I’d like to start by sharing some thoughts on how we consume music today and the issues we face with it.
I’m a Gen Xer, and I started listening to music on cassette tapes in the late ’80s.
Then I switched to CDs in the ’90s and stuck with them in the 2000s. In addition, I started buying MP3s.
At some point after 2010, I figured out that streaming music (Spotify!) might be the best way to consume music.
Well, it turned out that it isn’t.
I’d like to mention here that I skipped the Napster P2P file sharing madness completely. I never thought that music (art) should be free for everyone to consume.
Did I switch the medium on purpose a bunch of times?
No, I just went along with the trends of the times and what the industry promoted as the way to go in every given decade.
It is easy to see what the common denominator of each of these technological changes was: convenience.
Cassettes were more convenient than records because they took up less space and, with the introduction of the Walkman, made it possible to listen to music on the go.
From analog to digital
CDs, in turn, were more convenient than cassettes because they were less sensitive and more durable than the tape in audio cassettes.
They also promised better sound quality that did not deteriorate even after repeated playback.
An MP3 player was more convenient than a CD player because it was much more portable without a physical medium and could store almost unlimited amounts of music.
Remember Steve Jobs’ promise that with the iPod, you could carry 1,000 songs in your pocket.
The pinnacle of convenience
Then, music streaming and smartphones entered the market around the same time. Now you didn’t even need an extra device to listen to music.
An app on your smartphone was enough to listen to literally every song ever released in the world. Could it get any more convenient?
I hardly think so. But …
The path to convenience comes at a price
Starting with the disappearance of the physical medium, the way we listen to, perceive, and appreciate music has changed.
Streaming, in particular, has increased the amount of music available to us so dramatically that each individual song is worth less and less.
Is the intro to a song too long? Just skip ahead and let the algorithm serve you the next track.
Who decides what music you listen to?
Think about it: as long as music is stored on physical media, no one else decides what music you listen to except yourself.
You have to figure out what you want to hear and pull the corresponding media from the shelf.
In the age of streaming and playlists, however, other people decide what we listen to next. And today, it’s almost exclusively algorithms.
Is that really what we want? Do we really want to consume music in this thoughtless way?
Please don’t get me wrong.
I’m not trying to badmouth streaming here
Streaming is great for discovering new music or exploring the entire catalog of certain artists.
But if we really want to listen to music consciously and engage with it in depth, then the old-fashioned physical recording medium is still the way to go.
That’s why I bought a record player again last year.
I say “again” in this context because there was already a phase around 2010 when I collected vinyl. However, it was purely for DJing, rather than for listening.
Now I chose vinyl because it’s just so sexy compared to cassettes and CDs.
I just love the whole process of working with vinyl
Browsing for records (online), previewing them, choosing them, ordering them.
Then unpacking them, admiring the artwork, taking the record out of its sleeve, putting it on, wiping off the dust, placing the stylus on the record, hearing the first crackle… and then listening to the record all the way through.
Over and over again.
This has now become …
My preferred way of listening to music
When I’m at home and not making music myself, my Technics 1201 MK7 is almost always playing.
Even when I have the records playing as background music while I’m doing paperwork… every record that plays is a conscious decision for exactly the right music at that moment.
At the end of the day, this is what matters to me: consciousness trumps convenience.
Good music deserves to be listened to deliberately.
At least, that’s how it should be.
Listening Recommendations
In keeping with the theme, today’s listening recommendations are very vinyl-heavy…
01/ Guy Gerber – Every Time we say goodbuy EP
Format: Vinyl & Digital
Label: Rumors
Genre: House
Year of Release: 2025
Favorite Track: Every Time we say goodbuy (feat. Blanca) (A1)
What I like about this release: The title track is based on a simple two-chord cadence that repeats throughout the entire tune. The sound palette impresses with its nice retro vibe, over which Blancas’s melancholic vocal lines float nicely.
02/ Sublee – Youmanity LP
Format: Vinyl only
Label: Metereze
Genre: House, Minimal, Techhouse
Year of Release: 2025
Favorite Track: Day Three (B1)
What I like about this release: The entire LP (3x 12”) offers a harmonious listening experience. The tracks are minimalistic, but not in a way that leaves them lacking in hooks.
03/ Deetron – Flow EP
Format: Vinyl & Digital
Label: Mutual Rytm
Genre: Techno
Year of Release: 2026
Favorite Track: Flow (Chord Dub)
What I like about this release: Solid, driving groove paired with cool chord stabs – sometimes that’s all I need.
04/ Neurotron – Walking Alone EP
Format: Vinyl only
Label: port au prince
Genre: Detroit House
Year of Release: 2024
Favorite Track: Walking (A1)
What I like about this release: “Walking” exudes a relaxed atmosphere with its groovy bass line and sparse piano chords. Nice to listen to or as an opener for a long night at the club.
05/ Adjustment Bureau – The Others EP
Format: Vinyl only
Label: Hypnosapiens
Genre: Minimal, Deep House, Tech House
Year of Release: 2025
Favorite Track: You were never really here (B2)
What I like about this release: A beautiful EP that you can listen to over and over again because it is so varied. Nice vibe.
Magasine Updates
My goal for 2026 is the same as last year: (at least) one release per month.
Fortunately, all releases up to May are already finished and scheduled.
This gives me the opportunity to experiment a lot at the moment.
Sometimes I feel like I have music-related ADHD, with so many tracks I’m working on at the same time …
In addition to the upcoming digital releases, I am particularly looking forward to my first 4-track vinyl release (Unexpected EP), which is scheduled to be released on March 19, 2026.
You can check it out here – the following three stores already have the record available for presale: Juno, Deejay, HHV
Take care, Magasine
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