My absolute favorite thing to do is listen to a band nonstop for a full month or so. Then when I know the songs well enough and have listened to them dozens of times, I go to a new band or a new album. I do this because when I find a song that I like, I want to listen to it over and over again. And I want to see if that same band can create even more songs that make me that excited.
But what I love even more is when I have shuffle on my iTunes on and one of the songs that I listened to nonstop for a month comes on and I remember vivid memories from that month. I have it with almost every band on my iTunes that I listen to and the days when my it is on shuffle are my absolute favorite.
I remember thoughts and feelings that I had when I listened to Jukebox the Ghost nonstop last fall. I remember reading the book Speak by Laurie Halse Anderson as I listened to Switchfoot’s The Beautiful Letdown album. I remember my excitement at the beginning of junior year of high school when I listen to Death Cab for Cutie. I remember last summer when I listen to OneRepublic when I realized that I am an adult and I was excited for the awareness. I listened to Sherwood at the end of freshman year of college when I decided I wanted to change my priorities and focus on academics and student involvement while in college.
Most recently, I rediscovered one of my favorite bands when I was just fifteen. I listened to The Format my sophomore year of high school when I had a crush on this boy. And last week, I discovered that Nate Ruess of The Format created a new band and that they were still making music. The band, Fun, has been the most wonderful band to listen to because it is a new sound and feeling that I get from when I listened to The Format, but I can personally tell how much I have grown since that time. Five years after I discovered that band, Nate’s voice brings me back to memories of hope and butterflies in the stomach, but I feel so much stronger and wiser now. The music of the band Fun has created a wonderful reminiscent feel without knowing what the music is about yet.
I am a very reflective person, and so listening to music that reminds me of any particular time in my life makes me extremely happy. Even if I make conclusions about my past and figure out what I learned from the moment, listening to the music helps me to see my motivation, my reasoning, my thought process before making a decision. And I think that helps me to be an even more reflective person.
I am also able to see personal growth. And I absolutely love the feeling of knowing that I am a better and stronger person than I was previously. I can even tell how my perspective has changed, through the music that I have loved and have listened to. It is a great feeling and I will continue this for the rest of my life.
thelifeofannedaly 