My least favorite question ever. Do you want my favorite band, the band I think is “the best”, the band I listen to the most, my desert island pick, or my nostalgia pick?!
For most of my life my answer was the Beatles, but recently I’ve fashioned my answer to include “my favorite ACTIVE band,” which leads to a more interesting conversation.
Trying to think of the edgiest non-Beatles, non-Stones band I could name for my co-workers and still have all of them know who I'm talking about while also shutting down the discussion. Maybe like Tom Petty & The Heartbreakers. Nobody's gonna pick a fight with you over Petty.
@scotthilk Thought about Zep but occasionally you'll run into the random person who wants to go on about Bonham or rant about Page or whatever. Nobody is showing up to debate you about Benmont Tench.
I mean my answer genuinely is the Beatles and I usually get “that’s boring” or “huh, that’s safe.” When I do answer active band which is usually a follow up and start talking about Punch Brothers, I get more interesting responses sometimes the blank stare, sometimes “what the fuck is progressive bluegrass?”
I typically go "Talking Heads" when faced with a question like this, even though the reality is probably more subtle than that since I like such a wide range of music.