"Arousing, inspiring, comforting- music is capable of stimulating both passion and compassion, speaking to our very core and taking us to the heights or depths of emotion."

So reads the first sentence on the back of the book I'm currently reading; it's a set of case studies concerning peoples experiences with music in conjuction with brain abnormalities/unusualisms... I'm not sure if thats a word but you know what I mean, right? Anyway, reading it got me thinking, one of the things I'm most grateful for in the world is music, especially at the moment.
Now, permit me to take a detour. I promise it'll all make sense in the end.

I'll admit, I'm a little shaken when I think about it. I do think I got off really incredibly lightly on Saturday night, especially considering how much scope for further damage there is in that kind of situation.

A few weeks ago in a local bar, someone took one hit, like I did, but fell differently, hitting their head differently to how I must have hit mine, and they died. They fucking died. And that sort of thing, how you're hit, how you fall, what you catch on the way... thats ultimately random.

Similarly, the guitarist from one of my favourite bands was in a coma for a few days last year, due to a head injury. But when he came out of it, according to all sources, he'd written an album in his sleep, and it's one of the most transcendental, moving, epic pieces of music I think I've ever heard, given the context. Laugh if you like (because the band is Mastodon, the album is Crack The Skye, and the genre is metal, and obviously metal is just angry noise.... *sigh*) but it's nigh on life affirming.

The first time I picked up a guitar after Saturday night, one of the songs from this album was the song I played, not consciously, just cos I wanted to play the song, and it was incredible. It felt like playing for the first time, and moreover, I swear I felt something of what the song was carrying: a re-establishing of life, a denial to giving in. It's almost indescribable, but I'm pretty sure that I was doing something more than just playing guitar for that one song.

And then last night, I had the sheer joy of seeing a band with my brother and dad, and singing along with my family. That felt ace too, being back out in Portsmouth at night, and not only that, but being back 'home': a crowd of people there to take in musicians combining to create something which is both ridiculously complex, (scientifically speaking, it's unbelievable how a group of musicians interacts live, producing variations of sounds & timbres and pitches and rhythms on their various instruments and combining them, and it's also ridiculous how the listener then interprets and digests the sounds, then reacting as they do) but at it's heart, just a fucking good time. Especially with my family, especially after Saturday, this was euphoric.

And now, literally right now, I'm listening to the new album by Alexisonfire, with the Best Voice In The World (aka Dallas Green) leading the way, and it's making me want to drop to my knees and sing along as loud as I can. So I might. Seriously, this is amazing. Urgent and vital and loving and just FUCK YEAH.


I think I got a bit off topic there, or possibly even went to in depth because my overall point is this: isn't music a life saver sometimes?