Watch out, Spotify: This free site is a music lover’s dream

These days, music is everywhere. You can call up practically any recorded song at any moment with a quick flick of your favorite fingie and nary an extra cent spent. And yet, for all the convenience modern streaming services give us, something intangible is lost compared to the way we used to listen to music. As a lifelong music fan, I’ve been thinking a lot lately about what I miss from the “good ol’ days” of our pre-Spotify/YouTube Music/[insert your own preferred streaming service] listening experiences. And I’ve realized, among other things, part of what I miss is the rich mishmash of live music and rare recordings that used to be a key part of my aural adventures. Today, I want to share a timeless tool with you that brings those splendid sorts of sounds back into your brain space—and brings a much-needed injection of fresh variety (not only limited to music) into your life. This tip originally appeared in the free Cool Tools newsletter from The Intelligence . Get the next issue in your inbox and get ready to discover all sorts of awesome tech treasures! Meet the Internet Archive’s Audio Archive If you’ve been around these here nets of inter for long, you’ve probably heard of the Internet Archive—maybe better known by its web address, archive.org​ . ➜ The Internet Archive is a sprawling nonprofit library for all sorts of fascinating stuff. It’s probably best known for its Wayback Machine​ , which lets you zip back in time and ​see snapshots of web pages​ from specific points in the past. ☝️ But what’s often forgotten—included by yours truly!—is that the Internet Archive also has a spectacular selection of completely free audio files that you can stream or download on demand, anytime, from any device you’re using. And no matter what you like listening to, you’re sure to find something worthwhile and refreshingly interesting within. ⌚ You can start listening in the Internet Archive Audio Archive in a matter of seconds , but—fair warning—it might take you a lifetim