What Makes a Classic Album in the Streaming Era? or What Charli XCX Could Learn from The Police

Keith Jopling examines the decline of the classic album in the streaming era, arguing that the collective cultural moments once defined by landmark records have vanished. Publishing an exclusive extract from his 2026 book Body of Work, Jopling traces how two factors destroyed album dominance: physical sales now represent minimal industry revenue, forcing labels away from album prioritization, and the explosion of releases since streaming’s 2015 hypergrowth has fragmented attention. Without transparent consumption metrics from platforms like Spotify and facing algorithmic song-by-song fragmentation, albums struggle to achieve canonical status. Jopling notes that Radiohead’s OK Computer (1997) represented the last undeniable collective moment around an album’s artistic vision. Contemporary success stories like Taylor Swift and Kendrick Lamar remain exceptions where critical acclaim, industry recognition, and consumption align. The essay argues that Netflix’s 2025 Adolescence achieved what few albums now can: a shared national experience reflecting society’s collective consciousness.

Original article published on The Quietus — AI-generated summary.