Do you listen to your own music?

[Jan]

Of course you do - when you record, when you perform, when you write. But do you listen to it like any other music you listen to? There are writers who don't read a text after they have finished writing it, actors who don't watch their finished movies, but what about musicians? I am curious, please enlighten me!

[Chipfryer]

Yes absolutely. I think its critical that you are critical and listen hard and long. I love what I do and am doing. I don't think there would be any point otherwise really?

Nice post Jan.

[autostatic]

Nope. I rarely listen to my own music.What's done is done. Besides, I will always focus on the mistakes, on what could be improved.
And now that I read the poll: I actually hear my music twice a week when rehearsing. And then we're mostly working on new stuff. I don't like playing old songs, especially when they've been recorded properly. Then they're finished for me, done.

[Jan]

chippy and static, you took the words right out of my mouth. I had the problem of not enjoying what I recorded because I focused on the technical details and minor mistakes (which noone else seems to hear). And I started to hear all music analytically. I really had to work on enjoying music again. I still drive my gf crazy sometimes, but I am back to enjoy music and even my music again.

[Scary Hallo]

I need just a little bit of time. Half a year after the recording (or so) I listen to our songs like to my fave bands.
But, sure just after the recording I just listen to things that don't went well. Or the discussions in the studio while mixing.

[autostatic]

Or the discussions in the studio while mixing.

That's also one of the reasons I don't listen to our studio albums anymore. Recording them was such a struggle, such a fight with ourselves. Somehow listening to those songs reminds me of our time in the studio which I did not really enjoy.

[thorgal]

yes I do, I really enjoy it, my wife too. That's good enough
It is not finished but quite enjoyable nonetheless.
Since I am still in the composition / editing phase, I don't listen to others' music, or very little (a bit of classical or folk). Since my mind is almost constantly filled with music, I don't really feel like listening to music all the time. I prefer playing my instruments and have a good jam in my studio.

by the way, I don't think there's anything pretentious in enjoying what you do or the result of what you do. To be pretentious would be e.g. to say that your music is better than all other. It wouldn't mean anything except that your ego was rather big.

[StudioDave]

Yes, a lot. Paul Lansky once pointed out that making music with a computer is an empirical activity, that good musicians spend a lot of time listening and evaluating what they're doing (and have done).

I tend to work rather slowly because of that activity. I'm constantly making decisions whether to leave this in or throw that out, even long after the recording stage has passed.

Someone once told me to never trust a chef who didn't like his own cooking.

Best,

dp

[Chipfryer]

Being an avid Home Cook Chef I think this nails the subject. If you don't enjoy it then why spend hours doing it? Find a sport you like or start knitting.

Someone once told me to never trust a chef who didn't like his own cooking.

Best,

dp

[Jan]

Unlike ScaryHallo and AutoStatic I really enjoyed every recording we had as a band. Even during the time of my Abitur tests (Abitur = german equivalent of the highschool diploma, I guess), where I should have been learning, it was one of the most fun times I had. Ever.

[Scary Hallo]

Unlike ScaryHallo and AutoStatic I really enjoyed every recording we had as a band.

No! I'm my greatest fan. And I listen to my music very often. But I need a little bit time after a recording. That allows me to listen to the song as it is. And not thinking e.g.:"Is the bass-drum to loud?","Is there too much rev in the vocals?" and such things.
But I'm very proud of everything I've recorded. Last year I found an old tape of my first band. It was recorded with an old mono taperecorder. The sound is very bad and I was a very poor guitar player at that time. But I still listen to those songs.

yes I do, I really enjoy it, my wife too. That's good enough

That's very good. My girlfriend is my fan No 2. She is also my first critic.

[zettberlin]

Most of the time I hear the stuff to spot mistakes

But some weeks ago I drove to a workshop and burned a CD with my recordings as a giveaway for the people there and I wanted to find out, weather the disk works in my car-cd
--- well --
I cranked up the volume and had a lot of fun

Quentin Tarantino was asked, why he made from dusk til dawn and he answered, that he wanted to make the movie, he alway wanted to see when he was twelve. With Zombies, Gore, Sex and cool guys handling all the stuff.
And thats just it. Why wasting time recording music, that you do not want to hear yourself?

[Claudio]

I still listen to my music from time to time. Hey, if you're not a fan of your own music, then why even compose? Of course, one can always nitpick one's own compositions once they're done, but one always to be his/her own worst criitic. That said, there's always room for improvement in supposedly-finished compositions, but I don't see anything wrong with enjoying your own creations.

[Scot Solida]

I listen... on occasion. Not because I am inclined to hear what I did... I know all of those bits. Sometimes I do it for critical reasons (checking out old mixes, compositions... remembering ideas that I left behind and maybe could work on some more). Sometimes enjoyment. My musical cohort is a bassist/guitarist that I have never met face-to-face, and yet we have recorded a few records together. I often listen to our tracks just to hear something he played again. His solos break my heart, and I can listen to them over and over again. He's my favorite guitarist, after all!

I also sometimes listen to older recordings from my four-track days to see if any songs might be able to withstand a reworking. I often find doing so to be most inspiring. I approached things differently on my oldest recordings due to a lack of available gear, technology and my own knowledge. Sometimes it's good to go back and hear the "gee whiz" factor in full force to keep me from taking all of this modern recording technology for granted (or even, gasp, overusing it!)

[Zen:Core]

I don't listen to my music just to hear it. I listen to it to review it during the writing process. Basically at practice once we have a rough song we'll record it separately to a metronome so that it all jives. Then everyone else will listen to it over and over again. I ignore it for a while then I listen to it once I can hear it with fresh ears. Then I'll walk into practice and say "this needs to change" or " I have an idea for here", which sounds pretentious, but I'm the guy writing all the string parts right now. We haven't found another guitar or bass player yet.

I'll admit though that I didn't listen to the old band at all unless we were recording, playing or watching back a filmed performance. My drummer busted out some old recordings of our last band the other night and I couldn't believe it. I mean I was like, "That's us? We did that? Holy crap! That actually sounds really good!" I guess taking time away from "your" stuff puts it in perspective. I've always been "the guy" in the band. Doing the artwork, recording, booking, web work and writing. So, I guess I was kind of tired of hearing our songs.