This Is What It Sounds Like
What the Music You Love Says About You
Ratings12
Average rating3.9
Legendary record producer-turned-brain scientist explains why you fall in love with music. 'Extraordinary insights about music, emotion and the brain...An instant classic' Daniel Levitin, author of This Is Your Brain on Music This Is What It Sounds Like is a journey into the science and soul of music. It's also the story of a musical trailblazer who began as a humble audio tech in L.A. to become Prince's chief engineer for Purple Rain and one of the most successful female record producers of all time. Now an award-winning professor of cognitive neuroscience, Dr Susan Rogers takes readers behind the scenes of record-making and leads us to musical self-awareness. She explains that everyone possesses a unique 'listener profile', shows how being musical can mean actively listening, and encourages us to think about the records that define us. Lively and illuminating, this book will refresh your playlists, deepen your connection to artists, and change the way you listen to music. 'Superb... this book can show you how to be a better listener' Times Literary Supplement 'A provocative blend of studio stories and fascinating neuroscience' Alan Light, author of Let's Go Crazy: Prince and the Making of Purple Rain 'Fizzing with energy and insight...a crucial addition to the canon of music must-reads' Kate Hutchinson
Tags
Reviews
Popular Reviews
Reviews with the most likes.
Music + neuroscience + memoir? This book was made for me.
I read this incredibly slowly because the author recommends certain songs for you to listen to as examples to learn more about listener profiles and various aspects of music, and it would always distract me by making me want to listen to more music. But this was great. I learned so much in every chapter. Since starting it, I have listened to music differently. I do think the subtitle of the book is very misleading though; the book doesn't go into “what your music taste says about you” at all. It tells you a lot of interesting information about how to figure out your own music taste and what makes you fall in love with a song. There's also just a lot of cool things about how listening to music works in general.
9/10 because some of the ancedotes and random things the author included were either unnecessary or repetitive.
If you've ever wondered why a specific record gives you goosebumps, but has no effect whatsoever on your friend, this is the book for you. Rogers, who engineered records for Prince, Barenaked Ladies and many others, describes the seven key attributes of a given record (authenticity, realism, novelty, rhythm, melody, lyrics and timbre) and provides examples for the extremes of each, so you can develop your own “listener profile.” She lost me a little when she got all science-y about our brain's various areas and neural pathways, but considering she started college in her 40s and is now a professor of cognitive neuroscience, she's allowed to show off a bit. There is a website associated with the book that has links to all of the songs that are mentioned; check it out to listen to old and possibly new favorites.
