I often wonder how dull a world without music would be.
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Or a world where we could never experience the energy of it live, in a venue full of fans as true as ourselves.
It’s August, month eight, and I’ve clocked up 16 live music shows already this year.
That averages a couple a month, but if you break down how many bands or individual artists between those concerts and festivals, it would average more than one a week.
You can probably imagine it’s been a tiring, tune-filled time.
Obviously I’m not complaining about self-inflicted exhaustion; I’m fully aware how privileged I am.
But, that doesn’t cancel out that I am tired.
I’ve travelled to Melbourne and Bendigo, Echuca and Albury chasing tunes, so when there’s a gig on in Shepparton, I am thrilled to just be able to enjoy it without the related logistical planning, extra expenses and time out of my day.
Being home in bed by midnight after a night of music makes for the most satisfying slumber and sweetest dreams.
The Winter Sessions returned to Shepparton this year, after a four-year hiatus.
Shame on me, but I’d never been to one before June.
I got a free ticket to the first event this year, so, naturally, I shuffled along to it to see what it was all about.
The Winter Sessions is a unique four-weekend concert series held throughout the cooler months in the Goulburn Valley.
There’s a different line-up of artists for each event, which span two nights of each of the weekends they’re held.
Fridays are the social, chatty nights, which are more suited to people like me who can’t sit quietly once I’ve had a couple of drinks (or even when I’ve had none, if I’m honest).
Saturdays are for those who want to focus wholeheartedly on the music without the distraction of crowd chatter.
Brought to life by local events specialist (and musician herself) Jamie Lea and held in The Vault, a cosy converted warehouse tucked down a Shepparton laneway in the CBD, the sessions are something else.
I enjoyed the vibe so much that I bought tickets to the second event.
Then, to the third.
The fourth is yet to come (first weekend in September).
When the most recent one rocked around, I was knackered from a huge week at work and had to dig deep to find any drive to front up.
Sometimes when I’m tired, if I’m not familiar with an artist, I don’t have the patience to sit through their set.
Call me out for calling myself a music lover after admitting that, if you will, but I said what I said.
When I’m in that mood, I’d rather listen to someone with only a half-decent voice play covers, so at least I can sing along without having to reach for the mental capacity to concentrate on tracks foreign to my ears to work out if I enjoy them or not.
It’s a ‘me problem’, for sure. I probably should get more sleep.
But here’s where The Winter Sessions has my back.
This year, they’ve had a resident artist.
While the line-up is changed each show, one act, called the Hootie Tooties, has been opening every show for the season.
So, by the time I dragged my tired, grumpy and impatient butt to gig number three, I was actually familiar with them to the point I was even singing along ...“ain’t no hippie (ain’t no hippie), got no job (no job)…”
Whaddayaknow? You can still learn lyrics even while you’re chatting away at your table with friends, seemingly distracted from the shenanigans on stage.
Thankfully we will never know how dull a world without music would be.
All I can speak to is how dull I am to the world of music if I don’t let in the unfamiliar.
You don’t have to know the artists or their songs at The Winter Sessions; you can just soak up the atmosphere of The Vault on Friday night, catch up with friends and be home by 10.
A good sleep will fix your grumpy butt up enough to return on Saturday and fully absorb the ambience.