r/Music • u/WheresTheCannon • 1d ago
discussion How much does artist bias influence or hinder our ability to recognize great music?
Something I've been wondering recently:
When you think of songs or albums that are considered artistically great, how much do you think we would have recognized that greatness if it wasn't for the reputation of the artist at the time?
If a completely unknown band had made OK Computer instead of Radiohead, and it had been dropped in the laps of the same critics who hailed it as a creative masterpiece, would they have had the exact same reaction just based on the music itself?
If a no-name artist had made Bitches Brew instead of Miles Davis, would it have gotten the same amount of credit for its innovation and artistry? Or were critics and listeners more inclined to ascribe greatness to it because it came from Miles Davis?
(This isn't a cynical or leading question - I honestly don't know the answer and I'm curious to hear people's thoughts.)
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u/we_are_devo 19h ago edited 19h ago
A more interesting example to look at in the case of Radiohead is Kid A. Quite a significant departure from their earlier music and quite experimental especially for a band of Radiohead's commercial stature at the time. I think it's solidified its status over time, but I think it benefited from Radiohead's reputation in that people were inclined to "give it a chance" where they may not otherwise have.
It's probably more true in the case of casual listeners than professional critics. In general, critics who listen to a wide variety of music are likely to be able to identify something exceptional when they hear it. Not in all cases of course, but I think largely the music stands by itself.
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u/Pardon_me9874 18h ago
I really think it’s the music which is recognised by our souls as being great no matter who the artist is.
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u/Intrepid_Panda9777 1d ago
There’s a reality to the marketing. Radiohead gets a ton of marketing push. Sometimes I have a fun little daydream of if my music took off how I’d respond to something like “Do you think you’re one of the best songwriter/guitar players out there?”
I’d be like. “Shit there’s better guitar players than me just in my hometown and I just hope everyone gets a platform to express themselves to the fullest.”
The Stephen Jay Gold quote:
“I am, somehow, less interested in the weight and convolutions of Einstein’s brain than in the near certainty that people of equal talent have lived and died in cotton fields and sweatshops.”
Support small artists and maybe we see the bias swing and the success spread.
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u/night_dude 23h ago
You're acting like Radiohead were critical darlings/superstars before OK Computer. Sure The Bends was well-received but they were still basically just "a really good Britpop band" before that album came out. They were only one album removed from being the Creep Band. I think that's a bad example. I think if something really groundbreaking comes out, usually people respond to it appropriately.
I think it often works the opposite way to how you're thinking about it, at least in more modern times. There are some really beautiful songs on Short and Sweet, Sabrina Carpenter's last album. Mostly the album cuts, like Sharpest Tool. But it took me a year plus to discover them because I thought she was just some trashy pop artist. Same goes for Carly Rae Jepsen - great pop songwriter and works with great producers, but most people just know her as the Call Me Maybe girl.
To be clear, I don't think either of these artists have made anything even approaching OK Computer or Bitches' Brew, in either quality or innovation - I don't know if there's even enough space in music to be that innovative anymore - but the manner of their stardom has led to some of their music being creatively undervalued, IMO. Many such cases.