Take a Look Inside Spotify's New Listening Lounge
Featuring interiors by CAKE Architecture and a custom sound system by Friendly Pressure.
Spotify has opened the doors to a listening lounge in London, designed to put sound front and centre through bespoke interiors and a huge custom sound system.
Located next door to the company’s HQ, the Spotify Listening Lounge was created as a space that fosters “intentional listening”. Each element has been crafted with that in mind – from the acoustically tuned walls to the color palette.
The centrepiece comes in the form of an altar-inspired space, used to house a sound system designed by London favourite Friendly Pressure. Crafted from aluminum and topped with resin horns, the gigantic speakers sit on either side of a console from fellow London designer Eddie Olin. All together, it weighs in at about half a tonne.
In keeping with Spotify’s mission to create an immersive listening space, Friendly Pressure founder Shivas Howard-Brown fitted the speakers with components rarely used these days – such as magnet drivers used to master some of the most iconic albums recorded at Abbey Road throughout the 1960s, ’70s, and ’80s.
Felix Speller
Felix Speller
“Growing up in and around recording studios exposed me to a whole heritage of craft,” Howard-Brown said. “Sound systems built in sheds, speakers designed for Carnival stacks – these have always had the same ambition as anything you’d find in a high-end listening room. This new space is my attempt to make that argument.”
From the beginning of the project, which kicked off back in May 2025, Shivas-Brown worked closely alongside the team at CAKE Architecture, ensuring design details were complementary from both an experiential and aesthetic standpoint.
Everything, down to the furniture used – Cassina’s low-slung Soriana armchairs, perched at the perfect level – was intended to create a focused environment. According to CAKE founder Hugh Scott Moncrieff, the project saw them “treat the room itself as an instrument”.
“Every surface pattern and material choice was a functional decision to eliminate interference, ensuring that the craftsmanship of the speakers is matched by the precision of the architecture surrounding them,” he added.
Now that the Listening Lounge is complete, Spotify will embark on year-round programming that will “reward fans by opening up access to artists in an intimate environment”, while also celebrating the brand’s lossless audio technology.
