Is repetitive music a bad thing?

Anything that doesn't fit into other topics goes here!
Not sure where to put this, it's sort of a question for myself and a general discussion thing which I thought I'd get some peoples opinions on. Move it if you want to.

So recently I've started getting back into LMMS and making a few slower, more relaxed songs, and while making these I've realised that melody wise my music is pretty repetitive (copying the same melodies and all that...), BUT, it seems to be different in other ways, by constantly adding and removing new elements, drums, things like that. So I wanted to hear your opinions on it, do you think having repetitive music is a good or bad thing?
What is repetitive music?
What is a good thing?
What is a bad thing?
1 . Music that repeats
2. A thing I like
3. A thing I don't like

Do I win a prize ?

All the music I've ever heard or made, apart from some experimental stuff, is repetitive in some sense. E.g. most songs repeat exactly the same melody for all their verses. Much classical music repeats phrases with some changes. A lot of electronic music uses a limited bass line, sometimes a single note, all the way through. Repetition isn't a problem, only being boring is. Having some variations in instrumentation, rhythm etc usually helps.

Steve
slipstick wrote:
Wed Nov 08, 2017 12:28 pm
1 . Music that repeats
2. A thing I like
3. A thing I don't like

Do I win a prize ?
Well, it's like maieutics, I refer the question to see where it leads ...
Okay:
Alot of Goa trance music, have repetitive beats/melodies. :)
Some of these tracks are sometimes, 10 minutes long and people/fans of Goa trance
actually enjoy them.

In another case, we have commercial generic, Hollywood type music.
If you take out the vocals, you'll notice that in alot of cases, it's the same beat/melody playing
in the background/foreground, looping over and over and over again, sometimes almost continuously.

The trick to making repetitve music enjoyable, is to find a way to make it exciting. :)
Which is not always easy and sometimes tough. :P
But if you are able, to make it sound good, you're in luck. :D

Also, both Slipstick and D.Ipsum, made good points above. :D
It is not a bad thing if it sounds good. You have to make the choice of what sounds good and what doesn't. If you think it is a bit high on the repetitive scale then take a break for a day or two and listen to the whole thing with no skipping around then decide. Try letting others listen and give feedback.
There is another distinction to make: repetition can not be reduced to simple copy and paste.

The copy-paste is the poorest and tiresome form of repeating something, it brings nothing, no new information, it's just identical reproduction.


This:

"Hello, I'm fine. Hello, I'm fine. Hello, I'm fine. Hello, I'm fine. Hello, I'm fine. Hello, I'm fine. Hello, I'm fine. Etc."

is very different from this:

"Hello, I'm fine. I'm going so well that it could not get better. There are days like this where things are better than expected. Etc."
I love repetitive music!
Sometimes less is more and repetitions gives to the music this meditative effect. When I am listening to this kind of music, I feel like there is a shift in your concentration, the attention is moved from the motif to other qualities of the artwork. Somehow, I feel like I am in some kind of the cloud of sound - I am not noticing it, as I am inside - but I would notice its disappearance.

And the trance music - your brain is working in some kind of modes, oscillations - and It's reacting to intense loop patterns and rhythm with production of oxytocin. But there is a whole evolutionary biology explanation for that why we love repetitions.
(more here: http://www.re-compose.com/the-instant-e ... unity.html )

If you have some doubts about the value of repetitive music, please listen/watch this:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=i4MXPIpj5sA - Steve Reich - minimalist composer
or this amazing album:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6hIgBEXuQD8&t=2038s
for me this is a real piece of art.