With the majority of the world’s recorded music at our fingertips through digital streaming platforms, the question of discovery often floats around online. Did Spotify and Apple Music make it harder to find new music? Or is it easier than ever, but just not as fun? And what about the fate of the album? Have playlists and hit singles made albums obsolete?The answers to these questions are as nuanced as music discovery itself. Generally, listeners seem to find that discovering new artists and bands is the easiest it’s ever been. Someone tells you about a new band, you look them up on Spotify or Apple Music or YouTube, and their entire discography appears for your perusal. But this ease has made the art of discovery less exciting for a lot of people. For those who don’t have the attachment to hunting through records or CDs for their next musical obsession, this doesn’t seem to matter all that much. But for dedicated music lovers who crave the adrenaline rush from discovering a new artist, the streaming takeover is kind of a bummer. This is where the joy of discovery is intimately linked with physical media. DSPs have become the norm, and while CDs and vinyl have had an ever-growing comeback, platforms like Spotify still rule the majority. Bandcamp is a decent middle ground, allowing for digital downloads as well as physical album purchases. But Bandcamp doesn’t have nearly the catalog that Spotify has. This shift in how albums are consumed has affected how music is discovered. But it’s also affected how the music industry functions. Do Spotify Playlists Cheapen the Album Experience? Sometimes They Obliterate ItThe rise of playlists has fed into a larger need for hit singles. And as we know, the mainstream music industry is a greedy machine for hits. Mixtapes and mix CDs have existed for decades, but there’s something different about a playlist on a digital streaming platform. Something almost sinister.At least when we made CDs, we typically ripped from albums we already had. Or downloaded off Napster (remember kids, you wouldn’t download a car, or whatever). Tapes were made by meticulously recording tracks off existing vinyl or waiting around until you could record your requested song from the radio.A Spotify playlist is a soulless thing. Convenient and often collaborative, yes. But it has no heart. That’s not to say they’re bad. After all, how else would baristas in indie coffee shops in big cities get to show off their obscure music taste? The work that went into making a physical mix gave it life. Also, the act of giving that mix to the person you made it for. Sending a text with a Spotify playlist link? Might as well push me in front of a bus like Mean Girls. Physical Albums Were a Commitment of Both Money and TimeJokes aside, digital streaming platforms have undoubtedly altered the way people listen to music. More than that, they’ve altered how attached people become to certain albums and artists. Ease of discovery gives way to a lack of commitment. Essentially, we don’t spend as much time with full albums because something else is just a search away. At every level, this is unfair: for the listener who misses out on what could be a great album, for the artist whose work is undervalued by a half-assed listen, and for everyone on social media who has to see the whole-assed bad take that often follows.Spending money on a physical album meant commitment. Your hard-earned cash went into procuring that album, so there was incentive to sit and really listen to it. Taking that time often led to a deeper understanding or appreciation for the album if it was good. Even buying a bad album is preferable to the blasé, surface-level interest that streaming generates. At least when a bad review came through, there was the understanding that someone spent their precious time with this album.These days, everyone has an opinion, and everyone has a platform to share it. But surface-level listening is going to produce surface-level critique. To run the risk of sounding like a snob, not everyone can, or should, be a critic. Some posts really should have stayed in drafts.There’s Not Enough Room in One Article for How Big The Conversation Is, but This Is Maybe a StartThe music industry model has been broken apart and shaped over decades into the image of the mainstream majority. That, unfortunately, means a preoccupation with trends, viral hits, and milking the gullible consumer for all they’re worth. And they do this through exploitation, payola, and unethical social media marketing schemes. This isn’t breaking news. We’re not discovering fire here. But there’s still a glimmer of hope that a new, growing cultural obsession with physical media and just living life slow will bring back album appreciation.For those who don’t care about any of that, this isn’t for you. But for those who want to be more intentional with their music listening habits? Who haven’t lost the curiosity for organic discovery? Those who are tired of being force-fed the latest half-baked viral sensation from social media or the Spotify algorithm? We see you, and this one’s for you. Photo by Schöning/ullstein bild via Getty ImagesThe post Streaming Didn’t Kill Albums, It Killed Discovery: Behind the Death of Musical Curiosity appeared first on VICE.