Streaming services like Spotify, Apple Music, and Tidal have irrevocably changed the way we listen to music and interact with our favorite artists. While streaming is undeniably convenient, its prevalence means we've lost touch with something important: album art. Of course, you can still see the album covers as little icons in the app you want, but it's time to flip through the cover notes of your most beloved albums in the hope of finding some hidden Easter eggs with them. Love masquerading as an artist is gone for real (unless you're a vinyl fan, that is). For a musician, the balance between great album artwork and ease of music streaming is not a good deal. Tom Vek is something of a cult hero on the indie scene. After releasing his debut album in 2005, the multi-instrumentalist and graphic designer was in and out of the music industry, with long absences between albums. Now, after a six-year hiatus, he's back with his latest release, New Symbols, and a new music streaming device that he hopes will put album art back in its rightful place at the center of our lives. houses.
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Tom Vek (pictured) is a freelance musician and graphic designer. (Image credit: Kat Green)
Give control to artists
Currently crowdfunding on Indiegogo, Sleevenote is a "unique premium music player that lets you experience your music collection as a rich art experience." The Wi-Fi and Bluetooth-enabled device comes with Spotify, Apple Music, and BandCamp built-in, and sits somewhere between the size of a CD and an LP, with a square design that allows album art to be displayed. 'will be presented in full screen while you listen. You can even interact with the artwork, using the touch screen to select songs directly from the track list on the back of the artwork. The idea that a device designed to promote album covers would be so involved in the same services that kill off physical sleeve notes is a bit strange, but as Vek explains, Sleevenote is designed to give artists “control over how they are displayed.” presents his music. and hopefully it could encourage fans to buy music in the future now that they have "a beautiful place to put it". It's also possible to transfer your FLAC, WAV and MP3 files (with enough storage for 3000 albums) and support Hi-Res Audio codecs.
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(Image credit: Joel Knight / Sleevenote) The inspiration for the Sleevenote came when Vek was designing the booklet artwork for his second album in 2010: “I was surprised that not everyone was going to see the full design, the details of the album. album, photos, credits, etc. "I have a feeling that people would like to see an elegant square obelisk in their surroundings and be able to say 'this is my music collection'" Tom vek For him, the Sleevenote represents a revival of the complications of modern life, while at the same time that brings all the benefits of modern music streaming: “People have a harder time letting go of their smart devices, and that means you can have music. digital experience without all the baggage that comes with using your phone or tablet. " The device is also designed to give music lovers a way to display their music collections without the bulk of traditional vinyl or CD collections. "I feel like people would like to see a fancy square obelisk on their environment and being able to say 'this is my music collection,'” he explains.
No more compromises
But does today's music consumer really care about album artwork? Vek believes it. “I think if Spotify became a text message list, that would be your answer. My opinion is that it's already too close to being a list of text, and you get all that blurry background or clipped artwork or rounded corners to fit into one UI style. As a graphic designer, this bothers him: “it's so abused, and because I'm a designer, I want to know the context in which the work is presented. As a result, Vek believes that artists are making concessions when it comes to their cover ratings. in an effort to integrate with the user interfaces of major streaming services "I noticed some trends like a bit of simplification, because the art is rendered smaller and the text coming out of the albums because they are always accompanied by the textual information" , he explains, though that's not always the case."Sometimes I see new illustrations that are extremely complex and detailed, almost despite these tiny thumbnails, and I really want to encourage designers to feel good about working on a bigger canvas." which is why Sleevenote comes with its own database, allowing fans and designers to upload interactive back covers and booklet artwork images, should that ever be part of the record label's distribution process. it depends on whether Vek's streaming device really takes off.
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(Image credit: Joel Knight / Sleevenote) Of course, we're just getting started, and if Sleevenote reaches its €500,000 fundraising goal (about $650,000 / AU$900,000), it won't start shipping until October 2021. We can't help but feel a bit pessimistic about the whole thing. While we love the idea of bringing this interactive tangibility back to album covers, the convenience of streaming music directly from your phone or tablet is probably more appealing to consumers than preserving the artistic vision of musicians and designers. Sleevenote isn't cheap either, with prices starting at $533 (around £700 / AU$960) for Indiegogo investors, though it's not as expensive as some of the best MP3 players you can buy today. Yes, it certainly is a considerable cost. This means the streaming device is likely to appeal to a highly specialized audience of audiophiles who lack the sensation of flipping through old liner notes for their album art and reveling in the intricate artwork and bold designs of their songs. favorite records. Maybe that's enough, and a small cohort of art enthusiasts could be enough to get streaming services to rethink the way they present the music we love. And for a cult indie star like Tom Vek, attracting a small audience of dedicated music fans could be the perfect outcome for this ambitious project.