Hey there,
Before getting started with Missed Listens, I wanted to just outline what this publication is and what it will be doing.
An irony I see around me now is that music is everywhere, and yet the storytelling around music - those personal tales about why an album means so much to someone, or how it affected them, or otherwise why it just warrants anything from 30 to 90 minutes of your time - seems to be getting harder and harder to find.
I think it’s important to differentiate reviews of new releases - which tend to take perhaps a more critical eye - from personal tales of why an album means so much to someone. I feel the latter can really sell you on a record, and cause you to invest far more time and attention into it. Reviews can sometimes do the same, but in general they are less personal, so maybe resonate a little less too. Or certainly, they do for me.
The idea with Missed Listens then is to highlight albums that might be slept on in some capacity. This isn’t a place to write about why Fleetwood Mac’s “Rumours” is a great album. That’s been covered more than enough elsewhere.
No, the idea here is to flag albums that have been long-standing, passionately adored listens for the authors.
Which brings me to the next thing about Missed Listens. I work in the music industry, and something I notice is that in this line of work, people actually don’t talk too much about the music they love, and why they love it. I felt that seemed odd, because when you engage with these lovely people in that manner, they inevitably suggest incredible albums you might never have heard of.
For that reason, Missed Listens will aim to bridge these two concepts by having my friends and colleagues in music write articles about albums they think you should hear.
Alongside that, I will also be adding in my own articles. Knowing how hard it can be to get articles out of others, it might yet be the case I’m delivering the bulk of the writing, but let’s see.
In the meantime, I hope you enjoy what you read, and if you do, please spread word.
Thank you 🙏🏻
D.
Very cool! For the most part I am trying to do something similar, but from a less direct angle. More from what memory/life-story a song conjures.
I look forward to reading your posts!
Right on! There's absolutely a lack of stroytelling around records, and why we love the ones we do. Looking forward to Missed Listens taking off!