Which teen were you?

I used to read some medical book my parents had, when I was a teen. I was trying to work out what was mentally wrong with me. I also used to love reading books which contained words I didn't know the meaning of, it seemed pointless reading otherwise, and so I used to keep a thesaurus with me for that. Definitely to songs on a loop, and I still do. I try harder now to not try and get people to truly listen and understand how emotive the instruments were, or the imagery in the lyrics, I treat it as my little secret.

I was very much the 'read the encyclopaedia for fun' type throughout my childhood and into my teens. Also dictionaries and atlases etc.

I did hit that 'listen to the same song on a loop' stage but not until my twenties, when I first got my own place. I must have been a late developer!

So do mine. I tend to have a batch of songs that I wil play over and over 

My Spotify Playlists tend to stick to the same songs; or different track, from the same album.

I was kind of both, I would read everything I could find on any topic I was interested in but I would also listen to the same songs over and over

Still do to be fair 

I listened to the same album over and over, because that was back in the days before we had CDs to loop songs.  I always liked the way an album felt like going on a journey.

I rarely listen to music these days.

Me too! I usually scored quite high too, although occasionally I was unconvinced by their definition of a word...

I used to do that too!

I think both depending on how I felt.  I still play some songs over and over.

I was the encyclopedia one. We had an aunt who subscribed to reader's digest for us. I used to do a quiz which I think was called' It pays to enrich your word power.'

I never knew the name of that Genre; until 'Six' by Mansun created a renaissance in Prog. As a kid, I found Pink Floyd tracks long and tedious; now I can listen to epic tracks, better. It was a process of Baby Steps.

The thought of hearing the same song ad infinitum fills me with dread.

At Uni, in the Blocks of Residence, I had to endure a girl playing 'Big Mistake' by Natalie Imbrulgia on repeat. Did my head in.

Annie I’m not your daddy has to be the only song with the word, onomatopoeia in it! Unfortunately Vienna only got to no.2, “Shaddap Your Face" beat  it to no.1. A true classic!!!

I used to play the music video so much on the video jukebox at the fancy restaurant our parents would sometimes take us to. That and the music video for the invisible man. Of course my dad would always insist on putting on Annie I'm not your daddy after. ... And Vienna.

When I was 18, I was introduced to Kraftwerk's "The Man Machine". 

That "we are the robots" track on headphones just GRIPPED me.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-wop47G2qeY

I have the same problem with myself! Around 2008 someone in Doctor Who fandom once said (regarding my finding the programme in the 90s when it was off-air and disliking a lot of the contemporary series) that I was like someone who followed an Indie band, then accused them of selling out when they went mainstream and popular, and there's probably some truth to that, at least for how I was back then.

Same here! I did like the mass market pop as a little girl but as a teenager I dived head-first into rock music and never came out again. I do feel like subcultures attract more autistic people, though not just us- the majority of my goth and metalhead friends are neurodivergent in one way or another.

Martin said:

If anything was hugely popular, I immediately disliked it.

I can relate to this! I honestly don't know if I am just such a contrarian that I dislike popular things *because* they are popular or if I just have different tastes to the majority. I suspect a mix of both!

Up to around 14 years of age the first. After that, both.

I don't know if this is a typical autistic thing, but clothing fashion and mass-market 'Top of the Pops' music I found to be a very definite turn off. If anything was hugely popular, I immediately disliked it. However, I eventually found more cerebral and niche music and became obsessed with it. I was hooked by 'Yes', 'Genesis', 'Pink Floyd' and 'Led Zeppelin'. My musical tastes have broadened massively since, but it was the 'Progressive Rock' groups who 'turned me on'.

Excellent!