One answer to an oft-asked question.


 

The question "How do you hear of new music?" appears regularly in the AG Forum.

In the early-mid 1960’s it was for me (and most others) of course on AM radio. Then in 1967 Tom Donahue pioneered FM Rock radio on his KMPX station in San Francisco, which moved to KSAN the following year. That station (and similar stations throughout the U.S.A.) played not 45RPM singles, but rather album cuts, songs that would never be played on "3 minute singles only" radio. Hendrix, Cream, etc.

In the mid-70’s a similar thing occurred in the print coverage of music: the emergence of the Fanzine. Small amateur mags devoted to covering either the likes of the emerging Punk scene, or genre-specific coverage of cult audience artists and bands. These provided an alternative to Rolling Stone, which was still stuck in the 60’s. Much better pro-magazines were Creem and Crawdaddy.

My favorite was Bomp Magazine, founded by Rock ’n’ Roll historian Greg Shaw (who also wrote liner notes for LP releases, as well as acting as The Flamin’ Groovies manager). It was in Bomp that I learned of The Nerves (the Power Pop trio that consisted of Peter Case---later leader of The Plimsouls, Paul Collins---later leader of The Beat, and Jack Lee---writer of "Hanging On The Telephone"), The Dwight Twilley Band (though they had enjoyed a hit single in 1975---"I’m On Fire", I wasn’t listening to radio and never heard it until I got their debut album Sincerely. WOW!), Dave Edmunds (Dave had an AM radio hit back in 1970 ("I Hear You Knocking", but I hadn’t heard it), Nick Lowe, Elvis Costello, Marshall Crenshaw, Squeeze, and dozens more.

When the Alt-Country movement got underway in the mid-to-late 1980’s, the magazine No Depression showed up, and was invaluable for those interested in "Roots" music. You name a band or artist of the genre, and you’ll find stories about him/her/they in it. It was a real loss when the mag stopped publishing print copies. But another great mag---Mojo---continued publishing, and remains a great source of info on artists/bands, new and old.

But then the internet appeared, and vast quantities of info on every imaginable subject became available. I have a number of favorite YouTube music channels I watch regularly, including that of Bob Bradley, who resides in the Louisville Kentucky area. He is an audiophile (with a Thorens TD-124), a music lover, and a musician (with an impressive vintage guitar collection). Here he is in a video with his good friend Jefferey Lee Puckett (great name!): They have made a bunch of others. Though Bob’s musical taste and mine intersect only somewhat (he’s really into Jazz, for instance), I enjoy his videos immensely.

 

 

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@pennpencil

exactly what I do.  I thought there was virtually no new music I liked, then started listening to Poolside on pandora.  Then satin jackets, on and on.  The algorithm finds and then I go add on qobuz.

At lunch time I still listen to college radio stations (WSGE or WNCW) that often play new music in various genres to discover music beyond what Tidal recommends. I too sample the albums reviewed in Stereophile magazine. These stations also host a syndicated program called The World Café that presents new up and coming artists from around the world. There are also the YouTubers like Steve Guttenberg, John Darko, and the guy on IIWI Reviews who recommend albums or tell you what they used for test tracks. John Devore often plays entire album sides on his channel. My one complaint with Tidal is that you have to be spot on in your spelling or it won’t find what you are looking for. They need to incorporate a bit of A.I. to help you find close matches when you might have heard a name but don’t know how it is spelled.

Up until all of my social group had kids, we had a weekly regular night to get together and listen to music or watch concert videos and we would share and get to explore lots of new music. 

I miss those times.  People don't seem to have the patience for it anymore. 

Roon is good. Googling genres can be good. Still occasionally friends.  Takes work! 

There's an entire world of music I haven't heard, so listening to things like internet radio stations near and far, I'm always finding something new and good to listen to.

Excellent AOR I missed through the years just catching stuff on Sirius XM  stations like Deep Tracks, First Wave...

WBGO out of Newark is a high quality Jazz affair. I always catch gorgeous things I never knew existed...

WKZE in New York's Hudson Valley is a magnificent mixed bag of good stuff in a wide spectrum of genres. There used to be a good number of these around the country a few decades ago. Sadly that's not the case anymore..

 

These days, I don’t hear much new music. It’s all that I can do to keep up with the music I have. 

When I do hear new music, it’s usually because somebody recommended something to me.