How the Streaming Era Turned Music into Sludge

> But if the people want sludge, why not give them sludge? That’s the argument of entrepreneur Oleg Stavitsky, who points out that “functional” sounds—designed for focus or sleeping—always feature among streaming platforms’ most popular playlists. He’s one of six cofounders of Endel, a slick Berlin-based app that uses AI to generate one endless piece of music that adapts to your surroundings. When I use it to soundtrack my daily dog walk, the app uses the accelerometers in my phone to generate music that falls in time with my footsteps. If I start skipping or jogging, the music’s tempo catches up. For Stavitsky, functional sound—he’s careful not to call it music—can co-exist with human-made compositions. He believes people want both.

Satie and Eno obviously come to mind, but this more specifically reminds me of the multiple Ballard stories about weird sound generating sculptures, clothing, etc. Been years since I read them, but I think they always appear in his Vermilion Sands locale.

On the bright side, it's easier than ever to listen to albums, even really obscure stuff. I feel like it's a good antidote to that "sludge" feeling. I've been able to find most any hometown punk shit from 1997 I want.

Better yet, figure out where local bands are playing and watch people do their thing.

Does anyone have any examples of what the author is referring to as "sludge music"? I use Spotify a lot, and listen a lot of recommended songs and generally I haven't encountered much of this type of content to my knowledge. (Even though I do listen to ambient music which I think would be rife with this type of sludge mood music the author seems to describe)

Non-paywalled link: https://archive.ph/NcOKD#selection-757.0-757.669