4 Weeks with an iPod Classic vs. Spotify: Rediscovering the Emotions Lost with Spotify

Hey, Mats here! This past week, I decided to start an experiment that feels both nostalgic and a little crazy—I’m stepping away from Spotify for a while and diving back into an old-school favorite: the iPod Classic.

Why? Because I’ve realized something’s been missing in how I experience music lately. It’s not just about convenience; it’s about the emotional connection that used to come from listening to albums, exploring artists, and really diving deep into music. But Spotify, with its endless playlists and algorithm, has slowly turned my listening experience into something more passive, almost like background noise. So I figured—why not go back to basics and see what happens?

The Plan: Rewinding to the iPod Classic

I pulled out an iPod Classic Gen 6, and just getting everything set up again was a process in itself. I had to track down the old 30-pin cable, dust off iTunes (which I hadn’t opened in years), and manually curate a playlist. No easy "Discover Weekly" here—every song had to be handpicked.

And that’s kind of the point. The goal isn’t just to go back to a pre-streaming era for the sake of it; it’s about reclaiming the intentionality that seems to have disappeared with Spotify. I want to know if the act of physically selecting music and albums makes me more present and engaged with what I’m listening to.

The First Week: It’s Not as Easy as I Thought

After the first few days, I realized that switching from Spotify back to an iPod Classic wasn’t as easy as I’d imagined. With Spotify, I could just press play and let the algorithm take care of everything—serving up music based on my mood or tastes. But with the iPod, there’s a lot more effort involved. I had to think about what I actually wanted to listen to. In a way, it’s forcing me to rebuild my relationship with music.

So far, I haven’t reached any major revelations, but I can already feel the difference between passive listening and active selection. There’s something strangely refreshing about choosing music deliberately instead of just going along with whatever Spotify recommends.

Missing the Algorithm, But Also Not?

I’ll be honest, I do miss the convenience of Spotify’s algorithm—especially when it comes to discovering new music. It’s hard to deny the thrill of finding a great song you’ve never heard before in a random playlist. Spotify excels at that. But at the same time, I’m realizing that I’ve been relying too much on those random recommendations. It’s almost like I let the algorithm do the thinking for me.

In the first week of using the iPod, I’m noticing a shift. I’m not discovering new music the way I would on Spotify, but I’m re-discovering music I’d forgotten about—old albums I haven’t listened to in years. It’s making me appreciate the music in my library in a new way, even if I’m not getting bombarded with fresh tracks.

What’s Next?

I’ll keep you posted on how this journey goes over the next few weeks. The goal is to abandon Spotify forever and regaining a deeper connection to music when I take the algorithm out of the equation. For now, it’s been a fun experiment that’s already made me rethink how I listen. But I’ve still got three more weeks to go, so who knows what the final verdict will be.

If you’ve ever felt like you’re missing something in your music-listening experience, try it. Dust off that old iPod, or just try listening to a full album, front to back. Let’s see if we can rediscover some lost emotion in music.

Until next time,
Mats