First Official Blog: Matt About Town and Incubus

Hello everyone, hopefully there is an everyone out there.

I have decided to start this blog based on true events and the encouragement of those who have been intrigued in either my writing or the zany misadventures of my life so far. The title of this blog, Matt About Town, was inspired by the column I wrote for the Sacramento City College newspaper under the same name. I wrote initially about different things I did around town but it eventually grew into a place for me to write about all aspects of life and things that interested me and made me think. It is one of the things I am most proud of to this day. I hope to keep up this tradition with this new incarnation for my writing and I also hope all those people out in cyberspace will appreciate it.

Well, no reason to keep some of you waiting.

This weekend I am embarking on the longest journey I have ever made without my family. Myself and my dear friend Susie are going to Santa Barbara to see Incubus and spend some time in the sun and well, not being in Sacramento. This will be the fourth time I have seen Incubus and I am very excited to say the least. I started really listening to them when I was in the ninth grade. I had heard a few of the singles from Make Yourself on the radio and wanted to get a little more in-depth. So I bought S.C.I.E.N.C.E.

Upon first listening I discovered a different band than the one I had heard on the radio. I could hardly understand any of the lyrics, there was frenetic guitar playing, bass and drums were everywhere. I was beginning to regret my purchase. I forced myself to keep listening though, time after time, track after track. Eventually it clicked, it was like that scene in the 13th Warrior when Antonio Banderas' character began to pick up on the Nordic language his new companions we're speaking. Slowly each word started to make sense and I could pick out multiple lines, I could start to make sense of everything. That is when Incubus truly started to open up to me.

S.C.I.E.N.C.E. quickly became my favorite Incubus album and I became proud of the fact that I knew about it when a majority of my friends had never heard about it. It was in high school that I really started to grow my own taste in music. I was able to branch out and away from the classic rock foundation that my parents bestowed upon me. It is something that I feel has defined me ever since then and is something that I find almost necessary in other people. One of the things I hate most when I meet someone is to hear that they listen to, "all kinds of music."

No you don't. And if you actually do, stop and make up your fucking mind. Ridiculous.

Normally I wouldn't have a problem with someone having a diverse taste in something, but when it comes to music I feel like there is too much to choose from to honestly say you like all of it. In addition to that, different kinds of music say a lot about the people who listen to them. For instance, someone who listens to the Jonas Brothers probably won't share similar opinions on life as me. I could be wrong and I'm willing to admit that, but ultimately our musical tastes define us.

Incubus has been my favorite band for years. They've changed from album to album and the change, in my opinion, has never been a bad one. How does this define me? Does it say I have changed throughout the years but managed to remain the same person at the core? Or does it simply mean I like a band with commercial success as well as relative longevity?

It doesn't necessarily have to mean anything. But it does mean that I am passionate enough about this band that I am willing to go over four hundred miles to see them for two hours. I care enough about the music I love to spend hundreds of dollars to experience it for the fourth time. Maybe it means that I have a better answer than everything when people ask me what kind of music I listen to.