Twang welcomes Steve T to the pod for a natter taking in his journey through music and life via the Everglades and Midlands metal to the Word and the comforts of a folkier vibe.
To accept the comfy chair and a grilling from Twang don’t be coy and fire off a PM forthwith!
Well, I liked it!
It was great to do. Interestingly what should have been the easiest question to answer ‘what are you listening to currently’ was the hardest. I anticipated it but had a total mental block when trying to answer.
Still it was great fun and I hope others join in.
I listened while I dug dandelions out of my lawn in the sunshine this morning.
Most enjoyable (except for the weeding, obvs). Keep up the good work, Twang.
Cheers Steve
Very enjoyable listen. I’m fond of the Brummie accent and I’d say you sound like Neil Morrissey, whom I like very much.
But…Almost Blue is EC’s best! Nonesense. 😉
True, his first one is the best. 🙂
Actually I think ECs latest is his best. Enjoyable chat – when is your TV chat show starting Twang?
Nice work lads.
Must say Steve got started with his music collection bit earlier than me.
Fascinating and enjoyable chat. Actually it was me who compared Steve’s accent to Geezer Butler, but not in a bad way. I’m a Brummie too..
Interesting to hear both your views on Spotify, and your thoughts suggesting that it’s a generational thing. I have to disagree with that.
So you’re both still purchasers of solid product as opposed to digital streamers? I find that quite strange these days. I wonder, is it a sense of loyalty to musicians and royalties, a love of handling product, even just a CD case, or that sense of satisfaction that comes with using an actual player, be it a Vinyl turntable or CD player? Personally, I have a garage full of Vinyl albums with no current means to play them, boxes full of cassettes that are about to be skipped, and a previous CD collection that’s been sold or otherwise disposed of. Many of these were repeat purchases of the same album, so I’ve paid my dues to the artists and record companies. I love Spotify, I have instant access to my collection(s), together with the rest of the artist’s repertoire, followed by recommendations in the same genre. What’s not to love?
Why dig out an album or go off to a shop to buy it when you can stream it or download it instantly, repeatedly? Why only listen once on Spotify then buy the album? I’d love to know.
For me it’s just that I like to hear the full sonic glory of albums I like through my stereo. maybe on vinyl. maybe CD. Spotty is fine. commercial crapness aside. For things I like I don’t mind buying them.
For me it is quite a few things.
Firstly I like the fact that I have an extensive collection that can be admired both by myself and by visitors. I am well aware that it can now by viewed maybe as a museum piece but I have always liked museums.
Secondly I am not a fan of streaming services as the artists income is severely reduced likely leading to them looking at other ways of earning a living and potentially depriving us of future recorded music.
For me however the biggest thing I dislike is the transitory nature of how I would regard Spotify. When I have used it in the past it has been a case of listening to something once and then discarding it. With a physical purchase I will invest more time in it. Take for example the recent Lambchop album. On first play it didn’t move me. A few plays later i love it. Had I have only heard it on Spotify it would have been didczrded.
I, too, find that Spotify leads to me ‘discarding’ albums far too quickly. It is constructed to encourage flibberjittery, flitting from track to track without looking back, moving onto ‘you might like this’ in a state of passive acceptance.
I recently took the plunge and I find my purchases have dropped along with my levels of pleasure. For some reason, I bought a physical copy of Weyes Blood’s Titanic Rising. I hated it at first but, because I’d invested cash I felt it only fair to invest time. Now, I’m obsessed with it, finding nuance where I, at first, only heard bluster and my listening pleasure has sorted.
I have to say I’m now embarrassed by my ‘collection’. I’m seen as a sad sack who wasted tens of thousands of pounds on something anyone can ‘obtain’ for free. My kids aren’t looking forward to dealing with it when I’m gone.
Thirded, and furthermore most of the albums I have loved for life were originally ones where I didn’t quite get it and had to dig in, an effort I am eternally grateful for making.
Thanks, very interesting points and fair enough. I agree it does take more discipline when I haven’t invested in an album specifically. I make it a rule that for anything I specifically am interested in enough to download, then I force myself 3 listens before discarding or retaining.
On the royalties point I’d say that for many albums I already own on at least 2 media
( Vinyl and CD ) so by streaming it rather than digging out existing media, I am, marginally, helping the artist financially .
My vinyl collection of over a thousand albums, is also heading for a skip the day after I depart this earth. I am proud of it, have had it on ‘display’ for years in various orders, some known only to myself, and told my Sons which ones are worth something based on Record Collector valuations. They are preserved and maintained in pristine condition, but I know I’m fooling myself. They will all be binned without any ceremony or even consideration of financial or collectability value.
Without wishing to sound patronising you are the sort of Spotify user I have less objection with. You own physical product too. I can see the attraction of Spotify to some people as a ‘try before you buy tool’ but for me that would result in fewer purchases and less excitement stumbling across the next new find.
I am sure my wife would prefer this option but thankfully she doesn’t know anything about Spotify and I intend to keep it that way.
I had a very large vinyl collection and sold it a couple of years ago. My even larger CD collection is sitting in the garage and rarely do I venture out to pick one to play. I’m a big fan of Spotify and streaming in general. It is quite common for me to call up an album I know I have in the garage but can’t be bothered to get up and find. For me, the benefit of Spotify etc is enhanced immeasurably by having a Sonos system which means I can play what I like in any room of the house. I’ve been through the whole mp3 versus FLAC conundrum numerous times but I have to say that my older ears cannot benefit from the purity of non-compressed sound nowadays. The Sonos system sounds great anyway and there are extra benefits like being able to compile Sonos playlists of music from various sources – Spotify, Google Play (which allows you to upload 50k of your tracks), Amazon (all my CD purchases from the tax dodgers are available), You Tube Music (great for finding obscure stuff not available anywhere else) plus my own library upload from CD to a NAS drive.
Having said all that I do agree that there is a great tendency to skip about and not necessarily give albums a chance (flibberjittery – great word @Tiggerlion). Probably all to do with our generally diminishing attention spans.
lovely stuff chaps!
Enjoyed that, guys! I also played 52nd St and The Stranger heavily back when they were released, and agree with you, Steve, about Billy Joel’s early albums. Some fantastic stuff on them, I particularly liked Turnstiles, I remember.
Great podcast guys!
Enjoyable listen. Steve’s dulcet tones had me nodding off the first time, mind. Good voice for a late night DJ. His chum Reddyflame (or whatever it was) sounds a card.