To Beats 1 or Not To Beats 1?

You’re off to uni and living on your own for the first time; there are no parents around to adamantly insist “listening to music is not conducive to effective study”. But, alas, there’s no room left in the car for your record player and extended back catalogue of limited edition vinyl…! CDs are so 1999, and the last you bought was Now 56 anyway: since then The Black Eyed Peas never have found the love and Rachel Stevens is still presumably having sweet dreams about her L.A. ex. This streaming malarkey seems like it’s the new thing. You’ve never bothered with it before, but now seems like a good time. Which service to choose though?! Fear not. This short guide to two behemoths of the streaming world, Spotify and Apple Music, should help.

First up, Spotify. The Swedish streaming service has come to dominate the market since its inception in 2008. Two tiers are available: 50 million of its 75 million users opt for Spotify Free, and the rest Spotify Premium. On the whole, it’s relatively straightforward to navigate, largely because of its eye-catching green/black interface.

However, there are seven tabs for Spotify’s iPhone app: Search, Now, Moments, Running, Music, Shows, and Your Library. It all feels rather cluttered – Now, Moments, and Music suggest music (duh… playlists, mostly) based on what sort of mood you’re in, what time of day it is, what type of genre you’d like to listen to, etc. Brilliant, keep the suggestions coming, but the three could easily be condensed into two or even a single tab. It’s definitely an area Spotify could look to improve.

(Warning: the prominence of the Running tab – which creates personalised playlists for your workout, the music adjusting to your tempo – may dishearten the less athletic and annoy music purists.)

Spotify Premium is an absolute bargain, frankly, when matched up to Apple Music

Where, however, Spotify by far and away excels head and shoulders above its peers, is in what many would regard as the most important issue. It’s extremely affordable: students are offered a 50% discount on Spotify Premium and £4.99 per month is an absolute bargain, frankly, when matched up to Apple Music’s comparatively costly £9.99 a month. With Premium, you can (as you can’t with the free version) ‘download’ up to 3,333 tracks of your choice, so that you can listen to them offline, i.e. without internet/data. Smashing. This, of course, isn’t anything extraordinary, though – the vast majority of streaming services offer this facility…

Including Apple Music. The tech goliath’s service also does a lot more. It’s the new kid on the block, the usurper; expected to eventually uncrown Spotify. Since it launched at the end of June, it’s already gained 11 million users.

Just the five tabs (perhaps learning from its competitor’s mistake…) feature: For You, New, Radio, Connect, and My Music. The first, For You, works like a charm. You tell Apple which bands and genres you like to listen to, and a regularly updated stream of playlists and albums suited to your tastes and preferences are presented for your own listening pleasure. Detailed, informative descriptions accompany all playlists, each album, and every band’s page, too. This, along with its revolutionary 24/7, worldwide radio station, gives the sense Apple are doing all within their grasp to guide you through your musical adventures and discoveries.

Apple Music seamlessly integrates all of your previously purchased music with the music which you choose

A word (or 50) should be said about Beats 1 – after all, it has given this article’s *very* witty, and not pretentious at all, title. If the idea of it sounds all a little too Orwellian, you’re in good(ish…?) company. Noel Gallagher thinks so as well. But if the prospect of listening again to what basically used to be only thing good about Radio 1, a certain Mr Zane Lowe, then it’s definitely something you should get excited about. Oh, and also the fact that your favourite band probably has its own show. St Vincent, Elton John, Ellie Goulding, and Josh Homme all already have theirs. HAIM will do too, soon.

Teething problems, nevertheless, detract from what’s otherwise a near-flawless product. Songs can take five to ten seconds to load at the moment, which is infuriatingly slow compared to Spotify’s almost instantaneous loading: there’s a “hashtag first world problems” if there ever was one… That said, Apple Music seamlessly integrates all of your previously purchased music with the music which you choose to save offline. For many, that’ll be a deal-breaker.

Of course, focusing on these two is in no way supposed to suggest that they are the only! Other streaming services are available. Check out their competitors and see what’s out there on the market that suits your needs, and your budget, best: Deezer, Tidal, Google Play, Amazon Prime – there’s literally loads. (I fear I’m beginning to sound like an incompetent BBC producer, hopelessly reminding their DJ of their obligatory impartiality, only when it’s too late.)

Trying Spotify and Apple Music for yourself is easy enough: Spotify offer a free one month trial of its premium service and Apple Music gives you the first three months free. At first it might be hard to choose, after a while though they’ll be nothing short of apples and oranges. Probably. Soon enough you’ll find one which pips the rest.