2024 Album Playthrough Project

I was having a conversation with my daughters (12 and 16) about popular music.  I asked them about what artists they enjoyed and what kind of music they liked.  Taylor Swift, Olivio Rodrigo, Dua Lipa, and Noah Kahn were named, but after that, the general response was, "I don't know.  I listen to stuff I like."  I asked, aren't there any other artists that you can name?  "No."  

I felt I had one more question before I turned the conversation into an investigation.  So, I asked if they listened to the albums of Taylor, Olivio, Dua, and Noah.  The response, "No, who does that?"  

This conversation led me to reflect on my own listening habits versus my listening habits as a teenager and college student.  Today, I, like my daughters, listen to music on streaming apps or satellite radio, which presents an artist's hits and not usually in an album format.  Music is often introduced to my children and most others through clips on TicTok, Instagram Reels or other social media snippets.  No wonder why they don't have a deep knowledge of who they listen to; they focus on what they like.  An artist is less important than a genre or style of music.  

In contrast, as I continued my reflection, growing up I listened to music on the radio.  Even though music on radio stations like The Loop, WLS, and WXRT generally only played the hits of artists, they discussed and highlighted artists on the radio.  This led me and other fans to the music store or K-Mart to look for albums of our favorite artists, so we could enjoy more of their music.  It was great!  I loved Jack and Diane by John Cougar, so I grabbed the album so I could discover more music like Jack and Diane.  We were album listeners in the 1970's, 1980's and 1990's.  I fell in love with Billy Joel, Aerosmith, Van Halen, John Cougar Mellencamp, The Cars, and Dave Matthews Band.  I loved these artists not because of one song but because of albums of songs.  

After visiting with my daughters and this self-reflection on my own listening habits, I really started missing album listening.  I started wondering what it would be like to revisit the albums of my childhood and young adulthood, or even more, what would it be like to start listening to the albums of today's artists like the Black Keys, George Ezra, Noah Kahn, and Taylor Swift.  Would artists of today live up to the album collections of the artists of the past, or are they one-hit wonders?  

In November of 2023, I started my Album Playthrough Project.  I started listening to the albums of artists with as much intentionality as I possibly could.  My discretionary time isn't quite the same as my younger days, but I could still take time to listen to albums.  I plan to share my album lists through 2024 here on Seeking Positivity in the Galaxy.  I hope to get the lists out monthly with a little bit of commentary on my reflections on the experience month-to-month.  

Here are the albums I listened to in January 2024: 

B-Movie Matinee (1985) Nile Rogers 1/1/24
Wet Leg (2022) Wet Leg 1/1/24
Joshua Tree (1987) U2 1/2/24
Remain in Light (1980) Talking Heads 1/3/24
Electric Ladyland (1968) Jimi Hendrix 1/3/24
Turnstiles (1976) Billy Joel 1/4/24
Let's Rock (2019) The Black Keys 1/5/24
Bad 25th Anniversary (2012) Michael Jackson 1/5/24
Father of the Bride (2019) Vampire Weekend 1/5/24
Breathe In (2024) Armin Van Buren 1/12/24
Live from Llamaland Studios (2022) Younger 1/13/24
Murmur (1983) REM 1/15/24
Various artists (2024) Echo Disney+ Soundtrack 1/17/24
The Who By Numbers (1975) The Who 1/17/24
Sleepwalker (1977) The Kinks 1/17/24
Love&Hope&Sex&Dreams (1986) Bodeans 1/29/24

After the first month of listening, I realized that it is so easy to go back to playlist listening or my favorite Sirus/XM station the Dave Matthews Channel; however, I was pretty happy with the listening I completed.  I found that most of my desire was to go back to my younger days and enjoy albums I used to own or albums I always wish I had.  

Here are a few notes: 

Better than I remembered: Murmur, REM

First time listening to this artist: Nile Rogers and Wet Leg

Best album this month: Electric Ladyland, Jimi Hendrix

I listened to all the albums on Spotify.  Have an album recommendation from today or back-in-the-day?  Leave a comment here or leave one for me on X @draftline