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Despite misleading first glance impressions of those who experienced it first-hand, the discussion in this episode (IRC and emails included, of course) is quite revealing and profound upon reflection.

It interesting to see the strong emotions that music evokes in people; this much is a truism.
But then often in our anarchism-centric discussions we turn very "rational" and turn to examine the content of the lyrics, the effects of the lyrics on the listeners, the definition of anarchy, the definitions of musical genres, the origins and trajectory of styles, and other minutia, all while getting very invested and heated about the particularities of each of the points and counter-points being made by the interlocutors.

A song (a hymn or anthem), a flag, a place, a few stories (myths) are all it takes (it seems at times, + other ingredients, like genocide, proselytism etc.) to make a meme of a (national or sub)culture with a strong enough emotional pull to make people kill and die for it. Sometimes we minimize the importance, thinking of failed subcultural scenes, but in the IRC someone mentioned Wagner, and there's a line of thought that can be discussed there.

Perhaps what was evident in the conversation was how anarchist do not currently share a common music referent as a sentimental and cultural anchor or point of unity. How many wildly different types of music can evoke the same type of intense feeling and attachment to the idea of anarchy or anarchism, and how treasured that is by each to the point of defending it ferociously. This makes sense, as anarchy is not a nation, nor a national project, and we value individuality and diversity.
There's not a single defining musical aspect that should be common to all of us as anarchist, but music does link us to a place and time and people