When to give up on an artist?

So I've often been wondering about whether to keep certain albums by various artists that I like and get rid of the rest. I don't like taking up a lot of space in my room and unless I have a special fondness for the artist in question I usually only collect the albums in question, regardless of how far apart they are in chronological terms. So I want to know when you guys decide its OK to do so? Do you only collect certain albums or are you the kind of person to keep a massive collection of albums for one artist simply to appear knowledgable and to show off like I've been tempted to do sometimes? Is it really worth it?

Collecting albums you don't like for the sole purpose of "collecting" is S-T-U-P-I-D. It serves no purpose other than wasting your money and wasting your living space.

I only buy the albums I like ..even by my favorite artist. If I take a chance on an album and it sucks I immediately either trade it off or give it away... I do have some stuff however on both vinyl and cd and some on mp3 and vinyl both..

I like to trim the fat every now & then.

Generally speaking, I'll pull something and take it into work with me for the week. If I can't get through the whole album without either skipping songs or popping it out altogether, I know it's time for it to go. I also tend to take note of artists that I only have one of their albums. If it hasn't inspired me to seek out their other works, maybe it's time to ditch it.

There's always going to be exceptions of course, but in most cases, it's justifiable. Nowadays, I'll rip it to my computer, just in case, to avoid re-buying cds I hastily ditched back in the day. My system may have some flaws, but for the most part I have no regrets with it.

I do like to have a somewhat complete collection of artists (usually skipping the live albums, greatest hits, or anything that will have the same songs as other releases in the collection). Sure, there may be a few "collection fillers" but I don't think they're downright terrible. If I did, I certainly wouldn't hold onto them (one exception, the Peter Criss solo album from 1978,but that's just my KISS obsession).

S.D. wrote:

Collecting albums you don't like for the sole purpose of "collecting" is S-T-U-P-I-D.  It serves no purpose other than wasting your money and wasting your living space.  

Collect E-V-E-R-Y-T-H-I-N-G!  It is fun and goes against S-D!

I'm not OCD, so I'm perfectly happy with holes in my collection. But it's still pretty damn cool to own every studio album by a band with a large catalogue (like Saxon!).

I tend to collect everything if I like the artist. I give up on an artist if I don't like the music they are putting out. For instance, I bought nothing from Queensryche post Empire until their latest album. I have no plans to go back and get the albums I am missing either.

I would assume you can rip everything you have and save it digitally. If you can do that and space is a concern, I would ditch the physical media. Of course, I haven't sold anything in years and I have a giant collection, but the majority of my collection is packed away in boxes in the basement.

When vinyl copies of the albums are way too expensive and often aren't my favorites by that band such as.

Coroner - Grin
Megadeth - Cryptic Writings
Kreator - Endorama
Voivod - The Outer Limits

Don't get me wrong, if I can pick any of these up at a reasonable price I will but I'm not paying £100-200 each for them. I got bootleg copies of Black Sabbath - Forbidden and Cross Purposes because originals were again way to pricey.

With some bands I simply decide that I have enough by a band to satisfy any cravings I may have and tend to not go past a certain point with them Saxon, Maiden, Priest, Overkill, Slayer etc..

MetalGuy71 wrote:

I like to trim the fat every now & then.

Generally speaking, I'll pull something and take it into work with me for the week. If I can't get through the whole album without either skipping songs or popping it out altogether, I know it's time for it to go. I also tend to take note of artists that I only have one of their albums. If it hasn't inspired me to seek out their other works, maybe it's time to ditch it.

There's always going to be exceptions of course, but in most cases, it's justifiable. Nowadays, I'll rip it to my computer, just in case, to avoid re-buying cds I hastily ditched back in the day. My system may have some flaws, but for the most part I have no regrets with it.

I have similar experiences. Sometimes I've bought albums that were "Greatest Hits" and had absolutely nothing worthwhile on them. I think we all know that compilations may or may not really capture an artist's best material, but there are some that are all you need, and others that let you know how bad an artist really was. Some were better than the singles would have you believe.

My method probably has the most in common with MetalGuy71.

If I like the band, I tend to collect everything they put out. Live albums are 50/50 for me since only a handful are worth a damn to begin with.

When it comes to saving space, I'm more likely to find artists I just can't listen to anymore and chuck those. The stuff goes on the player and, if I can't sit through one complete listen, it's time for it to go. There have been enough times where I've picked up a bunch by an artist because "Well, everyone should own this person's stuff" or whatever b.s. I used to convince myself to lay down cash on garbage. Then, given some time to actually LISTEN to the stuff, I realized exactly how lame the material was. No legion of hipsters screaming "influential" will change my mind on that - so off they go.

When it comes to getting rid of stuff though, there have been times where I've just fallen out with a given type of music or band. Oversaturation, boredom, or just moving on to something else stylistically. It happens. The mistake is in tossing their stuff when this happens because that season comes around again. Collective Soul is a prime example of this. I've tossed and re-bought their stuff probably 4 times by now. I'm hoping this is the last go-round because I'm starting to feel stupid for playing out the same scene. Hands down, the worst is when you do this with a band whose material goes out of print in the meantime and becomes obscene expensive to reacquire.

That's like how I am right now with X Japan. I adored the hell out of them when I was 12-13 or something and collected/heard all their stuff. Blue Blood was my first import album. Of course I never hated them, but I did listen to that album consecutively for almost a year and got really burned out but now I am falling in love with them all over again since I got a hold of their first Singles compilation. I never sold their stuff, but I came close because I thought I would only listen to certain types of music from now on. And again, like you said, there's been others where I thought I liked them at first until I realized they did indeed suck. I try to give some artists, especially the forgotten ones, a chance, but some were forgotten for good reason.

I gave up on being a "must have everything" by several bands who were once huge favorites.

I own nothing past HITNF from Queensryche. I do not have to own every live album or comp from most bands. The only reason I'll own either is if it's iconic or has extra material (like 'Live After Death' or 'Alive II').

I generally stick around when bands' sounds evolve if I like it (U2, Def Leppard, Rainbow, Van Halen), but I don't own any records that I out and out just don't like anymore...OR any records I have to justify a few redeeming qualities in (like I was doing w/ later Queensryche).

You mentioned some bands appealing to your tastes as they evolve. I know one band in question like this: Glay. I am a big j-rock fan and being one of the most famous japanese power pop groups in the industry I expect more from them, but despite being technically proficient and having some stand-out tracks worth listening to, I couldn't get into most of their albums after the very first. But then they released One Love in 2001 which was like their sixth or seventh album and I enjoyed it very much as it gave them a much needed change in their style. So for GLAY I just like their 1994 debut and One Love, and have their first two compilations.

There's a difference between liking a band for "that song" or "that album" and being along for the ride.

Not metal, but I'm a big Peter Gabriel fan. I haven't really liked his last few albums - like, at all. I'll still keep them and give them the odd spin from time to time to see if my opinion is changed, but I don't expect they'll ever become favorites. That said, I'll still buy his next album when it comes out.

Ditto for an electronic group I dig, VNV Nation. I haven't always loved what they've put out, but they were my first out of state concert and I have a lot of fond memories of their music and the people whe became very close friends because of it bringing us together. Good stuff. That alone is worth me shelling out 12-13 bucks every time they drop an album, even if it doesn't end up being my favorite.

So, in those cases, I've got no problem being "along for the ride" rather than just stopping in quick and moving along.

There are just some bands that warrant that treatment more than others.

If I don't like an album, I have no desire to own it. Even if it is the only album out of a 20-plus album catalog that I don't own. Makes no sense.

Of course, many times (especially pre-current internet), you bought the new album by your favorite bands on faith. If you didn't like it and it didn't grow on you, then you could sell it/trade it/smash it. Now, of course, you can YouTube or Spotify or whatever to find out if Megadeth's or Judas Priest's new album is worth your time before you buy it.

There's also the financial angle. If I was so broke that buying one CD a month was still the thing, then I'd probably be more into the Youtube/Spotify angle on new releases. But, barring a band totally losing the plot as far as I'm concerned, I'd pick up their new stuff just to toss a couple of bucks their way for the entertainment they've already provided.

I don't travel for shows and I'm not much of a merch/t-shirt guy, so it's the only way these guys get their money from me. If it means I buy a few stinkers, it's still worth it to me to feel they got their mileage out of me for the stuff that really did resonate.