I Love Recorded Music

I just saw one of my favorite bands (Zero 7) live in Chicago. I must say, there is nothing like the excitement that builds in anticipation waiting for a favorite act to come on stage.

I got there early and was right in front, examining the elaborate variety of instruments laid out across the stage. Half the fun was putting it all together in my head- imagining what was to come!

They only have guest vocalists, and some of their music is quite hard, hard to sing, and they incorporate elaborate orchestrations that I could barely imagine being pulled off live.

I was glad that I picked up their new album the other day so I wasn’t out of the loop when the first five songs were all off the new one! It was a cool show, and fun to see them pull off a lot of what I love on their records before my eyes. I was really intrigued by their drummer- he played one song with a splash cymbal resting on his snare. It really changed the timbre of the drum and was quite dynamic.

All the anticipation and execution combine into what makes a live performance memorable.

However for me, listening to the record is where it’s at!! When I’m driving in my car and can hear every nuance combine, each note lands exactly as intended. On records these days the envelope is often pushed far beyond what any group can just lay down live, and I like that!

Hearing someones aural imagination run wild and manifest as sounds committed to disc and then back to my ears is such a thrill. How far can you go? Far. Very far.

I love being taken there on records and I don’t care if they can’t fully be reproduced live. I was already taken there on the record and I love it!

Of course I’m a big jazz fan, and seeing cats lay down and blow my mind right in front of me is beyond compare, and is it’s own thing entirely. The sport and real-time collaboration of musicians is fantastic and I appreciate it.

I still love hearing sounds taken to the hilt of one’s imagination, and for that I’m thankful for recorded music.