by Otohiko » Sun Oct 19, 2003 12:45 pm
Yes, but there's long strings of influence with any band. And any band will tell you of bands they think are greater than them.
And remember the subjective thing. Really, there's nothing objective in music except numbers and notes. And music isn't supposed to be judged numerically (plus, there's a ton of artists I can list that are way the hell more technically apt than Pink Floyd, Metallica or Tool).
So, really, it's all extremely subjective. It's all about its' effects on people. And even if, en masse, a band has had a significant effect, if it has no effect on certain individuals, then the whole 'greatest' thing is useless.
For instance, try as you may, while I can see why people like punk, or why they deify Metallica or Pink Floyd - hell, just with Pink Floyd - I tried listening to that band. I desperately tried to like it. Largely, it fell on deaf ears. It's great, it's well-thought of, it's enjoyable, but... it's not where it's at for me musically, period. That may change, but presently, it's not the case. No figures of their popularity or explainations of their lyrics will likely ever change that.
Listening to music because it's popular is useless. Listening to music because critics or masses of fans called it 'greatest' is useless. Listen, learn, pick what speaks to you, stick with it. Nothing except the music should even matter.