My band, The Fourth Section has been playing more frequent shows lately and along side all of that we've been recording select songs and publishing them on YouTube.
We're well on the way to another album (though the timing is very uncertain). That said though, it feels good to be able to share these live versions of some of our new music. We've even put together a playlist of these edited versions which will continue to grow as we write and perform new material.
I've been playing in a band for nearly a decade now and while my love of writing and playing music has been a crucial release valve and creative outlet for me, one of the best parts of playing in a band is playing live. It's hard work, but it's so fulfilling.
[For nearly all of human history] in order to hear a piece of music you had to be within earshot of someone playing it.
- John Green (vlogbrothers)
Live music is something special. Unlike recorded music—which really hasn't been around all that long in human history—live music has been with us since the beginning. Regardless of form, there's something primal about being in a room where music is being played. It's a communal experience where a group of people sit and appreciate a thing together. Live music is where art meets mind.
And it's not just bands. I'm always struck by just how captivating a solo artist with a guitar can be in a live performance. I love a good acoustic song, but there's something indescribable about being in the room that just can't be replicated by the best recording. A good acoustic song recording can make me feel things, but a good live performance can enthrall me; it can make time stop.
Live music is one of many reminders that we are still very human. Even in this modern and increasingly disconnected world, we still need the same things that drove early humans in times long gone to pound a drum and sing together.
There's tremendous beauty in that, I think.
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