If you’re currently looking for a music player for your Linux computer, then you’re in luck, as there’s absolutely no shortage of awesome players out there.
But what if you don’t want any of the mainstream solutions such as Clementine, Rhythmbox, and so forth? What if you want a new-age music player that looks and feels great, and is very minimalistic?
The answer has to be Amberol, a free, open-source, no-frills audio player that’s built specifically for the GNOME desktop.
On its official GitLab repository page, Amberol is described as follows: “aspires to be as small, unintrusive, and simple as possible.”
What Amberol isn’t
Usually, we like to point out the plethora of advantages that an app has and then, if need be, point out its shortcomings. However, for Amberol, we think it’s important to point out these potential and theoretical shortcomings first, and then point out why it is awesome.
In short, Amberol isn’t your run-of-the-mill feature-packed music player. It doesn’t provide you with the tools necessary to manage music collections or playlists for that matter. You can’t edit the metadata of your songs, and you don’t get to see the lyrics of your songs or any information about the music itself.
So, what are you left with?
You’re left with a music player that, you know… Just plays music, and that’s about it!
Even so, Amberol is an extremely appealing app for those who prefer simplicity above all else. The UI is gorgeous and looks right at home on GNOME. It automatically changes its tint based on the color of the song/album’s artwork.
Not only that, but Amberol is not a fork of another project. It’s designed using GTK4 and Rust from the ground up, so it also feels like a modern app should.
In terms of features, you don’t get much, but that’s ok. Naturally, you are provided with a few playback options: you can fast-forward and rewind, loop songs, as well as skip songs in the queue.
Songs and folders can be loaded via drag and drop, the playlist section can be shown or hidden with a single click, and the entire GUI can be resized to perfectly fit your needs and aesthetic requirements.
Verdict
Clearly, Amberol won’t be everyone’s cup of tea. It’s an app designed to appeal to those who love simple things and are potentially bored of the generic “let’s-cram-every-possible-feature-in-there” design of most Linux music players.
