I remember when MTV first came out, when they used to do music videos all day, and I was usually disappointed in the music videos I saw.  I had my idea of what a music video should be, and it was not what I was seeing on MTV.

One thing they often did on MTV was have some sexy girls on display, having nothing to do with the lyrics.  Or they'd show the band performing.  Meanwhile, my idea of the perfect music video would be a creative production that reinforced the lyrics of the song, telling us the story visually to supplement the music, and making it clear what the song was about, in case the lyrics didn't quite achieve that.

The music videos on You Tube are sometimes very good, more often not.  I wish they all put more effort into them.  Sometimes they play a song and show scenes from God knows what, some tv show or other, or Japanese cartoon, or Sims 2 animation.  At least the Sims animation will generally be related to what is going on in the song, and would have been designed specifically for that song.  The various shows or animations tend to have little to do with the song we're listening to.  It just gives you something to watch.

The best way to get into a song is to close out all other input, and just focus on the music.  Close your eyes.  Pay attention to the song 100%.  But we generally don't want to do that.  We'd rather get some visual story going too, and divide our concentration, insuring that we aren't going to be able to get too deep into the music because we aren't paying all that much attention to it.  I'm the same way with music videos.  I want something to look at.

The only times in my life that I really give music my full attention are when I put on a cd, put on headphones, play it loud, and nobody else is home to distract me.  Maybe I do that a few times a month, for an hour and change.  And when I do, I have some deep reactions to the songs and it takes me away, far away.  It's a beautiful thing.  I'm sensitive to music.  I'm imaginative.  I can lose myself in a world of fantasy.

That actually reminds me of transcendental meditation in that you transcend the everyday, you take yourself to a different place, and it is refreshing.