01-19-2007, 02:17 PM
Actually, cferneyh, I was musing about that very question the other day, under OSM (Obsessive Subject of Musing) #137, Music, Appreciation of, Impact of Recording Technology upon -- one of my favourite topics.
You'd need to do a pretty exhaustive sampling of playlists to confirm it, but I'd suggest that despite the popular notion that "kids today" have supremely eclectic tastes, most iPods are largely stuffed with similar music, so the shuffle doesn't often bring up Meshuggah (sp?) followed by Woody Guthrie singing "Car, Car."
I'd think the people with eclectic tastes tend also to be active listeners rather than passive listeners, but they're in the minority.
My musings thus far suggest that the death of the album is likely to push the mass market into greater homogenization, which is in keeping with my general world view, which holds that anything of value is doomed, and cockroaches shall rule the earth.
Mind you, I always listen to CDs as CDs, because I can't be bothered to compile playlists and also because I would hate to miss the experience of rediscovering one of those tracks that I don't currently like best.
Ask this: if the album dies and we go back to the single, and if people discard tracks that don't immediately grab them, then what impact is that likely to have on music in the future? And to what extent will the much-hooplahed, Internet-driven supposed democratization of music have?
I'm really geeking out today. It must be Friday.
You'd need to do a pretty exhaustive sampling of playlists to confirm it, but I'd suggest that despite the popular notion that "kids today" have supremely eclectic tastes, most iPods are largely stuffed with similar music, so the shuffle doesn't often bring up Meshuggah (sp?) followed by Woody Guthrie singing "Car, Car."
I'd think the people with eclectic tastes tend also to be active listeners rather than passive listeners, but they're in the minority.
My musings thus far suggest that the death of the album is likely to push the mass market into greater homogenization, which is in keeping with my general world view, which holds that anything of value is doomed, and cockroaches shall rule the earth.
Mind you, I always listen to CDs as CDs, because I can't be bothered to compile playlists and also because I would hate to miss the experience of rediscovering one of those tracks that I don't currently like best.
Ask this: if the album dies and we go back to the single, and if people discard tracks that don't immediately grab them, then what impact is that likely to have on music in the future? And to what extent will the much-hooplahed, Internet-driven supposed democratization of music have?
I'm really geeking out today. It must be Friday.