🔗 Share this article

Picture finding yourself with a night off. You're feeling energized, eager for new things, and hoping to break from your regular habits of post-work slumping. Life itself is your oyster! Could you prefer a) attending a concert or b) engaging in intimacy? The answer, as typically the case with such kinds of questions, is clearly: “It depends.” Thinking adults could understandably wonder: what's the concert? Who is the partner? Is it expected to be good?

Hardly anyone would select a Limp Bizkit/Slipknot/Korn triple bill if the other option was a magical night with Jonathan Bailey. Yet change one side of the scenario, and it becomes more complicated. In the case of the participants presented with this choice from a major concert promoter, no such context was offered – and the response came out unambiguously and overwhelmingly supporting concerts.

Study Data Show Surprising Preferences

An international survey, questioning 40,000 people from 18 and 54 across multiple countries, showed that live music have become the most popular pastime, beating out sports, films and – yes – intimacy. When limited to only one option of entertainment for the rest of their lives, a significant portion chose gigs, compared to going to the cinema (17%) and games (14%). They were also over two times as likely to select seeing their favourite artist live (70%) instead of sex (30%).

You show up expecting to be happily shocked – and quite often you might find with another person's locks in your mouth

Factors and Reflections

Certainly it’s not surprising that a PR survey carried out for a gig organizer might conclude so strongly in favour of gigs – and, with the speculative tone of a would-you-rather, if your favourite artist is, for example an iconic star, it's understandable why attending his concert might win out instead of a common or garden situation. But this either-or decision between concerts or sex, plainly ridiculous though it may be, is fascinating to reflect on amid the peculiar moment we experience with these two aspects.

The Change of Gig Attendance

In recent years, gig-going has evolved into more than a group event but a serious endeavor. Event companies rightly note that arena crowds has “increased threefold each year”, and festivals get booked up quicker than before. Simply getting admissions now requires detailed strategy, quick decision-making and significant funds (or a generous credit card limit). Even if you manage, it isn't sufficient to just show up and experience the event. Currently there is an anticipation, particularly with concertgoers, that you can boost your experience quality by going multiple times (including overseas trips), learning the set list ahead of time and understanding the rituals to hit and calls-and-responses developed through previous crowds.

Many fans describe being shaken by their attendance at major tours: appearing as a choreographed performance of massive crowds, to which certain attendees turned up unaware of the steps. The extended concert series, generating billions, was proof of the degree to which fans will travel to experience a historic occasion and see their favourite artist perform, though the actual music grows somewhat overshadowed by the production.

The Situation of Modern Intimacy

Sexual activity, on the other hand – an affordable and common experience – is in dire straits. According to recent surveys, approximately 25% of adults were intimate in an regular period, while nearly 30% were abstaining. In a different nation, current statistics revealed that more than 25% of individuals said they had not sex a single time in the past year, increasing from smaller percentages in earlier years. Across these regions, the change has been linked to decreased encounters among younger people. Contrast this with the sector expanding rapidly for large concerts and the intense rivalry for passes. Naturally it isn't straightforward as a basic option between both alternatives – “would you rather attend a huge concert often, or avoid intimacy?” – but it might be an indication of which is perceived as the more dependable enjoyment.

Unexpected Similarities

Relationships and gigs are more similar than one may assume. Each symbolizes the activation of a relationship, a practical trial of expectations or possibility that might have amassed solely in your imagination. You arrive with a basic expectation of what might happen, but anticipating pleasantly surprised – and if it turns out satisfying or frustrating rests largely on how your vibe and expectations correspond with partners. Regularly you’ll end up with another person's locks in your mouth, and following be hanging out for a smoke and some quiet time alone. Likewise with either, drugs and alcohol can potentially heighten or reduce the experience (but definitely make the worst situations simpler to handle).

Seeking Harmony

The magic to both gigs and sex relies on finding that elusive sweet spot between familiarity and novelty, sameness and variation, effort and ease. Certainly it happens only rarely – but it’s the memory of when they did, the understanding that it can happen, that motivates us to attempt once more: to {