Well, I guess I mean bad panning. When it's done badly and draws you out of the experience and makes you realise "Hey, I'm listening to music!" The only thing that could ruin Pinball Wizard is having only one ear playing the acoustic guitar, and having the other ear play the electric guitar that's better suited to be an accompaniment to the acoustic...and having it be really, really loud at that.
See Gratuitous Panning for many, many more examples of that.
Uh... duh? What kind of experience do you have that you forget you're listening to a song?
Besides, you should be aware you're listening to music; that's how a good song/track should work. Forgetting you're listening to a song most likely means it's monotonous, droning, dull, and has probably gone on too long.
Do not spare the feelings of those who would not spare yours.It distracts you from the experience.
edited 15th Jan '14 10:55:28 AM by DrStarky
Put me in motion, drink the potion, use the lotion, drain the ocean, cause commotion, fake devotion, entertain a notion, be Nova ScotianLoudness War/Autotune
When songwriting is sacrificed at the unholy altar of musical masturbation
Hardcore-shouting style vocals. Ruins most hardcore and sludge bands for me.
When metal bands with female singers/members are paraded as fanservice, rather than musical ability (Arch Enemy, Lacuna Coil, every cover from Napalm Records, etc). Obviously this isn't unique to metal.
When the bassist just follows what the rhythm guitars are doing.
Bands with misspellings (Linkin Park) in their name or album titles.
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I think that they mean that it distracts from one's ability to absorb the emotions or ideas that the music is trying to convey. It takes you out of considering the sounds and melodies on their own terms, in the same way that a drop in volume in one headphone might. It is an extra-musical distraction.
Auto-tune seems to be one of those things only a few can do it well and listenable.
A pet peeve of mine: lyrics of the "Think of the Children!" or "Children are our future/save the children" variety.
And, on the flip side, the fact that rock and roll has been simplified down to the point only guitar, bass, keyboard and drums are truly allowed. I mean, whatever happened to the tenor sax in rock and roll?
"They say I'm old fashioned, and live in the past, but sometimes I think progress progresses too fast."I'm really sick of that vocal heavy EDM that's been popular for the last couple of years. I normally wouldn't bother complaining about pop music, but almost everyone I know loves that and it's difficult to avoid. The combination of upbeat thumping music and sappy vocals doesn't work well in my opinion, but obviously millions disagree.
I'm also not very fond of overly slick and modern production in metal or punk, which is why I rarely listen to any albums made after 1995 or so.
edited 18th Jan '14 9:37:43 AM by supergod
For we shall slay evil with logic...i'm kind of sick of these band names where it sounds like they threw together random words (IE, Red Jumpsuit Apparatus, Pop Evil, etc). Granted, this isnt a new thing (in the 90s we had Stone Temple Pilots and Pearl Jam after all) I guess you could argue there is some significance to those names, but darned if i know what it means.
edited 18th Jan '14 9:46:00 AM by Hadley
When vocals (or any instrument, but especially vocals) completely overpower everything else in the song, thus making it a little harder to listen to than normal. Like, you know the OP to Angel Beats and the ED to Clannad? They both have vocals that are too upfront and kinda mess with the dynamics of the whole song. Crescendos don't feel like crescendos when the vocalist sounds really loud throughout.
On a semi-related note, I dislike the Loudness War and the mastering practice of smashing all the parts together and making them louder than everything else. This is what bothers me about most pop music, even those with multiple layers of instruments like the first Attack on Titan opening.
I hate music that sounds too computerized. So effectively dubstep and most of today's pop. I myself also hate when the background overpowers the singer and vice versa. They need to be leveled out. And also guys that sound too much like girls to me. (Justin Bieber, One Direction, even Sleeping With Sirens's Kellin Quinn, etc.) The only one pretty much exempt from the last rule would be Maroon 5 just cuz I'm in love with Adam Levine and the band and while he has a high voice I don't think he sounds like a girl even though some people do.
each day is a drive thru historyYes, that is a bit... stupid.
I'll hide your name inside a word and paint your eyes with false perception.The last verse of Gloomy Sunday. You've got this awesomely depressing song, just perfect in how dark and sad and depressing it is. And then boom, sappy ending about it being Just A Dream. It ruins the song. Makes it unlistenable.
It's tough to pull off an effective Mood Whiplash in songs. Especially going from sad to happy. Going from happy to sad is a bit easier. But Gloomy Sunday is one of the most depressing songs ever written, until that lame final verse.
X-Men X-Pert, my blog where I talk about X-Men comics.Not in the Hungarian version. That was changed when they translated it because they thought that it would be too depressing for English-speaking audiences. Given that the English version was popularised by Billie Holiday, I find the irony especially potent.
I mean, you tack on a happy ending for the woman who sang "Strange Fruit"? What now?
I'll hide your name inside a word and paint your eyes with false perception.
"I'm in a Hurry (And Don't Know Why)" by Alabama, anyone? Great song, but they repeat the chorus about 15 times too many.
Alan Jackson is also guilty of it. He also has a tendency to over-write — "Country Boy" (which I find incredibly sleazy and out-of-character for him) has two bridges, and "Where I Come From" has a completely non-sequitur third verse.

That's panning. It's so everything doesn't sound cluttered in the mix and certain instruments can sound distinct.
Do not spare the feelings of those who would not spare yours.