Music lovers will be able to authentically recreate the vintage listening experience of days gone by with the release of a new app that filters digital music files with the classic, lossy quality beloved by retro enthusiasts everywhere.
SoundCrowd, developed by Gundagai-based startup Two In The Bush, uses complex codes to analyse a song’s dynamic arc before peppering in the warm, familiar tones of pops, crackles, warps and tapes getting jammed in the player.
“We looked at the market and realised that people are really into technology that makes other technology less useful,” co-founder and head programmer Max Bloom told SPA Confidential. “Look at photography apps - they filter photos to look like photos did when cameras couldn’t capture light effectively, and they’re insanely popular.
“So we thought, ‘How can we reach music fans in the same way? How can we bring out their love of inferior-quality goods to ensure they’re the most fashionable they can be?”
The end result is mere weeks away from its final launch, and, despite some early road bumps, Bloom and his creative partner Penny Williams say that they have received overwhelmingly positive feedback from beta testers and focus groups.
According to one early user, “It instantly brings back memories of long family road trips with buzzing car speakers, only capturing the end of your favourite song when taping it off the radio and school-based corporal punishment. An absolute delight.”
Williams added, “We already feel like we’re touching people in a significant way.”
