I have been schlepping around a massive collection of musical media for decades, ranging from vinyl and cassettes from when I was a kid, CDs from teenage to medium-adult years, and iPod MP3s onward from there. Over the years I accumulated more plastics and bits. At some point in the last few years it seems like that collection has become obsolete; I realize it has been a couple of years since I bought any CDs or digital downloads, or powered on my iPod for that matter. Come to think of it, I haven’t even pirated much of anything in that time either. (Ironically, I recently got a new turntable, more about that next time.) Practically everything is ready right now to queue up for online streaming. This revelation must be obvious to the rest of the world. I’m a late adopter and I take a long time to decide on things. From another perspective then, if it has won me over, it’s pretty solid.

The catalog of streaming content is broad and the services are widely accessible. I can challenge myself to try to think of records I’ve been curious about and to switch on whenever I can. Caveat time: Not every recording is available, at least not through any single service, so you may just have to dip into the deep well of YouTube sometimes. I’m stingy about my mobile data, so I don’t usually stream in the car, just radio or CD. (I have had Beach House – Depression Cherry on continuous loop for about 6 months now). WiFi or unlimited mobile data are also not yet a gratis, inalienable right. The streaming services do incur subscription fees. Many of the streaming services are no less random/repetitive/inane than broadcast radio. Mercifully, there are some that actually lay off of the ads and algorithms and just let you free range to the limits of your imagination.

I have been on Amazon Unlimited Music for about a year now. I recently renewed for the annual rate, the justification being that it’s cheaper than buying one MP3 record from Amazon per month… it’s hard to put a price on unlimited. But. I have to acknowledge that when the subscription ends, all the music goes poof into the ether. That is very much like suddenly being cut off from the world and stranded on a desert isle. I suppose I ought to hold onto all my obsolete media in case I might be travelling through places without WiFi or electricity.

[Not to make a big deal, but this is 10 years of Sense & Sound. Yay.]