A Free CD, Just For You
by Bryan Berlin (Communications), published June 9th 2010
You are on your way back from class when something catches your eye, a green CD sleeve perhaps. You walk over to find that the disk is entitled ‘a free CD; just for you.’ While it may be getting easier and easier to procure free music, you probably never thought that it could be as easy as picking up a complimentary compact disk on your way home.
Music is extremely powerful; I think of it more as a tool than just a set of well put-together sounds. Certain songs can put me in a state of euphoria, while others allow me the strength to cope when I’m feeling despondent. Some bands even have the ability to do both these tasks at once (Death Cab For Cutie has a great array of both upbeat and bummer songs).
A certain band can even make me feel a different way each time I listen. There are an incredible amount of artists around today and it is extremely easy to overlook a band you could love. There are bands I listen to that I could not live without that other people have never even heard of before. Some people have never had a chance to hear ‘Manifest’ by The Weakerthans or deal with a bad breakup by listening to the beautiful lyrics of ‘Annie Dan’ by Speechwriters LLC.
I wanted to change this — I wanted to share the feeling I get whenever I hear songs like ‘Daylight’ by Matt & Kim. How could I do this though? I guess I could go around telling people they should listen to these bands, but honestly I don’t know many people who would take random band suggestions from a stranger seriously; my friends don’t even take my recommendation half the time. Giving someone a new band to listen to is a process; they have to go home, search for this band and find their songs. Sometimes it is just easier to go on listening to what you have.
Then I read an article online that changed everything. It was about a guy who went around and put CDs in people’s mailboxes. This was genius, but I wanted it to be less systematic (many people don’t have accessible mailboxes in the city anyways). This is when I decided I would make a mix CD of 12 different songs from 12 different bands, and leave it somewhere around Northeastern — this way, these bands could get out there and be heard. Instead of being given a band, you get to find this CD that was sitting on a park bench and go home and listen. It’s a much more stimulating experience that will hopefully bare a similar result.
My hope for this project is that people will find these CDs and actually get something out of them, even if it’s only one song that really makes their day. If I get a decent amount of positive feedback I hope to move this project to the city of Boston. So, if you see a CD lying around Northeastern, pick it up, listen, and send your feedback to SecretBostonCD@gmail.com.