Everyone in the music business knows the feeling of The Moment.
In fact, you’ve likely experienced it. The Moment is special and what drives us in this often challenging career. The Moment is when music impacts you so dramatically you cannot ignore it.
The earliest Moment usually happens the first time we listened to a band we loved. For me, The Moment was digging through Led Zeppelin’s full catalogue for the first time. The power, the emotion, the absolute beauty of what that band created captured me. It still does today.
Another Moment is when we expand our palette for the first time and become even more passionate music lovers. Growing up on classic rock, I thought nothing good was recorded after 1980. The Shins’ Wincing The Night Away opened up a new world of music and my current career path.
Sometimes The Moment reinvigorates us. Florence + The Machine, hobbled by a broken foot, commanded the Coachella main stage in 2015 and blew me away. She couldn’t run around, she couldn’t dance, but she still enthrall thousands. From her new music, to covering “Love Hurts” with Father John Misty, to a blistering version of her hit “Dog Days Are Over”, she confirmed for me that I was on the right career path.
The Moment can come out of the blue. The first time I heard Mondo Cozmo’s “Shine”, I knew Josh Ostrander created something special.
The Moment is fleeting. Many chase it, using it as a sales pitch. Sometimes you have an idea it’s coming, other times you don’t.
Recently I may have been fortunate to have two Moments. I’m cautious, however, as I know that seeking the next Moment can lead to fool’s gold. That’s part of the addictive nature of music, the absolute joy felt when you discover something fantastic. At the same time, we want to find greatness so badly that we err.
I choose to focus on the hope of stumbling upon my next Moment. When I do, my job is to share that Moment with others and, maybe, have that music inspire their own lives.