Confined in Carriage

I always feel confined, tense and slightly on edge on the Manchester Metro. Understandable considering the uncomfortable seats, overcrowding and claustophobic nature of public transport, but I've always suspected there is more to it than this. There is always that drone, the whiring lurking in the background, the sound of my journey, and these are its components.

The heavy rhythm of the wheels lock me into a momentous groove, shifting speeds but never escaping from the repetitive blast of chugging low end emanating from the sub frequencies that drive into my body. The sound of bursting, stretching, clenching metal pushes against my skull and my head feels like its trying to expand.

Sporadic jerks and clatters filter in and out, coming close and then jumping away, my body twitches slightly as each one comes near. Continuous humming and mechanical air intensifies in pitch as we pick up speed, drawing the chest tighter and the body taught before gradually shifting back as a station approaches.

A mid frequency whir enters the sonic spectrum and never seems to leave, has it always been there, gnawing at my mind, weighing down my eyes? Beep beep beep beep, swooosh, eeergh, thump. Doors close in, creating a vaccum of sound once more, an exhale of air, a rumble, chatter, noise.

By the time I get off I am completely disorientated and overwhelmed by the sheer complexity of what I have just heard. I wonder if subconsciously I feel like this when I don't purposely listen, confused, aching, lost.