Tearing off the plastic film, the click as the case swings open, the smell of the glossy booklet and the excitement as you close the deck of your stereo… I grew up in the era of CDs and I always loved the experience of getting that album you’d been waiting somewhere in the range of 2 to 4 years for. There was something to be said for the physical interaction involved with getting that new music. I would mark the day of release on my calendar and once I got it home I would pop in the disc and examine the artwork and liner notes as it played.

In 2009 this is a practice that most find arcane, overpriced and inconvenient. The Internet has changed the way we consume music (and everything else) and people have less patience for the models of days passed. Rather than waiting for the latest magazine spread featuring an interview and photos of your favourite artist you can do a Google image search while perusing their Twitter entries. Instead of heading out to the store on release day you can surf to the iTunes store or whatever free sharing site has managed to get a hold of leaked tracks early. At the very least you can visit the band’s Myspace page and hear the tracks they’ve chosen to exhibit.

Admittedly, I was one of the reluctant music fans who actually enjoyed the traditional method. I found a certain charm in the anticipation between albums, knowing that the artists were touring and developing their next release. I enjoy looking through my music collection and considering the way the albums fit into the artist’s progression. I’ve never really been one for singles, always gravitating towards bands whose albums I actually wanted to hear from beginning to end. To this day, I still find digital downloads lack a certain sense of experience. They are certainly cheaper, more convenient and an iPod beats the hell out of a Discman but I feel like I’m missing something. It’s probably the same way people felt about the move away from vinyl (although, yes I know they back and actually growing in sales).

The fact is that the entire music environment has changed and is continuing to change. It took me a bit of coaxing, but over time I grew accustomed and began to see the overall benefits of such alterations. The charm in the new model is not the anticipation but rather the constant and immediate access. Instead of postulating about how the new record is coming along you can watch video diaries or chat directly with the artists. Instead of kids plastering their walls with photos out of magazines they create fan pages and online profiles to demonstrate their fandom. There is a constant release of ideas on both the part of the artists and the fans rather than hype.

For these reasons, the artist has changed with the times too. I remember when those who spent all their time on the computer were considered “geeks” and now it is not only cool to have an online presence, it is necessary. Facebook, Myspace, Twitter,… if your band can’t be found somehow it is now longer about anticipation but obscurity. Some have taken to their new surroundings more reluctantly than others and some have done so more innovatively than others but it is a reality of the industry today, which if ignored may result in the end of an artist’s career. Music is still the key but people are no longer satisfied with the mere sounds. Fans expect a noticeable presence. It is the metamorphosis of the much more primitive experience I use to feel when I picked up a long anticipated record. The excitement comes from interaction rather than passive consumption and it will be the artists who take note that will drive the future of music.