Aspect: Power

POWER


A sweet word, no doubt, and one that applies to music in staggeringly versatile ways. It's been this way as long as we've HAD music but most of the time one doesn't really think about.

At least, I don't think about it that often. But then again, how many times have you been to a show or been in your room listening to a song you've never heard before, and experienced that rush? You know the one I'm talking about: your skin tingles and your breath is taken away as you realize that whatever the artist is doing, you REALLY dig it.

Sometimes it's really straight-forward: your hair could pretty much be standing on end with the sheer energy of it all. You want to pound your fist in the air, jump around, dance 'til you drop, and scream with an exhilaration normally reserved for roller coaster drops.

The party's in your head - thanks, ears.


Other times, what you hear will strike you dumb - there's nothing to say that could possibly sweeten the moment, and your stammering and searching for appropriate comments would only sour it, so why bother? It's the first time you heard your favourite piano piece, guitar solo or breakdown beat, and from that point on those feelings in the silence will be a tangible part of your memories.

Then there's the rage. Surely, no other emotion has been more mocked in music (a shout-out to the emo, the death-metal, the gangsta rap, if you will). Yet, despite all the comedy surrounding it, rage/hate/anger remains one of the most powerful songwriting emotions at the artist's disposal. It's shot bands to the top of the charts, and captured audiences in massive orchestral arrangements.

It would be impossible to say to yourself that "No, I've never been angry, not ONCE" - that universal darkness is what appeals to us, draws us in and makes us relate to whatever it is we're listening to. Sure, not always do we feel the need to listen to this stuff, but sometimes when you're feeling dark, Linkin Park's "Crawling" is just what the doctor ordered.


Directly the opposite, some music puts us at peace easier than anything else ever could. A lot of classical falls in here, as well as smooth jazz and pop ballads. The song is just so beautiful and calming you feel like life could stop here, and you'd be ok with it.

Other stuff is so peaceful - it makes you relax SO much - that you just want to lie down and sleep. This stuff should be handed out MEDICALLY; seriously, the number of people that say they have trouble sleeping clearly listen to the wrong stuff when they're brushing their teeth. Either that, or they may ACTUALLY need pills to get the job done... still, I'd try the non-invasive method first, wouldn't you?

Finally, there are pieces of music that pull some serious Matrix shit on you - the "free your mind", and you feel like if you go out there and give the effort, you can do anything. They're uplifting, energizing and fun - you don't want to jump around so much as hop on a boat and get away from all the mundane baloney you have to put up with from day to day.


On that note, get out there and have some fun. Take your iPod (or whatever) with you if you want, and expose yourself to something you haven't before - or something you haven't done in a long time. Who knows? Maybe you'll make some new memories for yourself, and whenever you hear that song, you'll remember them - and remember ME, for convincing you to do it!

Everyone likes credit; give me some.

- Solace is powerful food for thought