This ain't sports, it's music

Sure, bands have logos and so do sports teams. Some bands have mascots and uniforms just like sports teams. Don't be fooled, though, there's a difference. A big difference...

Sorry all you fans of American Idol, but in music just because one performer wins doesn't mean all the other performers have to lose. We've gotten so used to the Super Bowl, the World Series, the various World Cups and the Tour de France. The winners of each of those events are, at that moment, the best in the world and everyone else has fallen short. You see it in the eyes of a football team that plays in a national championship game and loses. Even though they are that close to the ultimate goal, they're seen as losers and they see themselves that way.

In music, there is absolutely no requirement that we define a "best" band. It drives me nuts how much energy goes into statements like, "Clearly, the Beatles are the best rock band ever." or even the typical "Top 100 Songs of All Time" list. I can't tell you which band I like "best". I can name 100 bands that I like to listen to but I'd be hard-pressed to pin down the "best" band out of those 100, even the best 5 bands. If there's really a best band, why should any of us listen to anything else? Because we don't all agree on the best band and we don't even agree on the best genre, sub-genre or just about any other criteria you can use to subdivide the vast sea of great music on this planet. And, our tastes vary from day to day and over the course of our lifetimes (at least some of us archive the old and welcome the new).

Since this isn't sports, why put so much energy into putting down the bands and styles you don't like? With the internet, there's literally no excuse for complaining that you don't have access to the music you like. Given that, why spend any time listening to music you don't like for long enough to develop even the slightest negative opinion? Sure, it's worth being open minded and trying out different styles and artists, always experimenting with new things, but once you know you don't like it, just let it be. Leave it alone and focus on the positives, the music you love. Enough of the "Emo sucks!", "Metal sucks!", "Country sucks!" comments. None of them suck, you just like some of them and dislike others. We don't need to crown a winner.

I understand, as a fan, there's something that drives us to be "balanced" in the sense that every word of praise must be balanced by a word of criticism. To bolster the standing of our favorite bands we need to make the others look completely inferior... I'm suggesting it's better to give that a rest. Be a rabid supporter but be an indifferent detractor.

For those of you musicians out there, in bands, trying to succeed in your local music scene, here's a thought. If every band in your local area sounded the same, why would anyone prefer to see you? Variety in a local scene is a good thing. It gives people the opportunity to focus on the bands they like and skip the ones they don't like. If you're in a band, you want other bands in the local scene to be different, to provide variety, even those sharing the bill with you. The greater the variety of bands, the greater the opportunity that more than one will succeed. As a local band it's in your best interest to support the success of the bands around you; that will grow the scene overall and that in turn will give you a better chance of success.

Regardless of whether you are a fan or a performer, stop putting down others to bolster your own preferences. Can you change your ways? If you do, you'll be rewarded by greater opportunity and better music across the board.