diff --git a/src/audio.rs b/src/audio.rs
index 74761d3..480932a 100644
--- a/src/audio.rs
+++ b/src/audio.rs
@@ -248,14 +248,28 @@ impl AudioVisualizer {
       thread::sleep(std::time::Duration::from_millis(16));
 
       let samples = {
-        let buf = match audio_buffer.lock() {
+        let mut buf = match audio_buffer.lock() {
           Ok(b) => b,
           Err(_) => continue,
         };
+
+        // decay heights smoothly
         if buf.len() < chunk_size {
+          for val in prev_heights.iter_mut() {
+            *val = (*val - falloff).max(0.0);
+          }
+
+          if let Ok(mut bars) = bar_data.lock() {
+            for (i, val) in prev_heights.iter().enumerate() {
+              bars[i] = ((*val * 10.0).clamp(0.0, 100.0)) as u64;
+            }
+          }
+
           continue;
         }
-        buf[buf.len() - chunk_size..].to_vec()
+
+        // drain the consumed samples
+        buf.drain(0..chunk_size).collect::<Vec<f32>>()
       };
 
       Self::apply_hann_window(&samples, &mut windowed_buffer);