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Envision being gifted with a open night. You are rejuvenated, open to experience, and looking to shake up your usual routine of relaxing at home. The world awaits your choice! Would you opt for a) going to a gig or b) being with a partner? The answer, as is often true with such kinds of hypotheticals, is obviously: “It varies.” Reasonable people might logically inquire: what's the concert? Who's the partner? Is it going to be good?

Not many would choose a heavy metal lineup if the alternative was one enchanted evening with a favorite star. However tweak any part of the scenario, and it grows more complicated. For the thousands surveyed asked this question by a live event company, no further context was given – and the response emerged unambiguously and heavily supporting gigs.

Study Data Show Surprising Trends

A global study, questioning 40,000 people ranging from 18 and 54 from multiple countries, showed that live music currently stand as the most popular leisure activity, ranking above games, films and – yes – sex. When limited to only one option of enjoyment for the rest of their lives, a significant portion chose live music, against film attendance (17%) and sports events (14%). Participants were significantly more as inclined to choose watching their top musician in concert (70%) rather than intimacy (30%).

You arrive anticipating happily shocked – and frequently you could wind up with another person's locks in your mouth

Context and Considerations

Of course it makes sense that a marketing research commissioned by a live event company would result so strongly preferring gigs – and, in the freewheeling mood of a either-or question, if your preferred musician is, such as a legendary singer, you can see why watching him may be chosen instead of a routine encounter. However this binary choice between concerts or sex, clearly absurd though it may be, is fascinating to reflect on amid the peculiar point we experience with both.

The Change of Live Music Experience

Lately, concert attendance has grown beyond a group event but a intense competition. Event companies rightly note that large venue turnout has “increased threefold each year”, and music festivals get booked up quicker than before. Simply getting passes now demands extensive preparation, rapid-fire response times and significant funds (or a substantial budget). Although you’re successful, it isn't sufficient to just show up and enjoy the show. Currently there is an assumption, at least among music enthusiasts, that you might enhance your return on investment by going multiple times (potentially going abroad), swotting up on the song selection beforehand and memorizing the cues to hit and fan traditions established by past attendees.

Numerous attendees describe being affected by their attendance at popular events: what felt like a choreographed performance of thousands of people, to which certain attendees turned up unaware of the steps. Those lengthy event, generating billions, showed of the degree to which fans will travel to experience a historic occasion and watch their preferred performer play, although the live sound grows somewhat less important than the production.

The State of Modern Intimacy

Intimacy, by contrast – an affordable and accessible pleasure – is in dire straits. Per contemporary studies, about a quarter of individuals engaged sexually in an typical week, while about three in ten were sexually inactive. In another major country, current statistics indicated that a significant portion of adults admitted to avoiding sex at all in the previous year, rising from smaller percentages in previous decades. Across these regions, the trend has been associated with less sexual activity among younger people. Compare this with the industry expanding rapidly for major events and the cutthroat competition for passes. Naturally it's more complicated as a basic option between either option – “could you choose experience a popular event multiple times, or remain abstinent?” – but it might be an signal of what is viewed as the more consistent satisfaction.

Interesting Comparisons

Sex and live music are more comparable than you might think. Both represent the commencement of a bond, a practical trial of impressions or promise that could have built solely in your imagination. You show up with a general notion of the probable outcome, but anticipating happily shocked – and if it turns out satisfying or frustrating rests largely on how your vibe and expectations align with others. Quite often you could wind up with someone else’s hair in your mouth, and following be waiting around for a smoke and some quiet time alone. Likewise with either, drugs and alcohol can sometimes improve or reduce the experience (but definitely make the most dire experiences more bearable).

Achieving Equilibrium

The appeal to concerts and intimacy depends on finding that elusive sweet spot between comfort and excitement, sameness and variation, work and relaxation. Naturally it happens only rarely – but it's the recollection of when they did, the awareness that it can happen, that drives us to attempt once more: to {