Musings

2. First Taste of Music

"Can you believe the first concert I went to was over two years ago now?" I flicked through my mind, bewildered as to not only how it had been so long, but that I'd only been to one festival since that.

My cousin just smiled back at me, basking in the memory of watching Art vs. Science play an unbelievable show at Enmore Theatre.

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I remember it vividly. Lasers cutting through the smoky air in vivid blues and yellows, a crowd sweating and jumping up in a shared wave of exhilaration, the bass reverberating so concretely through my chest and my ribs as if it was trying to shake my soul from my body.

The whole night I was anticipating their playing of Hollywood. Don’t get me wrong, I loved their new sounds, but the original stuff had something snazzy to it. And there it was, in my ears, in my mind as I remembered the beat and the lyrics and the most climactic moment of the song.

Up until that point, I don’t think I had had a chance to truly appreciate music. For years upon years I’d dreamt of going to festivals but had to smother those thoughts for the simple truth that I was just too young. And then it all hit me this one night - loud music, talented musicians, a bunch of hungry spectators waiting to let the sounds devour them. I think for that one night we all surrendered ourselves to a freakish abandon of inhibitions.

I knew I had been missing out on something so special for so long.

Music just has this power. You know what I’m talking about, don’t you? It just filters through your eardrums and finds its way into your bloodstream. It flows throughout your body in vibrations and motions and almost hypnotises you. There is a divinity in music, especially in its ability to bring together so many kinds of people for one moment in time.

Something that gets me every time is the bass. It thumps and invites the physical building to join in with the sweaty groove of the grungy lovers bouncing along to their favourite musical acts. The building acts to encapsulate us all in a transient union, bringing together bunches of people who may never interact with each other again after the night is out. For just a couple of hours, we can forget any shit and just feel. We can let our bodies do the talking and give our minds a rest. No, forget that, the music means we don’t have to let our bodies talk. No talking is required; it’s just you and the sound and how it makes you feel.

But you know the thing I love most about music? It’s the lack of inhibition it provides me. This first concert was my earliest taste of letting go. I never knew how to give in to my true desires until I found loud music and a room full of likeminded people.

It’s like…

… you just close your eyes. One, two.

Darkness – flashes of a lightshow play against your eyelids, breaking the black vision…

… your body senses its way through the crowd. It picks a spot to just move.

Sway to the left. Draw ‘number eights’ with your hips. Punch the air on your right. Kick your feet as hard as you can. Jump into the damn sky. Throw your body against strangers. Let your head drop back as you open your eyes again.

I don't think I have any words left to explain what is happening to me right now, it feels euphoric. Earphones in and I'm almost feeling as exhilarated as I do when I'm in a crowded building with loud music. Almost.