Why we listen to new music

> Don't understand how people are happy to listen to the same old stuff - it must get so dull.

It does. But it's hard to find new stuff that i like as much as the old stuff.

I used to hear new stuff on Radio 1, a generalist music channel, but don't listen to pop music radio any more - perhaps i should try that again.

Back in the day, i used to go through the racks and bins of second-hand CDs in Cash Converters and buy anything that had an interesting cover. It was only 50p or something, so i could afford to buy a lot of crap. I learned about Étienne de Crécy and the KLF that way, so it was money well spent.

I tried the New Releases page on LetsLoop, but the music was diabolical - all interchangeable moan-pop or mumble-rap. I routinely fire up Spotify automatically generated playlists, and there's a mix of stuff i already listen to, other stuff that is very similar (which is something!) but isn't very exciting, and weirdly incorrect selections.

I've had a couple of really good leads from the random channel in a programming Slack i frequent. Tracks i liked which have led me to whole new (to me) genres.

I've had some luck exploring through record labels - if i find a new band or genre i like, see if they're on an indie label, and then see who else is on that label. I won't like every band, but there's a chance i'll like some. Napalm Records has been pretty productive for me, although, infamously, they really will sign any old junk these days. I'm still digging through TimeSlaves's bins.

I've also tried going via other users on Bandcamp. Pick an album i like, look at the grid of supporters under the album art, click on a few people who look interesting, and see what else they like.

Oh, and i follow a Twitter account that posts bizarre or amusing reviews from a music reviews website. Sometimes i listen to the music they're reviewing.

> Listening to new music is one of my favourite activities

Same here. I always get so damn happy when I find a new track that I really like.

I've added a weekly reminder to listen to my Spotify account's Discovery Weekly and Release Radar (based on the people you follow) lists, and I always find new tracks; the Your Daily Mix lists are quite awesome, too, in this regard.

Additionally, I have quite a few Spotify playlists for specific occasions, e.g. gym time; the nice thing about this is that as soon as you start adding tracks to those playlists, you can scroll down and it starts to recommend tracks that you might like based on the ones you just added.

Since I'm quite heavily into Eletronic Music (Deep House, Afro House, etc.), I also use BeatportCharts.com's Advanced Search [0] to find new music that is ranked quite high based on a specific parameter which you can specify, e.g. rank on the charts or number of user likes.

All in all I get so much excitement out of finding new music that it's basically a thing that I do on a daily basis. I'll add Bandcamp to my list of sources for finding new music :)

[0] https://beatportcharts.com/search/advanced/

It's funny how lots of people, including myself, get kinda stuck into a set of music. I do go out and try to find new music, but not nearly as much as other forms of media. I don't reread books that much, mostly watch films I haven't seen, play games I haven't played and largely watch new TV series.

> Don't understand how people are happy to listen to the same old stuff - it must get so dull.

Only if you listen to dull music. Perhaps pick higher quality stuff?

A good portion of my collection was originally written before 1750: Bach, Palestrina, Tallis, etc.† Some CDs I've had for >25 years and they are still as fresh as the first day I listened to them. And even a different take on the same composition can be illuminating: Glenn Gould vs Angela Hewitt, Tallis Scholars vs The Sixteen.

There's a reason why certain works regularly appear in those "Top 100" lists where they go out and ask experts: the order may sometimes be different, but the items in the top ten are often the same.

Edit: a quotation by Robert Bringhurst form The Elements of Typographic Style: With type as with philosophy, music and food, it is better to have a little of the best than to be swamped with the derivative, the careless, the routine.

† I have more modern stuff too: Led Zeppelin, Vampire Weekend, Arcade Fire, Pärt, Górecki, etc.

Nope, you are fully missing out on the advances of music production. The sounds producers can create nowdays were not available in 18th century, not even in the 80s. If you consider as music only what you can write down as sheet music you are missing out on so much. Thats why finding new artists, who can make unique sounds, not just melodies, is so rewarding.