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Imagine being gifted with a night off. You're feeling energized, eager for new things, and looking to shake up your regular habits of post-work slumping. The world is your oyster! Would you opt for a) seeing live music or b) being with a partner? The answer, as frequently true with these sorts of questions, is obviously: “It depends.” Mature individuals could understandably wonder: what is the concert? Who is the partner? Is it expected to be satisfying?

Hardly anyone would pick a Limp Bizkit/Slipknot/Korn triple bill if the alternative was one enchanted evening with a beloved celebrity. Yet change either end of the scenario, and it turns less clearcut. Regarding the thousands surveyed posed this query by a live event company, no additional context was provided – and the response emerged unambiguously and overwhelmingly supporting live music events.

Study Data Show Interesting Preferences

A global survey, questioning thousands of participants aged between 18 and 54 from 15 markets, showed that concerts have become the world’s top pastime, beating out games, movies and – indeed – intimacy. Given the choice to one type of activity for the rest of their lives, a significant portion chose gigs, against going to the cinema (17%) and sports events (14%). Participants were significantly more as prone to prefer watching their top musician on stage (70%) rather than sexual activity (30%).

You appear hopeful of being delightfully amazed – and frequently you’ll end up with another person's locks in your mouth

Factors and Reflections

Certainly it makes sense that a marketing research conducted for a live event company would result so heavily supporting live shows – and, with the speculative tone of a either-or question, if your top performer is, for example a legendary singer, one can appreciate why watching him might win out rather than a routine experience. However this either-or decision between concerts or sexual activity, obviously silly even if it seems, is noteworthy to reflect on given the odd moment we’re at with these two aspects.

The Evolution of Concert Culture

In recent years, live music participation has become not just a communal experience but a competitive sport. Event companies appropriately highlight that stadium attendance has “grown significantly annually”, and music festivals are fully reserved quicker than before. Simply getting tickets now requires detailed strategy, rapid-fire response times and deep finances (or a high spending capacity). Although you succeed, it isn't sufficient to simply turn up and watch the performance. Nowadays exists an anticipation, at least among music enthusiasts, that you could increase your experience quality by attending more than once (potentially going abroad), studying the performance lineup in advance and knowing your marks to perform and fan traditions established by previous crowds.

Several fans describe being affected by their participation at major tours: what seemed like a orchestrated show of thousands of people, in which certain attendees came not knowing the protocol. Those lengthy tour, producing huge revenue, showed of the extents that people will go to experience a cultural moment and see their favourite artist sing, though the actual music appears more and more secondary to the show.

The Condition of Modern Intimacy

Intimacy, on the other hand – an accessible and common experience – is in difficult times. According to contemporary studies, nearly one in four of people engaged sexually in an average week, while just under a third were abstaining. In a different nation, current statistics revealed that over a quarter of adults admitted to avoiding intimacy a single time in the last twelve months, rising from smaller percentages in the past. In both territories, the trend has been associated with reduced intimacy with younger generations. Contrast this with the market driving growth for major events and the cutthroat competition for admissions. Naturally it's more complicated as a basic option between both alternatives – “do you prefer experience a popular event multiple times, or remain abstinent?” – but it might be an indication of which is perceived as the more dependable pleasure.

Unexpected Similarities

Sex and live music are more comparable than people often believe. They both embody the activation of a bond, a real-world test of impressions or possibility that may have developed solely in your imagination. You come with some idea of what might happen, but expecting to be delightfully amazed – and whether it proves good or bad rests largely on whether your energy and hopes correspond with partners. Frequently you might find with someone else’s hair in your mouth, and later be waiting around for a cigarette and some quiet time alone. Likewise with either, drugs and alcohol can either enhance or lessen the event (but absolutely assist the most unpleasant situations more bearable).

Seeking Harmony

The wonder to live events and relationships hinges on finding that elusive sweet spot between the known and the new, similarity and difference, challenge and comfort. Of course it occurs infrequently – but it's the remembrance of when it worked, the awareness that it can happen, that drives us to give it another shot: to {