Spotify is all grown up and wearing black. The music-streaming service issued a huge update and powerful redesign on Wednesday for both the mobile and desktop apps.
The Spotify desktop app and the iOS and Android versions will now feature a solid black background and an overall darker color palette, which Spotify says is intended to make Spotify look more iconic and to highlight the album art and music content. The redesign simplifies Spotify's interface and adds new features, which ultimately make the app seem a lot more like iTunes.
"We want your friend, peeking over your shoulder, to recognize Spotify open on your computer," said Director of Product Development Michelle Kadir. "And that means making sure the brand has a clear identity in the world, and looks and feels the same across any platform."
After trying out many different designs, Spotify's creative crew found that a dark design "where the content can come forward and everything else can slip away," was best, Kadir said.
"We like to use the metaphor of a movie theater, but it's true with any type of art," she added. "The best way to make the art pop is to put it against a dark background."
Now, the bright and beautiful album cover art pops right off of the app's background, making it easier than ever to find the music you want to stream. It also ensures that no one could ever look at your Spotify app and think you were using Pandora or iTunes or any other platform. Spotify now has a signature look and it's a very sophisticated New York look, with all that black.
In addition to the shocking new design, Spotify has added new functionality to make using the app, finding your music and new music even easier. The new app makes it easier to save albums, star playlists and search for new music. Spotify is now less of an ethereal, search-based platform and more of an iTunes-like cloud-based music library.
It's a genius move for Spotify and one that's sure to set it above and beyond Pandora and other music-streaming services.
