Music as a Deterrent

As a friend pointed out, I haven't blogged in a few days. Starbucks seems to have turned up the music in the location I frequent on Tyne & Kingsway. This may be in response to the longevity of a visit; looking around this place reminds me of an old-school lan party.

I understand the sentiment, but it's hard to see a coffee shop follow the trend of the bars around here;  playing loud music so you'll shut up and drink.

Don't get me wrong; I love music. I listen to tons of it. My last.fm profile tells me so. But there should be a line between a nightclub and a pub/social house/lounge. Actually, the idea that some of these places will define them as lounges strikes me as ironic, as the volume at which they play music is enough to rile up George Wendt.

They do it because studies have shown that the louder you play music, the more people will drink. This makes perfectly good sense; it's extremely uncomfortable to chat in an environment so loud. I've been in lounges that play music so damned loud I've left with a bloody throat. I sound like Lawrence Tierney for the next couple of days.

I understand that Alibi Room charges more for beer than a lot of places; but I can understand why. There's a value to having people drinks less in volume of higher quality beer in a setting suite for conversation. If you look around, it's clear that this is a social gathering house at it's purest form; there's no televisions (though they briefly had a couple downstairs that seem to have been removed), there's no clocks, and there's no goddamned music. There's a time and place to listen the subtle nuances of Peter Buck, and there's a time to chat over some pints. I applaud the few Vancouver establishments that follow through with the latter.