[Glice]

Originally Posted by Green_mind

I never liked p2p software, especially with all the junk and corrupt files, but with streaming (sites like spotify and grooveshark) allowing you to have instant access to a wide range of music and allows you to create huge playlists has really appealed to me these last couple of years.

I think streaming is a really crucial development - in a way, it's brought back the concept behind radio without being quite so dominating and definitive. I also think it's sort of been neglected in a lot of musical discussions - it's ostensibly quite close to general internet things (p2p, blogs, webzines etc) while offering a lot less in the way of active searching. I love the radio, still, and I spend quite a bit of time listening to it simply because I'd rather hear something someone else has picked out to play. And while I got irritated by Spotify, Pandora and the like quite quickly, from what I can gather they're offering quite a lot for listeners out there. I don't think it'll save the industry, but it's surprising how many people are happy paying for the services.

Originally Posted by demonrail666

I have a passing interest in new currents that're taking place on the margins, but tend to wait until a few 'key' widely discussed examples begin to cross over before I dip my toe. Then, if I like it I might explore it in more detail. I don't 'search' for new things though. My experience is that the interesting stuff tends to reveal itself to me, either through an interview in a magazine, an online recommendation from someone whose taste I trust, etc.

I feel like this in some cases. Certainly, when it comes to a lot of the indie/ guitar side of things I tend to wait a long time before dipping into it. I'd say it's largely because I have an awful lot of that stuff already, and I'm a bit jaded towards it. I think it's a case that guitar music defined a good 10 or so years of my life, and I'm not really too concerned to keep up with it. When it comes to a lot of world traditions though, I really like that I can find a wikipedia article on, say, pipa music and I can go out and get myself some sort of hotch-potch sampler from slsk and blogs. Familiarity breeds contempt, I suppose.

Originally Posted by Nefeli

the fact that there always gonna be an underground (thurstons fav quote) and the fact that i have better chances to find out about it, relaxes me.

I think, for me, the notion of the underground has changed radically to what it was. I feel a bit like 'underground' was definitely meaningful when I was at school, feeling like I was part of some secret society with my obscure 7"s (which likely weren't that obscure). Now I feel that there's so much stuff out there that having that idea of a 'top' and a 'bottom' to music simply isn't useful - it's as easy to appreciate some band from somewhere you'll never visit as it is a band who are on a small indie in a rich country.

In those sorts of terms, I really like how there are a lot of people who press CDrs and tapes solely for their mates - I have loads of these, and in some cases I wish they were better known (the non-ferric memories CDr I got the other week is brilliant) and in more cases they're better off not being known, but either way it's really nice to feel like it's a present, from one person to another, rather than part of a career trajectory.

Originally Posted by Rob Instigator

My main issue with the bulk of what is easily available online is that it is what I term "candy" music. Like candy, it tastes supa delicious upon first listen, then the sweetness wears off, and you notice that it is just one strong flavor. This is not a bad thing but it does not benefit from repeated experience.

I think there's a definite sense that, at the business end of the industry, tunes have got more mercenary, more sparkly in a bid to excite the listener. It's difficult though, because I'd maintain that the Lady Gaga album is a really good example of how to make a brilliant record - it's instantly catchy (although I stupidly took a year to get into it) but worth repeated listens. I wonder if the 'candy' music is one of those chicken/ egg situations - do we treat it as 'candy' because it is candy or because we know that if we don't listen to it extensively there'll still be another million bands clamouring for our attention?

Just as an aside to that last bit, I can't actually think of the last time I heard something that offended me, musically. Ok, so it was probably whatever shit I saw on TV tonight, or last time I listened to radio 2, but generally speaking I'm in control of what music I listen to. When someone posts a thread here, I'll usually skim through it and decide based on descriptions whether I can be bothered to open a link. I don't feel bad about that, and I think most people are like that.