music Posts 📝

A few weeks ago, I purchased a vinyl record from Of Monsters and Men. The record is yet to be released but I am eager for it to arrive. I bought the record because the band has turned 10 and I appreciate their music, so much so that I (at least try) to play a number of their songs on my keyboard. Their music captures my attention unlike most other bands I have listened to. There is only one problem: I bought a vinyl record without owning a record player.

The primary ways in which I discover new music are: (i) by looking for other songs written by artists who have written songs I like; (ii) looking for artists who have done collaborations with artists whose music I love and; (iii) using Spotify to look for songs that might interest me. Spotify shines when it plays a random song next. I tend to just scroll through lists of songs in playlists but when Spotify plays a song automatically I tend to find something new. This does not always work, but thus far I have found so many great songs by listening to Spotify. This list is not exhaustive but indicative of my primary ways of finding new songs and artists.

A few years ago, I started watching clips of The Late Show with Stephen Colbert, a "late night talk show" broadcast in the US. Jon Batiste and Stay Human play music to accompany the show, sometimes getting involved with what Stephen is talking about. Batiste is well known for playing the melodica, which is featured in his hands throughout many of the clips I have seen where he is present on the camera. The melodica is a keyboard with a mouthpiece. You must blow into the mouthpiece and play a key in order to make a sound. For years, I thought: what a cool instrument. There was a certain lure to the melodica; it called out to me moreso than most other instruments.

When I see a piano that is unplayed, I feel jarred. An instrument from which you can make music, quiet. I wonder: there could be music here, but there isn't. There's nobody there to play. At the same time, I feel like the sound of music may cheer people up; surprise them, make them think, give them a little moment of joy. That, and my love of playing piano, is why I like to play music in public, at pianos that you will often find in train stations and airports.