music is no fun

music is no fun anymore.

you wouldn't know it today, but just 10 or 15 years ago, collecting music -- specifically records -- was fun. it was a hobby, and it took a significant amount of effort and funding.

now music...well, they can't give it away.

it's not because music is no good anymore. i'd argue that pop music has never been as good as it is today. there's seemingly no limit to what can be released, no limit to the number of artists or tracks that can get heard, and any genre can attain a respectable following, thanks to social networking being integrated into publishing and retail outlets.

but all that might cause the no-fun, too.

because it used to be that we'd learn of a new band or a new song in one of three ways: on the radio, on tv, or a chance overhearing at a record store. we tended to hear a lot of the same thing from radio and tv (whoever was popular in one, would be in another), and so coming across something a little outside mainstream pop or rock was pretty thrilling.

finding that something often took some research: if the radio didn't announce after the track played, you ended up asking around, humming or singing what you remember of the song to your friends and associates. then you'd scribble down the artist or title, and run to the record store before you lost the scrap of paper. the clerk would have no idea who you were asking about, so you'd go searching the tracks and not find it. off to the newsstand to read billboard charts, or browse a music or record collector's magazine, hoping to find an article that mentioned your new discovery.

take an example: pet shop boys' "euroboy". the track was rumored to exist for several months, but you probably didn't really know anybody who heard it directly, let alone had a copy....so the track remained just out of reach, until PSB released it on a B-side CD collection. and you were thrilled to finally have it, own it, ready to play whenever you wanted.



if by chance you could locate the physical record of an unreleased song, you handed over your wad of crumpled bills to the not-helpful clerk and drove home at 80 miles an hour eagerly anticipating the moments...

...the moments of slicing the cellophane wrap off the album cover...

...carefully bowing the sleeve just a bit so there was no chance of the virgin vinyl from getting scratched by microscopic dust particles inside the packaging...

...gently-oh-so-gently lining up the record with the turntable spindle, keeping the record in a perfectly horizontal position so no edge would hit the turntable before the other...

...bringing the arm and stylus over the record and slowly lowering it into position just off the first groove...

...waiting for that dull PLOP when the needle found the groove, which was also a signal for how high the volume was...

...and finally hearing the opening chords or whatever of the song you've worked so hard to find.

rapture.

that was owning music. you had a physical property in your hands that you could read, listen to, stare at, and display proudly to your friends.

today, holy-moly, music is being marketed everywhere by everyone: radio, tv, blogs, phone carriers, GAP, rev fred phelps...everyone! finding a song of which you only heard a snippet can be pretty easy: google the lyrics, hold your shazam-enabled iphone next to the speaker, etc.

and then instantly download it. nobody will ever know you have it; the artwork won't catch your eye as you walk past your hi-fi; and technically, you can't share it with anyone without the threat of a lawsuit, even though there's nothing THERE.

where's the fun in that?

but old habits die hard. when i used to spend weekend nights (and paychecks) combing record store racks, i now scan music blogs instead. youtube has become my best friend with whom i can reminisce over long-gone tv appearances of my favorite bands. i join fan clubs for a few weeks or years (or a few minutes) just to feel like i know everything i need to know about my latest obsession. and i'll be content for a few days...but the obsession generally doesn't last, because it was too effortless. i haven't earned it. so the hunt begins again the next week when i resume scanning to find my new latest obsession.

still...i share with you what i find most obsessive from one week to the next. i hope it thrills you for at least the 3 and a half minutes it thrilled me.