What makes a band your favorite? It’s a difficult question to answer and a lot of it is based on personal preference. On top of that, if you’re anything like me, you have favorite bands based on the mood you’re in. For example:
1) Go-To Favorite Band: Death Cab for Cutie.
Why? Their music connects so deeply to my artistic soul. I hear their lyrics and I feel like I’m living them. More than that, I can only hope to craft words as beautifully as Ben Gibbard does. I’m in a completely different sphere when I’m listening to “Transatlanticism” or “Plans.”
2) “Real” Favorite Band: One Direction
Why? They’re my go-to feel good jam. If I’m already happy, I can turn that on and dance around my living room. If I’m feeling anxious, I pop in “Take Me Home” and calm my nerves by repeating the words to every song by heart until I feel better. If I’m sobbing in sadness, I have my boys to turn to for comfort. In every difficult situation I’ve ever experienced in my life, I’ve been able to turn to One Direction to level me out again and that’s incredible. Plus their personalities are just the best.
3) Live Favorite Band: Bleachers
Why? This is the band that every time they’re in town, you’re living in poverty in exchange for buying a ticket. Venue two and a half hours away? Pack your bags. General admission seats? Meet you there at noon, even though doors don’t open until 6:30 p.m. Tour bus outside? We’re camping out to meet them. If you haven’t had the good fortune to see Bleachers live, you need to invest in that as soon as possible. I saw them on complete fluke as an opening act and I enjoyed them more than the band I actually came to see. I didn’t know a word to any of their songs, but their stage presence is indescribable. For a front man who was a member of Fun., Jack Antonoff seems absolutely incapable of processing people pay money to see him live. Because of that, he gives every part of himself in every performance. Trust me, because I’ve seen him three times.
4) Out of This World Favorite Band: Florence + The Machine
Florence Welch is a goddess walking among plebeians. There’s a magical element to every song she’s ever written or performed. At the announcement of new music, I text every person in my contacts to alert them to my excitement. Plus, she’s just incredible. Red hair, great legs, flawless voice, killer costumes, British accent, humble AND she has a book club! You can literally be in a book club with Florence Welch! Is your mind not blown?!
That’s just a few aspects of my music personality. See how all over the place it is? They all represent different facets of me and my life, and the same could be said for any of you reading this piece. The truth is that psychology on this matter is just developing, and it’s not an exact science.
According to Tomas Chamorro-Premuzic, a psychologist who wrote a piece on music preferences for Psychology Today’s website, we listen to music to fulfill three basic psychological functions. It can be used as a stimulant to increase focus, as a means of meeting intellectual needs by analyzing meaning and listening closely, and to attempt to either reach or match an emotional state.
In other words, everyone likes music. But what about the science behind why we like what we like? It’s much less clear and due to the amount of variations in music and genre, difficult to begin scientific studies on. While it’s obviously in relation to personality and emotion, music is hard to pin point as a reflection of who we are. On the contrary, it can be a piece of a façade we project. So not only do we choose music dependent on what we like, we also make choices dependent on what we think other people expect us to like. Furthermore, the music that fits each stereotype has the ability to change over time. For example, rap music that once was viewed exclusively as belonging to African-Americans and stereotyped about relating solely to sex and drugs is now more openly accepted among the masses. Some even call for social change or provide inspiration. Rap is being viewed more and more as an incredible art form, reliant upon passion and intellect as well as a talent for quickly forming words.
Furthermore, we all listen to vast ranges of different genres. I might listen to Nicki Minaj one morning on my way to school and The National on the next. After that maybe I’m feeling nostalgic so I turn on some Jonas Brothers before transitioning to Matt Nathanson or Maroon 5. Each band has different aspects and I can find myself in a lot of them.
Much like stereotypes of different races or religions are often proven false, categorizing people by the music they like seems completely inaccurate. Take a moment to look around the crowd the next time you see your favorite band live, though, and more likely than not you’ll find a lot of people who lead lives similar to yours. Which one is more accurate? For now, you can decide.
Photo Credit: Thumbnail, Death Cab, One Direction, Bleachers, Florence