Ask an Audio geek

[Kosh]

Do you consider certain genres repulsive opposed to others?

The short answer...  Yes         
          
I don't care for newer pop music.  It feels narcissistic and shallow.  I've also never liked RAP nor Country.   I grew up on a Midwestern dairy farm so that probably explains never getting into RAP.  My musical taste comes from four different periods in my life.         

60's/70's - My mother was a big Beatles, Stones, and Doors fan.          
70's/80's - My aunt introduced me to new wave.  Blondie, B52's, Talking heads.    
90's/00's - Buddies introduced me to metal and industrial.  Metallica, Megadeth, NIN, and Nirvana.     
00's to present -Rockabilly, Jazz, Big Band, old blues.  I've regressed musically from before I was born.

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Do you think there's anything to the idea that vinyl records have a "special quality" of sound, which in some way makes them superior?

Yes there is...  There are two reasons why.         
     
1) Vinyl sounds different because of the way it's created, and the way it's extracted.     
       
The cartridge of a turntable is in some ways like a musical instrument.  They have very different tonal qualities based on manufacturer, stylus type, and cartridge type.   A MM (moving magnet) will have a different tonal quality than an MC (moving coil) cartridge.  Then factor in stylus types such as conical, elliptical, and shibata. They determine how the stylus rides in the groove which has a determination on tone quality.  Many higher end cartridges use a boron cantilever instead of aluminum which is stiffer.  The cantilever attaches the stylus to the cartridge.  

We haven't even discussed the actual turntable and tonearm yet.
  
2) Poorly mastered modern recordings.          
        
A LOT of new music is mastered terribly.  Google "Lowdness War" and you'll get a good idea of what I'm talking about.   For the most part, vinyl does not suffer from the loudness war due to limitations inherent in vinyl.  You can only record vinyl so loud.  If you go past a certain point, the record lathe will cut into the adjacent track and ruin the master.

There is crappy vinyl masters as well.  Some record companies in order to cash in on the resurgence of vinyl have simply used their CD masters to make vinyl records.  The best vinyl records are mixed from the original source tapes.