Physical Media and the Ritual of Listening

If you know me, if you know at all who I am, you know I enjoy collecting things. If something is cool or cute enough and there are multiple of them, I am going to want them all. This is probably not the greatest problem to have because it fuels overconsumption and also costs a lot. If I was someone without this hoarding tendency, I would genuinely have much more money in the bank. It’s just my personality type, I can’t help it! One thing I won’t ever apologise for or back down from is the collecting of physical media. Books, records, CDs, DVDs are the things that I collect the most. I like collecting these things because they are all different, all importantly unique. Collecting physical media, in my eyes, is about ownership, it is a representation of my personal tastes. What I choose to keep and display is a reflection of myself. I could talk about how cool my vinyl collection is but that will not be today. Today, I am talking about the ritual of listening…and what physical media has to do with it.

Before Sunrise (1995)

Do you listen to music in the background whilst studying or doing something else? I’m guilty of this because it’s easy, it keeps your mind from racing, it quiets your thoughts. Did you listen on Spotify? Maybe Apple Music? YouTube? Or did you put on a vinyl? Or a CD? Do you even listen to CDs? The reality is, no you probably didn’t and you probably don’t because of how much more convenient streaming services are. And also the fact that you have to physically get up to turn a record over, or physically get up to put the CD in the player. Physical media is exactly that: a physical movement, an actualisation of listening; a physical reminder that yes, you are listening to an album right now and no, it will not fade into the background because now it is silent and you are alone again with your thoughts. 

In January of this year, Professor Michael James Walsh from the University of Canberra interviewed 49 people about their experiences listening to music in the age of streaming services. He found that some people loved that music could be ‘the soundtrack to their life’ and that condensing all music listening into one app simplifies this experience. Others suggested that apps like Spotify made them feel like passive listeners, lacking ownership of music, putting less effort into the actual experience of listening. These findings conclude that: 1) music is undoubtedly way more convenient to listen to now and 2) music is not really an activity anymore. One may even consider it a part of the background noise.

American Psycho (2000)

That’s it! We’ve lost the ability to actively listen to music. But, maybe we actually haven’t and I am just being hyperbolic. Does it even really matter that music is in the background? Well, yes and no. How do you want to experience the music? Are you trying to find something deeper? Are you looking for a connection? Are you analysing lyrics? Are you listening to melodies? That is all up to you. One thing is for sure: physical media gives us the time to decide and the time to sit with the decision. An experience might go something like this: 

‘Hmm, what shall I listen to today? Let me look through my collection. Oh no, I can’t choose! Let me close my eyes and pick at random. Ok! It’s the Camp Rock 2 soundtrack on CD, not bad! Ok, now let me find my CD player. Ok there it is, I had to get up for that lol. Ok, now I’m turning this bad boy on, turning on the speakers too. Slot it in, start the CD. Hey, I might even open the CD booklet while I listen. Whoah, it’s a poster?? OMG this is so nostalgic, I remember…’

I think you get the idea. I will do this exact thing and then occupy my mind with something else. I rarely sit and listen anymore, even with physical media. But at least there is a ritual. There is a kind of sacredness to choosing something specifically from a physical collection, and choosing to play it. Everyone’s listening ritual would be different. Reddit user Killatrap on r/indieheads (I never thought I would reference Reddit) takes a purist approach:

A deleted user conversely goes for a more varied approach:

Whatever your ritual, I am 100% certain it would be heightened by physical media because it involves the act of thinking then selecting from a particularly curated collection. Yes, you can kind of do that on Spotify but you have access to every piece of music that was ever recorded. That is too much for your mind to handle when deciding what vibe you want for a Sunday afternoon. Do you only have three CDs? Then one of those CDs is going to be the choice. 

(I want to mention just before I finish here that collecting physical media is a privilege and is something I am eternally grateful that I have the ability to do. Not everyone has the means or circumstances to be able to support artists or circulate used records/CDs and streaming services may be the most economically appropriate choice. The reality is, listening to any music at all is a good thing.)

Empire Records (1995)

Do we need to change the way we listen to music? As I mentioned, it depends on how you want to experience the music. Physical media is important in this process, simply because it is a process. I haven’t even gotten into how much more buying CDs and vinyl support the artist. Maybe you want to have music on in the background. It's probably ok to shuffle a playlist. But in terms of investigating your own 'ritual of listening', those times when you feel it important to engage with the music in a deeper context, physical media is the way to go. Ask anyone older than 25, they will remind you.

References:

• Prof. Michael James Walsh’ article from The Conversation: ‘I almost feel like stuck in a rut’: how streaming services changed the way we listen to music’

• r/indieheads: ‘What is your pre-listening ritual/routine?’ Reddit thread