Symphony X in the '06

[Korona]

I have a theory that musical taste is directly proportional to intelligence. SymX is pretty technical, so to like (and fully understand) them you have to be smarter than a lot of people. Its kinda like how children read childrens books and older and more intelligent people read more complicated books. So if someone doesnt like them, then its just because their brain cant fathom what is goin on. There is also denial which may get in the way. What I mean by that is that people get used to a certain style so they might just start to "presume" its good witout keeping an open mind, so when they get introduced to something new they would probably just try to ignore it. Both of these factors can't be helped, so trying to convert these people would be an uphill battle. One thing's certain though, and that is we need people not to like SymX as well. Think about it. What would happen if everyone liked them?? We would hear them every day on the radio, on the tv, drilled into our minds like the mindless pop that dominates at the moment. Aaaaaaaahh!!! Terrible thought. Ok, well anyway, maybe a little carried away there . Odoyle rules!!! lol

If that were true, how do you explain all the morons that post here?

Face facts, you learn to like music by listening to the music a lot... listening to a CD a lot doesnt make you a better person.

 

[Head_Banger]

What wouldn't be worth it for a metal concert, heh?
Dream Theater and Circus Maximus 30.september, ya'll should've been there!!!

 

[Shredboy]

Musical preference is exactly that.. a preference.. I'll never understand how people can actually spew some of the stuff that comes out of there mouth about music they dont like. If you dont like it dont listen to it , but dont try to tell someone else it sucks.

Thats like trying to tell someone who loves Pizza, that Pizza sucks. Just because you dont like Pizza doesnt mean everyone else shouldnt. People need to grow up sometimes and just accept the fact some people like what they dont.

You can actually tell easily on this forum who has couth and who doesnt... someone who says "thats not really my taste in music" rather than. " That shit is gay!"

 

[DoomsdayZach]

I agree to some extent. However, at some point you have to stop having such a vagina over people not liking the same kind of music you do.

Example: I constantly say "Dream Theater sucks". Now let's be honest. Does dream theater actually suck? are their compositions poor? are they not skilled in their instruments? It pretty much goes without saying that by all technicalities, dream theater does not suck. However, i don't like them, so instead of explaining this each and every time, i'd rather say "I don't like them, they suck". Call me lazy....

Now back to the vagina thing. The door swings both ways. If someone can't accept the fact that I say "Dream Theater Sucks" then they rely way too much on my oppinion and that just isn't healthy. I figure at this point, this conversation has been had so many times and it's just a given that all it is is an oppinion, nothing more and nothing less. I think we can all live with that, can't we?

 

[Eternal Dragon]

nonono, I dont think I worded that properly. I mean TRUE intelligence. There were people at my school who graduated at the top of the grade who were the stupidest people I have ever met. I'm not talking about how much people know or how many big words they can fit into a sentence. If you can deeply understand music like symphony x or orchestral stuff or anything like that then I would call that intelligence, or maybe even "musical intelligence" if you want to define it as that, but yeh, maybe more like "thinking power" that ptah knemu said. NOW, you dont even have to like this stuff, so I'm not being supremist or anything here....... I like simple stuff as long as it is good, but seriously, these days its getting harder for me to not be bored with simple stuff.

My point was mainly directed at pop vs metal....... so its not hard to seem supremist there. I'm sure you would all agree with that one.

 

[Eternal Dragon]

Ok, I have thought about this and reworded it in a more understandable way. Thanks for the criticism because it has helped me understand what was in my head, lol.

The ABILITY to like technical music is related to intelligence/thinking power/whatever you want to call it.

I had to change this to 'ability' because I like simple music too, therefore my argument didnt make full sense. Now, and example of my theory is a time a while ago when I asked someone what they thought of Demon of the Fall.........now this was an R&B person, and they replied that it was too cluttered and noisy etc. To me it wasnt because I fully understood what was going on. This person wouldnt like metal because their brain can't make sense of it. That's not their fault, because its just how their brain is.......and i'm no brain expert so I dont know WHY that is, but it is for some reason. Now I like SymX...... obviously, but I also like orchestral stuff that is way more complicated. Just because I like orchestral stuff doesnt mean that its my favourite stuff because its the most complicated, but I understand it therefore I CAN like it.

 

[kazahana]

Ok, I have thought about this and reworded it in a more understandable way. Thanks for the criticism because it has helped me understand what was in my head, lol.

The ABILITY to like technical music is related to intelligence/thinking power/whatever you want to call it.

I had to change this to 'ability' because I like simple music too, therefore my argument didnt make full sense. Now, and example of my theory is a time a while ago when I asked someone what they thought of Demon of the Fall.........now this was an R&B person, and they replied that it was too cluttered and noisy etc. To me it wasnt because I fully understood what was going on. This person wouldnt like metal because their brain can't make sense of it. That's not their fault, because its just how their brain is.......and i'm no brain expert so I dont know WHY that is, but it is for some reason. Now I like SymX...... obviously, but I also like orchestral stuff that is way more complicated. Just because I like orchestral stuff doesnt mean that its my favourite stuff because its the most complicated, but I understand it therefore I CAN like it.

Thanks for rewording that - now even a simpleton like me can understand your profound wordplay...

Is this some sort of joke? An intelligent person doesn't going around shouting about how much more intelligent they are than other people, when they can give an explanation no more detailed than "I dont know WHY that is, but it is for some reason". Very technical. Did you learn that sort of reasoning in intelligence school?

It's interesting that you tag on to R&B as your example of stupid music - a genre predominated by black artists. Perhaps you'd care to elaborate further... or stop digging.

 

[Beelzebub]

It's interesting that you tag on to R&B as your example of stupid music - a genre predominated by black artists. Perhaps you'd care to elaborate further... or stop digging.

Don't forget Eminem!! He sucks, too!

 

[DoomsdayZach]

I think it's about what you are used to dude. It has nothing to do with intelligence or your brain's ability to grasp something. Just think about it... if you're used to a certain type of music and someone shows you something you've never heard before (especially something like opeth or necrophagist), the first reaction IS going to be that it's cluttered. There's a lot going on, and it doesn't make sense to most people if they've never heard anything like it. You can't call someone stupid for never being exposed.

Now if they like it is a completely different matter. That has NOTHING to do with anything other than preference.

 

[Anonymous]

I understand what Eternal is saying, or trying to say..

When the car radio or something is on and I hear the pop and R&B spewing out of it, I get really bored really fast. Everything's all 4/4 and the same tempo throughout the entire song. And usually in that music theres a simple repetitive drum beat and some other synth effect going on at the same time, and lyrics are usually really predictable and, in my opinion, same subject different words..

Now, when I hear anything Prog I tend to be interested in listening to it a helluvalot more than pop because it kinda keeps my brain busy. The tempo/time sig changes, intricate patterns and extreme virtuosity in most cases, etc. It's just overall way better because I can imagine how much effort was put into the music. And everytime I listen to certain songs I discover something new in it that keeps me interested in listening to it over and over again. There's just so much going on at once.

Although I agree with Eternal, I think it's based on ignorance alot more than intelligence. If I were to mention the band Symphony X to a bunch of 9th grade girls they would probably shrug their shoulders and resume their usual conversation about how Simple Plan rules and how they want pet Unicorns and such. Most people I introduce Prog or Prog Metal to are intrigued by it and want to hear more, thus making them fans.

A good example would be how much recognition and new fans Symphony X got after the Gigantour. People who went there to see Megadeth or whatever other band they like were probably unaware of Symphony X previously, but after seeing them and hearing what they're all about they start liking them and etc. It's not that they're stupid, just that they were kinda oblivious to Sym X.

 

[coolsnow7]

Ok, I have thought about this and reworded it in a more understandable way. Thanks for the criticism because it has helped me understand what was in my head, lol.

The ABILITY to like technical music is related to intelligence/thinking power/whatever you want to call it.

I had to change this to 'ability' because I like simple music too, therefore my argument didnt make full sense. Now, and example of my theory is a time a while ago when I asked someone what they thought of Demon of the Fall.........now this was an R&B person, and they replied that it was too cluttered and noisy etc. To me it wasnt because I fully understood what was going on. This person wouldnt like metal because their brain can't make sense of it. That's not their fault, because its just how their brain is.......and i'm no brain expert so I dont know WHY that is, but it is for some reason. Now I like SymX...... obviously, but I also like orchestral stuff that is way more complicated. Just because I like orchestral stuff doesnt mean that its my favourite stuff because its the most complicated, but I understand it therefore I CAN like it.

Can I tell you a secret? There are plenty of people who "really" understand Symphony X and like R&B plenty as well. There are plenty of other people who love Bach and don't really "understand" what's going on. Additionally, you'll have a hard time convincing me that Symphony X is significantly more complex than R&B - Tower of Power has like 15 different musicians on stage at a given moment. Did you mean a rap person then? Well I have a friend who's going to Harvard next year, having put about no work into it (not one of those that graduates at the top of their class while being retarded) and is a big rap fan. He just doesn't put any thought into his music. Did you mean that certain people are incapable of "understanding" certain music altogether? That's also quite absurd - "understanding" classical music consists of remembering a theme for a few measures. It's nearly impossible not to get it. I think what you're trying to suggest is that only smarter people APPRECIATE complex music - which is even worse. Music is supposed to speak to you, and while classical music on a whole is more complex than pop, it also has a distinct flavor that will not speak to people who cannot relate to the feelings the music conveys. I hope you realize at this point that what you basically tried to do is make yourself superior to "everyone else" because of your taste in music - musical nazism, if you will.

 

[kazahana]

I understand what Eternal is saying, or trying to say..

We all do - he's saying that he thinks he is more intelligent than people who don't listen to prog or can't appreciate it, as are you. This is blatantly false. If you want to kid yourself with your self-congratulatory intelligence crap, then go ahead, but I assure you from here it looks disctinctly like your mental faculties are the ones that are lacking.

 

[Eternal Dragon]

I understand what Eternal is saying, or trying to say..

When the car radio or something is on and I hear the pop and R&B spewing out of it, I get really bored really fast. Everything's all 4/4 and the same tempo throughout the entire song. And usually in that music theres a simple repetitive drum beat and some other synth effect going on at the same time, and lyrics are usually really predictable and, in my opinion, same subject different words..

Now, when I hear anything Prog I tend to be interested in listening to it a helluvalot more than pop because it kinda keeps my brain busy. The tempo/time sig changes, intricate patterns and extreme virtuosity in most cases, etc. It's just overall way better because I can imagine how much effort was put into the music. And everytime I listen to certain songs I discover something new in it that keeps me interested in listening to it over and over again. There's just so much going on at once.

Although I agree with Eternal, I think it's based on ignorance alot more than intelligence. If I were to mention the band Symphony X to a bunch of 9th grade girls they would probably shrug their shoulders and resume their usual conversation about how Simple Plan rules and how they want pet Unicorns and such. Most people I introduce Prog or Prog Metal to are intrigued by it and want to hear more, thus making them fans.

A good example would be how much recognition and new fans Symphony X got after the Gigantour. People who went there to see Megadeth or whatever other band they like were probably unaware of Symphony X previously, but after seeing them and hearing what they're all about they start liking them and etc. It's not that they're stupid, just that they were kinda oblivious to Sym X.

Yes!!

 

[Eternal Dragon]

Look, nobody seems to understand what i'm trying to get at. I will just leave it at that, because its no use arguing when people just dont understand.

 

[DoomsdayZach]

I think we all understand, but we strongly disagree and think it's preposterous to even try to put yourself on another level of intelligence based on something like music. Everyone knows that intelligence is actually measured by standardized test scores.

 

[Eternal Dragon]

This is how it is....

*I had that idea in my head so I posted it....and note the word "theory"

*I was thinking of a general case. One which applied to the people I was thinking of at the time.

*I DEFINATELY wasnt trying to offend anyone.

So yeh this wasnt something that I have been thinking of for a long time. It is definately the case for some people, and as you have shown not for others. Theories are meant to be disproven if at all possible, and you have done that quite well. I will drop my theory, because seriously, it was only a theory and not something I live by every day.

 

[Eternal Dragon]

.......wOOt for Symphony X in 06

 

[DoomsdayZach]

This is how it is....

*I had that idea in my head so I posted it....and note the word "theory"

*I was thinking of a general case. One which applied to the people I was thinking of at the time.

*I DEFINATELY wasnt trying to offend anyone.

So yeh this wasnt something that I have been thinking of for a long time. It is definately the case for some people, and as you have shown not for others. Theories are meant to be disproven if at all possible, and you have done that quite well. I will drop my theory, because seriously, it was only a theory and not something I live by every day.

No dude, i'm telling you... STANDARDIZED TEST SCORES!!!

Doesn't any other country have these fucking things?

 

[Eternal Dragon]

What do u mean no !?! I didnt even reply to your test scores thing :S. I was trying to apologise for jumping into an idea that had only been in my head for a matter of minutes.

I dont think any kind of testing will show how smart someone is. Rather how much they know, or how much they have studied. That (unlike my other point) I am certain of.

 

[Thraxz]

Most all IQ tests are biased towards the literate. Regardless, an intelligent person can answer most IQ problems with or without school. Formal mathmatical education helps but in all fairness, someone with a REAL 200 IQ at the same age as me with no school could hand me my ass at any test given orally or with pictures (which many IQ tests have...spacial analysis etc).