Saturday, September 10, 2005
Music is the Most Addictive Drug
That is the slogan for our friends at Coolfire, the site I was proud to announce a link up with. They have the same idea about music, and the role it plays in the world today. But I won't bore you with anything I have to say today. Here is the word straight from the source.
- unsigned thoughts -
blog entry by geeQ
geeQ is the founder of coolfire a web site dedicated to helping unsigned bands & artist get their message across to a wider community of music listeners.
Some time ago I went through a particularly bad period in my life... You know how it is, one minute everything seems to be going so well and then all of a sudden life deals you 3 bad hand's all at the same time. Well to cut a long story short it was during this period that I realised just how powerful and important music is. I gradually began hearing and understanding what the artists were really trying to say. I also began to realise how different types of rhythm and therefore sound can change your emotions and affect how you feel. I'd always been 'into' music ever since I was a young pup but it now sounded deeper and somehow more profound. I guess this is why coolfire has the slogan "Music is the Most Addictive Drug" because allot of people may indeed turn to cocaine/heroine or even some kind of anti-depressent to help them in times of trouble, but I see music as being more powerful than any physical stimulant or drug. It can and will take a hold of you and absolutely will not let go...ever. Anyway back to my brief life story... And there was one other thing I began to notice- the more money there was floating around an artist the more artificial & un-inspiring the sound seemed to be. This was indeed my foundation for coolfire.
The idea is was not new, even back in 2000 when I first began thinking about setting up a web site dedicated to helping unsigned bands & artists. But I didn't care, because I knew I wanted to do things differently. To make sure ultimately that at no stage was there any money involved, and that it was a site that people who understood music just as I do could appreciate the difference an idea can have if it's run purely on passion and respect.
I think I have largely achieved this aim although there is still much work to do. However I am under no illusions that what really makes coolfire is the bands & artists who contribute to it. Without them coolfire would be nothing more than a url full of pretty pictures and meaningless words... I may have created the spark but what they bring is the life and soul, and not just to coolfire but to ourselves as well.
5 years on I often find myself thinking about sound in a much deeper and some might say weird way. I've started thinking about how different sounds affect us. In particular I've been looking at 'natural' sounds compared 'un-natural' sounds. You know the sort of sounds you would expect to hear in the country side compared to the sounds you would hear in the middle of a city for example. One type of sound can make you feel relaxed and at peace, and another can have the opposite effect by making you feel on edge, fearful and sometimes with prolonged exposure even aggressive. I personally think that this is an area where we should all be giving some thought to. Because as I said before music/sound IS a verypowerful thing which can be good but can also be bad depending on what your listening to. And so as a society I think we need to be more aware of the type of sounds we are constantly being exposed to and their affect on us.
Anyway before things get too deep I thought it might now be a good time to speak a little about my thoughts on podcasting and why I chose to link up with Paul and unsignedpodcast.comI personally think podcasting has the potential to kill commercial radio, or at least make people rethink what radio 'should' be. And I am really excited by this. I like ideas which stir up trouble for the big corporate types, and on the flip side gives people more freedom and choice. What Paul and many other podcasters are effectively doing is creating their own distribution network which knows no physical borders or boundaries. It doesn't matter where you live in the world you will get to hear exactly the same content as the next person. And the freedom and control a podcaster has over that content is without limit... So without a doubt there is a storm on the horizon, the only question now is how big will the storm be? And that can only be answered by people like Paul and the global network of podcasters.
I would just like to take this opportunity to thank Paul for letting me use his blog to record my own thoughts.
See you all on the flip side!
geeQ
coolfire.co.uk ¶ 8:35 PM
- unsigned thoughts -
blog entry by geeQ
geeQ is the founder of coolfire a web site dedicated to helping unsigned bands & artist get their message across to a wider community of music listeners.
Some time ago I went through a particularly bad period in my life... You know how it is, one minute everything seems to be going so well and then all of a sudden life deals you 3 bad hand's all at the same time. Well to cut a long story short it was during this period that I realised just how powerful and important music is. I gradually began hearing and understanding what the artists were really trying to say. I also began to realise how different types of rhythm and therefore sound can change your emotions and affect how you feel. I'd always been 'into' music ever since I was a young pup but it now sounded deeper and somehow more profound. I guess this is why coolfire has the slogan "Music is the Most Addictive Drug" because allot of people may indeed turn to cocaine/heroine or even some kind of anti-depressent to help them in times of trouble, but I see music as being more powerful than any physical stimulant or drug. It can and will take a hold of you and absolutely will not let go...ever. Anyway back to my brief life story... And there was one other thing I began to notice- the more money there was floating around an artist the more artificial & un-inspiring the sound seemed to be. This was indeed my foundation for coolfire.
The idea is was not new, even back in 2000 when I first began thinking about setting up a web site dedicated to helping unsigned bands & artists. But I didn't care, because I knew I wanted to do things differently. To make sure ultimately that at no stage was there any money involved, and that it was a site that people who understood music just as I do could appreciate the difference an idea can have if it's run purely on passion and respect.
I think I have largely achieved this aim although there is still much work to do. However I am under no illusions that what really makes coolfire is the bands & artists who contribute to it. Without them coolfire would be nothing more than a url full of pretty pictures and meaningless words... I may have created the spark but what they bring is the life and soul, and not just to coolfire but to ourselves as well.
5 years on I often find myself thinking about sound in a much deeper and some might say weird way. I've started thinking about how different sounds affect us. In particular I've been looking at 'natural' sounds compared 'un-natural' sounds. You know the sort of sounds you would expect to hear in the country side compared to the sounds you would hear in the middle of a city for example. One type of sound can make you feel relaxed and at peace, and another can have the opposite effect by making you feel on edge, fearful and sometimes with prolonged exposure even aggressive. I personally think that this is an area where we should all be giving some thought to. Because as I said before music/sound IS a verypowerful thing which can be good but can also be bad depending on what your listening to. And so as a society I think we need to be more aware of the type of sounds we are constantly being exposed to and their affect on us.
Anyway before things get too deep I thought it might now be a good time to speak a little about my thoughts on podcasting and why I chose to link up with Paul and unsignedpodcast.comI personally think podcasting has the potential to kill commercial radio, or at least make people rethink what radio 'should' be. And I am really excited by this. I like ideas which stir up trouble for the big corporate types, and on the flip side gives people more freedom and choice. What Paul and many other podcasters are effectively doing is creating their own distribution network which knows no physical borders or boundaries. It doesn't matter where you live in the world you will get to hear exactly the same content as the next person. And the freedom and control a podcaster has over that content is without limit... So without a doubt there is a storm on the horizon, the only question now is how big will the storm be? And that can only be answered by people like Paul and the global network of podcasters.
I would just like to take this opportunity to thank Paul for letting me use his blog to record my own thoughts.
See you all on the flip side!
geeQ
coolfire.co.uk ¶ 8:35 PM
