Your taste is what makes you interesting. Not the things everyone else likes too. Not the consensus opinion. Not whatever TikTok has decided you should see today. The messy, personal, sometimes inexplicable preferences that develop when you actually have to seek things out rather than having them delivered to you. That's taste, and it's worth protecting.
Lately I’ve been finding myself wondering why I stopped buying vinyl when I went to university and wishing I hadn’t stopped. The hours spent on a Saturday in record shops in Nottingham picking up records, giving them a listen, and then deciding if it was worth my hard earned cash. It was time well spent. I had a curated record collection. Now I have an Apple Music account with a library over flowing with music I’ve saved over the last 2 decades. I’ve no idea what’s in there and most of it hasn’t been listened to in years. I rely on the suggestions to find new stuff. Is there a wonder I sometimes open the app and have no clue what to listen to?
When people ask me what I’m listening to these days I have boring answers, or no answer at all. 20 years ago I had a list of interesting records I’d discovered, white label remixes, EP’s by some random artist that I’ve never come across since but which were a real joy to listen to.
When I think about how the money I spent then compares to the money I’ve spent on music in the last 15 years, there’s a stark contrast. I have something to show for the time and energy in those record shops (all be it in my parents garage), but I have nothing for the money spent on streaming services since. One has tangible results with a defined taste, the other has disappeared in to the ether and I can’t remember the amazing EP I found 10 years ago because it’s too hard to find.
Technology has made music easier to listen to, but it’s also made it less valuable. The type of music I listen to now has broadened and my taste has become less tangible as a result. That’s kind of sad.