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Envision finding yourself with a open night. You're feeling rejuvenated, open to experience, and hoping to break from your usual routine of evening scrolling. The world awaits your choice! Could you choose a) attending a concert or b) being with a partner? The answer, as typically seen with these sorts of hypotheticals, is clearly: “It varies.” Thinking adults may reasonably wonder: what is the concert? With whom is the partner? Is it expected to be good?

Hardly anyone would choose a Limp Bizkit/Slipknot/Korn triple bill if the choice was a dream date with a beloved celebrity. However tweak any part of the equation, and it becomes more complicated. Regarding the 40,000 people posed this query by a major concert promoter, no further context was offered – and the result emerged unambiguously and heavily in favour of concerts.

Survey Results Reveal Unexpected Trends

A worldwide study, questioning thousands of participants aged between 18 and 54 across different nations, showed that live music are now the world’s top pastime, surpassing games, films and – yes – sexual intercourse. If restricted to one type of activity permanently, nearly four in ten selected gigs, versus going to the cinema (17%) and games (14%). The group was over two times as prone to select watching their top musician in concert (70%) rather than sex (30%).

You arrive hopeful of being delightfully amazed – and frequently you’ll end up with someone else’s hair in your mouth

Context and Considerations

Of course it's expected that a marketing research commissioned by a gig organizer would result so heavily preferring live shows – and, in the freewheeling spirit of a either-or question, if your favourite artist is, say Paul McCartney, it's understandable why seeing him could prevail instead of a common or garden situation. However this two-option scenario between concerts or intimacy, clearly absurd though it may be, is noteworthy to think about given the odd juncture we experience with both.

The Change of Gig Attendance

Lately, live music participation has evolved into more than a communal experience but a serious endeavor. Event companies appropriately highlight that large venue turnout has “grown significantly annually”, and live events are fully reserved quicker than before. Merely acquiring admissions now needs military-level planning, quick decision-making and significant funds (or a generous credit card limit). Even if you’re successful, it’s not enough to simply turn up and enjoy the show. Nowadays exists an expectation, especially for pop fans, that you could increase your enjoyment value by seeing several shows (even travelling internationally), studying the performance lineup beforehand and understanding the rituals to hit and calls-and-responses established by earlier audiences.

Numerous attendees admit to shaken by their participation at popular events: appearing as a orchestrated show of massive crowds, where particular fans came not knowing the protocol. The extended tour, producing huge revenue, demonstrated of the lengths to which attendees will push to participate in a significant event and experience their top musician perform, though the live sound seems increasingly secondary to the production.

The State of Current Relationships

Sexual activity, on the other hand – a relatively cheap and common experience – is in dire straits. Per modern research, approximately 25% of adults had sex in an regular period, while just under a third were not engaging. In a different nation, current statistics showed that over a quarter of people reported not having intimacy at all in the previous year, rising from smaller percentages in previous decades. Across these regions, the shift has been associated with less sexual activity in youth demographics. Juxtapose this with the industry expanding rapidly for large concerts and the intense rivalry for passes. Naturally it's more complicated as a simple decision between both alternatives – “could you choose experience a popular event multiple times, or avoid intimacy?” – but it might be an sign of which is perceived as the more dependable pleasure.

Unexpected Similarities

Sex and live music are more comparable than people often believe. They both embody the initiation of a relationship, a real-world test of impressions or potential that may have developed just in your mind. You show up with a general notion of what might happen, but expecting to be pleasantly surprised – and whether it proves satisfying or frustrating rests largely on how your vibe and expectations match theirs. Regularly you could wind up with a stranger's hair in your mouth, and afterwards be hanging out for a break and a moment alone alone. Similarly for each, stimulants and beverages can sometimes improve or reduce the event (but definitely make the most unpleasant experiences more bearable).

Seeking Harmony

The wonder to both gigs and sex hinges on discovering that hard-to-find balance between the known and the new, sameness and variation, work and relaxation. Naturally it's uncommon – but it's the recollection of when they did, the awareness that it can happen, that motivates us to attempt once more: to {