Once imagined as a decentralised utopia of free knowledge, DIY culture, and radical sharing, the internet has now evolved into a dystopia of crypto millionaires, fascist bots, doomscrolling, and algorithmic control. What we imagined as an infrastructure for openness, stability, and resilience has left us instead feeling profoundly unstable, polarised, and trapped inside a chaotic walled garden of nothing but noise. To borrow a phrase from media theorist Wendy Chun, our ground truths have all turned out to be deep fakes.

Journalist and critic Liz Pelly’s Mood Machine: The Rise of Spotify and the Costs of the Perfect Playlist has invigorated both academic and journalistic critique of Spotify, while arming musicians with a powerful set of arguments for imagining alternative platforms and economic models for music.

Journalist and critic Liz Pelly’s Mood Machine: The Rise of Spotify and the Costs of the Perfect Playlist has invigorated both academic and journalistic critique of Spotify, while arming musicians with a powerful set of arguments for imagining alternative platforms and economic models for music.