When discussing music with people, whether it’s online or a face-to-face conversation, the focus tends to be either songs, artists, playlists or genres. It makes sense, those are all very broad, and trading playlists or favorite artists in a genre is a good way to find new music. 

Albums seem to have fallen by the wayside though. Outside of the hype from a new album being announced and the wave of reviews and discussion that occurs in the first week, discussion then turns back to the artist’s full discography or the singles from the album.

My viewpoint has always been that an album tells a story, and I imagine many others feel the same way. But when we add a few songs from an album to a playlist, it is the same as pulling a random chapter from a book. It can be an enjoyable experience, but something is missing.

I had a goal entering 2025 to listen to 100 albums this year that I had never heard. The first few were phenomenal. Albums like “Songs of a Lost World,” “Manning Fireworks” and “Blackstar” made me dedicated to seeing this goal to the finish.

As I neared the midway point, it got far tougher to find good albums. Part of it is because most genres I listen to- indie rock, americana, alternative, etc. – don’t get tons of mainstream discussion. Another reason is because Spotify, my streaming platform of choice, didn’t recommend any albums, instead it recommended playlists.

Spotify, understandably, only promoted their playlists when viewing an album. Playlists are all that most people listen to, but this really feels like a missed opportunity. Websites like Album of the Year and Rate Your Music are good for recommendations but just feel clunky. Spotify in general had been losing its appeal for me, especially considering the investments made by their CEO with the money from premium subscriptions. It got to a point where, about a month ago, I decided to make the switch to Apple Music. It was more rewarding than I ever thought it would be.

Everything just seems to make sense on Apple Music, especially when it comes to albums. You can add entire albums to your library with a couple taps, it recommends similar albums when viewing one and alternate players, like Marvis Pro, let you view a playlist as just its albums instead of individual songs.

This ease allowed me to get back to the initial interest I had in this goal and to see how picking an album to listen to is far more meaningful than a song. The whole story needs to be told, and hearing records like Jason Molina’s “Didn’t It Rain” made this swap worth it. Having just finished my 73rd album of the year today, it’s clear that they still have value in streaming. Whether it’s a new release or finding a gem from decades ago, a little effort can go along way in expanding your listening habits.

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