Musical Mood

I sell advertising for an independent rock radio station. I really like the station. It was listening to the station that I discovered that they were looking for sales people. The station is very heavy. It is one of the heaviest in the country. Even though I really like most of the music played, I was finding that I was more and more on edge. I also noticed that when I was most on edge it was when I was listening more to the station.

So, last week-end I started to listen to the music on my phone. I had not done this in close to six months. Even though I'm a rock guy, I like a lot of different music and within about thirty minutes of listening to some different music, I found my mood changing. There was some Neil Young, Mumford and Sons, and Scott Nolan. All of these amazing performers are not what we play at the station. I found myself smiling and singing along.

Music can have a profound effect on mood. It gets deep into you and makes you feel different. It can explain how you feel or make you feel different. It makes us different.

There are songs that will get you jacked up for an encounter. There are songs that will make you feel romantic. There are songs that will make you smile and sing along. Everyone has a song or two that will take you back to a moment.

I don't want to abandon listening to the radio. I still enjoy the station but I needed to remember that we do what we do to get the results we want. However, we don't play everything I like and I shouldn't abandon that music I like.

I love a good party song, the ones that make you smile and sing along. I like to calm down with some Neil Young. There are even some country tunes that get my feet tapping. I have all of this on my phone. 

I enjoy music and it may have taken me a while but I realized that I should enjoy all of the music I love.

Turn It Up, Bring The Noize

Friday night I had the opportunity to see Public Enemy perform at the Garrick in Winnipeg. I came across my ticket last minute. I wasn't sure what to expect. Now if you are thinking, "Is that the Hip Hop group?" Yes it is.

There were two opening acts, a local act and a touring act. They were both fairly good. The main act hit the stage around 1130pm and played until about 120am. They played all the hits, at least the ones I knew. They were good. They talked too much between songs but they are getting on in years and the thermometer on stage said 107 degrees F. That is hot no matter what you are trying to do.

I was surprised by the crowd. I expected to be in the minority being a white guy in his 30's. That was a significant part of the crowd. A lot of the crowd looked like what you would think a music geek would look like. I'm actually quite encouraged by this. It shows that if you are good at what you do your appeal goes beyond your anticipated audience.

Chuck D and Flavor Flav are both very good at what they do. Flavor Flav is more animated on stage but I think Chuck D lays down the rhymes better. They are still politically charged and angry at the establishment. Their message has not changed in a long time. They no longer make headlines but they stand behind what they say.

Looking back I am very glad I went to this show. It is not a typical act for me to go and see, but I was entertained and they do have some important things to say. If you get a chance to go see a performer that you may not normally consider, do it. You may be surprised at what you see.