Anecdote: I distinctly remember being on the edge of sleep writing a song one night in 2019. I was about to fall asleep on the floor with a notebook in my hand, and just at that moment, the music came into my mind. For whatever reason, I was able to stay awake and flesh it out as a recording. After reflecting on it the next day I realised I had written an acoustic fingerstyle piece that moved across keys as if there were multiple voicings in the accompaniment all moving independently in polyphony. Far more harmonically complex than anything I had written before, or since.

Three weeks later my partner and I played it for the first time in a pub, and the normally cosy and laugh-filled room fell silent. We had the exact same experience in another open mic night a couple of weeks afterwards, where we took the first-place prize before the competition even finished. It was as if people were moved by it without any effort or coercion, like we cast a spell over people.

Now it makes sense! I’ve heard music play in my mind as I’ve fallen asleep before; this news explains this story almost perfectly. Unreal. Live on the edge of sleep and magic can happen. I wonder what health risks there are with prolonged use?