C/D: knowing the name of the artist before you hear the music

Gets in the way, I'd say. For example, I heard a track by the Hot Hot Heat (a name which I think is Weak Weak Weak). Before I knew it was them (thanks to a song ID thread here), I'd decided that the song ("Naked in the City Again") was actually pretty great (or at least that track was). Prior to that, I couldn't imagine that a band with as bad a name would be worth listening to. Is that a stupid reason? Surely, but c'est la guerre.

Knowing the name of the artist BEFORE you hear the music may be minorly dud however this pales into insignificance compared with not being told the name of the artist track / AFTER you've heard something on the radio that you really, REALLY like, thus leaving you frantically serching AMG with what few clues you have and sweating profusely in fear at the thought of having to sing some ill-remembered fragment of the song at some little jerk in a music shop in the hope of identifying it.

That's when you end up searching google for stuff like "and she said to me" +"dig it" +lyrics.

This is actually a brilliant question that cuts to the heart of everything. I'll definitely have more to say on this when the codeine fog lifts, but I shall leave you with recent true conversation I had for yr analysis -
DQ puts CD on, sez "what do you think of this?"
Acquaintance: "Who is it?"
DQ (ignores question): "What do you think of this?"
A: "Ummm, dunno,let's hear a bit...(30 seconds later)so who is it?"
DQ: "What do you think of this?"
A: "Come on, who is it?"
DQ: (Lies)"Dunno, something on a CDR comp. Just tell me what you think of this!"
A: (visibly agitated) "I don't really know! You're full of shit, you know every song ever, just tell me!"
DQ: "Just tell me if you like it or not! Why does it matter 'who it is'?"
A: "Because...umm...OK, here's my opinion...it's OK...yeah, it's alright, now who..."
DQ: "'IT'S OK!? What kind of an opinion is that? Simple question, do you like it, or no?"
A: (completely wound up) "How the fuck am I supposed to know what to think of it unless I know who it is!?"
DQ: "You're not actually 'supposed to think' anything, this isn't a test!"
A: "Well, the way you're acting, it's almost like it is!"
DQ: "Oh for fuck's sake, I just asked the easiest question in the world. DO YOU LIKE THIS!"
A:(30 seconds with that hilarious 'listening hard' pose)"No really...who is it?"

Conversation 2, workplace situ -
J:(puts CD on)
M:"This is cool, what is it?"
J: "Aphrodite"
M: "Mmmm yeah, I like this, good choice!"
J: "It's an Aphrodite remix of Oasis"
M: "Typical! Retro pub-rock bollocks...trying to jump on the bandwagon...what a load of shite, you can tell they're trying to polish a turd...fuckin' Little England rock bands, trying to be all 'street', why don't they just fuckin' die! This sucks..."
J: "Actually I lied, it's not an Oasis remix at all"
M: "FUCKIN' WANKER!"(mass hilarity ensues)

(btw it gives me IMMENSE pleasure to report that DQ/J are ostensibly 'rock' ppl while A/M are 'dance/pop' ppl, QED fuckers)

it's worth noting that if i was in the scenarios above, if i liked the song i would probably only follow it up if i'd heard of the artist before. i hate not discovering bands for myself (i.e. not recommended by friends, magazines and the internet do not count)

Bob Log, Log Bomb

http://www.boblog111.com/images/helmet.gif

Dave Q's conversations make me incredibly happy.

I like them too but I think the dance comment is let down by the obvious fact that most dance artists change moniker so frequently that the answer to the "who is it" question is often useless. Personally I think every single tune I've liked in the last year I've liked before knowing who it was by, the whole hearing 80 percent of new stuff in a club without owning it lends itself to that aswell obv.

I remember hearing the song "Where Do You Get Love" on the radio and thinking it was really dorky, and then discovering it was by Matthew Sweet, an artist I was considering some sort of genius at the time (he's still quite nice but def. a bit overrated). It was an omen.

VH1 classic provides me with this opportunity any time I get to a video halfway through. There was one case where a foppy guy was moaning and wandering through a dark hallway - I knew I knew the song but couldn't place it. It sounded vaguely Human League-Dare-ish but it wasn't them, and then the name came on...Ministry's "Revenge".

Therefore, CLASSIC!

I read abt many things before i get to hear them.