Every song is permanent.

Last night[1], I sat on my floor and listened to a FRESH TRACK by Slauson Malone 1, the supremely sought after sonic sculptor and producer from Los Angeles, California. They like to try new things. The song was playing – it was ‘New Joy’- and I was drawing.

I received a text from my friend and fellow Slauson Malone 1 fan, JB.

JB:

The song is Three Minutes, Sixteen Seconds… I listened to it… I saved it to my Spotify Library… I did all the stuff I do when I LOVE a song. But, I had no response to poor JB.

What did I do wrong? I’m supposed to

 respond with what I think? Of the song?

I don’t even know where to begin answering that. I guess I could say “I liked it” or maybe even “I loved it.” But that seems a tad lame, doesn’t it?

It’s a song. It’s a piece of art.

It’s not meant to be simply categorized into “liking”, “disliking”, or “loving.” Not about giving it an “out-of-5” star

rating[2].

It’s not meant to be diminished into a thought to be thought about[3].

When I listen to music, I try my best to listen intentionally. However, as a 17-year-old senior in high school living in a relatively fun and time-consuming city like Seattle, there are so many distractions buzzing around and around my head. It can become difficult to do things intentionally.

Jasper Marsalis[4]is also buzzing, but in my ear, telling me to “Call [him] bipolar, [he’s] a sun, solar”?? What am I to make of this, and how could I possibly comprehend and indulge in this lyricism while I do my English 101 homework??!

Seems a daunting task.

So, as both a requirement and a self-inflicted exploration, I disguised myself and went to find and “interview”[5]“fellow”[6]“hall-wanderers”[7]. Almost instantaneously I passed by Elena Matza, 12th grader, and

then a few seconds later, Devon Nobil, 11th grader.

In my conversation with Devon and Elena, I asked them in what circumstances they find themselves listening to music. I asked them if music was more often in FOREGROUND, listening to music for the sake of listening to music, intentionally, or in the BACKGROUND of another activity. Both said that music in the background is more common.

However, both also said that whenever music is the FOREGROUND, it is a more “valuable experience.”

If music as the foreground is so valuable, why is it less often the case for our listening habits? Some might say they don’t have enough time. Delphine Lach (12) says she “simply doesn’t have enough time” to intentionally listen to music.

I am here to say, MAKE TIME.

According to a 2023 article by headphonesaddict.com, the average person listens to music “961 hours and 10 minutes per year”; about 3.07 hours per day; about 19.19% of a waking day. That is almost a fifth of your day, every day.

So, with the math completed, we can reasonably say that music takes up a nice slice of our daily pie.

Music is meant to take up our time, and we owe it our time, as it was most likely painstakingly created by someone who loves their craft.

As you sit and listen, close your eyes. A song is a meditative practice, one that will aid you for a long time. Like I said before, every song is permanent.

So, take some time out of your day, listen to a song twice in a row, and let it absorb you, and maybe let yourself absorb it. When we don’t give music our all, we run the risk of not appreciating[8]it to its fullest.

I say that risk is not worth it. With our attention spans already tanking, and pop music lacking any artistic value, treating music like something that belongs in the background is harmful to contemporary culture and totally NOT Zen!

Zev

[1]It is currently October 3, 2023

[2]I say this and it makes me a humongous hypocrite. I use the website rateyourmusic.com daily.

[3]Pretentious

[4]Slauson Malone 1’s Alter-Ego/TRUE identity

[5]More like converse casually, lackluster.

[6]When I said I was in disguise I meant that you will never catch me “hall-wandering”, I like to respect the halls and classes in session during the school day. I acknowledge that “hall-wandering” is frowned upon by both admin and students alike, as Lincoln High School is an academic environment and not one to be tampered.

[7]See footnote 6

[8]If you made it this far in the article, I urge you to come to Music Appreciation Club, run by yours truly, in Mr. Campbell’s room during lunch on Wednesdays.