Sound Moves: iPod Culture and Urban Experience

by Michael Bull

This innovative study opens up a new area in sociological and urban studies: the aural experience of the social, mediated through mobile technologies of communication.

Whilst we live in a world dominated by visual epistemologies of urban experience, Michael Bull argues that it is not surprising that the Apple iPod, a sound based technology, is the first consumer cultural icon of the twenty-first century. This book, in using the example of the Apple iPod, investigates the way in which we use sound to construct key areas of our daily lives. The author argues that the Apple iPod acts as an urban Sherpa for many of its users and in doing so joins the mobile army of technologies that many of us habitually use to accompany our daily lives.

Through our use of such mobile and largely sound based devices, the book demonstrates how and why the spaces of the city are being transformed right in front of our ears.

Genres: Nonfiction, Music

196 pages, Paperback

First published January 30, 2007

Reviews

[Roberreading · Rating 3 out of 5]

I just read the part of the IPod Culture: "The toxic Pleasures of Audiotopia" and it was ok but very repetitive to the point that I thought he was just trying to write as much words as he could just to fill the minimum request of words like a student would do with their essays lmao but i kind of enjoyed and I was able to get new information and a new point of view!

PS: I would buy the book but I don't have enough money sadly, thank you to the guy who provided this part, resources/education should be at the hand of everyone! :)

[Maggie · Rating 4 out of 5]

The book took me months to read because it's so densely academic. Those without a background in cultural and sociological theory will probably have similar experiences. That said, I found Bull's research to be fascinating, and it's one of the most substantial studies of the cultural impact the iPod has had. The excerpts he includes from the interviews he conducted help to balance out the theoretical sections. I used a section of this with a class of freshmen during a unit where we were discussing how technology has impacted the music industry. They had favorable responses to it, and it led to a great class discussion. Had the book as a whole been a bit more accessible, I probably would've assigned it as a course text.

[Paul Chavez]

A bit too academic and monolithic, but I got a new perspective on the iPod and how people use it.