The COVID19 pandemic has brought about an increase in both unemployment and remote home office working. This is seeing a lot more people with time at home. As well as this lockdown and social distancing restrictions have rendered socialising more difficult among friends and loved ones. All of this extra time at home got me... Continue Reading →
It is often said that music is a form of therapy and a lot of research finds that it is beneficial to people in stressful situations. This got me wondering whether or not it could it help alleviate some of the stresses associated with the COVID19 lockdown situation. We are all struggling with being away... Continue Reading →
Economists often get a lot of grief because of the cold and calculated nature of economics or the "dismal science" to quote Thomas Carlyle. And to be fair, maybe the stigma is some what warranted. Economists are often concerned with efficiency and productivity at an aggregate level which means they may overlook the more nuanced... Continue Reading →
A friend of mine, Cillian, sent me on a photo yesterday of something his mother found while she was rummaging around. It was a ticket to a Queen concert from 1978, which means, assuming the ticket was hers, she has very good taste. In addition to finding this out, seeing the ticket also provided me... Continue Reading →
I'm currently reading a book by Malcolm Gladwell called Outliers: The Story of Success. The book tries to explain how incredibly successful people came to be so successful. One of the key features of the book is that it tries to dispel some of the myths surrounding successful people. Gladwell explains that very successful people don't benefit... Continue Reading →
I use Spotify quite a lot during normal times, but now that COVID19 has me housebound I've noticed I'm using it even more. I took to the Irish Spotify charts to see was this a national event or just me. The below chart shows the total number of streams for each song in the top... Continue Reading →
With the summer fast approaching a lot of people will be getting excited for festival season. The allure of festivals like Glastonbury and Coachella is enough to get some to empty their bank accounts on a great music filled weekend away rolling around in the mud. But for those of us in Ireland who fancy... Continue Reading →
With the first two months of the year out of the way, a lot of people's minds are turning towards the summer and festival season. Last year a popular feature on this blog was the analysis music festivals. This year I will be continuing to do these posts. The first of which will be today's... Continue Reading →
When I was 16 I decided to teach myself to play guitar. I have been playing ever since and it's probably my favorite pass time. But, playing the guitar (or any instrument) doesn't always feel good. When anyone starts playing an instrument they're not going to be good at it immediately. This makes playing frustrating... Continue Reading →
