raymondh wrote:I have another theory too. I think the generation of streaming music listeners generally are not great at delaying gratification. If the song doesn't immediately grab them, they "skip" to the next song. When you actually buy music, you have some skin in the game and it forces you to listen at least a couple of times to tracks that you might otherwise skip, since you are financially invested. That's when you appreciate the 'growers' which can continue to resonate with you for years after you've forgotten the candy tracks. And these days we are bombarded by music - some good and some bad. There is no (record company / radio station) filters - for better or worse.
Well said. I agree completely. Especially with today's onslaught of music from everyone and their mother, there is just so much content to listen to, and this encourages the impatient behavior of younger people especially, but still applies to everyone. I find myself doing exactly that: listen to first 10 seconds, then skip to the middle, then to the near end, then onto the next song. But in part it's just because I want to hear as much as possible so I can increase my likely hood of finding those special gems sooner rather than later.
But yeah, as soon as you BUY something, you appreciate it more. There have been albums I bought and liked only 3 of 10 tracks, but I MADE myself listen all the way through those songs because gosh darn it I paid money and I'm going to try to get as much enjoyment out of it as I can. And sure enough like you said, often those songs were "growers" that I would have dismissed early on if I hadn't given it a 2nd or 3rd or 4th (or 5th or 10th) listen.