Listening to music during the 3 weeks is kind of like sex. No matter how much you debate it, discuss it and do it, it never gets old. It’s more difficult during the 3 weeks to abide by no music rules because it’s the summer and all I want to do during the summer is drive around without a shirt on and listen to blaring country music. Life is even tougher when you don’t have an antenna to listen to talk radio.
To make matters even worse, my internet connection is down at home. It is likely more related to my ancient computer that needs to be replaced, but either way – it forces me to go to sleep and wake up earlier and I get to sit in a random assortment of cool coffee shops and inadvertently listen to obscure and sometimes good music.
Message to people who only listen to obscure music: Just because no one has ever heard of that band you found in some hipster store, doesn’t mean it’s any good. While I’m at it, just because your bike is old doesn’t make it vintage.
To describe a shinuy – pronounce sheenoy – is to describe something that happens in a different way than the norm, almost beyond your control. Sometimes people use the word shinuy to describe breaking Shabbos, like when you turn on a light switch with your nose. You did it, but it was done in a weird way.
So I guess I’m listening to music with a shinuy. I take the low road, I rock it maikel (use the leniency) of listening to recorded music. Last year during the 9 days, I listened in shuffle mode the entire time and it drove me nuts, because once in a while you’re in bluegrass mode and just can’t handle death metal, and visa versa – so I suffered through a shuffle that could have lasted 20,000 songs if it wanted. It only lasted about 1200 songs but still it made me suffer.
I feel like God foresaw that all the summer’s best concert tours would be in that chunk of summer he reserved for the 3 weeks and knew that all big music fans would suffer. If only the big concert tours could take a hint from the Jewish bands and throw their shows during that chunk of time that Jewish music promoters call chol hamoed.
Do you listen to music during the 3 weeks?