Blog1 min read
Music for housework
Vacuuming, putting away laundry, wiping down counters. The body is moving; the head shouldn't be.
There's a particular Saturday-morning brief I haven't written for explicitly, which is music for housework. Vacuuming, putting away laundry, wiping down counters. The body is moving; the head shouldn't be.
The trick is volume. Most music that works for housework sounds wrong at low volume, because there's a vacuum or a kettle competing with it. Turning it up makes it bright. Lo-fi handles this best — it's already dusty enough at any volume that it doesn't gain edge when you push it. Vocals are fine because you're not paying attention. Beats help; the body wants something to move to.
What doesn't work is anything precious. Ambient is too quiet; classical too dynamic. Anything with a build that wants you to stop and listen is wrong for the moment, since you can't stop. The music has to be the rhythm of the chore, not its accompaniment.
This is the one room where I'd be okay if the music wasn't very good in the abstract. A song with a great kick drum that I'd skip in the car is fine on a Saturday morning. The kettle covers most of it anyway.