Creeping Up to the Musical Abyss

by
28 June 2006

We live in a time of abundance. Despite all those who bemoan the death of radio and other traditional music outlets, it’s plain to see that our musical options keep growing. I have satellite radio, an iPod, an internet download service, and a hard drive that, as of today, has 14,667 songs on it—any of which can be called up instantly with a few keystrokes.

Yet, being overwhelmed with options can actually be a bad thing. Studies have shown that making even simple decisions can be a stressful if too many choices are involved. If you’ve ever spent five minutes at the grocery store squinting at labels in bad fluorescent lighting trying to figure out which of the thirty-six different varieties of jam to buy, you know what I’m talking about.

Confronted with the array of music to which I have immediate access, I’m often so anxious when listening to music that if I don’t calm myself down, I’ll end up listening to only 30 seconds of 20 different songs before I settle down and take in an album.

Sometimes, it can all be just a bit much. But the big upside here is that when we consume voluminous amounts of music, we hear new things constantly—and not just stuff we haven’t heard before. We tease out new connections, strange influences, and personal meanings in music that are completely unexpected.

One of my greatest joys is being able to take advantage of this abundance; I find not just new music to enjoy, but also learn to appreciate music that I was once closed to. I am able to reinterpret old favorites or understand the significance of how a piece of music relates to our broader culture.

It is my hope that I can do all of these things; to creep up to the Abyss that is CHUCK KLOSTERMAN and jet back to Coolsville. There’s a lot of music out there that for whatever reason is unknown, unappreciated, and underrated, and I hope we eventually get to hear it all.

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