diff --git a/dev/u-wave-dev-server b/dev/u-wave-dev-server
index 3d3bd258..7757229e 100755
--- a/dev/u-wave-dev-server
+++ b/dev/u-wave-dev-server
@@ -9,19 +9,17 @@ const announce = require('u-wave-announce');
 const ytSource = require('u-wave-source-youtube');
 const scSource = require('u-wave-source-soundcloud');
 const recaptchaTestKeys = require('recaptcha-test-keys');
-const pino = require('pino');
+const debug = require('debug')('uwave:dev-server');
 const dotenv = require('dotenv');
 
 dotenv.config();
 
-const logger = pino({ level: 'trace' });
-
 const testTransport = {
   name: 'test',
   version: '0.0.0',
   send(mail, callback) {
     mail.message.createReadStream().pipe(concat((message) => {
-      logger.info('send test email', { to: mail.message.getEnvelope().to, contents: message.toString('utf8') });
+      debug(mail.message.getEnvelope().to, message.toString('utf8'));
       callback(null, {
         envelope: mail.message.getEnvelope(),
         messageId: mail.message.messageId(),
@@ -44,7 +42,6 @@ async function start() {
     port,
     redis: process.env.REDIS_URL,
     mongo: process.env.MONGODB_URL ?? 'mongodb://localhost/uwave',
-    logger,
     secret,
     mailTransport: testTransport,
     timeout: 10,
@@ -79,10 +76,10 @@ async function start() {
   });
 
   await uw.listen();
-  logger.info('Now listening', { port });
+  console.log(`Now listening on ${port}`);
 }
 
 start().catch((error) => {
-  logger.error(error);
+  console.error(error.stack);
   process.exit(1);
 });
diff --git a/package.json b/package.json
index 23539951..ba4b5ec1 100644
--- a/package.json
+++ b/package.json
@@ -34,6 +34,7 @@
     "cookie": "^0.5.0",
     "cookie-parser": "^1.4.4",
     "cors": "^2.8.5",
+    "debug": "^4.1.1",
     "escape-string-regexp": "^4.0.0",
     "explain-error": "^1.0.4",
     "express": "^4.17.1",
@@ -54,8 +55,6 @@
     "passport": "^0.5.0",
     "passport-google-oauth20": "^2.0.0",
     "passport-local": "^1.0.0",
-    "pino": "^7.11.0",
-    "pino-http": "^7.0.0",
     "qs": "^6.9.1",
     "random-string": "^0.2.0",
     "ratelimiter": "^3.4.0",
@@ -76,6 +75,7 @@
     "@types/cookie": "^0.5.0",
     "@types/cookie-parser": "^1.4.2",
     "@types/cors": "^2.8.10",
+    "@types/debug": "^4.1.5",
     "@types/express": "^4.17.11",
     "@types/has": "^1.0.0",
     "@types/htmlescape": "^1.1.1",
@@ -102,6 +102,7 @@
     "@typescript-eslint/parser": "^5.3.0",
     "c8": "^7.10.0",
     "concat-stream": "^2.0.0",
+    "cross-env": "^7.0.0",
     "delay": "^5.0.0",
     "dotenv": "^16.0.0",
     "eslint": "^8.2.0",
@@ -112,7 +113,6 @@
     "mocha": "^10.0.0",
     "nock": "^13.2.0",
     "nodemon": "^2.0.2",
-    "pino-colada": "^2.2.2",
     "recaptcha-test-keys": "^1.0.0",
     "sinon": "^14.0.0",
     "supertest": "^6.1.3",
@@ -124,6 +124,6 @@
     "test": "npm run tests-only && npm run lint",
     "tests-only": "c8 --reporter lcov --src src mocha --exit",
     "types": "tsc -p tsconfig.json",
-    "start": "nodemon dev/u-wave-dev-server | pino-colada"
+    "start": "cross-env DEBUG=uwave:* nodemon dev/u-wave-dev-server"
   }
 }
diff --git a/src/HttpApi.js b/src/HttpApi.js
index a200fd25..ac3c722c 100644
--- a/src/HttpApi.js
+++ b/src/HttpApi.js
@@ -1,13 +1,13 @@
 'use strict';
 
-const { randomUUID } = require('crypto');
+const { URL } = require('url');
 const express = require('express');
 const bodyParser = require('body-parser');
 const cookieParser = require('cookie-parser');
 const cors = require('cors');
 const helmet = require('helmet').default;
 const http = require('http');
-const pinoHttp = require('pino-http').default;
+const debug = require('debug')('uwave:http-api');
 
 // routes
 const authenticate = require('./routes/authenticate');
@@ -82,8 +82,6 @@ async function httpApi(uw, options) {
     throw new TypeError('"options.onError" must be a function.');
   }
 
-  const logger = uw.logger.child({ ns: 'uwave:http-api' });
-
   uw.config.register(optionsSchema['uw:key'], optionsSchema);
 
   /** @type {HttpApiSettings} */
@@ -95,17 +93,12 @@ async function httpApi(uw, options) {
     }
   });
 
-  logger.debug('setup', runtimeOptions);
+  debug('setup', runtimeOptions);
   uw.httpApi = Object.assign(express.Router(), {
     authRegistry: new AuthRegistry(uw.redis),
   });
 
   uw.httpApi
-    .use(pinoHttp({
-      genReqId: () => randomUUID(),
-      quietReqLogger: true,
-      logger,
-    }))
     .use(bodyParser.json())
     .use(cookieParser())
     .use(uw.passport.initialize())
@@ -156,10 +149,10 @@ async function httpApi(uw, options) {
  * @param {import('./Uwave')} uw
  */
 async function errorHandling(uw) {
-  uw.logger.debug('error handling', { name: 'httpApi' });
+  debug('after');
   uw.httpApi.use(errorHandler());
   uw.express.use(/** @type {import('express').ErrorRequestHandler} */ (error, req, res, next) => {
-    uw.logger.error({ error, name: 'httpApi' });
+    debug(error);
     next(error);
   });
 }
diff --git a/src/SocketServer.js b/src/SocketServer.js
index e969d0c5..76942a11 100644
--- a/src/SocketServer.js
+++ b/src/SocketServer.js
@@ -6,6 +6,7 @@ const sjson = require('secure-json-parse');
 const WebSocket = require('ws');
 const Ajv = require('ajv').default;
 const ms = require('ms');
+const debug = require('debug')('uwave:api:sockets');
 const { socketVote } = require('./controllers/booth');
 const { disconnectUser } = require('./controllers/users');
 const AuthRegistry = require('./AuthRegistry');
@@ -107,8 +108,6 @@ class SocketServer {
 
   #uw;
 
-  #logger;
-
   #redisSubscription;
 
   #wss;
@@ -166,7 +165,6 @@ class SocketServer {
     }
 
     this.#uw = uw;
-    this.#logger = uw.logger.child({ ns: 'uwave:sockets' });
     this.#redisSubscription = uw.redis.duplicate();
 
     this.options = {
@@ -187,7 +185,7 @@ class SocketServer {
     });
 
     this.#redisSubscription.subscribe('uwave', 'v1').catch((error) => {
-      this.#logger.error(error);
+      debug(error);
     });
     this.#redisSubscription.on('message', (channel, command) => {
       // this returns a promise, but we don't handle the error case:
@@ -198,8 +196,8 @@ class SocketServer {
     this.#wss.on('error', (error) => {
       this.onError(error);
     });
-    this.#wss.on('connection', (socket, request) => {
-      this.onSocketConnected(socket, request);
+    this.#wss.on('connection', (socket) => {
+      this.onSocketConnected(socket);
     });
 
     this.#pinger = setInterval(() => {
@@ -208,13 +206,13 @@ class SocketServer {
 
     this.recountGuests = debounce(() => {
       this.recountGuestsInternal().catch((error) => {
-        this.#logger.error('counting guests failed', { error });
+        debug('counting guests failed:', error);
       });
     }, ms('2 seconds'));
 
     this.#clientActions = {
       sendChat: (user, message) => {
-        this.#logger.trace('sendChat', user, message);
+        debug('sendChat', user, message);
         this.#uw.chat.send(user, message);
       },
       vote: (user, direction) => {
@@ -477,11 +475,10 @@ class SocketServer {
 
   /**
    * @param {import('ws')} socket
-   * @param {import('http').IncomingMessage} request
    * @private
    */
-  onSocketConnected(socket, request) {
-    this.#logger.info('new connection', { req: request });
+  onSocketConnected(socket) {
+    debug('new connection');
 
     socket.on('error', (error) => {
       this.onSocketError(socket, error);
@@ -495,7 +492,7 @@ class SocketServer {
    * @private
    */
   onSocketError(socket, error) {
-    this.#logger.warn('socket error', { error });
+    debug('socket error:', error);
 
     this.options.onError(socket, error);
   }
@@ -505,7 +502,7 @@ class SocketServer {
    * @private
    */
   onError(error) {
-    this.#logger.error('server error', { error });
+    debug('server error:', error);
 
     this.options.onError(undefined, error);
   }
@@ -536,9 +533,10 @@ class SocketServer {
       this.remove(connection);
     });
     connection.on('authenticate', async (user) => {
+      debug('connecting', user.id, user.username);
       const isReconnect = await connection.isReconnect(user);
-      this.#logger.info('authenticated socket', { userId: user.id, isReconnect });
       if (isReconnect) {
+        debug('is reconnection');
         const previousConnection = this.getLostConnection(user);
         if (previousConnection) this.remove(previousConnection);
       }
@@ -564,11 +562,11 @@ class SocketServer {
     const connection = new AuthedConnection(this.#uw, socket, user);
     connection.on('close', ({ banned }) => {
       if (banned) {
-        this.#logger.info('removing connection after ban', { userId: user.id });
+        debug('removing connection after ban', user.id, user.username);
         this.remove(connection);
         disconnectUser(this.#uw, user._id);
       } else {
-        this.#logger.info('lost connection', { userId: user.id });
+        debug('lost connection', user.id, user.username);
         this.replace(connection, this.createLostConnection(user));
       }
     });
@@ -579,7 +577,7 @@ class SocketServer {
        * @param {import('type-fest').JsonValue} data
        */
       (command, data) => {
-        this.#logger.trace('command', { userId: user.id, command, data });
+        debug('command', user.id, user.username, command, data);
         if (has(this.#clientActions, command)) {
           // Ignore incorrect input
           const validate = this.#clientActionSchemas[command];
@@ -606,7 +604,7 @@ class SocketServer {
   createLostConnection(user) {
     const connection = new LostConnection(this.#uw, user, this.options.timeout);
     connection.on('close', () => {
-      this.#logger.info('user left', { userId: user.id });
+      debug('left', user.id, user.username);
       this.remove(connection);
       // Only register that the user left if they didn't have another connection
       // still open.
@@ -624,8 +622,7 @@ class SocketServer {
    * @private
    */
   add(connection) {
-    const userId = 'user' in connection ? connection.user.id : null;
-    this.#logger.trace('add connection', { type: connection.constructor.name, userId });
+    debug('adding', String(connection));
 
     this.#connections.push(connection);
     this.recountGuests();
@@ -638,8 +635,7 @@ class SocketServer {
    * @private
    */
   remove(connection) {
-    const userId = 'user' in connection ? connection.user.id : null;
-    this.#logger.trace('remove connection', { type: connection.constructor.name, userId });
+    debug('removing', String(connection));
 
     const i = this.#connections.indexOf(connection);
     this.#connections.splice(i, 1);
@@ -681,7 +677,7 @@ class SocketServer {
     }
     const { command, data } = json;
 
-    this.#logger.trace('server message', { channel, command, data });
+    debug(channel, command, data);
 
     if (channel === 'v1') {
       this.broadcast(command, data);
@@ -739,15 +735,10 @@ class SocketServer {
    * @param {import('type-fest').JsonValue} data Command data.
    */
   broadcast(command, data) {
-    this.#logger.trace('broadcast', {
-      command,
-      data,
-      to: this.#connections.map((connection) => (
-        'user' in connection ? connection.user.id : null
-      )),
-    });
+    debug('broadcast', command, data);
 
     this.#connections.forEach((connection) => {
+      debug('  to', connection.toString());
       connection.send(command, data);
     });
   }
diff --git a/src/Uwave.js b/src/Uwave.js
index 80c1fed8..54c08e38 100644
--- a/src/Uwave.js
+++ b/src/Uwave.js
@@ -4,8 +4,8 @@ const EventEmitter = require('events');
 const { promisify } = require('util');
 const mongoose = require('mongoose');
 const Redis = require('ioredis').default;
+const debug = require('debug');
 const avvio = require('avvio');
-const { pino } = require('pino');
 
 const httpApi = require('./HttpApi');
 const SocketServer = require('./SocketServer');
@@ -43,7 +43,6 @@ const DEFAULT_REDIS_URL = 'redis://localhost:6379';
  *   port?: number,
  *   mongo?: string,
  *   redis?: string | RedisOptions,
- *   logger?: import('pino').Logger,
  * } & httpApi.HttpApiOptions} Options
  */
 
@@ -124,9 +123,6 @@ class UwaveServer extends EventEmitter {
    */
   #sources = new Map();
 
-  /** @type {import('pino').Logger} */
-  #mongoLogger;
-
   /**
    * @param {Options} options
    */
@@ -135,7 +131,6 @@ class UwaveServer extends EventEmitter {
 
     const boot = avvio(this);
 
-    this.logger = options.logger ?? pino();
     this.locale = i18n.cloneInstance();
 
     this.options = {
@@ -152,7 +147,9 @@ class UwaveServer extends EventEmitter {
       this.redis = new Redis({ ...options.redis, lazyConnect: true });
     }
 
-    this.#mongoLogger = this.logger.child({ ns: 'uwave:mongo' });
+    this.log = debug('uwave:core');
+    this.mongoLog = debug('uwave:core:mongo');
+    this.redisLog = debug('uwave:core:redis');
 
     this.configureRedis();
     this.configureMongoose();
@@ -164,7 +161,7 @@ class UwaveServer extends EventEmitter {
 
     // Wait for the connections to be set up.
     boot.use(async () => {
-      this.#mongoLogger.debug('waiting for mongodb...');
+      this.mongoLog('waiting for mongodb...');
       await this.mongo.asPromise();
     });
 
@@ -255,23 +252,18 @@ class UwaveServer extends EventEmitter {
    * @private
    */
   configureRedis() {
-    const log = this.logger.child({ ns: 'uwave:redis' });
-
-    this.redis.on('error', (error) => {
-      log.error(error);
-      this.emit('redisError', error);
-    });
-    this.redis.on('reconnecting', () => {
-      log.info('trying to reconnect...');
+    this.redis.on('error', (e) => {
+      this.emit('redisError', e);
     });
+    this.redis.on('reconnecting', () => this.redisLog('trying to reconnect...'));
 
     this.redis.on('end', () => {
-      log.info('disconnected');
+      this.redisLog('disconnected');
       this.emit('redisDisconnect');
     });
 
     this.redis.on('connect', () => {
-      log.info('connected');
+      this.redisLog('connected');
       this.emit('redisConnect');
     });
   }
@@ -280,23 +272,23 @@ class UwaveServer extends EventEmitter {
    * @private
    */
   configureMongoose() {
-    this.mongo.on('error', (error) => {
-      this.#mongoLogger.error(error);
-      this.emit('mongoError', error);
+    this.mongo.on('error', (e) => {
+      this.mongoLog(e);
+      this.emit('mongoError', e);
     });
 
     this.mongo.on('reconnected', () => {
-      this.#mongoLogger.info('reconnected');
+      this.mongoLog('reconnected');
       this.emit('mongoReconnect');
     });
 
     this.mongo.on('disconnected', () => {
-      this.#mongoLogger.info('disconnected');
+      this.mongoLog('disconnected');
       this.emit('mongoDisconnect');
     });
 
     this.mongo.on('connected', () => {
-      this.#mongoLogger.info('connected');
+      this.mongoLog('connected');
       this.emit('mongoConnect');
     });
   }
diff --git a/src/controllers/authenticate.js b/src/controllers/authenticate.js
index 4419be9a..8f6116b4 100644
--- a/src/controllers/authenticate.js
+++ b/src/controllers/authenticate.js
@@ -2,6 +2,7 @@
 
 const { URLSearchParams } = require('url');
 const cookie = require('cookie');
+const debug = require('debug')('uwave:http:auth');
 const jwt = require('jsonwebtoken');
 const randomString = require('random-string');
 const fetch = require('node-fetch').default;
@@ -287,10 +288,10 @@ async function getSocketToken(req) {
 
 /**
  * @param {string} responseString
- * @param {{ secret: string, logger?: import('pino').Logger }} options
+ * @param {Required<AuthenticateOptions>['recaptcha']} options
  */
 async function verifyCaptcha(responseString, options) {
-  options.logger?.info('recaptcha: sending siteverify request');
+  debug('recaptcha: sending siteverify request');
   const response = await fetch('https://www.google.com/recaptcha/api/siteverify', {
     method: 'post',
     headers: {
@@ -305,10 +306,10 @@ async function verifyCaptcha(responseString, options) {
   const body = await response.json();
 
   if (!body.success) {
-    options.logger?.warn('recaptcha: validation failure', body);
+    debug('recaptcha: validation failure', body);
     throw new ReCaptchaError();
   } else {
-    options.logger?.info('recaptcha: ok');
+    debug('recaptcha: ok');
   }
 }
 
@@ -333,12 +334,8 @@ async function register(req) {
     const recaptchaOptions = req.authOptions.recaptcha;
     if (recaptchaOptions && recaptchaOptions.secret) {
       if (grecaptcha) {
-        await verifyCaptcha(grecaptcha, {
-          secret: recaptchaOptions.secret,
-          logger: req.log,
-        });
+        await verifyCaptcha(grecaptcha, recaptchaOptions);
       } else {
-        req.log.warn('missing client-side captcha response');
         throw new ReCaptchaError();
       }
     }
diff --git a/src/controllers/now.js b/src/controllers/now.js
index 6e9eca60..310393e7 100644
--- a/src/controllers/now.js
+++ b/src/controllers/now.js
@@ -1,5 +1,6 @@
 'use strict';
 
+const debug = require('debug')('uwave:http-api:now');
 const { ObjectId } = require('mongoose').mongo;
 const { getBoothData } = require('./booth');
 const {
@@ -91,16 +92,16 @@ async function getState(req) {
   if (activePlaylist != null) {
     activePlaylist = activePlaylist
       .then((playlist) => playlist?.id)
-      .catch((error) => {
+      .catch((err) => {
         // If the playlist was not found, our database is inconsistent. A deleted or nonexistent
         // playlist should never be listed as the active playlist. Most likely this is not the
         // user's fault, so we should not error out on `/api/now`. Instead, pretend they don't have
         // an active playlist at all. Clients can then let them select a new playlist to activate.
-        if (error.code === 'NOT_FOUND' || error.code === 'playlist-not-found') {
-          req.log.warn('The active playlist does not exist', { error });
+        if (err.code === 'NOT_FOUND' || err.code === 'playlist-not-found') {
+          debug('The active playlist does not exist', err);
           return null;
         }
-        throw error;
+        throw err;
       });
   }
 
diff --git a/src/controllers/search.js b/src/controllers/search.js
index 7d490fe8..00eb0cd2 100644
--- a/src/controllers/search.js
+++ b/src/controllers/search.js
@@ -1,5 +1,6 @@
 'use strict';
 
+const debug = require('debug')('uwave:http:search');
 const { isEqual } = require('lodash');
 const { SourceNotFoundError } = require('../errors');
 const toListResponse = require('../utils/toListResponse');
@@ -18,7 +19,7 @@ async function searchAll(req) {
   const sourceNames = uw.sources.map((source) => source.type);
   const searches = uw.sources.map((source) => (
     source.search(user, query).catch((error) => {
-      req.log.warn(error, { name: 'search' });
+      debug(error);
       // Default to empty search on failure, for now.
       return [];
     })
@@ -40,7 +41,7 @@ async function searchAll(req) {
 async function updateSourceData(uw, updates) {
   const { Media } = uw.models;
   const ops = [];
-  uw.logger.debug('updating source data', { name: 'search', forMedia: [...updates.keys()] });
+  debug('updating source data', [...updates.keys()]);
   for (const [id, sourceData] of updates.entries()) {
     ops.push({
       updateOne: {
@@ -110,7 +111,7 @@ async function search(req) {
 
   // don't wait for this to complete
   updateSourceData(uw, mediasNeedSourceDataUpdate).catch((error) => {
-    uw.logger.error('sourceData update failed', { name: 'search', error });
+    debug('sourceData update failed', error);
   });
 
   // Only include related playlists if requested
@@ -119,7 +120,7 @@ async function search(req) {
       mediasInSearchResults.map((media) => media._id),
       { author: user._id },
     ).catch((error) => {
-      uw.logger.error('playlists containing media lookup failed', { name: 'search', error });
+      debug('playlists containing media lookup failed', error);
       // just omit the related playlists if we timed out or crashed
       return new Map();
     });
diff --git a/src/controllers/users.js b/src/controllers/users.js
index 97ff43d6..c91163cf 100644
--- a/src/controllers/users.js
+++ b/src/controllers/users.js
@@ -1,5 +1,6 @@
 'use strict';
 
+const createDebug = require('debug');
 const {
   HTTPError,
   PermissionError,
@@ -14,6 +15,8 @@ const toPaginatedResponse = require('../utils/toPaginatedResponse');
 const beautifyDuplicateKeyError = require('../utils/beautifyDuplicateKeyError');
 const { muteUser, unmuteUser } = require('./chat');
 
+const debug = createDebug('uwave:http:users');
+
 /**
  * @typedef {object} GetUsersQuery
  * @prop {string} filter
@@ -29,6 +32,8 @@ async function getUsers(req) {
   });
   const { users } = req.uwave;
 
+  debug('getUsers', filter, pagination);
+
   const userList = await users.getUsers(filter, pagination);
 
   return toPaginatedResponse(userList, {
diff --git a/src/middleware/errorHandler.js b/src/middleware/errorHandler.js
index 1f6853f4..f950875b 100644
--- a/src/middleware/errorHandler.js
+++ b/src/middleware/errorHandler.js
@@ -1,11 +1,14 @@
 'use strict';
 
+const createDebug = require('debug');
 const {
   APIError,
   CombinedError,
   RateLimitError,
 } = require('../errors');
 
+const debug = createDebug('uwave:http:error');
+
 /**
  * @typedef {object} SerializedError
  * @prop {number} status
@@ -34,6 +37,8 @@ function serializeError(err) {
     return err.errors.flatMap((error) => serializeError(error));
   }
 
+  debug(err);
+
   if (err instanceof APIError) {
     return [{
       status: err.status ?? 500,
diff --git a/src/plugins/acl.js b/src/plugins/acl.js
index 7bb343a9..af3c5bb0 100644
--- a/src/plugins/acl.js
+++ b/src/plugins/acl.js
@@ -1,5 +1,6 @@
 'use strict';
 
+const debug = require('debug')('uwave:acl');
 const defaultRoles = require('../config/defaultRoles');
 const routes = require('../routes/acl');
 
@@ -23,23 +24,20 @@ const SUPER_ROLE = '*';
 class Acl {
   #uw;
 
-  #logger;
-
   /**
    * @param {import('../Uwave')} uw
    */
   constructor(uw) {
     this.#uw = uw;
-    this.#logger = uw.logger.child({ ns: 'uwave:acl' });
   }
 
   async maybeAddDefaultRoles() {
     const { AclRole } = this.#uw.models;
 
     const existingRoles = await AclRole.estimatedDocumentCount();
-    this.#logger.debug('existing roles', { roles: existingRoles });
+    debug('existing roles', existingRoles);
     if (existingRoles === 0) {
-      this.#logger.info('no roles found, adding defaults');
+      debug('no roles found, adding defaults');
       for (const [roleName, permissions] of Object.entries(defaultRoles)) {
         // eslint-disable-next-line no-await-in-loop
         await this.createRole(roleName, permissions);
@@ -212,16 +210,10 @@ class Acl {
     }
 
     const userRoles = await this.getSubRoles(user.roles.map(getRoleName));
-    const isAllowed = userRoles.includes(role.id) || userRoles.includes(SUPER_ROLE);
 
-    this.#logger.trace('user allowed check', {
-      userId: user.id,
-      roleId: role.id,
-      userRoles,
-      isAllowed,
-    });
+    debug('role ids', userRoles, 'check', user.id, role.id, 'super', SUPER_ROLE);
 
-    return isAllowed;
+    return userRoles.includes(role.id) || userRoles.includes(SUPER_ROLE);
   }
 }
 
diff --git a/src/plugins/booth.js b/src/plugins/booth.js
index e1139491..8580baf9 100644
--- a/src/plugins/booth.js
+++ b/src/plugins/booth.js
@@ -2,6 +2,7 @@
 
 const assert = require('assert');
 const RedLock = require('redlock').default;
+const createDebug = require('debug');
 const { omit } = require('lodash');
 const { EmptyPlaylistError, PlaylistItemNotFoundError } = require('../errors');
 const routes = require('../routes/booth');
@@ -20,6 +21,8 @@ const routes = require('../routes/booth');
  *     & PopulateUser & PopulatePlaylist & PopulateMedia} PopulatedHistoryEntry
  */
 
+const debug = createDebug('uwave:advance');
+
 /**
  * @param {Playlist} playlist
  * @returns {Promise<void>}
@@ -35,8 +38,6 @@ async function cyclePlaylist(playlist) {
 class Booth {
   #uw;
 
-  #logger;
-
   /** @type {ReturnType<typeof setTimeout>|null} */
   #timeout = null;
 
@@ -48,7 +49,6 @@ class Booth {
   constructor(uw) {
     this.#uw = uw;
     this.#locker = new RedLock([this.#uw.redis]);
-    this.#logger = uw.logger.child({ ns: 'uwave:booth' });
   }
 
   /** @internal */
@@ -309,9 +309,9 @@ class Booth {
     const { sourceID, sourceType } = entry.media.media;
     const source = this.#uw.source(sourceType);
     if (source) {
-      this.#logger.trace('running pre-play hook', { sourceType: source.type, sourceID });
+      debug('Running %s pre-play hook for %s', source.type, sourceID);
       const sourceData = await source.play(entry.user, entry.media.media);
-      this.#logger.trace('pre-play hook result', { sourceType: source.type, sourceID, sourceData });
+      debug('sourceData', sourceData);
       return sourceData;
     }
 
@@ -347,7 +347,7 @@ class Booth {
       // If the next user's playlist was empty, remove them from the waitlist
       // and try advancing again.
       if (err.code === 'PLAYLIST_IS_EMPTY') {
-        this.#logger.info('user has empty playlist, skipping on to the next');
+        debug('user has empty playlist, skipping on to the next');
         await this.cycleWaitlist(previous, opts);
         return this.advance({ ...opts, remove: true }, lock);
       }
@@ -357,22 +357,18 @@ class Booth {
     if (previous) {
       await this.saveStats(previous);
 
-      this.#logger.info('previous track stats', {
-        id: previous._id,
-        artist: previous.media.artist,
-        title: previous.media.title,
-        upvotes: previous.upvotes.length,
-        favorites: previous.favorites.length,
-        downvotes: previous.downvotes.length,
-      });
+      debug(
+        'previous track:',
+        previous.media.artist,
+        '—',
+        previous.media.title,
+        `👍 ${previous.upvotes.length} `
+        + `★ ${previous.favorites.length} `
+        + `👎 ${previous.downvotes.length}`,
+      );
     }
 
     if (next) {
-      this.#logger.info('next track', {
-        id: next._id,
-        artist: next.media.artist,
-        title: next.media.title,
-      });
       const sourceData = await this.getSourceDataForPlayback(next);
       if (sourceData) {
         next.media.sourceData = sourceData;
diff --git a/src/plugins/migrations.js b/src/plugins/migrations.js
index 65570e55..ffe3dd14 100644
--- a/src/plugins/migrations.js
+++ b/src/plugins/migrations.js
@@ -3,6 +3,14 @@
 const path = require('path');
 const RedLock = require('redlock').default;
 const { Umzug } = require('umzug');
+const debug = require('debug')('uwave:migrate');
+
+/**
+ * @type {import('umzug').LogFn}
+ */
+function log(record) {
+  debug(record.event, record.name || record.path || record);
+}
 
 /**
  * @typedef {import('../Uwave')} Uwave
@@ -65,7 +73,14 @@ async function migrationsPlugin(uw) {
       migrations,
       context: uw,
       storage: mongooseStorage,
-      logger: uw.logger.child({ ns: 'uwave:migrations' }),
+      logger: {
+        // Only `info` is used right now. When Umzug actually implements the warn/error
+        // levels we could pass in different logging functions.
+        debug: log,
+        info: log,
+        warn: log,
+        error: log,
+      },
     });
 
     await redLock.using(['migrate'], 10000, async () => {
diff --git a/src/plugins/passport.js b/src/plugins/passport.js
index ead662d6..b1f4840c 100644
--- a/src/plugins/passport.js
+++ b/src/plugins/passport.js
@@ -4,6 +4,7 @@ const { Passport } = require('passport');
 const { Strategy: LocalStrategy } = require('passport-local');
 const { Strategy: GoogleStrategy } = require('passport-google-oauth20');
 const { callbackify } = require('util');
+const debug = require('debug')('uwave:passport');
 const JWTStrategy = require('../auth/JWTStrategy');
 
 const schema = require('../schemas/socialAuth.json');
@@ -28,8 +29,6 @@ const schema = require('../schemas/socialAuth.json');
 class PassportPlugin extends Passport {
   #uw;
 
-  #logger;
-
   /**
    * @param {import('../Uwave')} uw
    * @param {{ secret: Buffer|string }} options
@@ -38,7 +37,6 @@ class PassportPlugin extends Passport {
     super();
 
     this.#uw = uw;
-    this.#logger = uw.logger.child({ ns: 'uwave:authentication' });
 
     /**
      * @param {Express.User} user
@@ -97,7 +95,7 @@ class PassportPlugin extends Passport {
       this.applyAuthStrategies(settings);
     } catch (error) {
       // The schema doesn't _quite_ protect against all possible misconfiguration
-      this.#logger.error('applying social auth settings failed', { error });
+      debug('applying social auth settings failed', error);
     }
   }
 
@@ -140,11 +138,11 @@ class PassportPlugin extends Passport {
    * @private
    */
   applyAuthStrategies(settings) {
-    this.#logger.info('reapplying settings');
+    debug('reapplying settings');
     this.unuse('google');
 
     if (settings && settings.google && settings.google.enabled) {
-      this.#logger.info('enable google');
+      debug('enable google');
       this.use('google', new GoogleStrategy({
         callbackURL: '/auth/service/google/callback',
         ...settings.google,
@@ -159,6 +157,7 @@ class PassportPlugin extends Passport {
  * @param {{ secret: Buffer|string }} options
  */
 async function passportPlugin(uw, options) {
+  debug('setup');
   uw.passport = new PassportPlugin(uw, options);
   await uw.passport.loadRuntimeConfiguration();
 }
diff --git a/src/plugins/playlists.js b/src/plugins/playlists.js
index a558c61d..33cd7371 100644
--- a/src/plugins/playlists.js
+++ b/src/plugins/playlists.js
@@ -2,6 +2,7 @@
 
 const { groupBy, shuffle } = require('lodash');
 const escapeStringRegExp = require('escape-string-regexp');
+const debug = require('debug')('uwave:playlists');
 const {
   PlaylistNotFoundError,
   PlaylistItemNotFoundError,
@@ -84,14 +85,11 @@ function toPlaylistItem(itemProps, media) {
 class PlaylistsRepository {
   #uw;
 
-  #logger;
-
   /**
    * @param {import('../Uwave')} uw
    */
   constructor(uw) {
     this.#uw = uw;
-    this.#logger = uw.logger.child({ ns: 'uwave:playlists' });
   }
 
   /**
@@ -155,7 +153,7 @@ class PlaylistsRepository {
 
     // If this is the user's first playlist, immediately activate it.
     if (user.activePlaylist == null) {
-      this.#logger.info('activating first playlist', { userId: user.id, playlistId: playlist.id });
+      debug(`activating first playlist for ${user.id} ${user.username}`);
       user.activePlaylist = playlist._id;
       await user.save();
     }
diff --git a/src/plugins/users.js b/src/plugins/users.js
index af846f37..cb20d1fd 100644
--- a/src/plugins/users.js
+++ b/src/plugins/users.js
@@ -1,6 +1,7 @@
 'use strict';
 
 const bcrypt = require('bcryptjs');
+const debug = require('debug')('uwave:users');
 const escapeStringRegExp = require('escape-string-regexp');
 const Page = require('../Page');
 const { IncorrectPasswordError, UserNotFoundError } = require('../errors');
@@ -26,14 +27,11 @@ function getDefaultAvatar(user) {
 class UsersRepository {
   #uw;
 
-  #logger;
-
   /**
    * @param {import('../Uwave')} uw
    */
   constructor(uw) {
     this.#uw = uw;
-    this.#logger = uw.logger.child({ ns: 'uwave:users' });
   }
 
   /**
@@ -176,7 +174,7 @@ class UsersRepository {
   }) {
     const { User, Authentication } = this.#uw.models;
 
-    this.#logger.info('find or create social', { type, id });
+    debug('find or create social', type, id);
 
     // we need this type assertion because the `user` property actually contains
     // an ObjectId in this return value. We are definitely filling in a User object
@@ -244,7 +242,7 @@ class UsersRepository {
   }) {
     const { User, Authentication } = this.#uw.models;
 
-    this.#logger.info('create user', { username, email: email.toLowerCase() });
+    debug('create user', username, email.toLowerCase());
 
     const hash = await encryptPassword(password);
 
@@ -318,7 +316,7 @@ class UsersRepository {
     const user = await this.getUser(id);
     if (!user) throw new UserNotFoundError({ id });
 
-    this.#logger.info('update user', { userId: user.id, update });
+    debug('update user', user.id, user.username, update);
 
     const moderator = options && options.moderator;
 
diff --git a/src/sockets/AuthedConnection.js b/src/sockets/AuthedConnection.js
index 15bb3d74..353aead9 100644
--- a/src/sockets/AuthedConnection.js
+++ b/src/sockets/AuthedConnection.js
@@ -3,11 +3,12 @@
 const EventEmitter = require('events');
 const Ultron = require('ultron');
 const WebSocket = require('ws');
+const createDebug = require('debug');
 const sjson = require('secure-json-parse');
 
-class AuthedConnection extends EventEmitter {
-  #logger;
+const debug = createDebug('uwave:api:sockets:authed');
 
+class AuthedConnection extends EventEmitter {
   /**
    * @param {import('../Uwave')} uw
    * @param {import('ws')} socket
@@ -19,7 +20,6 @@ class AuthedConnection extends EventEmitter {
     this.socket = socket;
     this.events = new Ultron(this.socket);
     this.user = user;
-    this.#logger = uw.logger.child({ ns: 'uwave:sockets', connectionType: 'AuthedConnection', userId: this.user.id });
 
     this.events.on('close', () => {
       this.emit('close', { banned: this.banned });
@@ -54,7 +54,11 @@ class AuthedConnection extends EventEmitter {
     }
     /** @type {string[]} */
     const messages = await this.uw.redis.lrange(this.messagesKey, 0, -1);
-    this.#logger.info('queued messages', { count: messages.length });
+    if (messages.length) {
+      debug('queued', this.user.id, this.user.username, ...messages);
+    } else {
+      debug('no queued messages', this.user.id, this.user.username);
+    }
     messages.forEach((message) => {
       const { command, data } = sjson.parse(message);
       this.send(command, data);
@@ -90,14 +94,14 @@ class AuthedConnection extends EventEmitter {
   }
 
   ban() {
-    this.#logger.info('ban');
+    debug('ban', this.toString());
     this.banned = true;
     this.send('error', 'You have been banned');
     this.socket.close(4001, 'ban');
   }
 
   close() {
-    this.#logger.info('close');
+    debug('close', this.toString());
     this.socket.close();
   }
 
diff --git a/src/sockets/GuestConnection.js b/src/sockets/GuestConnection.js
index da39be97..ded39436 100644
--- a/src/sockets/GuestConnection.js
+++ b/src/sockets/GuestConnection.js
@@ -2,10 +2,11 @@
 
 const EventEmitter = require('events');
 const Ultron = require('ultron');
+const createDebug = require('debug');
 
-class GuestConnection extends EventEmitter {
-  #logger;
+const debug = createDebug('uwave:api:sockets:guest');
 
+class GuestConnection extends EventEmitter {
   /**
    * @param {import('../Uwave')} uw
    * @param {import('ws')} socket
@@ -16,7 +17,6 @@ class GuestConnection extends EventEmitter {
     this.uw = uw;
     this.socket = socket;
     this.options = options;
-    this.#logger = uw.logger.child({ ns: 'uwave:sockets', connectionType: 'GuestConnection', userId: null });
 
     this.events = new Ultron(socket);
 
@@ -86,7 +86,7 @@ class GuestConnection extends EventEmitter {
   }
 
   close() {
-    this.#logger.info('close');
+    debug('close');
     this.socket.close();
   }
 
diff --git a/src/sockets/LostConnection.js b/src/sockets/LostConnection.js
index 586f54a3..76ef1da2 100644
--- a/src/sockets/LostConnection.js
+++ b/src/sockets/LostConnection.js
@@ -1,10 +1,11 @@
 'use strict';
 
 const EventEmitter = require('events');
+const createDebug = require('debug');
 
-class LostConnection extends EventEmitter {
-  #logger;
+const debug = createDebug('uwave:api:sockets:lost');
 
+class LostConnection extends EventEmitter {
   /**
    * @param {import('../Uwave')} uw
    * @param {import('../models').User} user
@@ -14,7 +15,6 @@ class LostConnection extends EventEmitter {
     this.uw = uw;
     this.user = user;
     this.timeout = timeout;
-    this.#logger = uw.logger.child({ ns: 'uwave:sockets', connectionType: 'LostConnection', userId: this.user.id });
 
     this.initQueued();
     this.setTimeout(timeout);
@@ -66,7 +66,7 @@ class LostConnection extends EventEmitter {
    * @param {import('type-fest').JsonValue} data
    */
   send(command, data) {
-    this.#logger.info('queue command', { command, data });
+    debug('queueing', command, data);
 
     this.uw.redis.rpush(
       this.messagesKey,
@@ -75,7 +75,7 @@ class LostConnection extends EventEmitter {
   }
 
   close() {
-    this.#logger.info('close');
+    debug('close', this.toString());
     this.emit('close');
   }