Aaron Turner (Isis, Old Man Gloom, House of Low Culture)
SPB: Can you like a musician whose politics you disagree with?
Turner: There's a great many artists I listen to whose personal ideology, if not directly opposed to my own, is often quite different. If I chose to listen only to music made by folks with a worldview that mirrored my own I would be cutting myself off from a huge spectrum of really interesting and valuable art. If music (and art in general), doesn't serve to broaden or inform my personal perspectives, it then can only serve as entertainment. As much as I like being entertained, some brain/spirit enrichment is necessary for survival and growth - creatively and personally! Reaching outside my comfort zone in my listening habits has provided a pathway into other areas of life, experiences and connections I might have not otherwise made. So, not only can I like music made by people I may not see eye to eye with on every level, it is something I do intentionally, and in turn that decision has changed my life over and over again.
