John
You’d have to be living under a pile of rubble to be unaware that Spotify officially dropped its Antipodean drawers this week. As David Bowie once foretold, music is now a utility – it flows like water and gas.
Musings. Audiophiles that complain of 320kbps not being as good as (uncompressed) CD are probably missing the point of the service. 320kbps is good enough. For many folk, Spotify is already seen as a sampling service. Or for listening to music on the go. Or for sharing songs with mates: “Hey Brian – have you heard this killer Built To Spill tune?”. I’ve opted for the AU$11.99 Premium to dispense with ads, get iDevice action, higher bitrate streams and offline listening.
Once the wanderlust of (nearly) any song, anywhere, anytime wears off, Spotify listeners will (hopefully) slowly wake up to their not owning a single thing. With Spotify – we are renters of music. It can be taken away at any moment. Nailing down ownership with hard copies is part of the music fan’s condition. Personally, if I hear something on Spotify that I dig, I’ll buy a hard copy. The convenience of streaming means I even play albums I already own. Only the most anally-retentive audiophiles will demand EVERY listening experience to be the pinnacle of quality.
Moreover, Spotify (and its rival services) will likely change the way music is bought and sold. Stores should no longer try to compete with streaming services on breadth of choice. That’s the losing end: stocking a HUGE range of CDs is so noughties. The likes of JBHifi should be following in the footsteps of smaller vinyl stores in stocking a small(er) selection that’s constantly changing. A revolving door of limited pressing runs and special packaging will keep customers lusting for more and more tangible product. Keeping it limited will ensure customers buy today and not tomorrow (for it may be gone). Fear of missing out is a keen motivator for consumers. This is how artists will get paid (and not the pitiful slice they currently enjoy from each song stream).
Squeezeboxing. You’ll need a premium account to get Spotify running on your Squeezebox Touch.
There appear to be TWO distinct ways of getting this happening:
Method 1 (without a server): Spotify –> MySqueezebox.com –> Squeezebox Touch
Log into mysqueezebox.com and install the Spotify app. You will then need to register for a username and password with Spotify. Apply said login settings to the MySqueezebox app and then ensure that you point your Squeezebox Touch away from your local library and toward mysqueezebox.com.
Method 2 (with a server): Spotify –> Logitech Media Server –> Squeezebox Touch
Fire up your Logitech Media Server (LMS) server settings. Go to the plugins page. Check the box for “Spotify” and hit apply. Restart the LMS. You will be able to listen to both your local library and Spotify streams without needing to switch over to mysqueezebox.com.
To whet your DAR whistle, Parts 1 and 2 of the Electronica For Audiophiles series have been transmogrified into Spotify playlists. Listen here and here.
