Looking at me it isn't much of a stretch to guess that I listen to metal-what with all the black band tees, the ridiculous amount of jewelry I wear at any time, and the earbuds that rarely leave my ears. But what you might not guess is that I listen to classical music sometimes. I groove with some old-school funk when I'm feeling happy and some piano-heavy indie pop when I want to feel sad. I like to mix and match genres at any time for any reason and it's made me a much more open and happy person. Here's why you should also listen to a bunch of different genres of music.
A lot of music is actually reeaaally similar.
Metal and classical music are separated only by the choice of instrument. Take for example, Apocalyptica's first album, Plays Metallica by Four Cellos. They played Metallica songs but the guitars and vocals are played on cellos and are magically transformed into family friendly classical music perfect for playing in the background while you study.
Pop and Punk both counterintuitively and obviously go hand-in-hand. Pop music is what is the most popular with most people and Punk is anti-establishment and rebellious, but both rely on simple chord progressions and catchy hooks. In fact, most modern songs rely so heavily on the I-V-vi-IV chord progression that Axis of Awesome made a hilarious video seven years ago of them singing as many songs with the same four chords as they could think of.
It ranges from Lady Gaga's "Paparazzi" to John Denver's "Take Me Home, Country Roads," to even Smashing Pumpkins' "Bullet with Butterfly Wings." They even sing Aha's "Take On Me" while also singing Green Day's "When I Come Around." It really drives home the point that there isn't much difference between most genres.
You'll feel more open to new things
If you're in a rut of eating the same things, driving to and from the same places, and listening to all the same stuff, then why not change? Listening to one kind of music is a lot like getting all of your news from one place: ill-advised, makes you annoying to hold a conversation with, and it's dangerous to our democracy. Okay not that last one, but you'll be more fun to talk to at parties and you might even have more fun when someone else is picking the songs in your car.
You stop searching for new music in your thirties.
You heard me, your time is limited. Your time being cool and edgy and able to stand listening to your favorite super edgy underground Noisecore band that is. By the time you reach your mid-thirties, you'll curve back to more mainstream music, according to Ajay Kalia. After that, you won't look for new music and will likely listen to Taylor Swift, Katy Perry, and Justin Timberlake just like the rest of us normies. So, if you're going to end up listening to them for the next fifty years, you should brush up on their good stuff (it's their old stuff, it's always their old stuff, don't even touch the new stuff).
Have fun with your new lease on life. Now get out there and have new experiences, break new boundaries, find out that 90% of songs are really quite depressing when you think about them. But don't blame me for that, I haven't even published my music yet.
