The Lost Art of Listening: How High-End Audio Rekindled My Love For Music

Culture

20 Oct

In partnership with By Bespoke

In a world where music has become a disposable commodity discovered by algorithms and listened to through earbuds, writer Tobias Handke urges us to rediscover music through albums, sharing his personal connection to music, addressing the ever-evolving world of music consumption and offering his two cents on rediscovering a time when dropping the needle or pressing play meant something.

I can still remember the first albums I ever received. It was Christmas ‘92 and my family had recently moved from the suburbs to a hobby farm in the Adelaide Hills. With the closest neighbours my age at a good 15 minutes away, my love for music crystallised during those early months on the 22-acre property. When I wasn’t outside exploring, I spent my time discovering music by listening to the old man’s record collection, which included albums by the likes of Elton John, The Beatles and Carole King. There was something magical about the crackling vinyl that boomed around the lounge room through the old school Sony hi-fi setup, which quickly became my altar. But I digress…

Understanding how much music meant to me as a plucky 10-year-old, my parents gifted me my first cassettes that Christmas: the compilation Smash Hits 92 and Kris Kross’ debut album, Totally Krossed Out. Embarrassing? Maybe. But those two cassettes deepened my connection to music. I played them religiously and can still recite the majority of lyrics from Kris Kross’ iconic single, ‘Jump’.

Soon I was buying cassettes, and later CDs, at a rapid rate with my pocket money. After-school pilgrimages to Big Star Records and The Muses were everything to me. I even scored a part-time gig working at The Muses, causing my record collection to spiral out of control. These formative years listening to albums on our home stereo didn’t just shape my musical taste – they directed me towards a career in music journalism (I sadly lack any actual musical talent).

As my taste in music evolved, so did the way I consumed and listened to it. My old cassettes gave way to CDs, and then MP3s. It all got a little murky when peer-to-peer sharing programs like Limewire and Napster suddenly made music accessible to everyone – illegally, I might add. Why pay $20 for a CD when you could download it for free? Metallica’s 2000 lawsuit against Napster, citing copyright infringement, put a stop to that – but the industry was already reeling.

Enter Swedish entrepreneurs Daniel Ek and Martin Lorentzon’s Spotify. Launched in 2006, the audio streaming platform offered listeners the biggest library of music on the planet. Spotify revolutionised the music industry and changed listening habits worldwide. Beginning as a free service, it now has paid options and over 678 million users globally. Spotify uses an algorithm-based model focused on playlists and personalised suggestions, creating a change in everyday listening habits. Sadly, the album has taken a backseat to singles, with many listeners, especially younger ones, craving the quick dopamine hit of a playlist full of their favourite songs over immersing themselves in a full album.

This change in listening habits extends beyond how we choose music to how we hear it. Earbuds are everywhere – convenient, yes, but lacking the depth and richness of a quality home stereo setup. Sound has become background noise, not something to savour.

This might paint a picture of doom and gloom, but there’s a small silver lining – vinyl sales are on the up. Starting in the early 2000s and booming post-pandemic, vinyl sales have surged. According to the Recording Industry Association of America, 2023 saw vinyl outsell CDs for the first time since 1987. Alongside this, there’s been a quiet resurgence in home audio. Stores like Adelaide’s own By Bespoke are helping audiophiles reconnect with music on a deeper level.

By Bespoke’s showroom is an audio nerd’s dream. Spacious and sleek, the store includes a dedicated theatre room designed to feel like a living space where you can truly experience the benefit of listening to music through high-quality speakers. Miller & Kreisel speakers are built discreetly into the walls, creating a minimalist and immersive sound experience. As I sat in the room, Led Zeppelin’s ‘When the Levee Breaks’ blasting through the stereo system, I was transported back to Christmas ‘92. Listening to my new cassettes before Dad took over and played Zeppelin’s IV, the two of us lost in the thunder of Jon Bonham’s fierce drumming. There was no talking, just listening.

It’s this type of connection to music that’s been lost through modern music consumption. It’s all well and good firing up a playlist and listening on your earbuds while out for your morning jog, but to truly immerse yourself in the music – to feel it – you need to hear it how it was meant to be played through a sound system that does it justice. Later, Holly Cole Trio’s ‘The Tennessee Waltz’ is played. A slow, meandering tune, but through By Bespoke’s setup, every note was crystalline. Cole’s voice, the harmonica, the double bass – each element distinct, as if the band were performing right there in front of me.

My visit to By Bespoke reminded me why I love music. It’s more than just sound. It’s memories. It’s emotion. It’s connection. There have been dozens of studies that show the positive effects of listening to music. It boosts moods, assists with anxiety and can improve sleep quality. It bonds us with friends, family, and even strangers at concerts. And then there’s the pull of nostalgia – songs from your past that instantly take you back to the good times.

I’m not a religious man, but that 30 minutes I spent listening to songs at By Bespoke were as close to enlightenment as I’ve come in a long time. Music isn’t just something you play in the background – it’s to be savoured and enjoyed, be that solo or with a group of friends. There are few better ways to spend a lazy Sunday afternoon than lying on the couch, drink in hand, listening to your favourite albums. These are the moments the soul craves.

We need to reconnect with the person we were when we first discovered music. If we can harness the enthusiasm and awe of that time with the power and clarity of a high-quality home setup, we return to the reason we listen to music – to make us feel something.

As Nick Cave told Stephen Colbert on The Late Show in 2024, “I think music is a thing that makes things better. It’s one of the last legitimate opportunities we have for a transcendent experience.”

I couldn’t agree more.

By Bespoke is located at 23 High Street, Kensington. For more information, visit bybespoke.com.au.