An Unlikely Music Sanctuary

When one thinks of the library, a destination for the latest in music is not what normally comes to mind. For many, the library is a place to pull an all-night cram session before a big test, do some research for a mid-term paper, or just check out a good book. But unbeknownst to many, most libraries also have a plethora of new music and classic albums that are available to anyone, as long as you have a library card. And if it weren’t for the public library, I honestly would not be the music aficionado that I am today.

In my early years in high school, I listened to grunge and hard rock almost exclusively (with the exception of The Beatles, which were then a guilty pleasure of mine), and albums like In Utero, Vitalogy, Sixteen Stone, and (yes, I’ll admit it) My Own Prison were among my favs. In essence, if it wasn’t earth-shattering loud, I wasn’t worth my time. Then at around my junior year, I decided to explore the audio section at my high school’s library (which also serves as a branch of the Scottsdale Public Library), and it forever shaped the way I looked at music. You see, before I started to delve into their music selection, I thought that Jimi Hendrix was, while a good guitarist, very over-rated, based on the songs that I heard on the radio. Then I checked out Are You Experienced, and once I was exposed to such gems as “Third Stone from the Sun,” “The Wind Cries Mary,” and the title track, he became my favorite guitarist of all time. I also thought Bob Dylan was nothing more than a folkie who played overly-simple, bland acoustic songs, until I checked out “The Bootleg Series Vol. 4: Live at the Royal Albert Hall” and discovered that not only could Dylan rock out, but that his music was just as earth-shattering (if not more so) than the music I was listening to, albeit in a totally different way. And before my junior year, I heard absolutely nothing from Neil Young’s catalogue, apart from a few songs on the radio, but after hearing “Rockin’ in the Free World,” I decided to check out his greatest hits set Decade; now he’s my favorite artist after the Beatles and Dylan. Basically, if it weren’t for the public library, I might be crossing my fingers that Creed jumps on the reunion bandwagon while listening to Alter Bridge’s debut album.

And to this day I still check out music from the library. In fact, a new library opened just down the street from my house, and during my last few visits I’ve checked out everything from college rock staples (The Queen is Dead, Surfer Rosa, Murmur), hip hop (The Marshall Mathers LP, Stankonia) and indie classics (In the Aeroplane Over the Sea, Let it Be, Daydream Nation) to current indie rock (Wincing the Night Away, We Were Dead Before the Ship Even Sank, Z), stone cold classic albums (Electric Ladyland, Synchronicity, What’s Going On) and even some of my high school favs (Siamese Dream, Vs., MTV Unplugged in New York). And I did it without having to fork over $18 for an album, or at the risk of being sued by the RIAA. The only thing I needed was the library card.

So if you’ve been wanting to open your ears and discover some new music, I insist that you go to your local library and check out their music collection. Who knows; it may change your life.

— Jason Shoff