How to Encounter Albums — Record Digging That Starts with "Searching for New Discoveries"

In Front of Those Wooden Crates

In my twenties, there was a used record store I frequented.

Upon entering the store, LP records were packed tightly in wooden crates. I would flip through them one by one with my fingertips, going through crates divided by genre. Artist names and album titles written on the spines. I'd pass by the ones I knew and stop at the ones I didn't.

I'd pull them out and look at the jackets. Photos, illustrations, typography. I'd flip to the back and gaze at the track listings. Unknown musicians' names lined up in the credits. "Who is this?" "What kind of sound would this be?" I absolutely loved that time of imagination.

The Moment Your Fingers Stop

In the subscription era, access to music has become surprisingly easy. Just type in your favorite artist's name and you can listen immediately. Algorithms line up "recommendations for you."

It's convenient. Truly convenient. But sometimes I think about it.

That "moment when your fingers stop at an unknown jacket" has somehow disappeared. What algorithms choose is ultimately an extension of your own preferences. Those completely unexpected albums you'd encounter in the wooden crates — that kind of discovery has become less likely to happen in the digital world.

"Searching for New Discoveries"

Album Sweet has those wooden crates.

The "Search for New Discoveries" button at the bottom of the top page. Or you can reach the same place from the menu. As the name suggests, it's a place to go searching for encounters with albums you don't know yet.

Digging Through the Crates

Record spines line up across the entire screen.

Colorful spines. Only the titles are visible. It's that scene of looking down into the wooden crates at the used record store. Tap on an intriguing record and the jacket pops out. Press "Dig More" and the contents of the crate are completely replaced. You never know what will come out. That's what makes it good.

Picking Up One Record

When you tap on an intriguing spine, the jacket appears in a popup. Artist name, album title, release year. Here you have three choices.

"Keep" — Set aside albums that interest you. You can review them all later.
"Listen" — Start listening right away. Apple Music audio starts playing immediately.
"Put Back" — Return it to the crate and move on to the next one.

It's close to that feeling of asking the store owner at a record shop, "Could you play this for me?" The difference is that you can try as many as you want, for as long as you want, without any reservations.

The Treasures You've Kept

As you dig through, the number of albums you've kept is displayed at the bottom of the screen. Tap it and the albums you've set aside are lined up in a list.

That small pile you'd pull out to a separate place at the record store, thinking "I might buy these." It's here. If you change your mind, you can put them back. If you like them, you can dive into that album's world with "Open Details."

Savoring the Jacket

You can also view the albums you've kept one by one in fullscreen. Only the jacket floats against a dark background. Flipping left and right, slowly savoring today's harvest.

If there's one you like, go to "Album Details." Track list, credits, related artists — the journey of exploration that begins from there is another story altogether.

In Closing

Encounters with music are similar to encounters with people. If you don't go searching, you won't find them. But what you encounter when you do go searching has a different weight from what algorithms choose.

Album Sweet's "Search for New Discoveries" is a digital recreation of those wooden crates from the used record store. You never know what will come out. But that's exactly what makes it interesting.

The sensation of flipping through spines with your fingertips, once more.
Come search for new discoveries on Album Sweet.