Bob Dylan is a unique artist because he has never conformed to the trends in music. He is a folk singer who has blended elements of rock n’ roll into his music, and he has remained true to those roots throughout his career. However, his ability to avoid adapting to modern trends can also be applied to technology, as Dylan says he is not a fan of streaming music.
Bob Dylan believes technology is a double-edged sword
In an interview with The Wall Street Journal, Bob Dylan discussed technology’s evolution and its impact on music. Dylan, 81, began his music career during the 1960s and has witnessed many technological evolutions, including the internet, cell phones, and electronic music. The “Blowin’ in the Wind” singer admits that technology can be amazing, but it can also have catastrophic consequences for civilization.
“Technology is like sorcery,” Dylan says. “It’s a magic show, conjures up spirits, it is an extension of our body, like the wheel is an extension of our foot. But it might be the final nail driven into the coffin of civilization; we just don’t know. Nikola Tesla, the great inventor, said he could take down the Brooklyn Bridge with a small vibrator. Today, we can probably do the same thing with a pocket computer. Log in, log out, load and download; we’re all wired up.”
Bob Dylan believes music streaming services have made things ‘too easy’
The days of CDs and record stores are basically over. Now, people have unlimited music libraries in their back pockets, as Spotify and Apple Music allow listeners to access their favorite artists whenever they want. While streaming has allowed new generations to access Dylan’s music catalog easily, the singer isn’t a fan of how convenient streaming has made the act of listening to music.
“Streaming has made music too smooth and painless. Everything’s too easy. Just one stroke of the ring finger, middle finger, one little click, that’s all it takes. We’ve dropped the coin right into the slot. We’re pill poppers, cube heads and day trippers, hanging in, hanging out, gobbling blue devils, black mollies, anything we can get our hands on. Not to mention the nose candy and ganga grass. It’s all too easy, too democratic. You need a solar X-ray detector just to find somebody’s heart, see if they still have one.”
Dylan listens to music in a multitude of ways
While Bob Dylan is critical about streaming, it’s still one of the many ways he listens to music. He also utilizes CDs and satellite radio and has developed an appreciation for the sound of vinyls. He doesn’t say who he listens to, but Dylan probably has impeccable taste in music.
“Nowadays I listen to music on CDs, satellite radio and streaming,” Dylan explains. “I do love the sound of old vinyl, especially on a tube record player from back in the day. I bought three in an antique store in Oregon about 30 years ago. The tone quality is so powerful and miraculous, has so much depth. It always takes me back to the days when life was different and unpredictable.”
