When life was much simpler ages ago, us kids would only have to tune in to our favorite weekly radio program, American Top 40, to discover new songs. In the 80s, MTV was an additional source of new music. Today, it’s become harder to know what songs are in vogue, as baby boomers and Gen X’ers listen less to radio, and have to deal with more adult distractions.
In the ‘hipster’ wedding reception I attended last weekend, I realized how much out of touch I’ve been since I didn’t know any song that was played. Depressing, indeed, for someone who’s been desperately trying to stay young.
MTV plays less music videos now. Jersey Shore’s on mostly. The top FM stations are all “beki talk radio” – gay DJs, loud, rambling, sardonic, hug the airwaves. Other than the occasional positing of a video by a friend on Facebook, my reliable source of new music is the movie soundtrack.
I especially like listening to film scores for movies I haven’t seen yet. I’d visualize how the real movie goes based on the mood of a particular piece. The imagined aural journey is much more exciting for me now than reliving a film I liked through its score.
I heard the CDs of Juno, Garden State, Hi Fidelity, 500 Days of Summer, Twilight and The Social Network before I saw the movie versions. The tracks were a great preface to the movie experience, except for Twilight perhaps. And I learned new songs! I hope contemporary film music would keep coming. There’s just too much symphonic film music in my CD collection. I must be able to sing along to new, young music in the next wedding reception.
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