I had a couple of moments today that were filled with nostalgia and both of them were related to music. It is interesting how different types of music or some specific songs get attached to a period in our lives, and whenever we listen these songs later, they not only remind us of the times but also produce clear visual snippets of life passing by.
One of these songs I replayed today after a long time is Time To Pretend by MGMT. This was a song I had heard for the first time on Saavn I believe, Saavn because it had a free plan and had good recommendations. This was the time when I used to travel to my workplace in Mumbai and most of my commute was using local trains.
I feel the reason why people love Mumbai is partly local trains. Almost one-sixth of my day passed in a local train and usually this included listening to music, taking a nap, or reading. This block of time used to be a personal one with earphones plugged in and some good mood-matching music. I also felt that this hour served as a necessary buffer for the heavy day ahead, and if lucky, you'd get a seat while returning too! That'd be heavenly.
I used to listen to a playlist which was Saavn's version of 'My Mix'. These were some 20-30 songs that I would listen to over and over again each day. Time to Pretend was among the first ones and I can clearly remember the regular scene back then - moving train, my AKG earphones and this song. I would be half asleep just at the beginning of the journey and this song played; quite an upbeat song for a nap!
I think music does to our minds what combs do to our messed up hair. With its equally spaced beats, music adds regularity to this random life of ours. And when listened for a longer time, as combs tidy our hair up and also build up some static charge, music simplifies our lives for a short period and we tend to remember most of the things happening then.
This is a vague comparison - but what I mean to say is that music is like a beacon. It guides our lives for at least the time we are listening to it and engraves the experience into our mind. Then next time you listen to the same music, your mind automatically matches it to the other parallel experience memories.
Another such song is The Night We Met. And there are a lot more. I hope you have yours too :) Now I'll go back to enjoying this soulful music and have an imaginary sip of wine.
Good night :)