A Matter of Taste
So I've rediscovered Yahoo Launchcast as the plus commercial free version is packaged with our SBC / Yahoo DSL service. They let you create "your own personal station" (randomized streaming music from their music library with that changes as you rate songs). My station is now out of control
At first it was a classic rock / ska / dance station. This was pretty good, but I couldn't leave well enough alone. I started listening to their preset stations.
The first mistake was the comedy channel. I thought sweet a little Robin Williams, a little Richard Prior, Jeff Foxworthy. Good stuff. But it doesn't stop there. Based on my ratings the start throwing in comic relief classics. Remember comic relief. A, B and C list comedians got up on stage and instead of doing the acts that got them famous they all tried out new political jokes. Not only were these very much of the moment ( and loose context with every passing day) but a lot of them weren't exactly funny. The thing about comedy is that you need to listen to the entire bit sometimes to see if its going to be funny. After a bad joke I feel I've been robbed of precious minutes I could have spent listening to quality music.
The second major listening mistake was to tune into the "hits of the 80's" station. I'd listen to the station for a couple hours and rate every song highly as they all brought me back to my childhood. Wow Wall of Voodoo. Wow Flock of seagulls. Wow a hair band whose name I didn't remember but whose song was definitely in heavy rotation back in the day. Big Hair. Big Shoulders. Bad Dance moves.
So then I'm listening to "my station" again and it dawns on me. These may all have been one hit wonders but each and every one of those hits came off an album of songs. My station now pops up b-sides for bands whose names I don't even remember but whose one song was a hit back in 1985.
Yahoo also has this habit of occasionally throwing in a song that is "currently popular on other launchcast stations" (that they are probably either being paid to kick into rotation or have some sort of business arrangement with the production company). So on occasion, despite my best efforts to keep it out, hip hop or R&B (And I like the blues just cant stand that Mariah Carey wanna be wailing stuff) occasionally find their way to my ears.
So in summary: While this may be a cheaper way for me to experience a wider range of music than I own, sometimes I just have to buy a cd and stick in the cd-rom. I think the best label for my station might be Eclectic Nostalgia Junky take a listen tell me what yas think. (there are commercials for non paying folk)
At first it was a classic rock / ska / dance station. This was pretty good, but I couldn't leave well enough alone. I started listening to their preset stations.
The first mistake was the comedy channel. I thought sweet a little Robin Williams, a little Richard Prior, Jeff Foxworthy. Good stuff. But it doesn't stop there. Based on my ratings the start throwing in comic relief classics. Remember comic relief. A, B and C list comedians got up on stage and instead of doing the acts that got them famous they all tried out new political jokes. Not only were these very much of the moment ( and loose context with every passing day) but a lot of them weren't exactly funny. The thing about comedy is that you need to listen to the entire bit sometimes to see if its going to be funny. After a bad joke I feel I've been robbed of precious minutes I could have spent listening to quality music.
The second major listening mistake was to tune into the "hits of the 80's" station. I'd listen to the station for a couple hours and rate every song highly as they all brought me back to my childhood. Wow Wall of Voodoo. Wow Flock of seagulls. Wow a hair band whose name I didn't remember but whose song was definitely in heavy rotation back in the day. Big Hair. Big Shoulders. Bad Dance moves.
So then I'm listening to "my station" again and it dawns on me. These may all have been one hit wonders but each and every one of those hits came off an album of songs. My station now pops up b-sides for bands whose names I don't even remember but whose one song was a hit back in 1985.
Yahoo also has this habit of occasionally throwing in a song that is "currently popular on other launchcast stations" (that they are probably either being paid to kick into rotation or have some sort of business arrangement with the production company). So on occasion, despite my best efforts to keep it out, hip hop or R&B (And I like the blues just cant stand that Mariah Carey wanna be wailing stuff) occasionally find their way to my ears.
So in summary: While this may be a cheaper way for me to experience a wider range of music than I own, sometimes I just have to buy a cd and stick in the cd-rom. I think the best label for my station might be Eclectic Nostalgia Junky take a listen tell me what yas think. (there are commercials for non paying folk)
posted by Rich Rosenthal II at 1:17 AM
3 Comments:
Oh my, I found that one night when my son had a bunch of his friends over. He was so embarrassed because I was playing all these un-hip tunes from back in the day,....really really loud.
It was great and it is what parents are there for :)
And you have the videos on your website to prove it. I was jaming to heguns and roses and metallica for a couple minutes before I scrolled down.
Just count yourself as lucky that Hot Codez doesn't include the Bay City Rollers or the Rocky Horror soundtrack in their selection :)
Post a Comment
<< Home