What makes people find Prog boring?

damn kids with their damn smartyphones can't keep their attention past a bowl of sugar coated frosty-o's 

People are programmed to think that 3.5 minute intro-verse-chorus-verse-chorus-bridge-chorus-outro is the epitome of song writing.

They don't want to sit through it. Unless they grew up with it it's hard for them to relate to it. 

dr wu23 wrote: No one has ever told me that they thought prog was 'boring'.....but I do here the complaint that the songs are too long. So the instant or quicker gratification factor seems to certainly be in play here.

Oh, yes I've definitely heard that as well on multiple occasions, and presumed that they were just too polite to actually say the word, boring. Of course there are long songs in the popular sphere when the music is stripped down and simple enough, and no one really seems to mind their length. One example might be Free Bird. I find Free Bird incredibly boring. I don't mind saying that.

Again: I have never ever come across anyone who told me they find prog to be boring. Never. I've experienced the 'turn that weird sh*t off!!!' comment quite a few times though just like the 'how can you listen to church music?' often comes along during some blissfull mellotron/organ segments.

When I read threads like these I often think of the corresponding ones found on similar sites to PA, only they focus on Pop, Blues, Hip Hop and Trance. I bet all of em have their own 'Why do people find our beloved music boring?' threads...and I also believe they are about as deluted as every other music fanbase out there coming up with the same kinds of elitist answers we dig up here.
Your tastes do not elicit wisdom. Reading through a couple of PA threads will hopefully drive home that fact to anyone who still believes that proggers are an enlightened species. Having the ability to listen to complex music is great. Having the ability to knit tricky patterns is great. Are you an intelligent person because you enjoy either? Nope. I've enjoyed both of those with kids who were too stupid to get into school. Do they then get the underlying themes of the lyrics and how amart the different passages are when....blablabla? Nope but then again, do you get the lyrical connotations Lady Gaga does to the Tibethan book of the dead or do you hear the small ode to Bach that blablabla.....
People tend to get the stuff they find appealing - the music they're drawn to. Why would you try to unravel and understand something you think sound absolutely horrendous? That is why you won't find many hip hop fans round these parts....yet there are loads of experimental, progressive and clever hip hop artists out there. Why do you find them boring?
Spoiler: you haven't heard it and you have no interest in trying it out. Why? Because you think it sounds like something you once heard and you figure everything else sounds similarly poor. Just like the reason most people don't listen to prog.

There's no accounting for boredom. I can't figure out why students find some of my lectures boring. One thing I have figured out is that they, the students themselves, are boring.

Short Pop songs with lots of repetition is boring to me. I guess that's why I find Gentle Giant boring.








Edited by HackettFan - January 16 2018 at 21:56

Some Prog is boring.

Prog isn't always melodic, moving or exciting. I expect that from all music. It can be prodding, ham-fisted, overly theatrical, forced or just noodling and understated. Reasons why exciting, fresh Prog can be misinterpreted as boring is lack of appreciation for typical non-obvious hooks, which may include lyrics, theme, certain instrumental elements, virtuoso playing, mood, message etc. These are just as important in prog as a dance beat or a macho verbal attitude might be for pop and hip hop in terms of securing enjoy-ability.

M27Barney wrote: Popular mass culture in the early 80's - E.g. 'The Young Ones' - had lots of anti-prog scripted digs - Neil the hippy grooving to the white noise on the tele - Rick - making 'Genesis' (Ergo... Prog) synonymous with total-boredom....

Edited by Jeffro - January 05 2018 at 08:41

^ ^^ You need to edit your links to remove a superfluous http:// at the start.