Has PE shaped your tastes any?

[Sean]

I was recently interviewed for a certain music mag and one of the things I was asked is how PE has changed in the last 13+ years and what it has done. I said I didn't think it changed that much, that the main goal was to share info about musical groups and artists. Sure our readership grew, but I don't think our focus or goals changed.

I mentioned that I thought we had encouraged our readers to broaden the scope of their listening, that variety was something to aspire to.

Do you feel I was on the right track? Have your tastes widened thanks to PE?

What else do you think PE has done in since it's inception?

[Progmatic]

Interesting topic, I always thought about t myself...

...I just give a couple of exmples...before PE I would never accept Punk possibly being progressive, before I could not agree Gentle Giant were any good, I used to like neo (not any more), I discover tons of modern progressive acts...enough said....

[Jerjo]

My wife hates this site because I am forever finding new bands and genres I had never heard of, thus spending more money on CDs and less on unnecessary shit for our house. :up

[Sean]

Has what you listen to expanded since you got here? The scope of your tastes?

[Yves]

PE has made me discover many, many bands, but it has also made me dislike ones I used to like (coughcough...YES...coughcough...).

[walt]

Threads and posts on PE have often reminded me about music i had forgotten about;and music that i had thought about buying/checking out years ago but never actually got to(due to lack of money/inertia/option paralysis/etc).

PE also reminds me about cds i own but haven't spun in long whiles,sometimes a year or longer.

And ,of course, posters here have turned me on to dozens of cds i had never heared,or heared of,and for that and everything i mentioned above i am grateful to PE and to the many erudite, musically literate people therein.

[Reginod]

My tastes haven't been so much shaped by PE, but the palette has definitely been broadened due to the amount of different bands and artists of which I've been made aware since joining back in the Yahoo daze.

[3LockBox]

My tastes haven't been so much shaped by PE, but the palette has definitely been broadened due to the amount of different bands and artists of which I've been made aware since joining back in the Yahoo daze.

yeah, this

My tastes had pretty much already changed by the time I found PE. I still don't listen to music styles I don't like, regardless of their popularity here. PE has encouraged me to try new things, even if I don't like everything I've been recommended - nothing ventured, nothing gained.

[Jerjo]

Has what you listen to expanded since you got here? The scope of your tastes?

I think my coming in to PE was almost coincidental with a huge expansion in my tastes. I had always liked music that had some craft and intelligence to it (though I will always argue that there is plenty of 3 chord rock that both of those elements) but was pretty much locked into the rock genre. My early forays into jazz were a failure because I always went after the guitar players and other than Pat M, I found the tone, or lack thereof, extremely boring. Classical left me cold because I listened tried listening to symphonies and they were invariably too overwhelming. Plus my stereo was crap.

But the turning point came when, in an audiophile thread, someone posted a link to that video about the Athens Audiophile Club. The soundtrack to that hit me between the eyes. First of all, there were a few jazz pieces in there that caught my ear: a Diana Krall song, a tribute to Mingus by Pierre Dørge, and an unnamed instrumental very much in the ECM style. By this time I had a decent stereo and when I tracked down and then played the Diana Krall disc jazz started making sense. I couldn't find the Pierre Dørge CD so I just went out and got some Mingus. You can imagine the paradigm shift that was. And then I started paying attention to jazz threads in PE. And spending more money on jazz.

The Athens video also had a small swatch of Jackie Du Pre playing the Elgar concerto. I thought it was the most haunting sound I had ever heard. Bought the CD and wanted more. I started a thread on cello concertos and this is when Diane (MissKittysMom) weighed in with her substantial expertise. That woman has cost me more money than any single member on PE.

There are other instances where I asked for suggestions and got an avalanche. Several years ago I asked what Canterbury was about and the onslaught was the first thread I ever started that went multiple pages. Again, more money spent on a sub-genre I barely knew existed. More recently I asked about ECM and again, an avalanche of recommendations.

So I would say that what I listen to has definitely expanded since whatever year it was I started lurking here. The scope of my tastes might have expanded naturally because I am always looking for something new but without all the recommendations it would have not had the focus. Though I still hate all jazz guitar except for Metheny.

[Sean]

I wonder how many of you were strictly symph before PE.

[progeezer]

Do you feel I was on the right track? Have your tastes widened thanks to PE?

For me personally, PE has opened up such a vast amount of music, artists and prog sub-genres that I never would have heard otherwise.

I'd say that other than the 60s-70s bands, PE (really the people here) is responsible for ALL my knowledge about newer bands.

When I came to PE, I had never heard a note of Marillion, Flower Kings, Spock's Beard, Discipline and too many other great bands & artists to mention. I didn't even know they existed!:O

I guess because I've been a musician for so f*****g long, it didn't take long before I was assimilated by the Prog Borg and started contributing to the dialogue here.

PE certainly removed my "symph weenie" blinders!:lol

Ya really done good, Mr. T!:D

[Lino]

I can't say that PE has "broadened" my taste, but I certainly have discovered a lot of artists because of it. It also helped me realize that there was a lot of prog out there that I absolutely do not like, and will never like. It's only been the comraderie here that has kept me involved in a particular genre for so long. I've always been a wanderer when it comes to my listening habits and it's been several years that I'm just not that much in to the classic sounding symphonic prog, which is really the base of things here on PE. It's not like I've declared it to be shit music, but discovering PE on the net was probably my 3rd or 4th return to it since the mid 70s. :lol This time lasted a lot longer because I made good friends, and enjoyed the fun of meeting prog fans from other parts of the world. If I based my PE time just on the music I listen to most often, i would barely be here at all. :)

[sonic]

If I based my PE time just on the music I listen to most often, i would barely be here at all. :)
You're just here for the birthday threads then, aye? ;)

I also haven't been heavy on prog for some time now, but there are enough people with varying tastes here that have excellent recommendations for new bands and genres I'm checking out ( e.g. the industrial thread turned me on to Skinny Puppy and Young Gods). So that keeps me coming back and making new threads.

[markwoll]

Another vote for expanded/broadened musical taste.
As most bands know, just getting the word outside of their circle of friends is a major battle.
PE is a bit of a firehose as far as finding new music goes, which is excellent.
Having some filtering is also a big help.
It takes a while to separate 'fanboy excitement' from real, considered opinions of bands and music.
On the whole I can place the blame for well over 100 cd purchases on PE. ( sometimes entire back catalogs at a time, not just discs )
Helmet of Gnats ( High Street ) is tickling my eardrums at this moment, thanks to PE. Never would of heard of them otherwise.
Probably the most impact on my prog tastes since WGTB went off the air ( it's been a while ).

mark

[yogibear]

have your tastes widened since you've been here at PE?

a little but i was already widening my tastes without any help from PE. I've always been looking and listening for new and cool bands tunes approaches styles etal. if PE wasn't here i would still be inquisitive about new stuff. this place to me is like a good tool to have but one i could take or leave only in that there is so much out there so much music to check out and so many other music sites that one should never run out of places to visit. I could honestly say that the peeps here have enlightened me to accept/appreciate and listen to zeuhl more so than i used to when i was a long haired metal head. lol

[JKL2000]

My wife hates this site because I am forever finding new bands and genres I had never heard of, thus spending more money on CDs and less on unnecessary shit for our house. :up

Yeah, in that respect PE has filled the same niche as some of the prog mags. I don't want to say "replaced" them because I still read them.

[Scott Bails]

I can't say that PE has "broadened" my taste, but I certainly have discovered a lot of artists because of it. It also helped me realize that there was a lot of prog out there that I absolutely do not like, and will never like.


This is me to a "T."

So, take the genre(s) of music that I love best and add to it the crazy cast of characters found on PE, and you'll understand why this place is my online home. :)

[Hunnibee]

I wonder how many of you were strictly symph before PE.

Okay, here's my story...

I grew up on "commercial prog"... you know, Yes, Pink Floyd, Kansas, Moody Blues... bands that had huge radio success. It was the only Prog I knew, and of course, we didn't call it "Prog" back then anyway. It was "Art Rock" to us. I thought Prog died in the early 80s, so I gravitated to Metal, and when that turned into silly Hair Bands, I switched to Alternative/Grunge. Eventually that style died by the late 90s. I had run out of good music to enjoy. One day, I just happened to switch on the Classic Rock station in my car, and Point of Know Return was playing, and suddenly, all those memories of the great music of my teens washed over me. I returned to that kind of music and enjoyed my reunion.

Then one day, I clicked on a link for "Progressive Rock" and voila', here I am. For all those decades, I thought "Prog" was Yes, Genesis, etc., music that was heavy on keyboards. I had no idea there were bands like Porcupine Tree, Nektar, IQ, Hawkwind, etc. I vaguely remember Gentle Giant from my teens, but I'm crazy about them now! It seems I've discovered SO MUCH good music, both from my youth that I never knew about, and newer stuff since the 90s and 00s.

Progressive music to me is like an endless universe. There is so much music out there, I will never be able to listen to it all in my lifetime. I will never tire of it because there is always something new (new to me, anyway) and different to discover.

I was very fortunate the other night to have a nice conversation with Chris North of Ambrosia, and I commented that Prog was like an injection of seratonin straight into my brain. I cannot NOT like it, and I wish I had known more about it when I was younger, instead of just the Symph bands of my teens. (Ambrosia being one of those bands, of course ;) )

So, yes, Progressive Ears has had a SIGNIFICANT influence on me, not just my listening habits, but my LIFE. This is why I continue to support and defend this website. Thank you, Sean, Duncan, Lee... the whole team, for giving me a "home" online. The music, the people, the booze... it's all good here! :D

[Sean]

Thanks, Melissa!! :up It's our pleasure.

[jazzcat]

Probably the most impact on my prog tastes since WGTB went off the air ( it's been a while ).

mark

Yeah man! WGTB was the place i discovered life beyond the 'big names' - they played it all - i remember distinctly (and i recall very little from that era at all, much less distinctly X)) those nights discovering pulsar, amon duul II, and on and on through WGTB. What a station it was. PE is great too and I discover great new bands thx to all the well educated folks here, but that was where it all started for me...

[Hobo Chang Ba]

I don't think I"ve been around long enough for this place to effect my tastes.

[Vic2012]

I wonder how many of you were strictly symph before PE.

Well, "prog" for me is symph. Prog isn't my favorite music in the world but it's up pretty high on the list. I'm fine with all the well known symph groups we're always talking about. I'm sure I've discovered some new music over the years from hanging out here. There's just so effing much music out there (and we're just talking progressive) that there aren't enough hours, days, weeks to take it all in. Some of you folks who have thousands, and thousands, and thousands of CDs (and some CDs you've never opened or even listened to, sitting around for years) amaze me. It's like a desease :). Once in a while I'll come across a link that someone posts and I'll discover some hidden gem. One album I discovered here a few years ago that I still enjoy very much is Distant Shores by Northwind. That was like discovering a lost treasure. Yeah, it's derivitive, American prog, by the numbers, but I couldn't care less how it's categorized, I just dig it.

I'd say that in the years I've been here at PE I probably got more into fusion than any of the thousands of subgenre's in progressive rock (like Canterbury, Zeul - or however it's spelled, RIO, post/rock, whatever). Really, I'm happy being a symph weenie. I have enough symph/prog. At some point I'll fill in some gaps, but overall I'm fine with what I have and I'm okay with my Yes, Genesis, Kansas, etc. albums.

[per anporth]

For me, PE has partly been about discovery in returning, & partly about discovering new work in areas I was already familiar with.

When I first started dropping in here, I'd just started buying occasional (remastered) cds of prog albums I either had on vinyl, or had disposed of, having "moved on" from prog in the early 80s. Being hereabouts has led me to revisit this music. Like some others, being here has confirmed my dislike of, or uninterest in, neo-, or nouveau-prog. By contrast, I explored Canterbury for the 1st time, found that I liked Soft Machine, but that Egg/Hatfields etc weren't for me. I also made a concerted effort to get into mid-70s KC, which has been a real pleasure.

I discovered that my dislike for 70s jazz-rock/prog fusuion was unabated - to my ears, this constitutes a dismal dead-end for both prog & jazz. (The really progressive direction taken by jazz at this time was that followed by Pharaoh Sanders, which led to the jazz-house-dance explosion of the 80s.) By contrast, I discovered Miles' great Quintet of the 60s (which I'd never felt the need to explore, being convinced I was just a died-in-the-wool 1st Quintet/Coltrane afficionado).

And I discovered John Kelman's reviews at AAJ - which I read every time with financial trepidation! ;)

[NogbadTheBad]

PE has pretty much shaped my musical exploration over the last 5 years or so. When I was recommended this place I was pretty much oblivious of prog outside of Yes, ELP, JT, PF, KC, Genesis, Gong and Hawkwind.

The real discovery for me has been those genres I didnt know about at all that have become favorites, Zeuhl, Avant, Fusion, Canterbury, Chamber Rock and the like, i discovered most of them bases on recommendations here.

I've significantly increased my music buying since coming here and have gone to a lot more concerts and festivals.

It has also kicked off exploration of lots of non-prog based on threads here, I've bought a lot more jazz, minimalist and classical than previously following reco's here.

[moecurlythanu]

Well, "prog" for me is symph.

So you're the guy whose ass LP wants to kick...I always wondered who he was referring to. ;)

[moecurlythanu]

I can't say PE has broadened my tastes at all, and I came here very wary of online recommendations, having been burned by that several times pre-PE.

Having said that, the youtube embedding has really made a positive difference in the previewing of recommendations. I'm thankful for PE members turning me on to Musica Ficta (Udi) and especially the one who was pushing La Desooorden. Sorry I don't recall who that was, but those discs have been a great addition.

Misses have been Magic Pie & Moon Safari, and, to be honest, Yugen has yet to be something I can enthuse about, but I do respect them musically.

[Vic2012]

So you're the guy whose ass LP wants to kick...I always wondered who he was referring to. ;)

Yeah, Traveler is a guy I admire for promoting the "world music" influences in progressive rock and broadening our horizons on what is "prog." It's not a crusade I completely support, but I dig a lot of the same music he does. But to me, "prog/rock" will always be the "Big 5, symphonic" stuff and the 3rd wave acts like the Flower/Beards.

[gryphs also]

I was intomost of the big bands and some of the lesser ones in the 70s but was more into heavy metal. The 80s were a dire period for me. Reading a guitar magazine in the 90s introduced me to a new, young, impressive guitarist and his band. The more I read, the more interested I became. I finally found one of their CDs and was hooked. The band was Dream Theater. That eventually lead me here. I was more into the prog metal, but soon symph became my favourite. Nine years later, I still don't get most RIO, advant guard, or Zuehl, find Canterbury either love or hate, and the rest of whatever you want to categorize "what is prog" I enjoy greatly. Has PE influenced my musical taste? Well, it's increased my CD collection, taken me to many concerts and festivals, introduced me to some of the nicest and most "interesting" people I know, and reignited my love of music. My wife says I became much happier when I discovered the site but she's married to me so how much can her opinion be worth?

[progeezer]

My wife says I became much happier when I discovered the site but she's married to me so how much can her opinion be worth?So she's made one bad decision then? :D

[No Pride]

I can't say that PE has "broadened" my taste, but I certainly have discovered a lot of artists because of it. It also helped me realize that there was a lot of prog out there that I absolutely do not like, and will never like.
It's pretty much the same for me. Every once in a while I'll discover a modern prog band that I like a lot, thanks to PE. But I still feel that most of the best prog comes from the '70s... and one thing that the modern prog bands I do like have in common is that there's some elements that you would've never heard in the '70s; they've made some effort to push the genre forward. And I don't mean prog/metal, although I do like some of that stuff. I'm talking about bands like Thinking Plague, Advent, The Underground Railroad, Kimara Sajn, etc.

But for practically any musical genre you can think of, there's somebody here who's into it... and I love that about PE (because prog makes up only a portion of the kind of music I listen to)! Also there's a lot of nice, smart, funny, wise and otherwise interesting people that are fun to hang with. Music is my passion and I love discussing it with like-minded folks, so thanks for the opportunity to do so, PE!

[yogibear]

symph prog was prog to me.

if we are talking ancient history then "symph" was the major definition of prog to me. i was not aware of all the other styles of prog within that musical genre. this would be circa 1975 or 76.

[Trane]

Do you feel I was on the right track? Have your tastes widened thanks to PE?

What else do you think PE has done in since it's inception?

This may sound pretty self-sufficient, but my tastes were already formed well beore I started being a PE member in 2004.....

So I wouldn't say that PE made me discover loads of new music (it has on occasions of course), but where PE did come in, is in my reassessment of what I already knew, but hadn't appreciated to its just value (whatever that means)

For ex, while I had been a Soft Machine and Nucleus fan since the early 80's, I started discoveing 60's & 70's british jazz around the time I used the web almost daily (change of job helping)... For years, I still discovered on my own... I've only seen (or noticed) in the last two years PE threads on the subject.... So while these threads have helped me somewhat in finding my way in the quagmire, but it hasn't played an essential role in my searches.

What PE has brought to me, is a calmer place of refuge from the other site I posted on. I fid the level of conversation more adult, more informed (though that has gotten better on the other side)...



I can't say that PE has "broadened" my taste, but I certainly have discovered a lot of artists because of it. It also helped me realize that there was a lot of prog out there that I absolutely do not like, and will never like.


Actually, while I had never warmed to the whinny-vocalled "prog" (read a form of neo), I had started growing bored or weary of a lot of new bands (in most prog subgenres) by the time I became a regular web prowler (PA & PE)...

But yeah, a lot of prog doesn't (and never has) touched me... some of it is quite annoying

[NorthNY Mark]

Has what you listen to expanded since you got here? The scope of your tastes?


I wonder how many of you were strictly symph before PE.

In some ways, my tastes had broadened beyond "symph" when I was about 14 and discovered (ironically, via Asia) the mid-'70s version of King Crimson. I quickly became comfortable with material like "Providence," which in turn led me to avant jazz and 20th century classical a few years later. I only discovered the RIO scene in grad school, when I chanced upon a Cuneiform sampler CD in an issue of Progression magazine, and discovered the different ProgArchive categorizations around the same time. I think I found ProgressiveEars a few years after that. So, it continues to keep me informed about what is out there, but probably hasn't expanded my tastes in any obvious way.

In spite of the above narrative, I have to admit to taking a bit of exception to both the term "symph" and (especially) the assumption that "broadening of tastes" is likely to refer to people "broadening" their tastes from that to other subgenres. Could a fusion fan not expand his or her tastes to include "symph?" The term itself even sounds kind of belittling, which I think does the style (if it is one) some injustice (not to mention the whole "symph weenie" thing, which I think has really poisoned perceptions). I'm for a "big tent" approach to prog, and wish people wouldn't patronize any particular style or subgenre, even in very subtle ways (such as implying that one ought to broaden one's tastes from "symph" but not from RIO, Canterbury, or fusion).

This isn't mainly in response to your post, Sean, but to an overall attitude that I sometimes perceive as being being prevalent in discussions here--your posts I quoted would be extremely subtle examples of what I'm describing.

[Sean]

Could a fusion fan not expand his or her tastes to include "symph?" The term itself even sounds kind of belittling, which I think does the style (if it is one) some injustice (not to mention the whole "symph weenie" thing, which I think has really poisoned perceptions). .

This isn't mainly in response to your post, Sean, but to an overall attitude that I sometimes perceive as being being prevalent in discussions here--your posts I quoted would be extremely subtle examples of what I'm describing.

Absolutely. It works from all directions, though depending on how fancy your tastes get sometimes once you have moved on to more pungent strains of prog the symph seems sort of quaint and overly familiar so that's a harder sell going that direction. Correct me if I am wrong.

[NorthNY Mark]

Absolutely. It works from all directions, though depending on how fancy your tastes get sometimes once you have moved on to more pungent strains of prog the symph seems sort of quaint so that's a harder sell going that direction. Correct me if I am wrong.

I do know what you mean, but I guess I resist the "quaint" assumption in that, in my case, I was discovering symph and avant styles at more-or-less the same time. Something like PFM's first two albums (which I take to be good examples of "symph") do not seem any more "quaint" to me than Univers Zero, though they may be a bit (and I do mean just a bit) more accessible. I feel like there can be a patronizing attitude toward "symph" in particular: notice your use of the term "moved on." Can one "move on" from the "more pungent strains" to the less pungent? I suspect you would use some other term than "move on" in that case, which implies a hierarchy of taste.

[Sean]

I am just reacting to what I have seen here over the years, not advocating. Sometimes it seems there's these different camps of listeners that seem to prefer certain strains of prog to others. How many of us here regularly listen to both ends of the spectrum? Probably less than you might think, though I hope we have helped shorten the divide somehow. I just don't see that many of us partaking in the whole menu, nor are they expected to. I just hope we at least made them aware of what else is out there and maybe encourage folks to sample a bit more outside their usual choices. There's no snobbery on my part, I like a bit of everything.

[East New York]

Well, along with the help of a very dear friend, PE helped me get more into VDGG/Hammill/Canterbury.

[zombywoof]

I know that I listen to more modern prog now and have gotten away from the classics in favor of more obscure gems. So, I think you've been successful. I like to think of PA as being for beginners and PE for intermediate and up, as this is certainly the more progressive of the two. Keep it up Sean, maybe that mag should interview us about you. :-)

[mnprogger]

have my taste "widened" since joining this place around 2000? yes. The specific credit for it changing, I'm not sure how much PE did. I suppose between the festivals and connecting with some local fans did a lot with finding both the larger name progressive rock stuff, and some of the obscure stuff. But the music I am driven to discover, namely the last 8 years or so (right around the time that the whole college-prog thing started getting bigger..The Mars Volta, dredg, Muse and Coheed became visible commercially), PE only had so much to do with.

[Vic2012]

It's possible that PE has also influenced me in getting into some bands that I never thought I'd like, mostly because they're talked about regularly. Two bands I've really gotten into in the last 5 years are Iron Maiden and Metallica. Both these bands are progressive. They're as "prog/metal" as any other prog/metal band (imo), and I don't specifically go looking for prog/metal bands (like Dream Theater). Another band I got into recently, thanks to Andun (I think it was Andun) is Accept. He started a thread, I explored a little, I bought some CDs, and now I'm nuts about Accept. So more than anything, hanging out at PE has gotten me more into Heavy Metal than prog. I think the only recent (in the last 4-6 years) prog I've discovered here are Beardfish and Black Bonzo.

[Yves]

Before PE I never could stand Brussel Sprouts. Since PE, I can't get enough of them!

[sonic]

Another band I got into recently, thanks to Andun (I think it was Andun) is Accept. He started a thread, I explored a little, I bought some CDs, and now I'm nuts about Accept.
You're welcome. :) Great metal band!

Andun, now sonic.

[Sean]

So more than anything, hanging out at PE has gotten me more into Heavy Metal than prog.

You may be the only one. LOL, well at least we turned you on to something!

[Vic2012]

You may be the only one. LOL

Yeah probably. I came to PE with all the prog I needed already, but I needed a place to yack about it with other prog and rock fans. Really, my first love is classic rock. That includes prog, metal, southern/rock, maybe some funk and soul, and even fusion. I tried to get into Zappa because of PE. Maybe I didn't try hard enough, but Zappa just never appealed to me.

[NorthNY Mark]

I am just reacting to what I have seen here over the years, not advocating. Sometimes it seems there's these different camps of listeners that seem to prefer certain strains of prog to others. How many of us here regularly listen to both ends of the spectrum? Probably less than you might think, though I hope we have helped shorten the divide somehow. I just don't see that many of us partaking in the whole menu, nor are they expected to. I just hope we at least made them aware of what else is out there and maybe encourage folks to sample a bit more outside their usual choices. There's no snobbery on my part, I like a bit of everything.

Fair enough. I definitely think you have every reason to feel proud of creating a forum where people can discuss a wide variety of progressive music, which in itself encourages people to sample different styles and possibly expand their tastes. This is truly a wonderful resource for any prog fan. I just hope that people will think twice about using such phrases as "moving on from" particular types of music, or trying to claim that certain types of progressive music are more truly progressive than others, etc. I see those attitudes expressed frequently in threads about Farfest, and in the tiresome complaints about Yes threads (where people don't have to open the threads, but people interested in the threads have to read the trolling complaints), etc. There seems to be a kind of missionary fervor among some who wish to see others "move on." Now, I have admittedly started to become a bit overly sensitive to it, and for that I apologize. I just hope we can all discuss music we like without worrying about what "camp" it does or should appeal to (and, frankly, stop talking about the "camps" in general, which is usually pointless and divisive, IMHO). As for this thread, I wonder whether the idea of shaping (or expanding) people's tastes is considered more important than providing a great source of information and discussion?

[Vic2012]

This is truly a wonderful resource for any prog fan. I just hope that people will think twice about using such phrases as "moving on from" particular types of music,

There seems to be a kind of missionary fervor among some who wish to see others "move on."

I sensed that a lot when I was new to prog and I was visiting different prog discussion forums (not just PE). I did go through a couple years where I was starting to swim in the deep end of prog. For whatever reason, Italian prog just never took for me. Like I mentioned earlier Zappa never took either. I then just accepted that I was okay with the prog groups I liked. After 12-13 years of listening to prog/rock my favorite bands are still the same ones I started with, Kansas, Yes, Rush, Jethro Tull, etc. The strange thing is that while I was buying all those albums by those bands I just mentioned, I was also buying albums by Spocks Beard, The Flower Kings, and Transatlantic. I still enjoy albums by thos groups too but they haven't stood the test of time for me. I hardly ever play FKs or SB today.

[Sean]

As for this thread, I wonder whether the idea of shaping (or expanding) people's tastes is considered more important than providing a great source of information and discussion? Considering I often say our goal here was mainly to provide a place where fans can share info about bands and artists with other fans I'd say the latter. I don't think anyone here have the energy to actively try and change what people listen to. I doubt they could any more than people on facebook posting political stuff as if their words will somehow make someone drop everything and take on a new point of view. Not likely. That said, I am curious if and how personal tastes have changed since signing up here. Consider that a by product of hanging around a place that is a "great source of information and discussion". Your comments have validated my original thoughts about how this isn't one group that all is into the same thing. You dislike the word camps and I can see why and agree these sorts of invisible barriers need to come down, they obviously are there to some degree, though I don't particularly think they pose an much impediment to anyone looking to branch out, or stay with what they already know and not go beyond it.

[NorthNY Mark]

That said, I am curious if and how personal tastes have changed since signing up here. Consider that a by product of hanging around a place that is a "great source of information and discussion".

While not exactly changing my tastes, I've certainly become aware of a number of wonderful newer bands that I would not otherwise have discovered, like Areknames, MoeTar, Dissonati, MirthKon, and Cirrus Bay, among others. I've also got to sample music from bands that don't do much for me, but by doing so I get a sense of what people are talking about when they make comparisons. Just curious, Sean--how have your tastes developed over the years you've been involved with PE?

[Sean]

Greatly. I was on a course for exploring more when PE came about and was looking for more exciting stuff to get into. I was a pretty sheltered symph fan initially. I didn't know about much beyond that, so a whole world of music opened up to me. I can't help but think there's others here with a similar story. Keep in mind I was just a kid in the 70s and wasn't paying attention to any of this music when it was fresh. What I have learned from this thread (and really knew anyway) is that it's an injustice to try and sum up what PE has done for our readers in a few sentences. It's not easy. I guess I'd say PE has provided an avenue to discover more music, but I can't easily say it's "changed" us. Just added more options to explore. That's fine. PE's job isn't to change people, it's to gather them in one spot so they can share what they know. Beyond that, your mileage may vary.

[Hunnibee]

I guess I'd say PE has provided an avenue to discover more music, but I can't easily say it's "changed" us. Just added more options to explore. That's fine. PE's job isn't to change people, it's to gather them in one spot so they can share what they know. Beyond that, your mileage may vary.

I guess I'm the exception, because it HAS changed me... at least, it has influenced me to put music to the very forefront of my life (aside from family, of course.) I was just having fun rediscovering the Prog of my youth when I happened to stumble onto Prog Ears. Now I get excited to discuss Canterbury bands or plan to attend fests or seriously consider moving to the East Coast where Prog is more prevalent, etc. I think the timing was just right ten years ago for something meaningful in my life. :)

[Oreb]

PE has added greatly to the depth of my musical tastes. In terms of the range of my taste that's always been pretty broad so I don't think it's had much impact there.

[NogbadTheBad]

I guess I'd say PE has provided an avenue to discover more music, but I can't easily say it's "changed" us. Just added more options to explore. That's fine. PE's job isn't to change people, it's to gather them in one spot so they can share what they know. Beyond that, your mileage may vary.


I guess I'm the exception, because it HAS changed me... at least, it has influenced me to put music to the very forefront of my life (aside from family, of course.) I was just having fun rediscovering the Prog of my youth when I happened to stumble onto Prog Ears. Now I get excited to discuss Canterbury bands or plan to attend fests or seriously consider moving to the East Coast where Prog is more prevalent, etc. I think the timing was just right ten years ago for something meaningful in my life. :)

Not a complete exception, it has changed mine, I'd drifted away from music for around 15 years, since the days of college excitement discovering music, this place has helped recharge that excitement and brought music back to the forefront of my interests. I'm likely to play less competitive sports over the upcoming years with my knees showing the effects of 30 years of soccer, music is likely to remain my main interest outside family & friends.

[zombywoof]

Not a complete exception, it has changed mine, I'd drifted away from music for around 15 years, since the days of college excitement discovering music, this place has helped recharge that excitement and brought music back to the forefront of my interests. I'm likely to play less competitive sports over the upcoming years with my knees showing the effects of 30 years of soccer, music is likely to remain my main interest outside family & friends.

That's the thing about music vs sports ... you can play sports for only so long, but you can appreciate and play music forever.

[Superfly]

I started my obsession with music when I received a small transistor radio for my 7th birthday, so by the time I found PE my musical tastes were very clearly defined. What I learned by coming here, was that my taste for progressive rock really wasn't in the forefront any longer, and PE, and the people within, helped pull it back to the fore from the dark recesses where it was hiding. I've also discovered a few really great newer bands by lurking around. Such as District 97 and White Willow.

[gryphs also]

That's the thing about music vs sports ... you can play sports for only so long, but you can appreciate and play music forever.

Really. If I think of all the hours I put in between football, wrestling, rugby, and judo between the ages of 10-30, and insted put those hours into playing the guitar, I wouldn't be waking up every morning creaking out of bed and would enjoy playing guitar more.

[CaffieneMan]

Yes! Thanks to PE, I've discovered quite a few bands I either wouldn't have known about, or wouldn't have considered trying. As far as I'm concerned PE is essential for any prog fan.

[Dodie]

A bit, yes. District 97 and especially Moon Safari are bands that I enjoy now, which I'm not sure I'd have tried if not for PE.
Otherwise, my interests and beliefs about music haven't changed enormously, although I've realised I'm a lot more liberal about bands than some of you (some of my favourite Yes tracks are things most die-hard Troopers wouldn't touch with a barge-pole, and the different kinds of negativity about It Bites, Frost and Neal Morse that rear up from time to time are really sad). And yet I'm also more narrow-minded than some of you (life is too short for me to listen to every obscure German/Italian/Canterbury/RIO band, and Prog is only one part of my musical life).
I'm not sure I've learned that much about music, but PE frequently shows me a lot about people! ;-)

[trurl]

No.

[Sean]

Keep trying! You don't get to leave until some progress is made.

[sonic]

Thanks to PE I've collected all the prog in the known universe. Nice one PE. You've blown my life savings!

Seriously, I spent a lot on prog circa 2001 ~ 2009. Been moving sideways since then. But I guess prog is my musical home. So that keeps me coming back to here proggers opinions on all kinds of music.

[Vic2012]

I forgot to mention two bands that I got into because of PE. Mars Hollow and Little Atlas.

[gregory]

No, using a brief answer.
I'm here not for developing my taste, - I'm too old to take changes,- but for communicating with people.

[bobert]

I would't say that it has shaped my tastes as much as it had broadened my music collection. My tastes had been pretty much set before I ever came to PE back in 2004,I was always a fan of well constructed and well played music regardless of the way it is labeled but through PE I have heard of many bands that I never knew about before and am very grateful for that.

I also really like the fact that so many musicians and band members visit the forum, I value what they have to say. And I also value the many audiophiles that post on the boards, I have learned a lot by reading what they have to say.

[Calabasas_Trafalgar]

Since I discovered this music in it's infancy, I would say I'm pretty much strictly a "proto-prog" guy. But largely because of this site(and recommendations from folks like Intestine Brain/Stilleben, Spacefreak, Ashratom, Moecurlythanu, Todd, MoGrooves and a few others)I've gotten into the retro scene very heavily. I used to pretty much ignore current releases, but now that the 60s/70s has been almost totally mined, I'm getting caught up with the current stuff in short order.
Before I came to this site,I never encountered a single person who considered fusion to be progressive rock. Two different animals.
Also amazed that Rush is considered to be progressive rock. When I first heard them in the 70s, they were just third-rate Zep/Budgie wannabes.

[cupwonder]

I'd say it has. I've discovered so many bands and my wallet has suffered for it!

[Zeuhlmate]

I have a pretty wide taste allready, so not really, but I have discovered a lot of new great bands here.
Right now I am listening to John Dowland.

[Mikhael]

Another one for "no, but I've discovered a lot of new music because of it". I will say that some of the people here were helpful in times where my life wasn't as good, and that was appreciated. It's also good to know there's more people into the music I like than the very few I see around me daily.

[Jefferson James]

Has what you listen to expanded since you got here?

Ridiculously so! I've been turned on to so much great, previously-unknown-to-me music because of this place.


The scope of your tastes?

Somewhat; my tastes were pretty well-formed decades ago and I can't honestly say I've discovered some obscure genre I now love because of PE, but it's unlikely I would've given, say, Thinking Plague a chance to "sink in" without interacting with the principals themselves here. It's really something cool when the artist chimes in about the music; that always tantalizes me and makes me curious and I love when it happens here.

I've learned to appreciate some things a bit more but at the end of the day, I know what I like and I like what I know and luckily I've always been able to find new artists to relate to.

Almost more importantly than discovering new music is the networking and friendships I've been able to cultivate, like high-grade marijuana, here on Progressive Ears. I'm talking real, in-the-flesh friendships that have developed as a result.

And of course PE was absolutely crucial in helping me secure my first "prog" band a foothold in this cold and lonely world. For that, I am forever grateful.

It's the mix of these three things -- music and artist interaction, friendships, and relentless self-promotion :) -- that make PE a great place. Thank you, Sean and crew!

[progeezer]

Man, I hate to kiss your ass, but that was beautifully stated, KC.;):up

[Ursula]

I discovered some gems on PE but it really didn't broaden my taste in music, for that I have two blokes hanging out here who I hold personally responsible for messing up my taste.

But PE did two things, it provided a framework for those two blokes to hang out and talk about music and one of them I would have never got to know without PE.

And then PE changed my perception of music and that couldn't have happened if PE wouldn't cater for all things prog and related music styles. PE fills a gap as prog had been largely vanished from other media. It's a bit like listening to a radio programme. The music you've just listened to gives you a flavour, an idea, of music styles and genres, fashions and trends and the classics even though you don't rush out to buy it.

I guess that's why the Classic Rock magazine listed PE as prog source when they started to tap into that genre.

Uschi