Comments on: Pat Metheny Group – Travels http://www.hardformat.org/4024/pat-metheny-group-travels/ Reaching for the sublime in music design (album covers, cd art, record design) Sun, 05 Feb 2012 22:06:24 +0000 hourly 1 http://wordpress.org/?v=3.3.1 By: Colin http://www.hardformat.org/4024/pat-metheny-group-travels/comment-page-1/#comment-15471 Colin Sat, 19 Dec 2009 21:25:12 +0000 http://www.hardformat.org/?p=4024#comment-15471 Thanks Milkman. Funnily enough, I just the other day began reading Jose Saramago's Death By Degrees as a physical book. I've already found myself frustrated at forgetting it - something I never do as I always have my phone with me. Saramago may also not be a good choice for my return to paper as his signature style of very long sentences and very few paragraph breaks is more challenging on the larger format of a page than that of the iPhone screen. Having said that, I do still buy books, but my indulgence is focused specifically on photography books. Glad to hear from a fellow fan of the physical! Thanks Milkman. Funnily enough, I just the other day began reading Jose Saramago’s Death By Degrees as a physical book. I’ve already found myself frustrated at forgetting it – something I never do as I always have my phone with me. Saramago may also not be a good choice for my return to paper as his signature style of very long sentences and very few paragraph breaks is more challenging on the larger format of a page than that of the iPhone screen. Having said that, I do still buy books, but my indulgence is focused specifically on photography books.

Glad to hear from a fellow fan of the physical!

]]> By: themilkman http://www.hardformat.org/4024/pat-metheny-group-travels/comment-page-1/#comment-15396 themilkman Wed, 16 Dec 2009 12:52:20 +0000 http://www.hardformat.org/?p=4024#comment-15396 Very good point, very well made. Like you, I use MP3s extensively, and can't really imagine going anywhere without my 160gb iPod, but the power of the physical product, when it comes to music or book, is much stronger. I can't bring myself to digital books. For me, the smell of the paper and ink, the feel of the paper, that's all part of the experience of reading a book. This is perhaps a romantic view of what a book is (after all, the content of the book should be the most important thing, shouldn't it?), but that's one that occasionally dictates which edition of a book I buy. I usually get paperbacks for the convenience, but I recently checked different versions of Frankenstein and bought the one that had a nice thick cover, heavy paper and neatest print. Daft? It probably would be for most people, but for me, it's part and parcel of the experience of reading that particular book. And I went on to buy another book in that collection, which I'd never ever heard of previously. When it comes to music, I feel quite sad when I hear kids saying that the artwork doesn't matter. Of course it does (as this site shows time and time again). And not only the artwork/design, but also the weight of the card used for a sleeve, the choice of card over jewel case for CDs, etc.. All this is part of the experience of listening to a record. It is not essential I guess, but it adds another dimension, it caters for the senses not directly engaged by the music itself. In the case of this Pat Metheny album, it is precious to you partly because of what it signifies to you, of the personal touch... Not only this couldn't happen with MP3s, but the chances of still having MP3 files in 20 years, having survived countless computer crashes and hard drive failures in the process, is, I'd say, pretty slim. Very good point, very well made. Like you, I use MP3s extensively, and can’t really imagine going anywhere without my 160gb iPod, but the power of the physical product, when it comes to music or book, is much stronger.

I can’t bring myself to digital books. For me, the smell of the paper and ink, the feel of the paper, that’s all part of the experience of reading a book. This is perhaps a romantic view of what a book is (after all, the content of the book should be the most important thing, shouldn’t it?), but that’s one that occasionally dictates which edition of a book I buy. I usually get paperbacks for the convenience, but I recently checked different versions of Frankenstein and bought the one that had a nice thick cover, heavy paper and neatest print. Daft? It probably would be for most people, but for me, it’s part and parcel of the experience of reading that particular book. And I went on to buy another book in that collection, which I’d never ever heard of previously.

When it comes to music, I feel quite sad when I hear kids saying that the artwork doesn’t matter. Of course it does (as this site shows time and time again). And not only the artwork/design, but also the weight of the card used for a sleeve, the choice of card over jewel case for CDs, etc.. All this is part of the experience of listening to a record. It is not essential I guess, but it adds another dimension, it caters for the senses not directly engaged by the music itself.

In the case of this Pat Metheny album, it is precious to you partly because of what it signifies to you, of the personal touch… Not only this couldn’t happen with MP3s, but the chances of still having MP3 files in 20 years, having survived countless computer crashes and hard drive failures in the process, is, I’d say, pretty slim.

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