I like it!
This is just the tip of the iceberg for a very rich topic, however.
With your music test I think I make it all the way to Pavement. I don't really have anything against The Fall, but I don't really "get" them either. Still, they have quite a few fans (like...Pavement!) so I don't think you're in too small of a minority there. With the movie test I think I make it all the way to the top. But I must admit that I need to see La Dolce Vita again, because 1) I barely remember anything about it, 2) I didn't really know how to watch foreign films back then, and 3) I'm much more familiar with Fellini's filmography now.
Anyway, let me give this a try:
Music:
75% - Pink Floyd
This would tell me almost nothing about a person.
50% - Tom Waits
This tells me a little more but still not that much. A few years ago this might have been 25%, but not these days.
25% - Early Roxy Music
Now we're talking. This person would have to be a little more of a rock historian.
5% - The Hardcore Elton John Fan
I've never met anyone, with the possible exception of my brother, who was as big of an Elton John fan as I am. Obviously a lot of people like Elton John's most famous songs, but how many people own at least three of his albums, let alone every single album/b-side/bootleg?
Movies:
75% - The Wizard of Oz
I think you'd have to have a genetic defect not to like this movie at least a tiny bit.
50% - The Wild Bunch
The casual moviegoer would not know this movie, but even the casual cinema buff probably would.
25% - Five Easy Pieces
Now we're stepping into something a little more offbeat and challenging, but still quite admired in certain circles.
5% - Barry Lyndon
Like you said with La Dolce Vita, I can understand why people might not like this movie, but I knew after the first five minutes it was the film for me.
You've done it! It's a fool-proof system. You should call it, "How to distance yourself from the rest of humanity in four easy steps."
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8 comments:
nice theory you got there, good way of 'specializing' your tastes
Glad you like it.
Is this "Olin" of San Jose fame?
i sure hope you don't know any others! -there's always roth i suppose
Yeah so how's it going? How are things in San Jose? Have you been checking out the blog every now and then? Pretty smokin' isn't it? I don't think you've ever met "Yoggoth," but a certain former Camp Cutter archery director is lurking around these boards under the name "Ninquelote."
It's just something I was thinking about and it seemed like it would be fun to compare with a few people. I also thought it was interesting that the things I identify with the most are the things I don't expect anyone else to care about.
so it's like 75% represents one's general musical direction, "Pink Floyd" means "I like rock over hip-hop"
It's hard fill in all the gaps personally, I could start by saying 75% Pink Floyd, 50% ...Depeche Mode? maybe New Order? Nine Inch Nails?, 25% ..hard one, would New Order fit here?, how about Sisters of Mercy?, 5% the EBM genre, or to name a specific band VNV Nation (saw that one coming little earl?)
san jose's good, call or write me!
Sounds good Olin. I think the general idea with 75% is that you wouldn't really get a good idea how much in common you would have with a person, as far as artistic taste goes, just by the fact that they liked Pink Floyd. I mean, if you like Pink Floyd you could just as well be a retired car salesman in L.A. who loves Shania Twain, a Toronto prostitute who digs Megadeth, or a Mexican dentist who loves bossa nova. Whereas if someone told me they had at least five Elton John albums as well as the rarities collection and a couple of live bootlegs, that would probably tell me right away that we have widely overlapping taste in music, and thus we would have a lot more to talk about. But see, in reality I like Elton John just as much as I like Pink Floyd. It's just that I've accepted that the rest of society doesn't see it that way. It's a good, quick way to focus your energy on the right people instead of wasting your time, I guess.
Yeah, or a good way to think about what you should recommend to people. In my case, handing someone This Nation's Saving Grace and then getting pissed when they don't like it would be a bad move.
Sort of a way to keep your tastes in perspective I guess.
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