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And how much is the concept of an album really relevant anymore? Does anyone listen to albums straight through, or is it more playlists these days?
For the purposes of this exercise, remember that the artists themselves still create albums. People with large capacity MP3 players doesn't change that.
There's something about the format of a record album that makes it a work of art unto itself. A carefully crafted piece of music, about 40-50 minutes long and split into two subsections (side one and side two), each subsection split into individual 3-5 minute compositions. Lately, the CD format has modified those specs somewhat, but it's mostly the same thing. For most artists, an album hangs together as a single work, an expression of what the artist was feeling during the months that it took to make the album. The best albums are the ones that have a consistent voice and speak as a whole, even if the album itself contains varying styles, and even if the album isn't a concept album or a rock opera.
Thus, I should remind players that one of the rules of this game is: No compilation or greatest hits albums.
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