This is ridiculously preachy. I do think the overall thesis is correct, in that boredom can be a powerful force for creativity and inspiration, but paragraphs like this make the article completely off-putting:
"If you want to let music inspire you and enjoy its real beauty, I have few very simple rules: Classical Music and no “skipping”. Then I will trust my appetite."
I do like sitting down and actually focusing on an album, but suggesting only that only classical music is worthy of appreciation is absurd. There is an amazing variety of wonderful modern music in a multitude of genres.
I used to be a snob and say that I hated country music or whatever, but now I try and appreciate all the music I hear. There are definitely songs I don't like, and there are genres that tend to have a lower "hit" rate for me (country being one of them), but every genre has bands and songs that are worth listening to. If someone recorded it, they probably put some soul into it... why not give it a listen?
I can't recall who said this, but one suggestion that has worked for me is to listen to a certain genre exclusively for 30 days. Country, Hip-Hop, House, various kinds of Classical. At the end of 30 days I always have songs that I really like, and kinda get the genre even if it's not going to replace my love for 80s trash rock.
I view music as I do eating - sometimes it's fun to sit and savor something, other times I crave junk.
Nothing wrong with either. Sure there are definitely artists I respect more than others, but sometimes it's more fun to just put on some trashy [insert genre here, I wont get specific] and enjoy.
There are pieces on all genres that speak to me. If there’s a genre you don’t like that is telling you that there is a feeling in life that you have not yet keyed into.
This author sounds like someone who has finally figured out how their body works, and is now desecrating their revelation by posting it online to help digitally overstimulate their peers. Bravo!
Yeah it's possibly a little snobby but most forms of music before 1900 i.e. 'classical' even if not technically classical period ... are 'long form'.
So pieces will be 10-20 minutes as opposed to 3 minutes.
That allows for a different listening experience.
I suggest something different for working: light EDM.
EDM is not designed to be 'actively listened to'. It's designed for your body, not your ears, it's generally 'beat and rhythm founded' instead of 'melody, chord and phrasing founded' - and so you can have it on for much longer and still use your mind for work.
Drum Circles last for hours, you can have a conversation while enjoying it.
So you don't waste great music while working away, you can burn the tedium of mediocre electronica all without looking for the dopamine chorus / mega riff.
OnT: The title says overstimulating but with guidelines like that it feels more like criticism of stimulation from a broad range of bad entertainment. Is digitally distributed classical music a no go now?
Think of digital consumption like any drug or vice. The severity of its effects are different for every person, and so is the solution for each person.
Some alcoholics can do a social drink with friends as long as they don't drink at home alone. Others can't touch it.
For me, there are times when the mere presence of an internet-connected device in my headspace has a weight on me - a small weight, but it's there. I find myself feeling truly disconnected from the digital river /better/ when I put music on the record player and put my phone on silent in another room, dissuaded from touching it, "liking" a song, or responding to an unexpected text.
Honestly - trying to finely curate the art that we consume is pretty far in the direction of Brave New World to begin with. Art comes in many forms and the classification of it will vary wildly from person to person.
This may be an unpopular opinion and sound ad-hominem, but in my experience with people, this overdone “modern music bad, classical music good” shtick is a signal of intellectual posturing.
> There is an amazing variety of wonderful modern music in a multitude of genres.
Watching Rick Beato on YouTube dissect the latest top 10 is exceptionally enlightening. There are some exceptions, but there's quite a lot of interesting things going on, musically, in pretty much every song.
"The quality of music. Modern music is like junk food. Produced and processed industrially. Pushed to consumers through aggressive marketing To gorge on classical music results almost impossible as it is while eating for example meat or fish."
> There is an amazing variety of wonderful modern music in a multitude of genres.
Truth. I picked up playing guitar over the pandemic. While I primarily play bluesy / folky / indie stuff on my own time, I find myself listening to 80s metal for inspiration because it’s honestly super nerdy from a music standpoint. You’ll actually probably learn more applicable technique dissecting an Iron Maiden song than a classical piece.
Congrats! I've got a very strange pull-up anecdote. During quarantine last year I started working on the roof of my building. That meant climbing up a vertical fire escape ladder daily with 25+ lbs of clay and all types of gear. Months into going up and down the ladder 10-20 times a day I realized I could do more pull-ups than I could ever have done previously.
I'm still working on my roof and love it. Since last summer I made a pulley system to get my work up and down when it's too heavy or too big to fit on my back.
I had the exact same experience. Hanging, then slowly lowering, then eventually being able to do one! Then worked up to 3x sets of 5, then an unrelated injury has prevented me from working out. I really enjoyed doing pull ups and the strength I gained. I'd highly recommend getting a pull up bar and following the reddit body weight fitness recommended routine[1].
The poster unfortunately did not. "Needling" aka "dry needling" aka "Western acupuncture" is re-branded acupuncture. Like acupuncture, it is quackery and an unsafe scam. Even the acupuncturists agree: "Dry needling is acupuncture and physical therapists are practicing it without a license and putting patients at risk"
If you feel like you need help for "years of sitting at the computer" I recommend Jolie Bookspan's books. The best, most effective information I have come across so far.
To be honest, I'm not working with my favorite PT. The benefits, in my mind, come from:
1. something is better than nothing
2. the sense of mindfulness. it seems that a lot of PT is getting the right exercises to do for whatever ails you. as a runner, I generally know what I need to work on but my PT has helped refine my list of things. By getting a shorter, focused list, I can think of my PT almost like a coach rather than trying to come up with my own workout plans.
In terms of insurance, I have a pretty standard high-deductible health plan and an HSA. I pay out of my HSA (and more recently out of pocket, since depleting the HSA) up to my deductible.
I want to run my marathon in the fall and I think of it so far like paying $X to be able to make it to that start line. I've told myself that I'm willing to do what it takes in terms of finances, training, and general suffering to make sure I can toe the start line.
> My guess would be part of his negative experience was on him being a negative person.
Maybe you should stop accusing random people on the Internet of pretty grave character issues when all that is stated are factual circumstances which I won't apologize for. I can also just randomly assume that you are some white knight seeking validation by defending ephemeral descriptions of people you have never met.
It just happened to be Indians in this case and idk under which rock you live, but shitty restaurants trying to ride the hype wave of certain cuisines isn't a new thing. Getting served sushi by an Indian by itself doesn't mean shit but in combination with all other factors it matters.
It must be tiring to jump at shadows of racism all the time. He mentioned it because that's what he was. You can't get any more generic of a description then someone's gender and race.
It's usually not necessary to mention someone's race. Nothing objective is added here because we know the server is Indian. The author is expecting the information to carry specific negative connotations with the reader, and just to make sure he adds that the server was "weird".
He doubles down on making sure you understand that Indian = dishonest by mentioning fake reviews, that were surely created by Indians. Maybe they were, but that is not materially important to the situation. Fake reviews can just as easily be created by Americans, or Japanese, or literally anyone on Earth.
I understand that people like you tire of hearing your thoughts and ideas challenged. It's part of the reason the world is becoming more polarized. People would rather stick their fingers in their ears and say everything is okay, rather than face the problems that exist in society. I hope you remove the fingers some day.
How exactly is mentioning that someone is Indian the same as disparaging Indian people and equating them to 'bad'. Why exactly does it matter if it matters if he's Indian. Why is race suddenly not okay as a descriptor in any scenario. Or would it have been totally fine if it had been an amazing experience and a "nice Indian man". Would that be equating Indian = good and thus also disingenuous and harmful because bad people exist?
If he was directly insinuating that Indians are bad then I'd agree with you. Being Indian is simply a supplementary detail to the story. It didn't have to be Indian, didn't have to be a sushi restaurant, didn't have to be Google for reviews. Does mentioning a sushi restaurant make it insinuating that sushi restaurant = bad and thus not okay. What details are okay and what are not. If it's just the race then what makes his race in a totally different category to all other descriptors used in the description. Please be specific
To be far to GMTK, he has an entire video about whether Dark Souls should have an "easy" mode that discusses this exact point in great detail, and overall he makes the same concession you do for art and experience.
They've only been doing one or even no Yahoo questions per episode for a while now. I almost suspect this will relieve them and give then an "out" to pivot to different formats.
"If you want to let music inspire you and enjoy its real beauty, I have few very simple rules: Classical Music and no “skipping”. Then I will trust my appetite."
I do like sitting down and actually focusing on an album, but suggesting only that only classical music is worthy of appreciation is absurd. There is an amazing variety of wonderful modern music in a multitude of genres.