Something's Lost...

... when something's gained.

there's a lot to like about digital music,
especially when you combine it with
the possibilities of the internet...

but it's not all good.

when it's just a sonic experience,
it's a less intensive experience
than it used to be... 

ironically, perhaps, given the hype of the digerati,
it becomes a less interactive experience.

as a digital file, it's pretty anonymous-
just another line of text on a screen.

there is no "it", in the way there once was.
there s no "thing", no "object", no "commodity"
and so where there was once a tactile experience,
now there's just one more "click" in a day
where clicking is hardly a novel experience.

and there's not much to look at,
not compared to gate-fold album covers,
24 inches across..

or even compared to the labels
of the 7 inch, 45rpm singles
that were once the engine of popular music.

?