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Picture finding yourself with a night off. You're feeling energized, eager for new things, and looking to break from your regular habits of relaxing at home. Your options is your oyster! Could you prefer a) seeing live music or b) being with a partner? The outcome, as is often seen with these types of hypotheticals, is plainly: “That depends.” Reasonable people may reasonably ask: what's the gig? With whom is the other person? Could it be going to be good?

Hardly anyone would pick a Limp Bizkit/Slipknot/Korn triple bill if the alternative was a magical night with Jonathan Bailey. Yet change one side of the equation, and it becomes more complicated. Regarding the participants presented with this choice by a live event company, no further context was given – and the result emerged clearly and strongly preferring concerts.

Research Findings Show Interesting Choices

An international study, questioning a large sample aged between 18 and 54 across different nations, revealed that concerts are now the most popular leisure activity, surpassing sports, movies and – indeed – intimacy. When limited to one type of activity forever, nearly four in ten chose concerts, versus film attendance (17%) and athletic competitions (14%). Participants were over two times as inclined to prefer watching their top musician live (70%) rather than sex (30%).

You appear anticipating pleasantly surprised – and quite often you could wind up with a stranger's hair in your mouth

Factors and Reflections

Certainly it's expected that a marketing research commissioned by a gig organizer should come out so heavily in favour of live shows – and, with the speculative tone of a either-or question, if your preferred musician is, say a legendary singer, one can appreciate why watching him might win out rather than a routine encounter. Yet this either-or decision between gigs or sex, plainly ridiculous as it is, is fascinating to think about amid the peculiar moment we face with each.

The Transformation of Concert Culture

Lately, concert attendance has grown beyond a communal experience but a intense competition. Event companies appropriately highlight that arena crowds has “tripled each year”, and live events sell out faster than ever. Just obtaining tickets now needs military-level planning, instant reactions and deep finances (or a substantial budget). Though you succeed, it’s not enough to merely attend and watch the performance. Currently there is an anticipation, especially for pop fans, that you could increase your enjoyment value by seeing several shows (including overseas trips), learning the song selection in advance and understanding the rituals to hit and fan traditions created by previous crowds.

Numerous fans report feeling affected by their participation at major tours: appearing as a scripted production of massive crowds, in which certain attendees came not knowing the protocol. The extended tour, producing huge revenue, was proof of the lengths to which fans will travel to experience a historic occasion and watch their preferred performer sing, though the actual music grows somewhat less important than the show.

The Situation of Contemporary Sexuality

Intimacy, conversely – an accessible and common experience – is in dire straits. Based on recent surveys, about a quarter of individuals were intimate in an average week, while nearly 30% were sexually inactive. Elsewhere, current statistics showed that a significant portion of individuals admitted to avoiding sexual activity a single time in the last twelve months, up from smaller percentages in the past. In both territories, the shift has been associated with reduced intimacy with younger generations. Juxtapose this with the industry driving growth for major events and the fierce battle for passes. Of course it’s not as simple as a simple decision between both alternatives – “do you prefer see a major tour repeatedly, or stay celibate?” – but it might be an signal of what is viewed as the more reliable pleasure.

Interesting Comparisons

Intimacy and concerts are more comparable than people often believe. Both represent the commencement of a bond, a actual experience of expectations or promise that could have built solely in your imagination. You arrive with a basic expectation of the probable outcome, but hopeful of being pleasantly surprised – and if it turns out good or bad depends very much on how your vibe and hopes correspond with partners. Quite often you might find with someone else’s hair in your mouth, and following be hanging out for a cigarette and personal space by yourself. Similarly for each, stimulants and beverages can either enhance or lessen the experience (but certainly help the most dire occasions more bearable).

Achieving Equilibrium

The wonder to live events and relationships depends on finding that perfect combination between familiarity and novelty, sameness and variation, work and relaxation. Certainly it happens only rarely – but it's the recollection of when they did, the awareness that it’s possible, that inspires us to try again: to {