Finding Music Again

Shaking off the burnt toast

I got burned out. Being involved with something and thinking about it nearly all the time for over 20 years will probably do that to you. I am just now getting to where I can listen to some music and enjoy it again. That is a good feeling. Music is important in the lives of most people as it fills a big role in so many ways.

Humbly borrowed from Nick Volkert on dribbble

You might be thinking, “Where is all this coming from?” Well, I have been listening to many podcasts for quite some time, but two days ago, on a whim, I decided to put on some morning music. After a quick flip through my music app on the information phone, I found myself listening to one of my favorite albums: No Need To Argue by The Cranberries.

Like so many songs or albums, this particular group of songs always takes me back to junior year of high school. I am suddenly 16 years old and figuring things out. Many songs in this collection have a joyous sound, perhaps a carefree sound, but many have an underlying melancholy that encapsulates 11th grade perfectly for me. This is one of those albums that I can listen to from beginning to end and find zero flaws. I never want to hit the fast-forward button to skip over a song. Taken as a whole, the entire album makes a lot of sense to me.

Humbly borrowed from Chris Walker on dribbble

A day later I found myself turning on more music. This time it was Kid A by Radiohead (radiohead dot com), by far my favorite band. This entire album makes me think of a soundscape in a post-apocalyptic world. Maybe there are roving bands of survivors battling to survive on what is left of the world’s resources. Anarchy abounds.

Point is, music means something different to everyone all of the time. Most people could probably hear a certain song and be transported back in time or have a certain person pop into their mind. Smells Like Teen Spirit by Nirvana came out when I was in eighth grade. At the height of my uncertainty and angst in this time, this song was the perfect soundtrack to accompany my rampant individualism. When I hear Kiss From a Rose by Seal I always think of my wife as this was “our song” back in high school.

Thankfully, my love of music did not perish when I decided to leave behind music education as a daily pursuit.

Written by Mike Mathew who lives and works in Dallas building useful things. Sometimes he posts on Mastodon. Mike also wears many hats at Presto Assistant where he is a co-founder, owner, and product engineer.