6 Comments
User's avatar
Ryan Gonzalez's avatar

I only recently started going back to shopping in the record store and holy moly it's changed how I interact with music. A year or two ago I was listening to the same 2-3 playlists on spotify - usually lofi. Now, I'm finding all sorts of things — both old and new. I wish more people would journey out, but at least I always have the people that work at the record store to chat with

Steve Goldberg's avatar

This is a great point. Houses and apartments should have built-in turntables, CD players, and DVD/Bluray machines (and why not, a VCR) as standards, like a fridge and a stove.

Not sure this will solve the out-in-public issue, but I'm sure many folks will venture out to their local record store and maybe video stores will begin to reappear too. It's a good segue to other physical spaces, like concert venues, restaurants, and museums. Also, maybe the cost of records would go down too.

Steve Goldberg's avatar

Lots of food for thought in this piece. It would be great to dine on said food with thoughtful friends at a physical restaurant, unhurriedly and with open-hearted listening.

There are a ton of economic reasons for this situation we find ourselves in -- restaurants, movies, and concerts are more expensive than ever -- not to mention that going out means we have to put pants on and probably shower.

The convenience factor of online replacements for what we used to do out in public cannot be overstated. This was all true before the pandemic, but for me personally, being homebound for those 18-plus months led to a bit of agoraphobia, or at least an instinct to handle everything from the comforts of home.

Richie's avatar

I'm not sure movies are more expensive. In 1994 I think a typical ticket was $7.50. Infl calculator says that's worth about $16 now. My local theater charges $16 for a ticket. And, the theater seats are much better now.

Aaliyah Humphrey's avatar

I wish more record stores were around to sell more classic vinyls and CDs. I think we lost the art to preserving music in that way.

User's avatar
Comment deleted
Dec 12, 2024Edited
Comment deleted
Steve Goldberg's avatar

Yep. So relate. There is certainly a generational component to this, but a larger part is a culture of device distraction. It's a culture of avoiding the present moment, largely caused by the addictive qualities of our mobile devices. I empathize -- I fall prey to it quite often myself -- but at least I had 30 years of life to build "muscle" to resist it, or at least recognize it and change habits. I imagine it's a lot harder for younger people who were given iPads when they were 2 years old.