Too much of music today has become emotionless noise. It has become so layered and complex for the sake of complexity and originality. Technology has built barriers between man and his instrument, pulling him further from "because this is how I feel" to "because I can". In fact, so much of society is reflective of this, this complexity for the sake of complexity, where we can't answer a question without a dozen more questions arising. We've lost track of what brings true happiness and true meaning. That is, until the Avett Brothers. They've stripped away the layers from their music until all that remains is three chords, a simple melody, and a pure and unadulterated emotion, captured between the bars of the music, and put on display for everyone to feel, even if for only the three minutes of the song. The Avett Brothers remind us that underneath everyone's clothes, everyone's skin, everyone's history, is a heart, and no matter where we come from, country, school, genre, we all used to know what it was to feel true joy, and to feel true heartbreak, and we're reminded of those days, before whatever led us to our superficial outlook on life, every time we hear the Avett Brothers. We're reminded what it means to love, or should I say, to live.