Why you should care about physical media

*Author's note: This is different from my usual blog posts, but I wanted to ramble about something that is important to me :D. this will mostly be about CDs because I am BIASED and I love my CD collection. 

     Having a collection of physical pieces of music/media is arguably very important. everything online can disappear at any time. as soon as that spotify premium subscription is no longer being paid for, you have nothing to show for all of the money you spent. its just GONE. CDs are permanent if you take good care of them. no ads, no subscriptions, no data harvesting, no bullshit. 12 dollars and you have that album for the rest of your life. 

     In the modern digital age, the entire world is locked behind glass. it can detach you from  reality. social media sucks the life from you and algorithms make it so you don't have to put any thought into the music you listen to and the media you consume. having something that's not behind a screen is nice. feeling the tactileness and reality of the media you consume can be oddly therapeutic in a way. 

     Digital music gives you less to enjoy overall. bonus tracks are available online, but they don't feel the same as being surprised when you let your favourite CD spin for too long just to discover something new. CD booklets/lyric sheets are a lost art. photoshoots, artwork, special notes and little gifts inside a CD makes it feel special and more personal. 

     Don't get me wrong, online streaming is still important. being able to access any song you want whenever you want is a privilege. it lets you discover more, but the meaning of the songs can get lost. a file on a screen doesn't mean as much as a personal collection. an artist can delete their entire discography and existence from the internet (to an extent), but they can't get rid of the physical copies of their music. 

     Overall, it really just depends on personal preference. digital playlists can still be meaningful. but physical music is undoubtedly irreplaceable. 

*imported from my spacehey