The Art of Slowdown Pt.1

Have you had the feeling recently, and certainly since the word “Covid” became a part of the modern English lexicon, that our lives are becoming increasingly busy, your mind is overloaded with information and sometimes seemingly out of nowhere, you feel anxious for no reason, tired and frazzled?

Do you get that nagging feeling, that although you insist to friends and family that you aren’t, you may be addicted to scrolling endlessly on your phone, aimlessly seeking something that you can’t quite put your finger on that’s missing? Did you know that that feeling of being overloaded, drained and anxious is quite literally the burning-out of our dopamine receptors… and we probably need to do something about it.  But just to reassure you, you’re not alone. It seems that EVERYONE I meet these days feels very similar, at least some, if not most of the time.

Let’s call this a digital overdose. And we’re in need of a serious antidote.

In the current era of digitalization we are, in one sense, living through one of the greatest evolutions in technology, but in another, society, has yet to make the technological leap to manage it all properly.

You see, we have an unlimited amount of data at our fingertips, but completely lack the ability to synthesize this much information. If you look at digital studies, we created and consumed a spectacular 94 zettabytes of data globally in 2022. That is simply staggering. On an individual level, our brains process around 75 gigabytes per day, and according to studies, the average screentime in developed countries is now close to 7 hours per day (6.5 hours). 80% of the world now has a smartphone and so the problem is getting bigger and bigger.

With the advance of the 4th industrial revolution and continued growth of AI, Chat GPT and connected devices, we’re set to see this rise at a staggering rate - up to a predicted 463 zettabytes by 2025.  And yet currently, we have little or no means of synthesising all this information, and a troubling aspect is that an awful lot of companies make an awful lot of money out of us browsing “stuff” and finding ways to keep you all hooked on doom scrolling (as it’s so affectionately known these days).

In the short to midterm, we are going to have to face a choice of how we want to participate in this digital reality. If we’re not careful, we’re going to find that our minds become ever increasingly busy places while we wait for technology to catch-up and give us back some way of approaching and synthesising this much information.

Now, if you think back to the crazy period of 2020-21 lockdowns (where our lives changed so suddenly), we went home in our millions and we slowed down. We spent more time with our families, many of us aimed to get healthier, we taught ourselves how to cook again, we read to our children, we took on home projects, and our homes once again became our castles, our domains of safety for our families, our friends (when finally allowed), and ourselves.

Importantly, through this uncertainty, we seemed to reacquaint ourselves with Music, and many studies have been carried out illustrating this as a fundamental coping mechanism.  I have spoken a lot about what I think happened back in the Covid era, but fundamentally I believe that out of all that uncertainty, we instinctively found our way back to the things that really matter in our lives. And through this we started to realign and reprioritise Music playback. And through the curiosity, vinyl became a real mainstream thing again, as did (dare I say it) CD’s…and for some, Reel-to-Reel tape and cassettes became cool again.

If you look at the stats behind music listening and streamed video content over that period, it’s impressive and, of course, the big winners were the video content platforms such as Disney + and Netflix. The other immediate benefactors from our enforced time at home were the DIY suppliers and solutions; the garden improvements and outdoor entertainment, but also fitness equipment brands such as Peloton.

But were you aware of what happened in 2022 as the world came back out of its imposed hiding? The data shows that a lot of that revenue and subscriber growth went into reverse, with many fearing that the magic had worn off. For example, Peloton’s share value fell dramatically, a lot of the trends proved to be just that…Trends. But our relationship with music lasted. Our relationships with our friends and families grew closer. Our focus on food, health and wellbeing persisted. And a very many of us continued with a lot of the positive habits that we cultivated in those dark days of Covid lockdowns…It is my belief that in an almost unconscious manner, we relearnt how to prioritise the things that matter and reject the commoditised, high volume, low quality, low emotional ROI purchase decisions of the past.

If I go back to my formative Linn Products days, I recall vividly that Ivor Tiefenbrun used to say religiously that the priority of spending was very different in the 1960’s; “it was a car, a house, and a HiFi. And in that order”.

It’s a huge regret that I wasn’t around to live the sonic glory of those days, but I’m convinced that that statement is true. If you look at the halcyon days of 60’s, there were epic moments like Woodstock; and an explosion of bands, art and many, many greats were at their very best in that era. It therefore seems logical to suggest that we/our parents/grandparents were all hooked on music in a way that many of us have forgotten that we can be – but to be fair, they probably had less distractions… It seems to be that in that period, the power that music had to transcend boundaries, politics, race, and global issues was profound. I’m thinking John Lennon, Yoko ono and the huge movements that sprang up in protest of war as I write this.

To get to the point, I think that Covid 19 created a moment in time that has allowed us to, in-essence, complete the circle. We are back to prioritising music and the things that matter. And hopefully the things that are good for us too. But also, I think we have taken a move back towards high quality music playback…And that’s the secret sauce!

Did you that know music is incredibly good for us? At a neurological level, scientists now know that music has genuine transformative powers. There is a region of the brain called the auditory complex which is made up of many parts such as the Heschl’s gyrus and the superior temporal gyrus. Under certain studies, it turns out that these light-up like fairy lights on a Xmas tree, while our hearts change pace; all a result of our brains telling adjusting our emotions and our bodies in time with the beat, or in response to a shift in dynamics or timbre.

This is what artists want to happen: They want to tell us stories that truly connect, and music is a powerful communicative tool – if you listen, and if your equipment is good enough to reveal these mysteries – music and HiFi will change your life if you let it.

I’m going to make a judgement call that if you weren’t the owner of a turntable or perhaps had one stored away in the attic, a great many of you have recently purchased, or brought the deck back out and plugged it back into your system. Record buying stats suggest exactly that. We are also seeing a renewed interest and growing focus on CDs - many called me slightly crazy for suggesting that a comeback of physical format was on the horizon. To me it’s deductive logic: if curiosity for HiFi is beginning again, a great many people want to get back on-board, and CDs and vinyl are an excellent – and often – lower cost way of doing this! I speak to a lot of HiFi dealers, friends, peers and passionate people in the industry, and a lot of people are reporting a genuine renaissance in HiFi.

So, what is really happening right now? I believe that we are seeing not only a re-prioritising of music. We are also seeing a focus on better Sound and simpler, higher quality systems. Our minds are so full of data and decisions that we are naturally craving simpler ways to spend our out of work hours and to de-stress from our busy lives. In fact, speaking to many people entirely outside of my industry, the same is now true of many other areas of life. We are seeing control become simpler – and we are rejecting voice control in a manner that I never thought we would – and instead lovely control switches for lighting are making a comeback and remote controls with buttons are once again cool. Have you seen the sheer number of DJ’s and artists that are moving to modular systems, Moog, rotary mixers? I can’t help but feel that this is because of the human physicality of the process – tactile and purposeful, the artist wants to literally, physically “feel” their way to crafting. Just as music creation should be.

If you look at interior design, we are seeing increased demand for wellness at the heart of designs. An increasing number of businesses are interested in how to incorporate circadian lighting at home and in offices, and more designers want to source and incorporate sustainable and ethical building materials, and furniture and products that have a story and provenance. There is a renaissance in all things vintage. Trends in yoga and other ancient wisdoms are on the rise. People are becoming more conscious of waste and mother earth and are more prepared to ‘buy less, choose well and make it last’ as the late great Vivien Westood once said.

It feels like a great many people are focusing their minds on health and wellbeing and are returning to what is important.

We call this the Art of Slowdown, and it’s a movement. Do you want to start one together?

Andy Oattes, Founder of The Art of Slowdown