As one who has rewatched Grey’s Anatomy at least 12 times, and a huge lover of Snow Patrol music, I have listened to “Chasing Cars” a million times over my speaker.
Today was the first time I listened to it with headphones.
At 0:20 in, there is a tinkling sound that I had never heard before. It doesn’t get picked up as clearly on a speaker as it does on headphones. Then there is a tapping noise that follows, with more tinkling. It flows in and out of the lyrics, guitar, piano, and all the other instruments that are playing. If I closed my eyes, I can literally see the weaving, like a knitting project, where colors are interchanged and pops of this and that are interlocked through everything.
And then we have Color Blind from Counting Crows. This song tantalizes my soul. Melancholy and rich brown tones. With headphones, I realized for the first time that the music is only playing in my left ear. It stays playing in my left ear as his soulfull voice overlays the lyrics. It makes me feel off balance, and his voice rightsizes me back to center. I notice that sometimes, they allow the xylophone to play in my right ear. Just a kiss, a hint of change. At 1:45, they add the orchestra into both my ears, and keep the piano in my left ear.