What Do We Owe Bands?

Here's a question; What do we owe bands?

It seems like a simple question, because except for the rarest of circumstances, we don't actually have relationships with the artists we listen to. We forge them in our own minds, and the music comes to define moments in our lives, but there isn't a personal relationship between ourselves and the musicians.

So it was interesting to hear a commentator talking about whether they have become 'that guy' who only likes a certain era of a band's career. I say it's interesting not because considering such a thought is interesting, but that the concept of 'that guy' exists at all.

It seems too easy for me to say that no, of course we don't owe the bands we listen to anything. It is not upon us to like everything they do, no matter how many lineup or style changes they undergo. The term 'fan' does come from 'fanatic', of course, but that doesn't mean we have to become fanatical in our devotion to bands. We've had this discussion for most of our lives. Do we not remember the Poochie storyline on "The Simpsons"? Even then, the kids on the show were smart enough to know they didn't need to convince themselves they liked something just because it appeared on something that already liked.

That is the sentiment that comes most to mind here. We don't owe bands anything, but we do owe it to ourselves to be honest. We owe it to ourselves to only like what we actually like, and not lie about enjoying things we clearly don't. No one who has any sort of standards or independent thought likes everything they're exposed to, and it's foolish to position things as being otherwise.

I don't believe in the concept of unconditional love. Just because you love someone does not mean there is not a line that cannot be crossed. If your love suddenly snapped and became a murderer, are we saying we aren't allowed to cut them out of our lives? There's a political joke I could make, but I'll leave that out. Suffice it to say, love is not a permanent thing that never changes or wanes. Just look at the divorce rate to know that.

What I'm saying is that if you don't like a band after they switch singers, that's just fine. I only really enjoy Black Sabbath when Ronnie James Dio was in the band. That means I might be only the most cursory of fans of the band, but honestly, who the bloody fuck cares? Why do we allow people to be gate-keepers defining our own experiences with music. It can be a communal thing, but at its core music is solitary. No one else can hear and feel the music the way you do, so giving anyone the power to control that for you is abdicating your own humanity.

The rush to love everything makes no sense to me. It tells me one of two things; either you don't care what music your favorite band puts out, or you define yourself by being a fan. In either case, we need to have more pride in ourselves, and listen to our inner monologue more than the chattering voices of people who don't actually mean anything to us. I get a lot of hate for my opinions, but I truly don't care. Listening to music I don't like just so random asshats might like me 1% more is ridiculous.

The same thing happens in sports, where athletes begin to define themselves by the number they wear. They spend money trying to get their familiar number when they change teams, as if that is who they are. They have their actual name on the back of the jersey, and they care so much about a number. They're looking at the wrong thing.

I feel like music fans often do the same thing. Like whatever you like. Just don't like whatever you're being fed.