Music is something truly incredible. It's something that we can constantly be pushing to new limits and past new boundaries. In this day and age, there are so many new genres and sounds.
A man by the name Glenn McDonald says that there are 1,264 identifiable popular micro genres out there in the world, and I'm sure there's plenty more that have yet to be truly discovered.
One of the most bizarre but interesting genres of music that I discovered just this past year is called Noise Music. I'm sure you're wondering what it is.
Well, to put it simply, noise music is exactly what it sounds like. Wikipedia defines Noise Music as "A category of music that is characterized by the expressive use of noise within a musical context".
If you're still confused by what I mean by "noise" let me give you some examples. Ever heard TV static? Noise. Ever heard a microwave going? Noise. Ever heard an air vent blowing? Noise.
Noise is all around us but is rarely used in a musical context, that is until Noise Music became a thing. Noise music is usually just a random sound or noise that someone finds interesting, and is incorporated into the music, sometimes as simple as putting a beat behind it or warping the sound more. The point is to challenge what sounds we call musical and non-musical.
Now I'm sure you're really wondering what the appeal of listening to just noise is, well I'm going, to be honest, it took me a while to understand too. It's breaking barriers on what music truly can be.
Like all art, beauty is in the eye of the beholder, what one person may think is just noise, others may think is a masterpiece. Noise music definitely isn't for everyone, but the people I've met who are into it, seem to really like it.
There is something aesthetically pleasing about listening to noise and having musical aspects woven into it. It's creating art out of the simplest of sounds. So if you're interested in this genre, love it or hate it, it's worth the listen.
