7. Commuting Thoughts (1): Music-in-the-go

Commuting without music is a drag. Last time I scrolled the news thread in social media, I read a post where Neil Young removed all his music from Spotify citing poor quality. I don’t know about that, but not all of us are born sound engineers to distinguish top-notch quality music.

I remember when I was still reviewing for the civil engineering board exam in 2000, I had to settle with a fifty-peso made-in-China mini-transistor radio (sold in a ‘bangketa’ by a street vendor on a pedestrian overpass in Morayta) with a headset to tune in to my favorite FM station that was playing alternative rock music. There was static most of the time–it was fine, it’s music, baby.

No, Spotify and other streaming services for music are fine. Music, regardless of quality, is in the ears of the beholder (listener). I respect the artist in Neil Young, but I believe the quintessence of music is not just about the quality–it’s more than that.