music for the future

Back in the old days (whoa! I sound like I’m 80), I discover new music mostly through the radio. In gradeschool and early highschool I was mostly into pop music and got my fix from the radio station RX 93. I remember listening a lot to whatever’s on the weekly top 10, and then really liking Debbie Gibson and New Kids On The Block. I even went to their respective concerts…but that’s another story. Anyway, the radio was my friend and our relationship got stronger when I received my first boom box on my 13th birthday. From then on the radio was on most of my waking moments. Towards the end of highschool, I started to outgrow RX 93 and began exploring other stations. I began listening to 99.5 RT and then NU 107. It was around this time that alternative music started to hit the airwaves. Nirvana. Pearl Jam. And in the local scene, Color It Red. But it was the music of Indigo Girls that captivated me. The song “Galileo” was the first song I fell in like with…then I fell in love with the rest. I think their music was constantly on my boom box for a good 4 years (1995-1999). And then I moved on listening to indie pop. You can read more on this on an earlier post titled “music and sadness.”

So after the tapes, the cds, and now the mp3s. Information, especially when sourcing new music, has also evolved from just coming from the radio, or from the reviews on the magazines and newspapers, or on music videos on tv, to the internet. Now, more than ever, it’s easier to discover new music. Heard a song that you liked on an episode of House? Google will churn up various websites containing episode and music information. Want to know more about the artist? Check it out in allmusic.com. Want to listen more songs of the artist? Listen to track samples on iTunes. It can’t get easier than that. There are even websites such as Pandora (now no longer available outside the US - haha) which recommends music based on artists you like (basically, you set up some sort of radio station by choosing an artist, then Pandora custom-makes a playlist for you of songs by similar artists). But honestly, the google-allmusic-iTunes bit works better for me.

So back to Indigo Girls. I only had two of their best records on tape, so when the tape deck of my mini-stereo (I’ve long abandoned the boom box) died on me, I also stopped listening to them. Until recently when I thought about them again and was inspired to download their songs. Now as I type this I listen to “Mystery” and I’m transported back in time. Back when well…never mind.

Debbie Gibson is now a has-been and has even tried to jumpstart her career by posing on Playbloy. Or Penthouse. I forgot which. Plus I don’t even listen to the radio any more. I’m plugged to my iPod almost all day on weekdays. And weekends are spent reading blogs, watching tv shows and movies always on the look out for new music. Time has changed.

I wonder 10 years from now, how will we discover new music? By then will the music player be just the size of a stud earring? Hello future.