The Thirteenth Day

"If I should ever die, God forbid, let this be my epitaph: 

THE ONLY PROOF HE NEEDED 

FOR THE EXISTENCE OF GOD 

WAS MUSIC" 

— Kurt Vonnegut

Day 13 → A band or artist that has gotten you through some tough a** days.

Well, this one is very difficult and very easy. Music is a high priority for me- I nearly worship it. I cannot tell you names of people I knew or remember faces or events or inside jokes, but I can hear a song and instantly be transported back to a moment. I crave music all the time- I cannot drive without it. I listen to it non stop on the weekends that Sky has drill. I want to be immersed in it.

So the easy yet difficult part of this is that I love it all- there really isn't a genre I don't listen to (maybe screamo?). Many, many songs have carried me through bad days or bad years. Songs have inspired me to move forward with my life, to fall in love, to fall out of love, etc. They're so powerful. It's strange to have a song that means a lot to you played over the intercom at a mall or grocery store- it seems like something intimate is being cheapened, because you and that song have a story.

Specific artists, however? The list would take years. I recall some bad times with relationships where a lot of "The Luckiest" by Ben Folds, "Jesus" by Brand New, "Resentment" by Beyonce, and "The Lengths" by the Black Keys were played- I say 'a lot', because I tend to play songs on repeat.

The most significant of these artists would have to be Bob Dylan. I've said it before, but I discovered him a couple years ago and have been mesmerized ever since. I love that I have that in common with my dad. In fact, Mr. Dylan is playing a show here soon, and it will be the first time either my dad or I have seen him- I think we're both pretty excited. Countless books and articles have been written on the man, so there's really no use in me trying to sum it up, but there is obviously something about him. He doesn't want to be labeled a folk singer or a poet, but what he writes is so poetic. I like listening to his old interviews in the 1960s- even if they don't make a bit of sense at times, they are fascinating. You can't listen to "Mr. Tambourine Man" or "Tangled Up in Blue" and not feel something.

At least, I can't.