Live Nation booking practices. And if you are GenX, let’s be honest, most of “our” music was Boomer bands that we had spoonfed to us. The Beatles, Grateful Dead, Led Zeppelin, and such were really our parents’ bands, but their generation just won’t let go. They were/are the 800-pound gorilla of what we consume and were allowed to consume.  Sure, we had the grunge thing and the MTV bands, but even that got co-opted by older-era acts, i.e., Journey, a ‘70s band.

According to Psychology Today, by 33, most people stop listening to new music, and by 40, you stop looking for new music altogether. This is called “taste freeze,” and it happens not because you are old but because older music tends to hold more memories, and as we age, we choose to search out what is comfortable as opposed to what is new or different.   Many older listeners will migrate to other genres of music like jazz or country because of the relatability factor, rather than search for completely new music. This is not an excuse, but it can be taken as a warning.

I often equate music to pizza. All pizzas have dough, sauce, cheese, etc., but the really exciting part of a pizza is the toppings.  You can choose your variation on the theme as often as you want and experience new flavors. So I ask, why would you musically confine yourself to what equates to a lifetime of pepperoni pizza? Because you have been programmed to? Because you are lazy and want familiarity?  Or because you let yourself get old? Yep, I said it.

When I was younger, a very wise man, Jim Barrett, told me to never stop searching for new music. Even if it is an older band that you never delved into, keep listening.  Great advice from my mentor. I will take things one step further: search out new sounds! Get out of your comfort zone. Explore.

The days of 1-4-5 blues-based rock are over. It is what it is, a natural progression that just happens. The younger artist isn’t bound by the conventions we have upheld, and good for them. Newer artists are grabbing pieces from different genres and styles and coming out with the music for their generation. Is all of it good? Hell no, but neither was all of “our” music. Do I have to mention Phil Collins and “Sussudio”?

So, basically what I am trying to say is get out there and listen and cut the kids a break. Your grandparents hated Elvis and Little Richard, your parents hated Nirvana, and you are acting just like them. Stop with the musical equivalent of “Get off my lawn” and being nostalgic for an era that never really happened, and explore. Use your time for discovery, and maybe, just maybe, you will be surprised.  Get past “taste freeze” and enjoy the flavor again. What do you have to lose? Nothing. And you have everything to gain …