I stumbled across Kortney Sweikert's Instagram page about a week ago, and I can't stop going back to it. It's a collection of original songs as well as a bunch of covers, just her on the guitar. Sometimes with loops for background. What she's chosen to share are incredibly short clips of these songs, plucked right out of the middle.

Here's the thing. Anyone can learn guitar, and after a number of years of practice you too will be able to play these songs. I've been playing for 27 years myself.

But you won't be able to play like her. What she has is an incredibly rare gift, which I'm sure has been honed to perfection over many years- but it's a gift nonetheless. She's shaping the notes around each other, hitting each tone at just the right moment, and blending everything together in a way that should be impossible. The sounds aren't just more than the sum of their parts, it's an order of magnitude more than the parts. The music is made out of the atmosphere.

I'm guessing most people won't be able to hear it. Maybe it's something you only pick up on after years of really listening to music. But- it's like the difference between Olly Moss and your average digital artist. This feels like Robert Johnson level playing.

Anyway, here are a few of my favorite clips:

"Just play."

"The Rain Song - Led Zeppelin pt.2"

"Never Going Back Again"

"2am 🌖"