The King Stays King

Music is an interesting thing. It's all so damn loud and annoying. I don't understand how people can work with it or heck go to sleep with it. It never sounds right, well, except for Classical, Jazz, Bachata and maybe some Bossa Nova.

But once I'm on my bike all that pretentious crap becomes irrelevant. The battle commences between the Spotify playlists of power metal, speed metal, psychedelic trance and anything that will have me smashing through invisible walls with my bike. The bass, the speed, the noise, the incomprehensible words about dragons, Oden and Thor followed with psychedelic feel good quotes like "The transcending soul is at peace" and "When you dream anything can happen" with insane bass where the last thing your soul is doing is finding transcending peace. It's exploding into creation from this world to the next.

On a race against eternity in a semi-real world of honking close passing trucks and "you'll be dead dead by dawn" fuck, I should skip that tune. But the bass guitar is so wild, I'll lose my my focus without it. So I find myself changing the word "I'll be BACK by dawn". Not quite right but better than dead.

At some point you're just ridiculous fast music on two wheels and everything else is just a sound effect. Fuck did I just get a flat? Pressing mute, oh good, it's the song, no idea why they added that popping sound in there but whatever.

But seriously, speaking from experience here, avoid music with gunshots, helicopters, sirens and artillery. You'll find yourself ducking like an idiot or pulling over to let nothing pass you.

It really does get out of control. Tonight for example this motorist rolled down his window and called out to me "Hello my friend" about ten times, without pause and I tried to figure out what stupid song this is, who put it in my playlist and why the mute button won't work.

"Good evening my friend!" finally I got it, it's real world stuff. Great radio voice and overly friendly but that's not a crime. But ever so pleased that I responded as he drove off.

And don't ask me why but when I'm all wasted, and all I see is black and white and the steam of a hot shower then the Romanian Dance playlist takes over. I've tried to figure out why but I've failed for years so I've just given up. But words such as "I have the entire world inside my soul, cause I don't want to live alone, I don't want to die" seem to get me home without falling of a cliff or hitting one of those insane partying porcupines with their elaborate spiky attire. It's amazing how many times Romania has saved my life. I should visit. (Ironically I ended up living there for six months in 2022)

And then once back home, after the return of the gentleman,

"Can you please turn that noise off! I've just come back from a hard bike ride! It's doing my head in!" Sorry Romeo Santos even if it's The King Stays King.