The Share Tingles, or Why Almost NOTHING is Better Alone | MUSIC is not a GENRE - Season 4 Episode #13

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You know the feeling when you’re listening to a song for the first time and it gets to a place - a climax, a drop after a breakdown, a soaring melody, shining harmonies, or a beat that you can’t ignore - that makes your body respond? You might feel butterflies or goosebumps or the need to move. It might stop you from breathing for a second, or compel you to sing along or shout or scream uncontrollably. You might cry, or laugh in utter surprise. You forget everything but the moment you’re in. Whatever it is, it’s as if the song is inside you, flowing with your blood, leaping with your synapses, and you can’t stop your reaction even if you wanted to.

The next time you hear the song, you know that moment is coming. The anticipation sends tingles of electricity through you, which builds in intensity until the moment hits and you explode. It’s even stronger than the first time. You know from then on you can count on that song to wipe out any other thought or feeling, and transport you to transcendent bliss.

After a while, that feeling diminishes. Maybe you’ve heard the song too many times, or too often in a short span. Or maybe it’s just that you know it so well that the feeling is more a memory than a full on rush. You’ll always love the song, but it won’t ever have the same effect on you.

Or will it? Think of that song again. Now imagine you’re talking to someone who it turns out has the same musical taste as you. You find out they’ve never heard the song, and your breath stops for a second and so does time. The only thing you can do next is play that song for them. You imagine being in their place - totally unaware of what’s about to happen. They can feel your excitement, hear it in your voice. So they’re prone to experiencing the song with open ears and an open heart. And you’re prone to hearing it the way they will hear it - for the first time.

The moment comes, and because you’re hearing the song through their ears, something amazing happens. That overwhelming feeling you thought would never return comes back stronger than ever. It may as well be your first time too. Your friend is right there too, and both of your feelings converge and grow into something bigger than any individual feeling could ever be. It makes you want to share this song with every other likeminded person, so you can spread the joy and feel it all over again yourself.

I call this feeling the “share tingles”, and it happens all the time. It’s what gives music near eternal life. Self-replenishing power. Those mega impact moments in a song or any great work pass on their feelings through everyone who hears them, and the power is multiplied exponentially. You don’t even need to know the person. You could even be in a crowd of strangers. Just being with others who are feeling what you are reawakens everything you ever felt. It’s why even though live music is rarely sonically better than recorded music, the experience of it can be far superior. It’s why great DJs are shamans. It’s why radio still exists....

Listen to hear the rest of this essay, and stay through the end to hear the featured song:

NICK – “Your Sweetness” (from the album, Your EP)

And check out this one too:

REC - "Break You" (from the album Parts and Labour)

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