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Alright heres the article finally:
Everyone, whether they know it or not, has a musical story to tell, one that has helped define their musical tastes and feelings. It could be a person that has influenced you or maybe a concert that you will remember forever, or simply a song that touched you with its melody or message. One of the best musical experiences I have ever had happened over two days at the 2007 Lollapalooza music festival in Grant Park.
For those that do not know, Lollapalooza is a three day music festival that happens every summer in
After hearing how much fun all my friends had Friday night at the show, I decided to go see what all the fuss was about. After spending $80 dollars for the one-day ticket, I was expecting something great. I was not disappointed.
I consider Saturday my ‘New Music Discovery Day.’ I saw bands like Cold War Kids, The Hold Steady, and Muse that I either did not know or was vaguely familiar with play amazing shows that made me fall in love with them instantly. There is something about seeing a band play live that makes the music really come alive. It gets your blood pumping, your heart racing, and before you know it you’re jumping up and down yelling every word. There really isn’t anything like it. But music can also amplify more than just feelings about the chords being played or the words being sung. When shared between two people, music can create an atmosphere of perfect harmony and the feeling that you are the only two people on earth despite being surrounded by thousands of screaming fans.
I was fortunate enough to have this experience Sunday. After getting the opportunity to see two of my favorite bands up close and personal, I thought I may never be happier in my entire life. Then I met up with a girl who is a good friend of mine in time for Pearl Jam to play the last show of the festival, and I proved myself wrong. While neither of us are big Pearl Jam fans, the music combined with the magic of Chicago at night flipped a switch in both of us, sending us into an alternate dimension where time and space had no bearing on either of us, all that mattered was that we were together, floating along in a sea of our own feelings for each other, letting them and the music engulf us. It was a sense of calm despite being encompassed by chaos.
And as we walked out together, the magic of music and how it can affect people hit me square in the face. I realized that despite all of the problems I was having in various facets of my life, I had never been happier. It was like a vacation from real life that had completely washed away all my depressing thoughts and innermost fears, and as I thought about it more, I realized that music was the only thing that has ever had that sort of effect on me, and looking at the other people filing out of the show, I was sure I was not alone.
H.A. Overstreet once said, “I have my own particular sorrows, loves, delights; and you have yours. But sorrow, gladness, yearning, hope, love, belong to all of us, in all times and in all places. Music is the only means whereby we feel these emotions in their universality.” I cannot even begin to explain why this is, and I think as a society we will never be able to. But one thing remains true: no matter what happens to you or me or any of us, music will always have the power to bring people together and express what words cannot.
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