About The Album Project

In the age of downloading music and the re-emergence of the single, I am a firm believer in the album. The shuffle button on my computer/iPod remains largely untouched, and my process of music listening involves playing entire albums, from beginning to end, how they were meant to be enjoyed. A lot of thought goes into deciding the track order of an album, making sure the songs flow from one to the next, telling the story the artist meant the record to tell. This is what I like to experience.

I love everything about owning albums. From the artwork, to lyrics (or lack thereof), to linear notes, to holding the physical representation of someone's art in my hand. I love flipping a record to play side B, waiting for that initial crackle of needle on wax, and seeing stacks of my memories piled upon one another in CD form.

Before this becomes too pretentious, there is a downside to the above. I may not be exposed to as much music as some of my contemporaries, due to the fact that each album I listen to requires investment on my part. Also, without the use of random, I find I often listen to a steady rotation of about 20 albums before swapping out a few and then listening to those 20 over and over again. It was the latter that brought about the idea for The Album Project. Because I often only listen to my obsession of the moment, there are albums that I own that I haven't listened to in years.

So, starting January 1, 2010, I'm going to listen to every album I own in alphabetical order by artist (and then by release date). I will write an entry about how I came to discover the artist, what my thoughts on the album were/are, and tracks that stand out to me. It's a daunting task, but I'm up to the challenge.

Love and music,

Jessica