The Sound of Tea

As this is England, it seems perfectly appropriate to start our blog…..with a cup of tea (or coffee, I am from Seattle after all).

In our quest to hunt out things that sound good (and name and shame a few that don’t), we often traipse through a lot of pretty bad to find the goods.

Our criteria of ‘good’ is of course wholly subjective, but tends to be defined in 3 ways:

1. Integrity — An artist or song that isn’t licensed so ubiquitously to the point it defeats it into cringe-worthy association (Beatles, don’t get me started).

2. Legitimacy — Whilst Zazzle and eBay knockoffs may please some, we’re after original goods that artists were actually involved in producing. Or at least appear to be.

3. Artistry — This is more for the Etsy approach: if you’re going to tinker with another person’s art, please try to be a good artist too.

Here we’ve selected some choice musical accoutrements for afternoon tea, SoundGoods style:

We recently decided to try our hand at making our own tea blends, in support of the important role that music plays for older patients with Alzheimer’s and dementia. Inspired by the beautiful film “Alive Inside”, and our own volunteering at Chelsea & Westminster hospital, we wanted to help spread the word on the vital relationship between music, memory and personal identity. Our wonderful partners at Yumchaa Tea in London helped make this vision a reality, and we look forward to doing more special editions in support of other causes in future.

A future post will be devoted entirely to kettles (such as Richard Sapper’s melodic ‘9091’ design for Alessi, shown below, so stay tuned.