[aural bliss]

I was wondering how users here like to listen to their music.
 
I find that rarely do I listen to music without doing something else (surfing the net, reading, house chores, commuting, etc).  Do most of you actually sit and listen to music exclusively (I guess with no sort of multitasking) ?

 

[kkl10]

I do often listen exclusively to music, I put some intelectual effort into it.
Mostly when I'm not doing anything else or just doing stuff that doesn't require my conscious attention.
So I don't like to read and listen to music at the same time for example.
But I can listen to music while I surf the net or write (sometimes) or go for a walk.
I rarely hear music casually.

 

[ralphp@optonline]

I listen to music in many different ways.
 
I listen while surfing the net
I listen while cooking
I listen while cleaning
I listen while driving
I listen while relaxing
I listen while working out
I listen for pleasure
I listen while in bed
I listen with the lights on
I listen with the light off
I listen while multi-tasking
I listen while doing nothing else but listening
I listen while making love
I listen while dancing
I listen while eating
I listen while reading
I listen while sitting
I listen while standing
I listen while......

 

[linglingjr]

I attempt "critical listening" most of the time exclusively, but I usually listen to music when surfing the internet or doing other stuff at my desktop as well.  
 
I never listen to music while walking/in public, and only while driving if it's for a longer period of time ~30+ minute drives.
 
I do while doing weights as well.  There are two nice older sony towers from the 80s in my weight room.  I don't know how people listen to music while running though.

 

[acidogio]

Mostly while not doing anything else.

I find that if I am on my pc I pay less attention to what I am listening.

For this reason I got into buying records, it makes the whole process less distracting.
(no screen=less distractions).

The only exception is when I'm listening to mixes/dj sets, in that case I have no choice than my laptop, as a source.
I keep it 2m away while I seat on my ikea chair or lie down on my bed.

 

[dead99]

I mostly listen to music whilst making homework, it makes it less boring .
and also when I'm doing stuff on the pc what isn't gaming.

 

[JoeDoe]

I subscribe to this idea:
 
If I'm using music as background noise for something else I'm doing, then I'm hearing music.
 
If I'm sitting down just for the sake of the music, then I'm listening.
 
Unfortunately, I do much more of the first, but when I get to do the second, well let's just say that my RS1s and Little Dot make it hard to get up and go do something else...

 

[Seifer01]

I listen to music, sitting in my armchair, my CDP next to me. I mostly listen to albums all the way through. There was a time when I'd listen to two or three albums a night before going to sleep, rocking out in bed
I sometimes surf the web whilst listening... typing this post is distracting me from Blondie (Plastic Letters)

 

[saxelrod92]

I noticed the posts so far talk about what we do externally when we listen to our music, so I want to mention what I do internally because I'm curious if anyone else does it too. So usually after I get through the first listening of new music, like a new album, and am more familiar with the songs, I tend to just have facebook or some kind of pure visualizer playing and then listen without interruption for at least one album while in my head I'm putting myself in the shoes of the performer as if what I'm hearing is me playing it live for friends and strangers, etc. I do play drums so I always put myself in the place of the drummer, if its electronic music then I am the dj lol. I know this comes off as really self centered and show-offy, but it's more of a release from past "embarrassments" when I was starting out and did not perform well and it went unnoticed within the crowd, sorta like a background musician at a restaurant feel versus full blown stage performance (which it was supposed to be, kinda lol). Don't get me wrong I have no issues with all of this as it has been well over 5 years. But the original release method so this never got bottled up kinda stuck, I don't even usually imagine myself as being looked up to, or being praised, instead I always imagine it as purely providing a totally involving and in the moment celebration for people I care about and strangers alike.

Since that's how I listen, it means I always listen without doing anything else besides looking at something along the lines of a visualizer, because my conciousness is busy creating this live show in my head, but my eyes always need something to look at. I'm a very visual person, with audio coming in a close second, so I always need my eyes occupied. Also I learned that I can't listen to music that has lyrics and read something at the same time, like when I do college work at home, the music I listen to has to be instrumental. Otherwise the only other time I listen to music is anytime I drive, unless the drive is shorter than the length of 1-2 songs. Thats the only time I listen to music and am doing something else.

So yea, I have yet to meet anyone who seems to create this world in their head in the same manner as I do when they listen to music. To imagine that it is you that is playing the music from the point of view of one of the instruments, I should also mention that it can seriously change how you perceive a song, and what you start to like/dislike in terms of recording methods and mastering, not to mention depending which instrument you relate to and focus on, a song you liked can change to a song that doesn't groove anymore. I focus on drums, so any song that has drum parts that aren't interesting/skilled/unique enough become very boring for me, even if it is a technically great song in other aspects.

Anyways I'm curious to see if anyone else here does something similar to me when listening to music.

 

[JoeDoe]

I listen to music, sitting in my armchair, my CDP next to me. I mostly listen to albums all the way through. There was a time when I'd listen to two or three albums a night before going to sleep, rocking out in bed

I sometimes surf the web whilst listening... typing this post is distracting me from Blondie (Plastic Letters)

That's the way to do it man! It kind of sucks that so few artists nowadays are making music from an album standpoint instead of a few singles with filler in between.

 

[Seifer01]

That's the way to do it man! It kind of sucks that so few artists nowadays are making music from an album standpoint instead of a few singles with filler in between.

It's very rare that I ever skip a song on an album, it just feels wrong lol. I suppose the best albums are like journeys, with a beginning and an end. Well they're journeys I like to take
It's funny that more often than not a big "hit", a big single, will be one of my least favourite songs on an album... Black Hole Sun is not my favourite song on Soundgarden's Superunknown. But to talk of "favourite" songs seems very wrong too, I embrace the whole of an album. An album with only two good songs is a bad album I reckon, lol.
Filler is a vile, dirty word!
I don't pick up a book and read only one chapter, I don't put on an album and listen to only one song. Although sometimes I just need to listen to Led Zepp's The Rover, so I'll have a quick blast

 

[JoeDoe]

Filler is a vile, dirty word!

 

I certainly agree! Too bad its the trend nowadays. If a lot of today's pop artists were authors, they'd be writing cheesy mystery novels with one quality chapter bookended by a bunch of crap that's neither interesting or relevant.