Why Live Music is 10x Better Than Using Headphones
Fort Collins is better than most towns for hearing music live
Sure, there is something special about laying back, eyes closed, with noise cancelling headphones eliminating any pester and delivering the crisp, clean strum of a guitar and the heart pounding shiver of the bass. Listening to music with headphones takes you to different places.
But, it’s just not enough.
Since the beginning, music has always been about more than just a conglomeration of well played instruments, voice and sets. The fact of the matter is music carries its own culture.
Culture, in a broader sense, is about community. It is finding similar values and desires within a group of people and dwelling in those together.
Music does exactly that.
When you’re standing in a crowd in a concert, you and everyone else are there for one reason: because you enjoy the music this particular band is playing. As humans, we are rarely meant to be alone–despite how introverted we claim to be. So, music offers the perfect mix of surface level and deep friendship. Take a look at your friends for instance. Chances are they listen to similar or the same music as you. Music the center of most parts of our lives, especially around other people. Most of the experiences you share with people include music, which helps set moods for entire situations. This is the surface level conversation starter that transitions into a deeper connection.
Music is a creative industry, so playing live is a real, candid way for artists to showcase who they are. Like any other creative industry, artists perform based on talent and practice. Artists practice for hours before performing in concert. There is a long checklist where musicians work to perfect their work before other people hear it, just like other professionals. But, when on stage, all songs and sets seem spontaneous, and natural.
What is experienced, from the audience’s perspective, isn’t something that has been practiced for hours on end, but something that is presented to them. In other circumstances, artist’s will deliver spontaneous content, and they are able to do this because of their hours of practice and long time experience playing music. Live music is natural and its real.
Think about what music has been from the beginning. It is not just a skill that certain people hold and keep to themselves, but a mechanism to support and encourage camaraderie. There are two parts of music: what the sounds and words mean, and how it makes you feel. Both work independently, but neither can fully work without the other.
That’s where venues come in.
Setting matches the mood of the music and the mood transfers to how you feel. The Aggie is an old theatre with concrete floors to stand, meant to interact with the artist and crowd alike. The Artery is a small back room with lots of character working specifically for the artist, and Surfside 7 is a small bar where crowds can drink and communicate in a vulnerable and intimate manner. Every place is specifically set up to work for the artist and the crowd. It’s a magical duo between the talent and audience that will never change.
Live music is better than using headphones because it creates new things. Artists make music so it can be heard, so why not listen to that music as loud as you can with as many other people as you can–because that is what it’s made for.
So get out there, support your local Fort Collins music scene, see what it has to offer.
Fort Collins music venues: