Obsessing over a single artist

Music
#1

Do you ever find yourself in a place where you become completely and utterly obsessed with a single artist? It’s all you can listen to - the only thing that speaks to you.

I’m currently there with Grouper. Have been for a couple of months now. I’ll try to listen to something else, something similar, or even something very different, but keep coming back to her.

I feel a bit stuck.

What do you do when you’re there? How do you break out of it? Do you feel the need to?

Or do you just embrace the fact that you’ve found something that speaks so clearly to where you are in your life? What about the thought that it might be holding you in that place?

#2

Yup

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#3

Simple! Thanks man.x

:slight_smile:

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#4

I’d say if you have this experience, then that artist must be doing something right.

I occasionally have this, but it seems to happen more with albums that with artists. Typically I want to listen to the latest favourite album acquisition over and over again. At the same time I am worried that I’ll burn out on it. Trying to listen to something that’s slightly similar rarely works, as I find myself comparing it to the new favourite and coming back to that. Something completely different can sometimes be a good antidote; for example, if I need a break from the latest new-progressive album I have been listening to repeatedly, I might put on a Bob Marley album, or The Clash.

I had this experience a while ago with a particular Steven Wilson album, and again with “Illinois” by Sufjan Stevens. In both cases I kept wanting to listen over and over.

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#5

I can get like that with single tracks too, just repeat over and over again

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#6

All the time. Regularly get addicted to a certain artist for a while. Had a big Oh Sees one last year, then had another Nick Cave binge in January as a result of buying another album and lately been plunged back into yet another Fall addiction for obvious reasons.

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#7

yep a lot, and one of them i doubt if i’ve heard even 10% of their recorded material

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#8

Bit boring, but mine would have to be Bowie.

I didn’t really get into his music properly until late in life. Before that I’d just had his Sound and Vision compilation and was just a fringe Bowie fan I suppose.

My house was burgled, and amongst other things my entire CD collection was taken. When I was going through the insurance claim, I couldn’t remember half of the items, so when I was checking off the CD titles I just ordered the entire Bowie back catalogue.

One day I was looking for something new to listen to in my car, so grabbed Diamond Dogs. That was the start of about a year long full on obsession with his music. I wasn’t interested in anything else… it was so good because I had ALL of his albums, so would wander back and forth through different periods of his career, at my own leisure.

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#9

I listened to almost nothing but Emotion by Carly Rae Jepsen for about a year. No regrets.

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#10

I’m currently obsessed with Diamond Dogs. Kinda feel people don’t mention it so much compared to a lot of his other stuff.

#11

Yeah agreed.

I always call it my favourite Bowie album.

#12

I’ve been like this with Grouper. Think I’ve mentioned on here before, but weirdly, I was not really into it at all but years later it just clicked. And when it does, its the only thing that hits. I think now she’s probably the best ambient artist of the new millennium.

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#13

This is p much how I go about my music consumption any more. fin a song or something i love then deep dive into artist’s catalog.

#14

yes, i am like this with flying lotus. i always return to him no matter what else i’ve got on the go. i also obsess over actress and a lot of stuff brainfeeder and ninja tune put out.

grouper is very hauntology imo. i really like her her but i have to be feeling stable emotionally, something about her style cuts me very deeply. tremendous feels.

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#15

i did a deep dive with robert johnson and like everyone else who does this, i just started listening obsessively to old blues stuff from the 20s and 30s.

from this and my previous post, think it’s fair to say i love really scuffed and crackly music. try to make my own stuff sound like it too, love the ghostliness.

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#16

i never really feel the need to break the cycle, unless i’m making myself sick of the albums (this is a problem for artists with a small catalogue, but i mostly tend to get obsessed with bands with a large body of work that you can disappear down a rabbit hole of. when i only own one of the albums it becomes a very real risk that i’ll play it completely to death really quickly but the solution is just to try and buy some more asap.)

i generally still manage to find time to check out new releases in the midst of it these days (which i did sometimes struggle with more in the past so i can imagine others might struggle with it too - i think writing a little bit about music on the side helps force me to keep up to date and focused these days, and the weekly new release threads here now help too)

the only thing i do worry about is people noticing me going on and on about the same band endlessly for a while, in person or online, including here.

#17

I’m currently obsessing over Julie Christmas at the moment, the first thing I heard being the album she did with Cult of Luna.
A big chunk of my listening routine recently has been anything she’s put her name to. After months it feels like the honeymoon period still hasn’t ended, which is slightly scary.
I think as someone said above, new releases are the only thing that threaten to break the cycle, as well as the fact that I may fall in a similar trap with another artist next year.

#18

I almost went to the pub with him

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#19

Arthur Russell for me atm Clive

#20

I often do this. My most recent obsessions have been Stars of the Lid, Swans, Nick Cave and the Bad Seeds.