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Envision having a free evening. You are rejuvenated, eager for new things, and wanting to break from your usual routine of post-work slumping. Your options awaits your choice! Could you choose a) going to a gig or b) being with a partner? The outcome, as typically seen with these sorts of hypotheticals, is clearly: “It varies.” Reasonable people may reasonably inquire: what is the gig? Who's the other person? Will it be going to be satisfying?

Not many would choose a heavy metal lineup if the choice was a dream date with a beloved celebrity. However tweak either end of the scenario, and it becomes more complicated. In the case of the 40,000 people posed this query from a gig organization, no additional clarification was offered – and the answer emerged clearly and overwhelmingly in favour of gigs.

Study Data Reveal Interesting Choices

An international report, interviewing 40,000 people from 18 and 54 across multiple countries, revealed that concerts are now the most popular leisure activity, ranking above games, films and – yes – sexual intercourse. When limited to a single form of enjoyment for the rest of their lives, 39% of respondents chose gigs, against going to the cinema (17%) and games (14%). They were also significantly more as likely to prefer watching their top musician live (70%) rather than intimacy (30%).

You arrive anticipating happily shocked – and quite often you could wind up with another person's locks in your mouth

Factors and Reflections

Naturally it makes sense that a marketing research conducted for a concert promoter should come out so overwhelmingly in favour of concerts – and, with the speculative spirit of a hypothetical choice, if your favourite artist is, for example a legendary singer, one can appreciate why watching him might win out rather than a ordinary situation. But this binary choice between gigs or sexual activity, plainly ridiculous even if it seems, is interesting to reflect on given the odd point we experience with both.

The Change of Concert Culture

Lately, live music participation has become not just a group event but a competitive sport. Major promoters rightly note that arena crowds has “tripled year-over-year”, and live events sell out quicker than before. Merely acquiring passes now needs detailed strategy, quick decision-making and significant funds (or a generous credit card limit). Even if you’re successful, that alone won't do to simply turn up and watch the performance. Currently there is an expectation, especially for concertgoers, that you could increase your return on investment by going multiple times (potentially going abroad), studying the set list ahead of time and memorizing the cues to follow and audience interactions developed through earlier audiences.

Several fans admit to scarred by their experience at popular events: what seemed like a scripted production of thousands of people, in which particular fans came unaware of the steps. Those lengthy concert series, earning massive sums, demonstrated of the degree to which fans will travel to participate in a significant event and watch their preferred performer play, although the live sound appears more and more less important than the spectacle.

The State of Current Relationships

Sexual activity, conversely – a relatively cheap and common experience – is in challenging circumstances. According to recent surveys, approximately 25% of adults had sex in an typical week, while about three in ten were abstaining. In a different nation, modern figures showed that over a quarter of adults said they had not intimacy a single time in the past year, increasing from lower numbers in earlier years. In these areas, the trend has been associated with reduced intimacy among younger people. Juxtapose this with the industry booming for stadium extravaganzas and the intense rivalry for admissions. Of course it's more complicated as a basic option between either option – “do you prefer see a major tour often, or remain abstinent?” – but it’s perhaps an signal of how people see the more dependable enjoyment.

Interesting Comparisons

Intimacy and concerts are more similar than you might think. Each symbolizes the commencement of a relationship, a real-world test of impressions or promise that might have amassed just in your mind. You arrive with a general notion of what might happen, but anticipating delightfully amazed – and how it ends up satisfying or frustrating rests largely on whether your energy and expectations match theirs. Regularly you could wind up with another person's locks in your mouth, and afterwards be hanging out for a cigarette and personal space alone. Similarly for each, substances and drinks can sometimes improve or reduce the event (but certainly help the most unpleasant occasions easier to weather).

Seeking Harmony

The wonder to both gigs and sex relies on discovering that hard-to-find balance between comfort and excitement, similarity and difference, effort and ease. Of course it happens only rarely – but it's the recollection of successful moments, the understanding that it’s possible, that drives us to try again: to {