Music Monday: Our Favorite 'Mini' Songs


Sometimes, less is more.

In the tech world, smaller is almost always better. In two decades we've gone from massive desktop computers to ultra-thin laptops and tablets. We keep on demanding "less" from our gadgets, and yet we haven't changed our preferred song length in a century. An unwritten law dictates that the optimal duration of a song is between three and five minutes. This has its roots in the technology that limited the length of tracks recorded in the 1920s. Of course, technology has advanced quite a bit since the early 20th century, so why does a four-minute single remain the industry standard?

It turns out that this is the perfect song length for advertisers, who can get more airtime on the radio when songs are kept short. It also seems that the average attention span of a listener is brief. We prefer straightforward compositions to longer tracks that contain complex progressions and multiple movements. This doesn't mean all popular songs adhere to this formula: plenty of artists, such as Jimi Hendrix, the Beatles and Bob Dylan, disregarded the status quo to spectacular success. Longer songs can work, but shorter songs are a different story.

Artists frequently record mini tracks to include on their albums, but in the age of iTunes and digital downloads, we're less likely to hear a full album. This means fewer "mini" musical gems. In anticipation of a certain little event taking place tomorrow, we thought it would be fun to gather our favorite mini songs in a Spotify playlist.

All of the songs (organized from shortest to longest) clock in at less than two minutes. Give it a listen, then share your favorite mini tracks with us. There's only one rule: the songs must be less than two minutes long. We can't wait to hear what you come up with!

Here's how you can share your mini songs with us:

    • Tell us in the comments. Make sure to include the artist and the song so we can be certain to find it.

    • Tweet us your song choice @mashableHQ and use the hashtag #MusicMonday. If you send us a Spotify link, we'll give it a listen and add some of our favorites

    • To grab a Spotify link, control-click on any song in Spotify and "Copy HTTP link."

How to Get a Spotify HTTP Link
  • If you're not a Spotify user, you can still send us a link to wherever the track is hosted, and we'll do our best to listen.

Image courtesy of Flickr, life serial

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