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My name is Beth and I am a music junkie.
I had to quit my subscription to Rolling Stone Magazine because I am a bit of a pack rat. Instead of passing on the issues when I was finished with them like a sane person might do, I would hold on to them - I might forget something, or want to reread them later! Um, yeah. Because I have an immense amount of time on my hands. With my two jobs(!) So rather than add to the complication of my life by adding on several years' worth the magazine subscription to the clutter, I got rid of those pesky magazines and the subscription. I probably only cared for about a third or fourth of the music recommended there, anyway, but it was a way to find out about new (and old) talents I wouldn't have otherwise heard of, and I have missed that aspect.
And then I discovered Public Radio. Sick of the same crap (or good) rock played over and over again on the radio, I searched the stations for something good, and settled briefly on a "light" station until I realized they played the same songs all of the time, too. And finally I remembered how my dad (the source of all coolness) always played the most interesting things when I used to ride back and forth with him to work. And would display the mildest sort of dismay when mom and I would unwittingly talk over a story that was interesting to him at the time. Or how I'd look out the window as a kid and watch him sit in the car to finish a story or a song before he'd turn of the engine and come in after work. I finally got interested in knowing what was so interesting to him - after all, he introduced me to Pat Benatar, Kate Bush, Kansas, Alan Parsons, David Bowie, Loreena McKennitt, and do I need to go on? So I hunted for the station (89.3 here in Acadiana) and started listening.
NPR Music has more than filled the gap in my musical journey; it has expanded it - I've rediscovered my love for opera and Mozart in Danielle de Niese, found new indie artists like Taken by Trees (technically I already knew of her but the article reinforced my interest), or discovered a band from the 70's that I hadn't yet experienced (Big Star). And that's just this week. Did you know that every week they feature different artists' entire albums that you can listen to online? It's amazing to me that there's so much variety on one station - and that's not all you get there, there's news and human interest stories and I find that overall they are more interested in telling stories than forwarding a left or right agenda, which is nice.
I had to quit my subscription to Rolling Stone Magazine because I am a bit of a pack rat. Instead of passing on the issues when I was finished with them like a sane person might do, I would hold on to them - I might forget something, or want to reread them later! Um, yeah. Because I have an immense amount of time on my hands. With my two jobs(!) So rather than add to the complication of my life by adding on several years' worth the magazine subscription to the clutter, I got rid of those pesky magazines and the subscription. I probably only cared for about a third or fourth of the music recommended there, anyway, but it was a way to find out about new (and old) talents I wouldn't have otherwise heard of, and I have missed that aspect.
And then I discovered Public Radio. Sick of the same crap (or good) rock played over and over again on the radio, I searched the stations for something good, and settled briefly on a "light" station until I realized they played the same songs all of the time, too. And finally I remembered how my dad (the source of all coolness) always played the most interesting things when I used to ride back and forth with him to work. And would display the mildest sort of dismay when mom and I would unwittingly talk over a story that was interesting to him at the time. Or how I'd look out the window as a kid and watch him sit in the car to finish a story or a song before he'd turn of the engine and come in after work. I finally got interested in knowing what was so interesting to him - after all, he introduced me to Pat Benatar, Kate Bush, Kansas, Alan Parsons, David Bowie, Loreena McKennitt, and do I need to go on? So I hunted for the station (89.3 here in Acadiana) and started listening.
NPR Music has more than filled the gap in my musical journey; it has expanded it - I've rediscovered my love for opera and Mozart in Danielle de Niese, found new indie artists like Taken by Trees (technically I already knew of her but the article reinforced my interest), or discovered a band from the 70's that I hadn't yet experienced (Big Star). And that's just this week. Did you know that every week they feature different artists' entire albums that you can listen to online? It's amazing to me that there's so much variety on one station - and that's not all you get there, there's news and human interest stories and I find that overall they are more interested in telling stories than forwarding a left or right agenda, which is nice.
Listening to NPR is reminding me of how good it felt to attend Festival Internationale in Lafayette, this year - it was so thrilling to be surrounded by these different cultures, to experience these bands and musicians from all over the country and to realize that there's so much more out there than we get exposed to by sticking to the mostly formulaic products of mainstream music and television industry.
I know I sound like a big commercial for NPR, but I kind of love that you can get exposed to so much culture in one station. So if you have a musical gap in your life, check them out! And if you like them enough to listen to them regularly, consider donating. I don't think there are enough programs out there that enrich our life - entertainment should really be a means, not an end, and they keep that in mind here.
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