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Envision finding yourself with a open night. You are refreshed, ready for adventure, and hoping to change your regular habits of post-work slumping. Your options is your oyster! Could you choose a) attending a concert or b) engaging in intimacy? The answer, as typically the case with these types of hypotheticals, is plainly: “It depends.” Reasonable people may reasonably wonder: what kind of the gig? Who is the partner? Is it expected to be enjoyable?

Hardly anyone would select a heavy metal lineup if the choice was one enchanted evening with a favorite star. But adjust any part of the scenario, and it grows more complicated. For the 40,000 people posed this query through a major concert promoter, no such details was given – and the answer emerged decisively and heavily in favour of live music events.

Research Findings Reveal Surprising Preferences

A global report, interviewing thousands of participants ranging from 18 and 54 in 15 markets, found that gigs currently stand as the number one leisure activity, beating out athletic events, movies and – yes – sexual intercourse. When limited to a single form of enjoyment forever, 39% of respondents chose gigs, compared to film attendance (17%) and games (14%). Participants were over two times as likely to select attending their preferred performer live (70%) instead of intimacy (30%).

You arrive hopeful of being delightfully amazed – and quite often you might find with someone else’s hair in your mouth

Context and Considerations

Naturally it’s not surprising that a PR survey commissioned by a concert promoter should come out so overwhelmingly in favour of concerts – and, in the freewheeling spirit of a either-or question, if your top performer is, such as Paul McCartney, one can appreciate why attending his concert might win out instead of a ordinary situation. However this binary choice between gigs or intimacy, obviously silly as it is, is interesting to reflect on considering the strange juncture we’re at with these two aspects.

The Change of Gig Attendance

Over the past few years, concert attendance has evolved into more than a group event but a intense competition. Live organizations duly point out that stadium attendance has “increased threefold year-over-year”, and festivals sell out more rapidly than previously. Just obtaining admissions now needs detailed strategy, quick decision-making and significant funds (or a high spending capacity). Even if you manage, it isn't sufficient to merely attend and watch the performance. There’s now an anticipation, at least among pop fans, that you can boost your experience quality by going multiple times (even travelling internationally), learning the set list beforehand and knowing your marks to perform and audience interactions created by earlier audiences.

Several concertgoers admit to scarred by their attendance at popular events: appearing as a scripted production of huge audiences, in which particular fans turned up unfamiliar with the routine. The extended concert series, producing huge revenue, was proof of the extents that people will go to participate in a historic occasion and watch their preferred performer sing, although the actual music grows somewhat less important than the spectacle.

The State of Modern Intimacy

Intimacy, on the other hand – a relatively cheap and accessible pleasure – experiences dire straits. According to modern research, about a quarter of individuals had sex in an regular period, while nearly 30% were abstaining. In another major country, modern figures revealed that more than 25% of adults admitted to avoiding intimacy even once in the previous year, increasing from fewer people in previous decades. In these areas, the trend has been attributed to decreased encounters with younger generations. Juxtapose this with the sector driving growth for large concerts and the fierce battle for tickets. Of course it’s not as simple as a basic option between one or the other – “would you rather experience a popular event repeatedly, or stay celibate?” – but it's possibly an signal of how people see the more dependable enjoyment.

Surprising Parallels

Sex and live music are closer aligned than you might think. Both represent the commencement of a connection, a practical trial of expectations or potential that may have developed just in your mind. You arrive with a general notion of the probable outcome, but hopeful of being pleasantly surprised – and whether it proves satisfying or frustrating rests largely on how your vibe and hopes correspond with partners. Frequently you might find with someone else’s hair in your mouth, and later be lingering for a break and some quiet time by yourself. And, in both cases, drugs and alcohol can either enhance or lessen the event (but absolutely assist the most dire occasions easier to weather).

Achieving Equilibrium

The appeal to both gigs and sex hinges on locating that elusive sweet spot between comfort and excitement, similarity and difference, work and relaxation. Certainly it's uncommon – but it's the remembrance of when they did, the knowledge that it can happen, that inspires us to give it another shot: to {