Consequences #7 – Gordon
(Posted over at Vaughan’s)
Take my record collection.
Seriously, help yourself.
It’s an affliction you see, I buy CDs. Lots of them, on whims, or fancies, or to keep up with a particular artist, or.. well.. because I happen to wander past a record shop. Old CDs, ‘classic’ albums, chart releases, obscure artists, compilations, you name it, I’ve probably got it – or at the very least got a track or two by the artist somewhere.
This materialistic affliction has cost me thousands of pounds, not least for the CDs themselves, storage is also an issue (never mind having to dust the damn things). But why do I feel so compelled to continue to buy them? I know fine well that I am prone to hunting down a CD based on a single rave review, usually by someone I don’t know, found on a distant messageboard somewhere. I also know that I like to ‘keep up’ with new releases from my favourite artists, which also includes hunting down their back catalogue lest it be thought I’m a ‘new’ fan (Ohhh whitefish dead – been into them for years, got all their albums you know..).
An inevitable side effect, which I thought I’d managed to escape, reared it’s head just yesterday. The offending item: Pearl Jam – Binaural.
I’d bought it about a year ago, and brought it into work on Monday. A colleague spotted it and borrowed it. On returning it she offered her views on the music. I listened, intrigued, before admitting that I’d never listened to it. Ever.
See that’s the problem. Too many CDs, and never the right mood for some of them. I hate the feeling the most. Of the 500 or so CDs I own,
I can quite easily browse through them looking for something to match my mood, and just easily I can come away thinking “Nah… nothing there”. 500 CDs and I can’t choose one? Of course, all that does is fuel my passion. Can’t find a CD to match your mood? Hit the shops and buy one. Simple!
I’ve tried many times to get to the root of the problem. Is it the acting of buying the CDs that gives me pleasure? No. I don’t buy any old rubbish, I am fairly picky with my choices (Army of Lovers CD aside). Is it the pleasure I get from listening to music? Partly, but I tend to rely on old favourites, so large numbers of my CDs don’t get listened to from month to month (OK, year to year).
I just can’t figure it out. Much to my bank managers consternation.
Help me, I’m confused.