A man wearing headphones, in a gallery

Sauntering between paintings
of Abstract Art.
Percussive music blaring,
bleeding from his ears.

Oblivious to this
And indeed, the annoyance
of others around him,
he nods his head in time
while pondering each work.

Observing him
And casually listening in,
I can perceive only the repetitive electronic rhythm
punctuated with crisp hi-hats
and an infrequent snare.
Amused, as other viewers
are softly repelled,
moving further and further away,
each without saying a word -
I recall as a teenager
how my aunt coined the phrase
"Washing-machine Music,"
to describe the loud techno I would listen to on headphones,
and the inevitable leaking of sound that would occur.