songs mean a lot when songs are bought

When I was unpacking my things from my recent move, it hit me just how much of a problem my acquisitional tendency + obsession with music has become. I have the most ridiculously large music collection. This is not so much the problem as that I am pretty much useless until my CDs are organized in the way that I want them to be (this is absolutely the only area of my life in which I require such a rigid organization; I am capable of stepping over the same three pairs of shoes for over a month before it even registers that there is a better way).

There is a hierarchy to my system. That sentence could also read, There is a method to my sickness. Or, I am one imaginary friend away from being committed. Anyway, there is one CD rack which houses the albums I am proud to love. Pavement and Stephen Malkmus and Ryan Adams are on the top shelf. Followed closely by my cadre of independent stuff no one I know has ever heard of and the independent label success stories that restore my faith in - I've actually lost interest in finishing that sentence because it makes me sound like a pretentious Rolling Stone editor. On the rack over, I have lovingly organized my collection of Best Ofs, Essentials, and The Complete whoevers, because sometimes I get in the mood to survey an artist's career. That, and I have no intention of owning the entire collection of the Jesus and Mary Chain or Cult albums just to get the core songs included on their hits albums. (If I'm more than a casual fan, though, I feel the need to get all completist.)

Further, there is a stand that holds the stuff I used to like but am now indifferent to. Dave Matthews (college, Corona, various substances, and Birkenstocks always pave the way to DMB shows). The whole high school path to enlightenment series: love of Bon Jovi (it was the 80s) beget love of Aerosmith, who was soon replaced by Pearl Jam and Nirvana, leading to Led Zeppelin thanks to my pothead-art-class friend, somehow resulting in an all consuming obsession with Radiohead and then British music in general, with a little NIN type things thrown in there for good measure because of my friends at the time. Another holds a large quantity of singles (mostly Radiohead and the Stone Roses) that I bought in England. Other people came back with postcards and cheese or whatever, I had a suitcase full of music.

Conundrum, though. While my 80 gig iPod is possibly the greatest thing that's ever happened to me (that's a little bit of a sad commentary on my life), and eMusic* is an awesome website full of independent label music the likes of which are not to be found physically anywhere near where I live, and iTunes (which I consider mostly meh, but convenient still) exists, I really like having the actual CD. I like the artwork. I like the space it takes up. I am that person that record labels only dream of, who will buy the entire Maroon 5 album, like it, and compulsively buy the CD anyway.

Sickness? Sure. Problem? I'd like to think not. So I choose to not think too far into it.

Ta!
Kate

*If you'd like to check out eMusic, I'd love to refer you there. It's a really wonderful site. Plus, then I get some free tracks. Win/win.