It’s 7 am and my alarm is echoing off the dorm walls, beaconing me to climb out of bed and get a move on for my dreaded 8 a.m. I dress, throw my hair into something that can only be recognized as a rat’s nest, then plug my headphones into my ears, blaring some classic Black Keys since that’s all I can handle at such an early hour. I jump into the elevator before the doors slam shut, race to the bus stop to catch the mostly hated, never liked, CATA bus, then plop in a seat just in time to realize everyone else around me doing the same thing.
I sit there and bob my head to some “Keep Me” off of their Rubber Factory album, and glance around at my fellow passengers with their ears also stuffed with rubber, wires, and jams. I wonder what they must be listening to, try and decide by the bobs of their heads or the taps of their feet on the dusty CATA floor. Could it be something I’d like? I know that guy in the back is blasting some Jay-Z, which is a brave choice for 7:30 in the morning.
After I snooze through my 8 a.m. lecture, I find myself back on the streets of MSU’s campus, noticing that there hasn’t been a single person that passes by me without a music device attached to some part of their body. I’m on the bus, again, everyone has headphones in. Look out on the street, everyone has headphones in. Walk into my dorm, EVERYONE has headphones in. I feel jealous suddenly that there are all these students, all over campus, listening to all different types of music, music that I may have never even heard of.
I took to the streets after I made this realization, feeling like I was on a treasure hunt for that golden goose egg that was new music.
Sarah Lindlbauer a freshman here at MSU was listening to “Laughing With” by Regina Spektor when I caught her on the bus this afternoon. “It’s nice background music, you know? It’s relaxing,” she tells me. “I wouldn’t listen to Eminem while I’m studying, this makes for a nice alternative.”
I, myself, am a big fan of Regina’s first album, but after checking out the song she was listening to while chasing the bus, I felt like it was something I could really catch myself listening to. While the lyrics might test those who value their beliefs, the beauty of her unique voice rings through, and it made me want to jump on iTunes and grab it right away.
Now here I sit, in my friend’s dorm room, as she blares Phil Collins, and I want to die because I can’t stand him. For those of you who don’t know him, just think Tarzan – the animated one, you know, from when we were five. So once again I take for the hallways and streets to discover what else is out there.
I run into freshman Carly Giles as she’s sitting around with her friends, one headphone in her ear while the other hangs by her side. I crash their little party to find out what she’s listening to that is so good that she keeps it on while her friends keep talking around her.
“’Wake Up” by Arcade Fire is just a good sounding song, easy to sing to. It brings back great memories from Bonnaroo, too, but really it just gives me chills every time,” she explained to me.
I had never heard of Arcade Fire before, so I ran back to my MacBook and checked them out right away. I listened to the album version, and loved them right off the bat. While their live version made my ears want to bleed, I decided on definitely purchasing the album, because you can never, ever, have too much music.
So as I pull my day to a close from the wonders of the beats of the thousands of headphones across this vast campus, I feel lucky to know that no matter where I go, there’s always someone who can help me out with a new band to wake up to.