Hymn to the Immortal Wind — MONO (2009)
A reflective review of MONO’s Hymn to the Immortal Wind — a slow-burn post-rock landmark where restraint, silence, and emotional gravity do the real work.
A note from Rafi Mercer
A guide to venues chosen for how they listen. “I started Tracks & Tales to answer a simple question: Where does music actually sound right? Not where it’s loudest. Not where it’s trendiest. But where sound is treated with care — rooms designed to listen, systems tuned with intention, and music given the time it deserves. Think of it as the Michelin Guide to sound — if such a thing existed. I travel, listen, return, and write. The rest is the map.” — Rafi Mercer, Founder of Tracks & Tales
The Latest Listening Bars & Venues Not To Be Missed
More Reads From Tracks & Tales-
LB’s Record Bar — Melbourne CBD — vinyl-led, la...
Rafi MercerA vinyl-led listening bar tucked into Melbourne’s Meyers Place, LB’s Record Bar blends late-night cocktails, local DJs, and a social approach to sound where records quietly lead the room.
LB’s Record Bar — Melbourne CBD — vinyl-led, la...
Rafi MercerA vinyl-led listening bar tucked into Melbourne’s Meyers Place, LB’s Record Bar blends late-night cocktails, local DJs, and a social approach to sound where records quietly lead the room.
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Bar Orai — Midtown East, New York City — focuse...
Rafi MercerBar Orai is a vinyl-led listening bar in Midtown East, New York City, offering a rare pocket of focus and warmth where records are allowed to unfold with patience and...
Bar Orai — Midtown East, New York City — focuse...
Rafi MercerBar Orai is a vinyl-led listening bar in Midtown East, New York City, offering a rare pocket of focus and warmth where records are allowed to unfold with patience and...
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Music For a While — New York City — patient, vi...
Rafi MercerMusic For a While is a vinyl-led listening bar in New York City, offering a rare space of patience, warmth, and collective attention where records are allowed to unfold without...
Music For a While — New York City — patient, vi...
Rafi MercerMusic For a While is a vinyl-led listening bar in New York City, offering a rare space of patience, warmth, and collective attention where records are allowed to unfold without...
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Drop Sociale — Beirut/Gemmayzeh + izakaya audio...
Rafi MercerDrop Sociale in Beirut’s Gemmayzeh is a music-forward izakaya audio bar where sound, stone, and social rhythm align into a slow-burn nightlife experience shaped by listening rather than noise.
Drop Sociale — Beirut/Gemmayzeh + izakaya audio...
Rafi MercerDrop Sociale in Beirut’s Gemmayzeh is a music-forward izakaya audio bar where sound, stone, and social rhythm align into a slow-burn nightlife experience shaped by listening rather than noise.
TRACKS & TALES
The Luxury of Listening - A book by Rafi Mercer
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The Listening Albums
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Avishai Cohen — At Home (2015)
At Home is a study in restraint and presence. Avishai Cohen pares his sound back to tone, breath, and silence, creating an intimate jazz album that rewards patience and low-level listening. It’s a record built on trust — between musician...
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Omer Klein — Personal Belongings (2019)
Personal Belongings is jazz that trusts the listener. Omer Klein plays with restraint and intent, allowing space, silence, and touch to shape the music as much as melody. It’s a record that unfolds slowly, rewarding stillness and attenti...
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UNKLE — Psyence Fiction (1998)
A cinematic, tension-filled listening journey into UNKLE’s Psyence Fiction — an album that treats sound as space, silence as structure, and listening as commitment.
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Madlib — Shades of Blue: Madlib Invades Blue Note (2003)
A quiet classic from 2003, Shades of Blue finds Madlib re-composing the Blue Note archive into something patient, human, and timeless — a late-night album that still knows how to listen.
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Earth Volume One — the sound of space learning to breathe
The room feels larger.The music feels lighter.You feel more present inside it.
Hello · Hallo · Bonjour · Ciao · Hola · Hallo · Olá · Hej · こんにちは · 你好
Listening Cities & Essays
Where Listening Begins
From Rafi Mercer - Founder of Tracks & Tales
Support the art of slow listening
Tracks & Tales runs on curiosity and caffeine. One coffee at a time keeps the stories and soundscapes flowing.
Listening as a Gift — The Quiet Luxury We Can Still Offer Each Other
By Rafi Mercer
Listening is a quiet luxury. A reflection on why sharing music without expectation has become one of the most generous acts we can offer each other—and why attention now matters more than ever.
Albums that reward the listener, not the algorithm
By Rafi Mercer
From rare jazz to warm electronica and late-night soul, these are the records that unfold with time — chosen for their depth, their detail, and the way they shape a room.
Timeless
In 1987, CHANEL created its first watch for women: the PREMIÈRE, inspired by the codes of the House. Its octagonal case evokes the stopper of the N°5 perfume bottle. The original bracelet, interlaced with leather—like the chain of the iconic quilted bag—has been reinterpreted in chain, ceramic or velvet-finish ribbon versions. A timeless, feminine timepiece to slip on your wrist day and night.
The Daily Journal
More Reads From Tracks & Tales-
Friday Morning, Moving Without Rush — Michał Ur...
A Friday morning daily with Michał Urbaniak’s Ecstasy — a jazz-funk record that moves the body gently, reminding us that listening can be physical, joyful, and quietly optimistic.
Friday Morning, Moving Without Rush — Michał Ur...
A Friday morning daily with Michał Urbaniak’s Ecstasy — a jazz-funk record that moves the body gently, reminding us that listening can be physical, joyful, and quietly optimistic.
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When the World Tunes In
A quiet milestone moment as Tracks & Tales maps over a thousand cities tuning into listening culture — not through noise, but through recognition.
When the World Tunes In
A quiet milestone moment as Tracks & Tales maps over a thousand cities tuning into listening culture — not through noise, but through recognition.
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The Quiet Reward
A reflection on why reading and listening still matter — not for likes or validation, but for the quiet internal reward of choosing to pause. A Rafi Mercer Daily from...
The Quiet Reward
A reflection on why reading and listening still matter — not for likes or validation, but for the quiet internal reward of choosing to pause. A Rafi Mercer Daily from...
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When the DJ Became a Conductor
When dance music meets classical structure, it isn’t a crossover — it’s recognition. A daily reflection on DJs, orchestras, and the shared language of listening.
When the DJ Became a Conductor
When dance music meets classical structure, it isn’t a crossover — it’s recognition. A daily reflection on DJs, orchestras, and the shared language of listening.
What is a Tracks & Tales Star?
Rafi Mercer explains the thinking behind the Tracks & Tales Star — how we listen, choose, and award.