EARMILK EARMILK
  • NEW MUSIC
    • DANCE
    • ELECTRONIC
    • EXPERIMENTAL
    • HIP-HOP
    • INDIE
    • POP
    • ROCK
  • INDUSTRY NEWS
    • DOCUMENTARIES
    • EVENTS
    • FASHION
    • LIFESTYLE
    • MUSIC GEAR
    • MUSIC INDUSTRY
    • TECHNOLOGY
  • OPINION
  • ALBUM REVIEWS
  • GEAR REVIEWS
  • INTERVIEWS
  • FEATURES
    • FESTIVALS
    • EXCLUSIVES
    • LISTS
    • CONTESTS
    • Photo Journals
  • SERIES
    • Artist to Watch
    • Under The Crust
    • Flashback Friday
    • Suicide Sundaes
    • Daily 2%
    • The Club
    • Weekend Selector
    • Mashup Mondays
    • Artist Remixed
    • Wobble Wednesday
    • Night Rumours
    • Indie Sabbath
    • Straight No Chase
    • Straight From the Teet
  • Jobs
  • About EARMILK
  • Privacy Policy
  • Contact Us
  • Submit Music
EARMILK EARMILK
EARMILK EARMILK
  • NEW MUSIC
    • DANCE
    • ELECTRONIC
    • EXPERIMENTAL
    • HIP-HOP
    • INDIE
    • POP
    • ROCK
  • INDUSTRY NEWS
    • DOCUMENTARIES
    • EVENTS
    • FASHION
    • LIFESTYLE
    • MUSIC GEAR
    • MUSIC INDUSTRY
    • TECHNOLOGY
  • OPINION
  • ALBUM REVIEWS
  • GEAR REVIEWS
  • INTERVIEWS
  • FEATURES
    • FESTIVALS
    • EXCLUSIVES
    • LISTS
    • CONTESTS
    • Photo Journals
  • SERIES
    • Artist to Watch
    • Under The Crust
    • Flashback Friday
    • Suicide Sundaes
    • Daily 2%
    • The Club
    • Weekend Selector
    • Mashup Mondays
    • Artist Remixed
    • Wobble Wednesday
    • Night Rumours
    • Indie Sabbath
    • Straight No Chase
    • Straight From the Teet
  • Events
  • Feature
  • Mainstage
  • News

The experience of music that we've forgotten about

  • July 19, 2016
  • Steph Evans
Total
0
Shares
0
0

The opening of the Sonos store in New York City's iconic shopping and tourist destination SOHO has been a trending topic for the past week. The American audio company is famous for its high fidelity audio systems that bring streaming, radio and your music library into one wireless listening experience, and the manifestation of their company's mission is amplified exponentially in their first brick and mortar store that opens today. The store's decor is beautiful, modern, acoustically sound from a balance of every surface in the space, and deeply tied to the music industry and more specifically, the New York City music scene throughout history. It features a curated collection of NYC music fanzines (pre-internet music blogs), and illustrations from iconic Village Voice cartoonist Mark Stamaty. The list of innovations in this retail space goes on – impressive for a brand that sells less than ten products total – but that is not its greatest message. It reminds us that music is created to be listened to in a personal experiential way, it's meant to surround us.

View from Front of Store

Sure, Sonos is an amazing system – I have a Play 1 and am completely obsessed with the way it changed my life. But the importance of Sonos to the music industry lies in its store, where at the its preview last week, I had a moment of clarity. 
 
Sonos Listening Room 7 - Thurston Moore's Casette Tape Collection
 
The realization took place in the store's basement: a midcentury modern setup with a shag rug and a wall full of a collection rare noise rock cassette tapes curated by Sonic Youth's Thurston Moore, an audio setup, and an Eames chair. The importance of that chair in the room only becomes important when one does what one is meant to do in the Sonos store: turn on some music. In this room specifically, we were able to toggle between digital audio and that from a record player. Turning up the sound a bit, it all comes back: the setup is meant to mimic that of the iconic Maxell commercial from 1983, an ad that has become engrained in experiential music history.
 
[youtube]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Zk71h2CQ_xM[/youtube]
 
We live in the age of streaming, where music ownership is at an all-time low. While we might not realize it, if we "bookmark" or "add to playlist" on a streaming service, we still do not actually own that piece of music. With rumors of the shutting down of the iTunes store altogether, many people's opportunity to own their music at all could disappear in a moment. While vinyl sales are rising each year but the rest of music sales plummet, at the same time, the seesaw has live music event sales and popularity soaring almost to saturation. While we might be experiencing music to the fullest in its live form and surrounded by friends, there's still a piece missing. While those of us in urban areas might be listening to earbuds or headphones, and to our car's sound systems, there's still a piece missing. 
 
Rakim enjoying music in the Sonos Living Room.
Rakim enjoying music in the Sonos Living Room.
 
At the store opening today, I walked by two women totally losing their shit in one of the listening rooms. I couldn't tell that they were blasting Chance The Rapper until they opened the door and invited another customer into the room with them, but I could tell the feelings they were experiencing. Remember growing up, throwing on your favorite artist and dancing to it with your friends? Or being totally blown away by the power of a piece, visualized in the way Maxell advertised it? In blogging we often listen to music in the context of hearing it live or listening to it in headphones. But what about blasting it on your boombox? In your home? The opening of the Sonos store today is a reminder of the true way to really immerse in music, and it's not through listening to something on your laptop speakers or your iPhone. It's a reminder to turn off the TV, press play, and put down your phone. Surround yourself in music the way it was meant to be listened to. Whether high fidelity or not, listening to music on good speakers is something we may have forgotten about. Now we remember to keep it playing.

Sonos Listening Room 6 - Mark Stamaty Wallpaper

 

Total
0
Shares
Share 0
Tweet 0
Share 0
Share 0
Related Topics
  • sonos
Steph Evans

It all started with Pakito's "Living on Video."

You May Also Like
View Article
  • Dance
  • Electronic
  • Feature

MXGPU embrace speed, instinct, and emotional vulnerability on new single “find u” [Interview]

  • July 18, 2025
View Article
  • Alt-Pop
  • Alternative Rock
  • Mainstage
  • New Music

LA band garbagebarbie releases "kiss," a flirty garage-pop anthem for Summer

  • July 18, 2025
Comfort Club
View Article
  • Alt-Pop
  • Indie Pop
  • Mainstage
  • New Music

Comfort Club amps up on new single “If You Got to Know Her”

  • July 18, 2025
View Article
  • Funk
  • Mainstage
  • Pop
  • R&B
  • Soul

"AY NAKO!" Is the funky, soulful introduction you need to Mikey Jose

  • July 18, 2025
View Article
  • Jazz Fusion
  • Mainstage
  • Neo-Soul
  • New Music

Danny Kuttner’s “Friendzone” is a breezy Neo-Soul escape

  • July 18, 2025
View Article
  • Funk
  • Indie
  • Mainstage
  • New Music

“Fortune Cookies” reveals Libby Ember’s emotional depth and indie-folk flair

  • July 18, 2025
Tangerine Cassette
View Article
  • Feature
  • Indie
  • New Music
  • Pop

Tangerine Cassette serve sass and sugar on new album "Sticky Sweet"

  • July 18, 2025
The Stolen Moans
View Article
  • Feature
  • Indie
  • New Music
  • Pop

The Stolen Moans shares their debut full-length album, “Elbows Don’t Have Eyes” [Album]

  • July 18, 2025
Popular Music
  • LA band garbagebarbie releases "kiss," a flirty garage-pop anthem for Summer
    • July 18, 2025
  • awfultune releases new single and 'split' EP
    • July 18, 2025
  • Bailey Martin says goodbye to the haters with “Ain’t My Fault”
    • July 18, 2025
  • Andrew Canlon shares riveting double single "Love Is Enough" and "To Live a Dream"
    • July 18, 2025
  • Taylor Jules impresses with R&B laced embrace "Sage Advice"
    • July 18, 2025
Recent Scoops
  • Jay Tone is carving out his space with "Puzzles"
    • July 7, 2025
  • Matt Oakley is redefining country music with heart, soul and modernity
    • May 5, 2025
  • Texas’ Blacktop Mojo does rock music the way it should be done
    • April 29, 2025
  • Tha Rapper Haiti blends authentic style with musical passion
    • April 28, 2025
Community Voices
  • From Machismo To Mujeres: Women As The Face Of Reggaeton
    • July 14, 2022
  • Tyler the creator
    4 things I learned on the 'Call Me If You Get Lost' tour
    • March 31, 2022
  • 4 things every artist needs to think about in 2022
    • January 27, 2022
  • The TikTok Takeover of Hip-Hop
    • January 11, 2022

EARMILK EARMILK
  • Jobs
  • About EARMILK
  • Privacy Policy
  • Contact Us
  • Submit Music
All Milk. No Duds.

Input your search keywords and press Enter.