Does your music define you?

Widely reported across the news networks (and on BBC News) is a study by a Professor Adrian North of Heriot-Watt University which claims musical taste and personality type are closely related.

Apparently people can be lumped in to genre categories, much like some music publications lump music. And it seems being a Metallica fan tells the admen lots about you. Over to the Prof: "If you know a person's music preference you can tell what kind of person they are, who to sell to."

This might be rather sinister were it not so obviously flawed. It presupposes that classical music fans would only ever listen to classical music; that Metallica fans would only ever dress in black and thrill to the sound of Kirk Hammett's axe.

At least he clarifies one thing: "The general public has held a stereotype of heavy metal fans being suicidally depressed and of being a danger to themselves and society in general. But they are quite delicate things."

The study claims that if you identify with whatever "indie" is these days (English boys strumming their way to major label Tesco success, perhaps) then you have low self-esteem, you are creative but not hard working and, most curiously, you're not gentle.

Yet I'm probably not alone in knowing of people who are as happy listening to a Philip Glass CD as they are throwing shapes to whatever Paul Oakenfold happens to be spinning. Depending on my mood I'm as happy with The Field's electronic dystopia as I am with the lonesome acoustica of Bon Iver.

Does the Prof understand the people he presumes to study? Do you define yourself by your music taste?

Comments

[John Murphy]

What a load of absolute claptrap. As you rightly point out Michael, what if you have a wide-range of music taste? This morning, walking to work, my iPod shuffled onto the following artists: Kings Of Leon, The Human League, Burial, The Subways, Johnny Flynn and Girls Aloud.

I presume this just makes me confused!

[Michael]

Well, at least it works for getting Heriot-Watt University (*where?*) into the news and people's consciousness. Halfway decent PR on their part.

[Lazz]

Having just discovered this study, I think Michael is making some mistakes in his reading. The survey is what it is. That's all. And there are correlations to be made. Simple. And no particular big deal either.
And to John Murphy, with the greatest of respect, that list of iPod shuffle artists may represent a wide range of music taste to you, but it seems very narrow to me.doesn't really suggest to me
What was your point ?

[hes right you know]

acually hes talking about your preferred musical choice. not any you may like. I enjoy some hip hop and some 80s pop music but my MAIN focus in music is metal. and i hate rap and country, every person has a category, and no one loves all kinds of music. your just upset because you like indie bullshit

[Tony]

every person has a category, and no one loves all kinds of music...err nope.
Sure their are some genre I pick and chose from and don't love it all (Metal being one - only like the doomy stuff)by it tends to cover bases from Alphabeat to Merbow, Yellow Swans to Otis Reading, Cult of the 13th Hour to George Jones and most places inbetween......

[John]

Erm, Lazz - Burial, Johnny Flynn and Girls Aloud are all pretty similar? Right, whatever you say matey....

[Martin]

"what if you have a wide-range of music taste? . . . Kings Of Leon, The Human League, Burial, The Subways, Johnny Flynn and Girls Aloud."

yeah, that's really wide

almost as wide as the guys in the Blues Brothers who liked both kinds of music - country AND western