Art optimization seems to be present in every aspect of entertainment and I definitely feel the fatigue. In the movie world, I used to enjoy superhero movies in the early 2000's. The genre at the time wasn't new, but studios hadn't systematically gotten those movies down to a cold formula. And so things still felt fresh. Now I feel the fatigue of similar types of "charming" characters, similar pacing, similar editing, and similar color grading.
I bet no one here watches the show Survivor (that show is still on?), but I've been watching for nearly two decades. I still enjoy the show but even a reality show is not immune to optimization. There are certain elements of the game that have evolved seemingly to keep the audience more superficially entertained. There was a hidden immunity idol that made for a thrilling moment last season? Let's put in more of them! Let's throw in multiple hidden advantages! Let's swap the tribes multiple times! Let's do everything we can to create surface-level excitement at the expense of conveying a real and genuine experience. I still enjoy the show though because the social dynamics are fascinating enough despite the "optimized" nature of everything else.
This is even true of movie documentaries. Remember "The Beginning", a documentary on the DVD of The Phantom Menace? It was so raw and so fresh. Then, as the prequel movies went on, these documentaries became edited with more and more intention. By the time we got to The Force Awakens, one might get the feeling that everything was great & everybody got along fantastically while making that movie (even though we know that's not the case). Although here, the optimization is not so much about the dopamine, but rather about the most efficient way to use the documentaries as propaganda.
Hell, even YouTube is not immune to this. The most successful YouTubers nowadays have gotten things down to a formula. They'll be talking to the camera with quick cuts as they move from topic to topic. They'll have someone off camera that they have "banter" with to give the appearance of authenticity. They'll insert multiple "calls to action" in their videos (remember to subscribe......hit that subscribe button......rate, comment, and subscribe if you like this video....etc.).
In general, things seem much more fresh and natural when they're just starting out. But it doesn't take long before companies or creators start to embark on that path of "optimization". It's not always bad though. But past a certain threshold (which is different from person to person), it becomes noticeable, tiring, and......unappealing.
Boter wrote:I... feel bad that I couldn't get through it, I got lost after about fifteen minutes. I must be part of the problem 
Will attempt to give it another go, or download the audio and throw it on my phone for a longer drive maybe.
Personally, I'm not all that knowledgeable about music theory or music history, so some parts of that got a little confusing for me. But the main point was still very fascinating. I think he might need to get an editor to tighten up his videos to allow for better audience retention in the future......I kid! Un-optimized Teague is lots of fun to listen to haha. (It sort of reminds me of when everyone used to talk over each other on the early DIF commentaries. It felt so real and raw! Then it became more optimized over time as they realized how things are "supposed to be". There's no escaping optimization. Even when it's not an intentionally calculated move, it still ends up happening.)
