i've recently discussed elements of this post with shmoo and stacey. then i thought about it more at a show on tuesday and decided to put it to the obnish.

when i go to a show, i wonder if anyone is there to see their favorite band. basically, does every show have one person that considers one band on the bill to be their absolute favorite? i don't figure it happens at every small show, but at least at a show that draws maybe a few hundred. and i usually don't think of it if each band only has maybe one album. although, i have met people who claim their favorite was a band that only had one release. i usually laugh them off.

then last thursday, shmoo and i were talking about some bands and he said something about man or astroman along the lines of, "i can't imagine anyone considering them as their favorite band." and i started thinking about if there are actually bands that do well over a long time that don't have anyone at all who considers them as their favorite. i really liked man or astroman, but mostly because they were an excellent live band.

it got me thinking about my favorite band, rocket from the crypt, and why they've been my favorite since high school. and i guess it's because they came along at a critical point when i was first getting serious about not being spoon-fed and discovering music on my own. (i found them on a concrete corner tape. remember those?) they put out two releases that year, apart from the numerous 7"s, that people generally consider to be very good or great. after awhile of digging and hearing much of their catalog, i considered them my favorite band and haven't looked back since. of course, they've taken something of a hiatus lately, but they're still my favorite.

so, i thought of shmoo's comment on tuesday when i saw the hold steady, the reputation, and the oranges band. there were a few people dancing and singing along to each band, but i just couldn't imagine any of those bands as someone's favorite.

all of this has raised some questions in my head:

1) is it actually important to have a favorite band? i take it seriously when someone asks, "what's your favorite band?" i have a definite answer that anyone who knows me knows. my roommate, on the other hand, only listens to about a dozen bands and, over a long enough conversation, will refer to each of them as her favorite.

2) do you think that every band has one person that considers them their favorite? i guess this has something to do with how long a band's been around, which probably has something to do with how well they do critically and commercially.

thoughts? comments? am i just pouring drivel late at night?

i have thought about this exact thing numerous times, perhaps not as seriously as you though...

I can't imagine anyone ever thought of Huey Lewis & The News as their favorite, even though the dude is very likable.

yeah.....how about the Black Keys......they're a good band, but who would have them as their favourite?

Aspects to consider regarding a favorite band have changed drastically over the past few years for me, but I wouldn't count them out as a favorite. Though, admittedly, it doesn't look like they're going to become my favorite, period. So I guess I didn't really add anything there...

There's lots and lots of indie pop bands that I like. They're sweet and catchy and nice bands. Never gonna be my favorites. Too much alike and too precious.

i knew a guy in high school for whom man or astroman was his favorite band.

Excellent points and questions, here's my two cents.



I don't know that it's important to have a favorite band but to me it's really enjoyable. Some people may approach bands differently than I do. For me, like you, I've been into my favorite band since high school (Dinosaur Jr.) and I think largely for the same reasons as you. They were the first "indie" band I got into (although they were on a major label at the time) and listening to 'Where You Been' was my awakening from listening to too much classic rock. I own everything they've ever put out, collect live bootlegs, imports, etc. I wouldn't want to do that with many bands, it gets expensive, but it's fun to do for one band at least. It's also fun to get really hyped about new stuff that's coming out from the band or solo projects by its members, etc. For example, I can barely contain myself waiting for the reissues of Dinosaur Jr's first three albums at the end of the month even though I already own the originals. I don't get excited like that for anyone else.



I think this at every show I go to. I always assume that every band has its groupies that would consider that band their favorite. For a lot of bands, it's probably that these groupies have followed them from the beginning or go to all of their shows at a venue they play often or something. This would be less true for bands that are just starting out but I think if the band has much history at all, they probably have fans that consider it their favorite.

It's certainly hard to quantify what makes that one band extra special, your "favourite" band. I really had to think about that. My ultimate, absolute is the Velvet Underground. So that's not really surprising, as there are probably a billion music idiots who love VU. However, I have never personally met another person (I'm not counting this forum) who even likes one of my other all-time favourites, which is Concrete Blonde. In high school I even wrote to Happy Hermit to get tour information as I figured they probably wouldn't make it to Northwestern Ontario. Also own her side projects Pretty and Twisted and Vowel Movement. It has been pretty lonely having Concrete Blonde as you favourite band.

I don't think that anyone would have expected anyone's "favorite" band to have been Shrimp Boat, but for a long time they certainly were mine. Now, I just have to admit that there are many, many bands who could, at any given moment, be my "favorite".

I barely noticed Concrete Blonde for many years, simply because I never took the time to. But I heard last year's album and thought it was incredible, then went back and checked out their back catalog. They should have been more heralded over the years. Great vocals, even better bass, sharp songwriting and an undercurrent of menace and decay that the casual listener might be suprised by on closer inspection.

Count me as as long-time casual sorta-fan who just really noticed them recently.

I guarantee if you go to Ottobar in Baltimore, you will find someone who considers the Oranges to be their favorite band. Every band has that fan. I am friends with some guys in a band who aren't even signed and they have probably at least a half dozen people who consider them their favorites.

I think this mostly stems from accessibility, for a band that is homegrown or not as big is going to be more likely to meet and greet, hang out and give more facetime to the fans at the show, no matter how small. They are trying to build a following. The fans in turn see the band as their friends, rather than their entertainment.

Bands that have made it, no matter how mediocre the distinction [I'm looking at you Seven Mary Three] aren't usually going to be as willing to mingle with their fanbase.

Sorta like what Andyfest said, now that I re-read.

at one time they were by far my favorite band.
i have the ticket stubs and t-shirts to prove it.

not so much anymore.

i no longer have favorite bands, but i do go through month long obsessions that rotate.

I can rattle of my all time favorite records...

but when asked who my favorite band of all time is, I probably couldnt give a clear answer, i'd agree with my self even an hour later.

i don't think it's important to have a favorite band. that's like almost a means of classifying oneself.

that said, i have a top 3 of favorite artists right now. none of them are huey lewis & the news, the black keys or shrimp boat.

A "Favorite" just happens. I don't think it's an active choice. The position of "favorite" will change as well, as folks mature and their tastes and perspectives change.

Once upon a time, Iggy Pop was my all-time favorite. The guy could do no wrong. I made it a point to go to every show that I could, and to buy every recording that I could. I managed to score a copy of his book. I played at least one song of his on every radio show. He reigned supreme in my rock and roll world.

Nowadays, I respect the impact Iggy made, and his role in shaping what music became. I still hold much of his catalog in high regard. Yet, I am not the rabid disciple that I used to be, nor do I consider him my favorite anymore.

Were anyone to ask now, who is my all-time favorite band, I would answer without hesitation, The Fleshtones. How did they unseat Jimmy O? I dunno, it just developed that way. A lot of it is that my tastes have changed, I appreciate more of the garage/Nuggets-revival at which the Fleshtones excel than I do the visceral noise of The Stooges. I also appreciate that I can catch my favorite band at a bar whenever they're in town--the show never costs more than $12, the sets last for at least 2 hours, and the band is always in the crowd by the third song. They exude "cool", and they never lose sight of the fun that's supposed to define rock and roll.

I think

"Nobody's Favorite Band"

would be a sweet title for an album

It's the next HoP album!
I'll give you credit.

Resume updated!!

I was playing Do You Swing? all last weekend. Might be my favorite album of theirs since Hexbreaker!. It's impressive how those guys keep on ticking. SUPAH ROCK!

I think a favorite is something you latch onto in your youth. It'll be that band that first hit you right between the eyes. There's no critical evaluation involved - it could be RFTC; it could be Man Or Astroman? - but something about that band goosed your very existence. And then chances are the fuckers will break up. You'll spend your lifetime searching for other bands to hit that same nerve - and you'll find some that come close - but it'll never be quite the same. Eventually you end up with a long list of favorites, but none that'll compel you to spraypaint their name on parked cop cars.

Wow, I actually agree with you. This is the very same reason why Radiohead is my favorite band. And why The Bends is one of my favorite albums of all time... although, I'd probably go jump off a cliff if they broke up any time soon.

I don't think it's important to have a "favorite" band. If you have a "favorite," good for you. If not, it shouldn't matter. I don't think having a favorite band is "almost a means of classifying oneself." Everyone has their reasons for their liking.... for instance, when people ask me who my favorite band is- I answer Radiohead and then some people immediately go into a spiel of "oh you think you're so cool because you like Radiohead. Oh you have the need to label yourself." Stop it! Who is to justify why you like what you like?

I'm sure every band has one person who considers them their favorite. When I go to shows, usually it's because I enjoy the band's music, or I just want to see a live show. Doesn't mean they're my "favorite." I wonder the same thing too a lot, but it doesn't bother me that much.

Then I suppose I'll have to reconsider my point.

that's interesting because i was into dinosaur jr before i'd heard rocket from the crypt and thought they were totally awesome too. my copy of where you been broke a few years ago, but i'm digging for a replacement. "start choppin'" still really hits a nerve with me. my god, so good!

i agree on those points for liking your favorite - that, at least over time, they develop into something huge and they're yours. even the mention of rftc gets me amped. and when i listen to them, i'm of this mindset that i don't get into for any other band.

now, that's more like it.