So, I am sitting here, pondering what sort of cacophonic concoction I should throw at you all this week, and I get to thinking. I keep offering what to listen to, but I never really go into where to listen. Knowing where to go to hear music is just as important as knowing what to listen to, don’t you think? After all, how would you know what to listen to otherwise?
Not all of us have the well-cultured friend or two that happens to have exactly the type of music that you want to hear at the time. I’m lucky enough to have people in my life, both in my past and in the present, that have done just that. It was Ron Yorgason that introduced me to They Might Be Giants and other alternative music. It also was Ron that started me down the path of the comedic genius that is Monty Python and the sideshow wonders that is novelty music, made popular by the Dr. Demento radio show and others. It was Susan Kulpanowski that tuned me in to the celtic/new age scene when she played The Lady of Shalott by Loreena McKennitt over a long-distance phone call from Michigan to my dorm room in Minnesota. I remember being so caught up in the song that I promptly went out and bought all the Loreena McKennitt cds I could get…regardless of the fact I did not even own a CD player at the time. Present day influences include Shawn Schliepp, a virtual walking encyclopedia of all things musical. It was Shawn that inspired last week’s spotlight on King Missile, so you can thank him for that. Of course, my fellow bkI comrades-in-arms Pat and Ben have their impact on my musical tastes, as well. I am grateful to all of these people and more, for showing me that there is more to life that 80′s New Wave.
I would be remiss in my duties as bkI‘s friendly neighborhood musical aficionado if I didn’t provide the same consideration and give you all some guidance to some good music sources. Since calling each reader and playing a song over the phone isn’t the most effective way to go, instead I have some web sources and general knowledge stuff to pass on. These are the places that are usually the inspiration behind the music articles, so feel free to place blame accordingly.
1. Last.fm – This is the go-to website when I am working at my soul-crushing office job and I need a mental escape. Last.fm is a free music site that allows the user to create their own playlists or, if you’re feeling lucky, play random songs based off of previous searches with no commercials. Let’s say you do a search on Devo. With that search, you will get concert dates, a biography of the band and other goodies, including a little button to play ‘Devo Radio’. Pressing that will get you a random playlist consisting of groups that are along the same musical genre as Devo. That means that you might start with Devo, then move on to the Talking Heads, then to Wall of Voodoo, then Gary Numan, then to Sparks and so on. Chances are that there is going to be an artist or group that you have not heard of before that will pop up. Either that, or a rare song from a band you thought you knew. Regardless, your harmonic existence will be greatly enriched…maybe.
2. AOL Radio – I know what you are thinking. AOL?!? WTF?? Yes, I know that AOL is the spawn of all that is unholy for everyone not using it as an internet provider. However, that doesn’t mean that some of the web content it provides isn’t useful. In particular, the AOL Online Radio application, powered by CBSRadio, is particularly good. As such, it is usually my backup plan when Last.fm doesn’t want to function at work for some peculiar reason. The AOL Radio app has over 350 different stations to satisfy any musical taste. I especially like listening to the Gothic station whenever I am in a dark mood or the WTF station for some of the most interesting dementia acts out there. With limited commercials, AOL Radio is a good place to pick a theme, sit back and listen to the randomness.
3. Overclocked ReMix – I am a gamer at heart. I like all kinds of games, but especially the old-school games like Castlevania, Contra, Legend of Zelda, and others. However, I also like techno, industrial, and club music, too. Where can I go that will combine the best of both worlds? Why, Overclocked ReMix, that’s where. There is a community of remix artists with the same love for games, a love that they demonstrate by taking beloved video game theme music and putting their own spin to it. Got a favorite game? Try looking it up in the Games list and see what remixes are available. And the best part? The music is free. Free is always good.
4. MySpace Music – MySpace may slowly be losing ground in the social networking circles to Twitter and Facebook, but the Music section is still one of the places to go to check out new and current talent. Most artists will have at least a couple of streaming mp3s for your listening pleasure. Also, if you happen to like what you are hearing, there’s going to be a handy link somewhere so you can go purchase the music from your favorite music-sharing site.
5. YouTube – Considering all the individual songs I have shared were given as YouTube links, this really was a no-brainer. However, what works here is not the fact that you can access any one song you want. It is true that I would go to YouTube if I need to hear a single song, but what I really like is the compiled playlists. Just do a search for the artist you want, select a pre-constructed playlist, and away you go. This is my ultimate back-up plan for escaping reality at the job. I just keep the website in the background, to prevent the videos from captivating my attention and sucking the will to work.
Now, let’s not forget your local radio stations and music stores. I tend to go to secondhand bookstores to pick up CDs, and spent a lot of time in the local music recycling shops like Disc-Go-Round. Of course, if you have a favorite website, store, super secret radio frequency or whatever, let me know. I’m always on the lookout for new ways of discovering new music.
I’ll keep my ears and mind open. You never know what you may hear next.
Absolutely love this post.
Thanks.
:)