Poll: Do you think music is long enough?
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I miss the kind of classic rock like The Doors or Pink Floyd where it moved at it's own pace- could be fast, could be slow, and if they wanted a 3 minute instrumental between verses they went ahead and bloody well did it, and all was well with the world.
Just listen to 'The End' or 'When the Music's Over' to see what I mean.
Just listen to 'The End' or 'When the Music's Over' to see what I mean.
Funnily enough, the average length of a song is almost exactly 4 minutes for my music library. Was that just an educated guess? You were off by maybe 8 seconds, but close enough. I sorted the songs by length, and found that most of the longer songs are either by progressive rock/metal bands, or they're by Chopin/Beethoven/some other ancient person, which is fair enough.
The only time I really pay attention to track length is when I'm choosing songs to play on radio. No one wants to listen to a 12 minute long song by the Decemberists, although we did have someone ask for Shine On You Crazy Diamond once, which made us wonder if they actually wanted to listen to the 26 minute long song, or just for us to shut up for that long.
The only time I really pay attention to track length is when I'm choosing songs to play on radio. No one wants to listen to a 12 minute long song by the Decemberists, although we did have someone ask for Shine On You Crazy Diamond once, which made us wonder if they actually wanted to listen to the 26 minute long song, or just for us to shut up for that long.
Mate,
I listen to Jazz and Orchestral music as well as this other stuff
Jazz can go into the 12-15 minute marker, orchestras into an hour and a half
I think the reason music is "that" long in general is because that's the amount required to fit the balance of "listener's patience" and "what the singer wants to say"
I listen to Jazz and Orchestral music as well as this other stuff
Jazz can go into the 12-15 minute marker, orchestras into an hour and a half
I think the reason music is "that" long in general is because that's the amount required to fit the balance of "listener's patience" and "what the singer wants to say"
Jesus of Suburbia is a 9 minute or so masterpiece of a song, and while it could easily be broken into a few parts, the songs feel would be no where near the same.
Same thing with Ash's recent song Sky Burial, it just works. If you have the patience longer songs can be incredible, and in some cases, they are much better pieces of work than anything that has been done in three or four minutes.
That said, there's nothing wrong with short songs either. Some of the best songs to exist were created by bands that gave rock it's start, like The Beatles and The Who, when songs were never much longer than 2 and a half minutes in length.
Music can be as long as it needs to be. Whether thats a fifteen minute jazz extravaganza or a quick 2 minute rock out is up to the listener.
Same thing with Ash's recent song Sky Burial, it just works. If you have the patience longer songs can be incredible, and in some cases, they are much better pieces of work than anything that has been done in three or four minutes.
That said, there's nothing wrong with short songs either. Some of the best songs to exist were created by bands that gave rock it's start, like The Beatles and The Who, when songs were never much longer than 2 and a half minutes in length.
Music can be as long as it needs to be. Whether thats a fifteen minute jazz extravaganza or a quick 2 minute rock out is up to the listener.
I'm happy that the manufactured stuff isn't all that long, it would fail horribly if they actually tried to do something as epic as "Freebird", plus I don't think Justin Beiber or whoever else is in the charts right now is intelligent enough to write something of any real significance.
Classical is good for length and I've never tired of it, I guess you need to be educated in how to listen to classical in order to appreciate it fully, but I've never listened to a concerto and skipped to the "good bit".
Metal is similar in structure to classical in some respects, so it can be long and rarely get dull. It's a similar discipline to classical in that you need to understand at least a little of the technical aspects of it to fully appreciate it.
But anyway, as I was saying before. The popular stuff like rap, pop, hip-hop, etc. are best kept short. If they were longer then they'd get no air time because the radio wouldn't be able to play the whole thing as it'll clash with their schedule and people will probably realize just how annoying that stuff can be if listened to ad nausium.
This is just my take on it, though, I'm sure there's someone out there who could listen to a ten minute whine about a girl that dumped Justin Beiber and be happy about it. Although I'd never want to meet that person, if I did I'd definitely want to keep any sharp objects away from them.
Classical is good for length and I've never tired of it, I guess you need to be educated in how to listen to classical in order to appreciate it fully, but I've never listened to a concerto and skipped to the "good bit".
Metal is similar in structure to classical in some respects, so it can be long and rarely get dull. It's a similar discipline to classical in that you need to understand at least a little of the technical aspects of it to fully appreciate it.
But anyway, as I was saying before. The popular stuff like rap, pop, hip-hop, etc. are best kept short. If they were longer then they'd get no air time because the radio wouldn't be able to play the whole thing as it'll clash with their schedule and people will probably realize just how annoying that stuff can be if listened to ad nausium.
This is just my take on it, though, I'm sure there's someone out there who could listen to a ten minute whine about a girl that dumped Justin Beiber and be happy about it. Although I'd never want to meet that person, if I did I'd definitely want to keep any sharp objects away from them.
I liked reading this thread and replacing "music" or "song" with "penis" and all instances of "minutes" with "inches"
Good times.
Anyways, there's a time and a place for long songs. I don't want my pop songs going for 11 minutes. One of things I love about music is how varied it is.
Good times.
Anyways, there's a time and a place for long songs. I don't want my pop songs going for 11 minutes. One of things I love about music is how varied it is.
I think the length is fine these days but more importantly its jsut about how good the music is. Just because a song is longer wont make it better, and taking a really good song and stretching it out another 3 mins wont neseccarily make better either, infact wuite the opposite I'd reckon.
One of my favourite songs is a track by Crystal Castles called Doe Deer, it's about a min and a half.
But just the same I love Court of the Crimson King and thats nearly 10 mins.
One of my favourite songs is a track by Crystal Castles called Doe Deer, it's about a min and a half.
But just the same I love Court of the Crimson King and thats nearly 10 mins.
Well, the average ten minute song doesn't have ten minutes of song in it, know what I mean?
Let's look at Metallica. On Ride The Lightning, songs are between four and six minutes, with maybe one seven or eight minute one. Almost all of these songs go for a perfect length, and don't where out their welcome.
On Master of Puppets, Hetfield seems to have gotten it in his head that longer songs are more, I don't know, intelligent, or progressive. Regardless, songs will start, finish, and then repeat themselves a whole fucking lot until you've got yourself a nine minute epic from what should really be a five minute song. The problem was even worse on ...And Justice For All, there's a song called To Live is To Die, a nine minute song with eight lines of lyrics. Now, I like instrumental stuff, but that song was far too repetitive to be an (almost) instrumental.
In-A-Gadda-Da-Vidda is my favorite long song, because it changes. Two minutes of singing, a few more minutes of all the instrument dropping off except the drums, a few minutes of the best drum solo ever, a few minutes of all the instrument rejoining the song, and then a few more minutes of singing.
Let's look at Metallica. On Ride The Lightning, songs are between four and six minutes, with maybe one seven or eight minute one. Almost all of these songs go for a perfect length, and don't where out their welcome.
On Master of Puppets, Hetfield seems to have gotten it in his head that longer songs are more, I don't know, intelligent, or progressive. Regardless, songs will start, finish, and then repeat themselves a whole fucking lot until you've got yourself a nine minute epic from what should really be a five minute song. The problem was even worse on ...And Justice For All, there's a song called To Live is To Die, a nine minute song with eight lines of lyrics. Now, I like instrumental stuff, but that song was far too repetitive to be an (almost) instrumental.
In-A-Gadda-Da-Vidda is my favorite long song, because it changes. Two minutes of singing, a few more minutes of all the instrument dropping off except the drums, a few minutes of the best drum solo ever, a few minutes of all the instrument rejoining the song, and then a few more minutes of singing.
Depends on the track itself.
Hotel California is actually pretty samey, but for some reason it works at 6 and half minutes long, if you dragged out Teenage Kicks any longer than 2:27 it wouldn't work.
I seem to remember reading somewhere that the ideal pop track is just under three minutes with at least three repetitions of the chorus, so I tend to think in terms of that.
I mean, sure if you like Prog Rock or the really long metal tracks then listen to that, but I tend to get bored after four minutes anyway, unless it's changed enough to almost be like separate songs (Greenday's Homecoming or Jesus of Suburbia for example)
Hotel California is actually pretty samey, but for some reason it works at 6 and half minutes long, if you dragged out Teenage Kicks any longer than 2:27 it wouldn't work.
I seem to remember reading somewhere that the ideal pop track is just under three minutes with at least three repetitions of the chorus, so I tend to think in terms of that.
I mean, sure if you like Prog Rock or the really long metal tracks then listen to that, but I tend to get bored after four minutes anyway, unless it's changed enough to almost be like separate songs (Greenday's Homecoming or Jesus of Suburbia for example)
Many of my favourite songs are 15 minutes and longer...
I don't think most songs are long enough. I prefer 15 minutes of awesomeness ofer 4 minutes of awesomeness, although it depends on the individual song.
I don't think most songs are long enough. I prefer 15 minutes of awesomeness ofer 4 minutes of awesomeness, although it depends on the individual song.
You know... I really don't think that length matters. Some tracks need to be a minute long and some need to be 30 minutes long. But before you ask for longer songs... can you imagine this song being longer than what it is?
Because I can. And I love it.
Because I can. And I love it.
A piece should only be as long as it needs to be.
I listen to a lot of jazz, drone and experimental music and the tracks tend to be anywhere from 7 to 20 minutes long. With the drone stuff, some of it is one big 70 minute track.
I also listen to a lot of death metal which tends to be from 3-7 minutes.
Just depends on the piece.
I listen to a lot of jazz, drone and experimental music and the tracks tend to be anywhere from 7 to 20 minutes long. With the drone stuff, some of it is one big 70 minute track.
I also listen to a lot of death metal which tends to be from 3-7 minutes.
Just depends on the piece.
I went with "depends on the genre", because I've never heard a symphony or a concerto that lasted only 4 minutes. But in the end, whatever the genre, whatever the style, the length of a track doesn't matter much to me, as long as it's beautiful.
Yeam 4 mins is about right. I find it annoying that I like a song but it is only last less then 2 mins