Music Unifies Us – theDIHEDRAL

For Spotify Playlist with ALL Mentioned Songs: CLICK HERE

Casen

Music is something that always has been, and always will be, an important part of my life. Whether it’s me, at two years old, crawling around backstage at one of my dad’s Texas country music shows, or making new friends at the concert of our favorite band; music has always been there for me to heighten my experiences.

There are certain songs that just ‘put me in that place‘ and turn me into a freak. Seriously. Whenever I’m at the hard part of my run and that perfect song starts rolling; it’s on baby! Good music keeps me going even when my body wants to quit. One of my favorite feelings in the world is pushing through things when I feel like I can’t. Music helps me to do that.

Turning into a complete psycho doesn’t start and end on my runs. Driving and music always go hand in hand. Pull up next to me at a red light and watch in awe as I NAIL a sweet solo on my nonexistent guitar. At concerts, I know I have the best head bangs (I did my first mosh pit this month). I just get into it! Maybe it’s growing up in a musician’s family, or maybe I’ve got something off in my head, but for some reason, good music turns me into a crazy person.

Here are a couple of song suggestions that I hope turn you into a crazy person

• ‘I Can’t Go on Without You’ – Kaleo // Rock
• ‘Something to Believe In’ – Young The Giant // Alternative
• ‘Safari Song’ – Greta Van Fleet // Classic Rock
• ‘Over The Hills and Far Away’ – Led Zeppelin // Classic Rock
• ‘The Mountain’ – Shane Smith & The Saints // Country
• ‘Roll The Bones (AudioTree Live)’ – Shakey Graves // Folk
• ‘Lover, Leaver (Taker, Believer) – Greta Van Fleet // Classic Rock
• ‘Wait Until Tomorrow (Live)’ – John Mayer // Rock???

Carrot

When Casen suggested “music” as the theme of our group post a mental vortex began and down the rabbit-hole I went.  Holy Shit! Knowing I’m somewhat prohibited from writing a 5,000-word treatise I had to

1. Come up with a theme.
2.  Look for help?
3. Make use of lists!

• Theme: Music Unifies Us.
  • To our past
  • To our friends
  • To our experiences
  • To our memories
  • To everything
• Help: When one needs help with anything…follow two steps!  Step 1 = Consult a Philosopher!  Consulting us today is The Harmonizer of The Helens, The Sultan of Samos, The Prince of Points, The Master of Music: PYTHAGORAS!  Step 2 = See Step 1. According to Pythagoras^1,2…
  • Music should be regarded as a holy science.
  • Music is the unifying principle of Harmonia.
  • Music brings order to chaos and discord.
  • Do not touch a white cock³.
  • Music and Mathematics enable us to understand the structures of nature.
  • Music can be used to purify the body.
  • Music creates harmony within the soul and within nature.
  • Music can be used to eliminate emotional stresses.
  • Groove is in the heart⁴.
• Lists: With almost every person I am close to and almost every major event in my life I have a song and/or playlist that could go along with it.  So here is a short list of songs that “The Holy Science” interweaves my “soul” to!⁵
  • Hometown = My Block – Scarface
  • School = Daylight – Matt and Kim
  • Family = In The Mood – Gelnn Miller
  • theDIHEDRAL = The Climb – Miley Cyrus
    • Casen = When The Curtain Falls – Greta Van Fleet
    • Gaia = Party Up – DMX
    • Sarah = Cowboy From Hell – Pantera
    • High-Clip6 = Lemon to a Knife Fight – The Wombats
    • Thoyle = Here It Goes Again – OK Go
  • Gym Climbing = Old School Hip Hop/Irish/Metallica for the 5.12’s
  • Rock Climbing = The Harmony of the Celestial Spheres, AKA the sounds of nature!

The list could go on and on and on, but the point is that music can unify everything in one way or another!⁷

High Clip

Whenever you ask somebody what it is that they like about climbing, nine out of ten times they’ll tell you it’s that climbing is “freeing”. Is this not the same response that you’ll get if you ask someone why they like listening to music? What happens if you combine climbing AND music?

As you may have predicted, freedom + freedom = unstoppable send train (trust me, I’m a mathematician). My drives to the climbing gym are usually rather long, as I live rather far away, and when I leave after getting out of class it’s rush hour so traffic on the freeway is a nightmare. However nonsensical it may sound, I love driving for the same reason I love climbing and music—it’s freeing.

The drivers are such nuts that you have no option but to focus on driving, so it’s impossible to be stressed or worried about anything else going on in life. When I drive, I jam out HARD. Being from the Northeast, I’m naturally a confident driver. With my music playing, though, my skills are unbeatable.

There’s something about music that takes away just enough focus yet leaves you with enough to get the job done. That’s why music helps people get through difficult times—you can’t completely focus on your struggles, but you can be aware of them just enough to deal with them. Regardless, when your beat is on, your confidence is sky-high. By the time I reach the gym, I’m ready to CRUSH. When I leave the gym, I can happily reflect on my climbs without being too critical.

On a personal level outside of climbing, music simply has made me a more confident, independent person. A fan of indie, alternative, rock, and metal, my tastes can be bipolar and certainly are not mainstream. I used to get judgment for the type of music that I like, and so I’d have a separate car playlist for when I was driving friends or family. Now I just have a few playlists that I rotate depending on my mood, not on others. I no longer place value on others’ thoughts, opinions, or judgments of me in any capacity. I’m the person I want to be, regardless of what molds people may want to fit in. And THAT is freeing.

Gaia

Okay… WOW… I honestly don’t know! I listen to music mainly when I’m driving and rely heavily on radio stations, so I just shift from one to the other depending on my mood. I truly am struggling here trying to figure out what type of music I usually listen to or attach to particular moments in life. Judging by my radio station selections, I would say Hip-hop/R&B, Contemporary Hit Radio, and Latin/Reggaeton music. Emphasis on LATIN music. I grew up in Venezuela and this genre is the one I grew up listening to. In parties, get-togethers and even in Bakeries! Reggaeton dominated the streets and, even though the lyrics are obscene as they can be, the rhythm is what got me! So maybe…

Reggaeton & Salsa:  Pumped and happy… Reminiscing the days with the crew (I soon get to see my best friend after 5 YEARS!!!)

Doble Impacto – Gerla

•  MAJOR throwback

R&B: Sassy and powerful. Confident.

H.E.R- Focus

• You tell him/her H.E.R !!!

Pop music: Bubbly and flirtatious.

Zedd, Grey – The Middle (Lyrics) ft. Maren Morris

•  I want to dance a nice Cha Cha Cha with this one!

Latin ballads: Let’s fall in love, I want to be in love, I am in love

Reik- Creo en ti

Voz Veis- Aunque Sea Poco

• Thank you Voz Veis and Reik for helping my 10-year-old-self overcome heartbreaks! Oh… The pain

Thanks for reading!

• theDIHEDRAL Team

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1. John Strohmeier and Peter Westbrook, Divine Harmony: The Life and teachings of Pythagoras (Berkeley, CA: Berkeley Hills Books, 1999, 78.
2. Only one of these things isn’t true.
3. He was a vegetarian and was talking about chickens, get your mind out of the gutter.  Geeze!
4. Deee-Lite!
5. As mentioned above, all the songs mentioned in this post are on a playlist on theDIHEDRAL Spotify Account in case you want to give it a listen.
6. Welcome to the team High-Clip.
7. Exhibit A – Freddie Mercury and Pythagoras!