To push it into the social realm, “will *you* like this person’s taste” is also a reasonable proxy for “will *you* like this person.”

I follow a number of people on twitter because of @lotd (lyric of the day), and even though I don’t know them *at all* and *likely never will*, I give credence to their opinions because they have similar musical taste to my own. And I suppose if I *did* have to make a friendships with these people, we already have common ground.

I remember an interview with either Robert Smith or Siouxsie many years back (can’t remember which), talking about the hair thing. The gist was, you find yourself in a strange town, you identify your tribe and you find safety.