what music did you not get into until you heard it played really loud?

I’m not sure when this idea first occurred to me, but I remember attending a concert for a band I thought was kind of ok and then realizing “oh, this is what it’s supposed to be like!”

this was definitely the case when I saw Raime play and the bass was both earth-shaking and staccato

All music deserves to be blasted, volume is directly proportional to my enjoyment and engagement at all times. Lambchop's "is a woman" took a second listen as a much louder volume to fully appreciate all the space and distance in that record.

honestly there is also music that is quiet but very flat that benefits when you have to really listen and be drawn in! that might be a smaller slice

mbv and slint are obvious but the first two that come to mind. like there was obviously something there that was interesting but you have to play those records loud to get them. massive attack's mezzanine too.

Bob Marley when you can feel the bass in your bones is a very different proposition than Bob Marley as head shop background music.

generally speaking my enjoyment of techno, house, reggae, and most metal increases tenfold with maximum volume*

(*maximum volume at home these days is like the 11 o clock position on my dial because I am an old man and also have neighbors, but my point stands)

also: Tears for Fears' The Hurting is a different record when you blast it, makes you feel like you are on cocaine

of course music is better loud, although i can't think of an instance where volume suddenly made me see the light

that said, i've always found the liner notes' exhortations to PLAY IT LOUD cringy. iirc on 'disintegration' they claimed the music was 'specially mixed' to be played loud

i live in an apartment robert smith

c. 1986-1990 certain tracks that weren't particular faves took on new life when I'd heard/danced to them in a club. helped me appreciate production that worked well over a big system and on a dancefloor. some examples: The Cult - She Sells Sanctuary, Depeche Mode singles c. 1987-1990 (yup, Masses & Violator era).

the band Ringworm, whose album material I kinda felt to be just there, but then live at deafening volume, I "got" it

Agreed cringy, but also 100% onboard with propaganda encouraging the kids to set there stereos to 11. Some people go far too long in life without listening to music at an appropriately loud volume and I am always onboard with encouragement to give the finger to your neighbours (for a short period of time and with many before and after the fact niceties + discussion about appropriate times/when people are working) to crank that record.

afaic you’re not listening unless it’s cranked or in headphones

Pursuant to the spirit of the thread I don’t think I understood a lot of dance albums until I heard them in a club, while dancing; and I didn’t understand Black Sabbath until I played in extremely loud in a car, while driving

Definitely any dance music with significant bass makes more sense when it's loud enough to feel it.

I wouldn't say that I wasn't into it before hand, but I went to a Counting Crows concert way back when, and their coming on stage music was the song "Magical Mystery Tour" cranked way the fuck up. It was very intense, way more so than the subsequent concert, and made me appreciate it all over again.

I almost always listen to music on serious recording studio-quality Sony headphones (earbuds are a crime against both music and ears) but I am very much a moderate-volume person. Hate loud music from speakers. Not my idea of fun at all.

House music in the mid-2000s, and specifically stuff like Rej by Ame etc

iirc on 'disintegration' they claimed the music was 'specially mixed' to be played loud

“specially mixed to be played loud SO TURN IT UP” iirc

seeing Mala DJ in a pub on a doof-built sound system probably stopped me from listening to dubstep at a desk or on a bus ever again

Sonic Youth
Post-punk
Bass lines in general and any music that has layers and texture

I’m not sure when this idea first occurred to me, but I remember attending a concert for a band I thought was kind of ok and then realizing “oh, this is what it’s supposed to be like!”
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c. 1986-1990 certain tracks that weren't particular faves took on new life when I'd heard/danced to them in a club.
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Pursuant to the spirit of the thread I don’t think I understood a lot of dance albums until I heard them in a club
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a Counting Crows concert way back when
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seeing Mala DJ in a pub

I don't know that it's just the volume specifically but that does seem to be part of it

anecdotally the best music is in a bar or club or very large indoor/outdoor bar

curious about anyones experience hearing live, quiet music outside of like, a friend playing guitar in the living room sort of thing, though that is cool too

Still not exactly a fan but hearing Killing Joke blasted out of some high quality studio speakers once made me understand the best way to appreciate them, i.e. in some large hall packed to the gills with gloomy goths clad in leather jackets and biker boots, as the music pounds above everyone's heads and Jaz does his best Punker Gabriel impression.

Shoegaze
Almost all forms of electronic music