Reflecting on Sound Mind

      Sound Mind has been a long, strange trip. It's hard to believe my first post was September 2, 2012. I believe 153 posts were written over a decade ago. Recently, I've been thinking about the future of this exercise, as well as reflecting on its past. It's been enjoyable doing these deep dives and Mt. Rushmores, and I intend to continue with them. My tastes and opinions regarding many aspects of music, and my collection in particular, have change quite a bit over a dozen years. These deep dives and various YouTube channels have greatly expanded my exposure to artists and albums I may never have sought out otherwise. I have also reassessed artists I'm all too familiar with. 

     In retrospect, I came to the realization that many of my old posts haven't aged well. Some are straight up rubbish. One reason I haven't tried to promote or monetize this blog is I'm embarrassed by a sizable chunk of what I've written. The number of times I've attempted to encapsulate the career of a band, or an entire musical genre, in a three-paragraph post is mind boggling. Doves, Cheap Trick, Genesis, Bowie, Miles Davis, Midnight Oil, Michael Jackson, Tobin Sprout, Pink Floyd, YES, Elvis Presley, Queen, Power Pop, Heavy Metal, etc. I intend to revisit some of these artists and genres with a decade's more thought behind it. 

     I would also like to get back to a focus on pieces in my collection. This would be new additions, as well as considerations of the 2200+ albums already in my collection. When I started this blog, my son was 5 years old. He's now finishing his junior year of high school. I'm thinking about gauging his interest in my collection and introducing him to some bands before he leaves home someday. I've been doing this casually in the car, but not in a concerted way. I have plenty of colored vinyl to lure him in. Ideally, he will keep some of my best albums. Then my wife won't have to sell them all on Discogs or get pennies on the dollar at the record store. I have also considered a buying moratorium or a "one in, one out" policy, but that seems unlikely to happen. In fact, I'm meeting my friend Mike at the Record Den tomorrow. Also, I'd like to get to Jerry's Records in Pittsburgh this summer. I do have some duplicates again from my recent record haul, but most of them are different pressings so I'd like to hang on to them for the time being. It's not hoarding if it's a curated record collection! Peace.