So what is this, and why should you care?

I'm a music lover. I'm sure you've never heard that one before right? I'm sure I may have even lost half of you right there; it's sad but true. We hear that phrase all the time, from first dates to interviews, and we immediately lose interest. And of course we all react in the same exact way - "Well, duh, everyone likes music!" Which is quite true. Find me someone that doesn't like music. Not certain types of music, but music as a whole. In my research, I have found that there are two types of people in this world who don't enjoy music - those who are dead, or those who are zombies (the "undead"). That basically leaves anything with a pulse and a haircut (good or bad) as someone who can enjoy music. But when we hear the words "I'm a music lover", the words seem to just ring empty in our ears. It certainly isn't the most profound statement in the world. In fact it's really only about a few steps down on the "Scale of Profound Measures" from asking someone who just got out of the bathroom dripping wet if they just got out of the shower. Well done champ, another mystery solved.

But what if when you said it, you could back it up? What if when asked what it is about music that you love, what it is that truly hits you, that you could offer a reasonable answer. IS it music you love? Or is it something more? Or maybe something less? Don't worry, I'm not getting philosophical on you, though that may come later. What I'm trying to get at, is we all feel something with music. Whether we like certain music or not is another story entirely, because in theory, all types of music are in someway related. So why be a music snob? If country pop doesn't interest you, that fine! But at least appreciate what it helped create or what it was created from, or you may be missing out on something you never liked before. Music evolves, and generation after generation has evolved with it. Flower children of the 60's evolved with Bob Dylan and The Byrds as the misguided youth of the 90's evolved with Kurt Cobain and the Red Hot Chili Peppers; the trends can change as quickly as we do.

Now I know a lot of you may thinking, does our generation have a voice? We certainly don't have the standout Lone Rangers that have kicked off the musical revolution like those of previous generations. And of course we have all had our fair share of processed music shoved down our throats by the corporate fat cats of the music industry machine. Open wide, consume, chew well, spit out, repeat. If that's your style, all power to you, do what you enjoy. But I'd like to find some music that hits me with deeper meaning. I want to find out what it is exactly that makes me a music lover, and beyond that - what music makes me love music so much.

So in order to try and do this, I am beginning this blog. I want to learn. I want to share. And I want to meet others who can, for at least a moment, give me a new perspective. I feel that's what a lot of people just need sometimes, a new perspective. So this blog won't be preachy, I promise. No genre of music will go unnoticed. No singer will be too obscure. And no song will be too off beat. Sometimes in order to recognize what you like, you need to know what you don't like. So I will be be posting a song, band, or genre of music as often as possible and would love for you to comment. Let's use this as an experiment. If you learn even just one new song that you enjoy, I will consider this a job well done. But if we pool our resources, I'm sure we can introduce ourselves to things we'd never even though of before.

So there we are, calling all "music lovers". Dig up what makes you tick. Post what makes you tock. Let's see what we can come up with. Let's find the underground muse, or the mainstream martyr that has gone unnoticed or unshared. Let's find something we never thought was quite there - a generation united by the music we just haven't heard yet. Give it a try. Join me in the Mainstream Underground.