I am not a completist at critical music listening as the word suggests, but I am truly “a collector who attempts to collect an example of every music sub-type in a particular genre”.
However, I am a completist as I try to complete whatever I set myself out to do, and I try to do it well. Impatient, obsessed and tirelessly, I chase my critical music listening passion throughout my everyday life. I surf record collecting websites & physical record shops across Europe (yes they exist!) almost daily. My goal is spurred forward because I am always creating & adding to a list of all the music that I intend to buy. My list may never fully be completed, or not within a certain time frame anyway, as even I have boundaries.
For every CD on that list (YES, I buy CD’s – don’t go there, it’s for another blog), I’m always buying what’s considered the best version, sonically. I spend hours on Steve Hoffman's Music Forums and on different streaming services. One huge limitation of streaming today is the fact that we’re almost never given all available options for CDs. Take ‘The Doors’ for example, the versions available from Dunhill Compact Classics and later DCC Compact Classics mastered by the legendary mastering engineer Steve Hoffman are second to none. I believe that the majority of listeners can compare and easily understand why they’re so popular among audiophiles but they’re never available on streaming services. That’s one of the main reasons I keep buying CDs.
The Miles Davis CDs from MFSL are another perfect example. Not available on streaming services, but a huge step up in quality. I’m trying to explain that I’m very fond of creating lists and completing lists, but I am definitely not a completist by nature. I will tell you how it started and how it changed my way of listening to and buying music completely.