In the last 20 years, albums have changed A LOT. Long before Spotify, and Just as long before Limewire, if you wanted a song, you bought the whole album. So as a producer, you wanted to make the whole album keep the listener hooked from front to back, evenly peppering in your radio hits with songs that could become hits in between. With many of those songs leading into another, it really did make a whole album feel like one big experience or story. Depending on the album, some even had intro or outro songs to wrap things up properly!
Now, when you can click and choose any song you like, that’s forced producers to change how they present albums and produce songs. More hits, shorter songs to keep the listeners attention, and no more long and progressive intros like U2’s Where the Streets Have no Name. Just right into the action within the first few seconds, and shorter songs overall.
But todays albums still do tell stories if you listen to them from front to back, Just in different ways than many of us may remember!
What’s your favourite album?
