On listening, long-form albums and libraries

I sometimes wonder when the act of listening to music changed for me. These days I, probably like most people, often listen while doing other things: driving, cooking, cleaning, or trying to drown out the noise of the world. Noise-cancelling headphones help. And although I love listening to music, I rarely sit down with the singular purpose of just listening.

I grew up in a small Finnish town, and the library was often my after-school refuge. In winter it was already turning dusky by mid-afternoon. I’d walk through the snow, drop the heavy schoolbag and jacket in some corner, and enter a world of comics, books, and music.