intentional media consumption for dummies
on quitting spotify, the revival of CDs and my favorite media of 2024
On Spotify wrapped day 2024, my growing distaste for the widely used music streaming service was affirmed by the masses. The app is clearly getting worse, and it seems like we’ve all forgotten there are other ways to listen to music – myself included.
At some point along the journey that is this life, I realized that I was hardly listening to full albums anymore despite making numerous efforts to change that. I would save albums on Spotify and completely forget about them, mainly because the app’s interface prioritizes playlists and podcasts, and albums are easily lost in the shuffle. This has been the case for the last five or so years that I’ve used the app, during which I mostly listened to random songs saved from personalized playlists served up to me by the app.
My growing frustration with Spotify coincided with a sudden itch to return to my music listening roots: Youtube-to-mp3 conversion. In high school I would spend hours downloading albums from Youtube – a level of devotion that lent itself to many years of fangirl behavior. Before that, when my parents would give me $10 a month to buy music, I’d spend just as long pouring over the iTunes charts deciding which songs I wanted.
The point is, I used to be far more intentional with my music listening, primarily because the technology of the time necessitated it. Now that all of the inconvenience has been removed from the process – having access to millions of songs at a flat rate, and leaving the discovery up to the algorithm – that intentionality has been lost, and it’s left me feeling increasingly alienated from the humans behind the art.
My angst with algorithms has increased over the last few years amid the proliferation of AI. One of the things that frustrates me the most about this technology is how quick we were to use it to make art and music. If AI is going to exist, shouldn’t we be using it to do bitch work for us so we can afford to focus more on our own creativity – the most uniquely human instinct? This is clearly not happening. In fact, Spotify is pumping its playlists with AI-generated music with the specific intent of paying human artists even less than it currently does.
As if this wasn’t upsetting enough, Spotify Wrapped happily revealed to us that we’re all listening to the same shit – the shit they want us to listen to – and that most of us are not as unique as we’d like to believe we are. Ego aside, this cultural echochamber effect really just serves to further alienate us from one another. One of the most valuable aspects of art is that it helps us understand other people in ways that words cannot, and if you’re never being exposed to any music outside of your usual taste, you’re robbing yourself of that experience. As if we weren’t fragmented enough already!
Okay, enough philosophizing. I had a lot of fun being more intentional with my media consumption this year, especially in the realm of music discovery. Here are some ways I did that.
Migrating from Spotify to Apple Music
I finally did the thing that I never thought I would do, and it’s been great. Apple Music is still obviously a huge player in a broken industry, but they pay artists more, the interface makes more sense to me and the sound quality is better. If you’re not convinced, you can do a three month free trial.
The interface is preferable because the main library feed puts a greater emphasis on albums and playlists, and podcasts are in an entirely different app. Music discovery is somewhat more difficult, but I’ve supplemented that in ways that I will elaborate on further down.
I maintained my Spotify account so I wouldn’t lose my music library, but I’m on the free version now which is basically unusable. There are third-party apps that allow you to migrate your playlists from one platform to another, but I’ve mostly started fresh. It’s been really nice!
The social element on Apple Music is definitely lacking, primarily because so few people use it, but I’m holding out hope that it won’t always be that way. Be the change you wish to see in the world, people!
Physical Media
Buying merch is one of the most direct ways you can support the artists you love. I’ve hoarded physical media for as long as I’ve had my own money, but recently I’ve embraced a somewhat different approach.
Collecting records is fun but can be a bit tough because they’re so expensive, and they obviously require certain listening infrastructure that can also be costly depending on how you do it. I really only buy records of albums that I already know I love, or incredibly cheap used ones that look cool to discover new stuff.
CDs have made a big comeback the past few years and I am fully riding that wave. They’re not only cheaper but more practical. I listen to them at home, in my car and in a portable player I thrifted for when I go on walks. This has been good for me because I have a terrible habit of skipping songs before they’re over, and physical media kinda disincentivizes that. The sound quality is also better than Spotify!
I’ve been trying to bring back burning/exchanging CDs which feels like an amazingly intimate way to exchange music, but very few people I know have the tools to burn or play CDs so that remains aspirational…
Internet Radio
NTS Radio is the better, more human version of Spotify’s algorithmically-generated playlists. It’s basically just an internet radio station featuring shows from DJs around the world, which you can listen to live or after the fact. The vast majority of the songs I’ve heard on there are totally new to me and it’s been very refreshing!
This has been great as a discovery tool to use alongside Apple Music. You can listen for free or pay $5 a month to support the platform, much of which goes directly to the DJs. Shout out to Nick from Burn All Books for recommending this!
There’s also Particle.FM, which is basically the San Diego version of NTS. Really cool stuff happening over there as well!
Various Other Methods (Crowdsourced)
You may have seen me crowdsourcing music discovery advice on Instagram these last few months. Here are a few of the recommendations I received, in quick order…
Embarking on Youtube rabbitholes. Somebody told me to start with a band’s live sets and work from there.
Following music critics and publications like Pitchfork. I wish they posted more but @earfeeder on IG makes some really sick genre guides!
Buying random shit at record stores
Websites like Bandcamp (the website, NOT the app), Rate Your Music and Last.FM
Checking out random CDs from the public library
Stealing from people’s Instagram stories/posts
Compilation albums (Music from Memory has some really good ones)
Going to shows
Exchanging playlists with friends (or burning and exchanging CDs….)
Reading my Substack, obviously
epic amvets find!
On that note, Here’s some of my favorite media from 2024.
Favorite Music of 2024
I should get it out of the way that my top artist was Chappell Roan and I fully stand by that, but aside from that my listening skewed heavily between the years of 1990 and 2010, much of which was not new to me but resonated more heavily this year for whatever reason. Here are 10 standout albums for me, in no particular order.
“Pip Paine (Pay the £5000 You Owe)” by Metronomy (edgy electronic)
“Tender Buttons” by Broadcast (electronic dreampop)
“Andorra” by Caribou (indie electronic)
“The Twits” by Bar Italia (lo-fi indie rock)
“The Freelancers Blues” by Dougie Poole (california country)
“Birds In The Ground” by Eiafuawn (folky rock)
“Free Energy” by Dummy (noisy indie rock)
“Last Splash” by The Breeders (90s alt-rock)
“Manning Fireworks” by MJ Lenderman (alt-country)
“Uneven Paths: Deviant Pop From Europe (1980-1991)” a compilation by Music from Memory (synthy and sometimes jazzy pop)
Favorite Movies of 2024
I sought out to watch 100 movies this year which I now realize is the wrong way to consume films, but I did fulfill my goal. Here are some of my five-star picks, also in no particular order.
“The Zone of Interest” (2023): This is a heavy one but the commentary is so scathing and precisely executed, it’s a real marvel. And more relevant than ever with what’s happening in Gaza.
“Perfect Days” (2023): This is what I call a “no plot, just vibes” movie, but the vibes are incredibly strong. I smiled almost the entire time and saw a lot of myself in the protagonist. So beautiful and poetic!
“Marcel the Shell with Shoes On” (2021): This made me cry happy tears… pretty hard to do.
“Invasion of the Body Snatchers” (1978): Perfect cozy horror movie. The practical effects are so good and the ending is iconic. I streamed this on Tubi with commercials and it still banged.
I struggle to give out 5 stars but some 4.5 stars that I loved include:
“The Substance” (made me hysterical)
“Eyes Wide Shut” (loved this, docked half a star for misogyny)
“The Fog” (more cozy horror)
“Nowhere” (no plot, just vibes — 90s dirtbag edition)
“The Devils” (extremely horny and camp)
“Brokeback Mountain” (gay devastation, american edition)
“Call Me by Your Name” (gay devastation, european edition)
That’s more than enough from me. Let me know what media resonated with you in 2024, and thanks for reading as always <3
Stoked to see Invasion of the Body Snatchers. An all time fave! Check out Abel Ferrara’s ‘90s version if you get a chance. It’s cool and everyone is extremely ‘90s hot in it
Seeking more Bella media lists in 2025