Audio social experiences

Originating in Japan in the 1920s, listening bars—known as jazz kissa—rose to prominence in the 1960s and 70s, “amid the post-war embrace of Western culture,” as the South China Morning Post reported in 2023. These listening bars provided a space to listen to music at its optimal volume on state-of-the-art equipment.

While today Spotify offers endless musical genres at the swipe of a screen, the depth of experience that listening bars afford is leading to their resurgence.

In late September this year, London’s Spiritland bar, known for its focus on the listening experience, opened two destinations in Lisbon’s new Locke de Santa Joana hotel. Spiritland Lisbon spotlights a renovated vintage JBL sound system and features “DJs playing a variety of genres from the depths of their collections,” according to the venue. The Kissaten is an intimate, low-lit listening bar where, rather than having a DJ, visitors pick records to play from its extensive collection. It also lays claim to Lisbon’s largest selection of whiskies, curated by whisky expert and writer Dave Broom.

Stylish interior with wood panelled walls sound insulation on ceiling and soft seating areas

Bar interior at the Kissaten with shelves of whisky bottles alongside vinyl records and large speakers

Two images showing on the left a vinyl turntable and on the right a glass on a low table

The Kissaten listening bar at the Locke de Sante Joana hotel, Lisbon. 1 and 2. Francisco Nogueira 3. Composite of images by Charlie McKay.

Paul Noble, founder and creative director of Spiritland, views The Kissaten as a response to the current disposable state of music consumption. “I think the dominance of streaming services means that our interaction with music has become a temporary and less meaningful experience,” he tells VML Intelligence. “An album is released and it just appears on our phone along with all our other apps. The listening bar puts focus back on to the music, the artist, and the album as a format.”

The music at The Kissaten is drawn from its library, which Noble says, “goes off in several musical directions.” And, unlike some other listening bars, it doesn’t impose diktats around conversation levels and phones. “There’s no rules,” he says. “We want you to relax and feel at home in our bar.”

In April, JAM Record Bar opened in Sydney, describing itself as “a little yet loud bar” with a collection of 15,000 vinyl records. The interior, designed by Akin Atelier, is a “nod to the listening bars of Tokyo but with a twist.” Pink plywood, cork, and Pink Batts insulation were used to create the feeling of being “inside a giant speaker box.”

Other recent additions to this burgeoning global scene include Glasgow’s Mamasan, which opened earlier this year, and San Francisco’s Yokai, which made its debut late last year as a “hi-fi bar and charcoal grill.”

Listening bars are still abundant in Tokyo, and many date back decades. The city’s recent takes on the concept include Studio Mule, which fuses the concept with a natural wine offering.

I think the dominance of streaming services means that our interaction with music has become a temporary and less meaningful experience. The listening bar puts focus back on to the music, the artist, and the album as a format.

Paul Noble

Founder and creative director, Spiritland

Chiming with Spiritland’s Noble, some commentators muse that listening bars offer an antidote to the scattered, short-form content that characterizes the digital age.

Writing in Montecristo Magazine, Michael Harris opines that “the firehose of content issuing from our screens is meant to make us happy... But in fact we often become confused, paralyzed, diluted… A glut of options leaves us discontent with everything.” In contrast, at a Tokyo listening bar, “for a few precious hours, the noise of our online world is vanquished, and a signal, a voice, a line, a note is given its full due.”

Listening bars are yet another example of how tech-fatigued consumers can allow their brains to focus on one thing at a time. Pointing to an appreciation of a non-digital listening experience, the UK vinyl market saw an 11.7% year-on-year rise in 2023, based on analysis by the British Phonographic Industry. And, according to Maddyness, citing Key Production research, the proportion of people listening to physical music is greatest among Gen Z.

Just as we’ve seen with analog pursuits such as pottery classes, sewing, and book clubs, this focus on the quality of an audio experience indicates a conscious step toward immersion in a moment, rather than mindlessly consuming content.