How We Show Our Music That We Really Care

A friend pointed out the other day that I don't listen to music very often. It's true, I don't. Sometimes I have music on in the car, mostly as a means of subduing my road rage, my predilection towards screaming, honking, and the giving of the middle finger. [Video blog idea: I keep a camera on me at all times in the car and then edit down a "Best of Carrie's road outbursts" each night.]

Occasionally, I will be focused on the songs; I'll turn up the volume until my ears ache and the car interior seems to swell with the pressure and intensity of the sounds. (I've done this lately with Lightning Dust's upcoming album Infinite Light, one that I'll surely revisit later on these very pages.) But for the most part, I keep the stereo volume low in the car, barely perceptible even. I've had some people complain that it's more annoying to have music at a low volume than to have none at all. Apparently, I've learned how to tune it out.

At home--where I have more CDs, Mp3s and LPs than I know what to do with--I often choose to have talk radio droning on and on, from which I glean bits of news and information. Except I do turn the radio off when Portland's strapped-for-cash local NPR affiliate, OPB, airs "The World" at 10 AM and then again at 1 PM. In my opinion, this brand of repetition should be reserved for favorite songs and movies, and for the phrase "Who's a good dog?"

So, if I'm not listening to music incessantly, why should I claim that music is paramount in my life? It is, I promise you. And anyone who knows me would verify this fact as certifiable. I think about music constantly, sometimes more than I'd like; I write about it, I engage in friendly musical debates, and I take silly quizzes in order to prove my level of expertise (to myself, mostly, no one else cares).

Every once in a while I'll pull records off the shelves in order to have a personal listening party consisting of favorite and forgotten songs; I'll tug the LPs out with such fervor you'd think there was a golden ticket hidden in between the sleeves. Yet I don't roam the streets with headphones on, delivering to me a constant stream of sound, and my neighbors have never had to come over and tell me to "turn it down."

Maybe it's that I'm just not into blatant public displays of affection or PDA with music. I mean, come on, we don't have to be grabbing each others' asses or making out for everyone to know we're in love.

Where would you rank the importance music in your life? Do concerts ever take financial precedence over something else you'd like to buy? Do you love music more than your family or your job? Would music make your top 5?

An example of someone's Top 5 Loves:

1. George Foreman Grill
2. NHL
3. Mom
4. Husband
5. Music

In other words, how do you show music that you really care?

6:40 PM ET | 06-30-2009 | permalink

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