Weekly survey: Do you still listen to albums from start to finish?
Did you listen to any albums over the weekend. By that I mean listening to an album from track one and listening all the way through without interruption?
I bring this up because this coming Saturday (October 12) is National Album Day in the UK. The idea is promote the complete and proper listening of albums from start to finish in the way the artist intended.
This seems to be necessary because this isn’t the way things work anymore. Deezer, the French streaming music service, did a study in the UK and found that 15% of music fans under the age of 25 have never, ever listened to a full album. Not even once in their lives. (Again, this is just the UK so things may be different in other countries.)
Why? Lack of time, for one thing. There’s just too much music out there to devote time to a full album. Blame can also go to the skip button. It’s just too easy to move onto the next track. And third, it’s a playlist world now. It’s becoming more and more about individual songs from a variety of performers rather than collective works from a single artist.
However, all is not lost. 82% of people in the survey claim to have listened to a full album. Most people do that at home (53%) and in the car (32%). And 74% of the people in the survey said they are more likely to listen to album of a particular artist if they’ve seen that performer do a gig.
Let’s do our own survey. In the last year, have you listened to a full album front to back? And when you respond, please include your age so we can correlated the data a little more accurately.
I listen to approx a dozen albums a week. Here’s the catch though. 99% of the time I only listen to side one. I have thousands of albums in my collection and I plan to listen to them all! When I finish listening to all of them, I’m going to start at the beginning of the collection again and listen to side two! BTW I find albums are the perfect size for listening to an artist, If I don’t like the record, it’s usually over in 20 minutes….
Yes, I listened to Stevie Ray Vaughan – Can’t Stand the Weather last week side 1 + 2… I am 43
Yes — listened to Jonathan Pushkar’s new powerpop album, and Give Us Barabbas, by Masters of Reality. I’m 54.
Yes, every week listen to at least 5-6 LPs in full. I am 43yrs old.
I actually got fed up of listening to the music on my phone on random during my commute to and from work, so I’ve decided to listen to all of the albums on my phone from front to back. I’m going alphabetical by title and I’m up to “Compton” by Dr. Dre.
33 years old. I’d guess I listen to music 2-4 hours per day on average and probably split that time pretty equally between fulls albums and playlists.
I play multiple albums every week. Off the top of my head, I spent a lot of time on an Amtrak bus this past weekend and got through Tool’s Fear Innoculum, Deftones’ Koi No Yokan and finally, when my ears needed a bit of a break from distorted guitars, Beck’s Sea Change,
The catch is that a lot of time (when I’m not stuck on a bus), I’m not just sitting there. I have an album on as background music while I do other things like reading, or working, or socializing. So yes, the album plays all the way through but I wouldn’t say I’m *listening* to every track.
I’m 38.
I always listen to the entire album. Sometimes if it’s a double I might not. Sometimes I’m doing work at my desk but most of the time I just sit, listen, and read the lyrics and liner notes. I’m 53 and have always done this.
I always listen to full albums (on CD). Not really a ‘singles’ person. I am 36.
Yes, when listening to records. 48 years old
When I started rebuilding my vinyl collection, I purchased exclusively albums I can listen to from start to finish.
I listen to music while I work and at least once a day plow through a album from start to finish. You miss too many gems just playing the hits and mediocre songs when listened to in the context they were meant to become so much more (broken by gorillaz is a perfect example of this) 34 years old
I’m 42 years old and I still listen to full albums, probably 3-4 a day. I still enjoy an old school mix, but full albums are where it’s at.
33 years old. Yes, front and back. I can’t do an artist by songs.
Full albums of only the artists that I like or follow (recently Lana del Rey/ Liam Gallager) , and all albums in the best albums of the year lists. Plus if the album is critically acclaimed.
*front to back
I’m 50 and Yes every week on my day off while doing my house chores I chose a cd and play it from start to finish .. currently the new Black Keys let’s rock is on continuously but also nostalgia such as Led Zepplin and White stripes lots and lots 🙂 cd and vinyl… I love to chose my cd from my collection and pop it in 🎵
I listen to music several hours a day as background. However, when an artist I follow releases a new album, or someone suggests an album or artist, I will listen to it from start to finish. Singles don’t always show the true strength of an album.
I’m 57.
I’m a huge TOOL and Pink Floyd fan, so yes, I listen to entire album’s front to back, over and over and over
Except for when I was getting my first LP aand didn’t have much choice I’ve never always listened to a whole LP at once. Some LPs always, other LPs sometimes. Others never. Some I deleveloped a love for one side or the other some a block of songs. Some I just play one song. My favourite LPs get the full LP treatment whenever I have time.
Recently I listened to the full Tool album within a week of its release. I also listened to the new Glorious Sons album in full. I also listen to old albums I enjoy in full like recently Nirvana Unplugged, Moist Creature and Foo Fighters Wasting Light. These are all examples of albums I have streamed while at home. I also listen to full CDs in my car often. I am 38.