I've been listening to Pandora for a few weeks now. Billed as a way to find new music, it's also great if you want to hear familiar songs. I can't say that I've discovered too many acts yet, but Pandora offers a great alternative when my iTunes library gets boring.
Here's how it works: Enter the name of an artist or song that you like. Pandora will create a "station" that plays music from and similar to that artist. You can refine the system's selections by saying "I like it" or "I don't like it."
I find the sound quality is good enough for a work environment and that the system needs very little refinement to serve up tunes I like. The only downsides I've discovered is that it has no classical music and for some fringe acts you end up hearing the same songs often.
Pandora
Article on Pandora from the East Bay Express
Friday, January 13, 2006
Sunday, January 08, 2006
Concert Review: Carolina Chocolate Drops -- January 7, 2006, ArtsCenter, Carrboro, NC
The Carolina Chocolate Drops play Piedmont-style "old-timey" music -- what I call bluegrass.
It was a show where the musicians drive the audience with their energy, and the audience amplifies the musicians' performance with its response. There was dancing on the stage and dancing on the floor. There was clapping and singing from the audience. The members all played several instruments -- swapping banjos, violins (I mean fiddles), and guitars. And the oversized personality of Dom Flemons kept us entertained even when he wasn't amazing us with his jug virtuoisity.
The Chocolate Drops are black and they're proud. "Taking back the music" was a definite theme. They even called out the audience for being mostly white. Few artists talk about race at shows that feature predominantly white folks listening to what has historically been black music.
The show was a sublime event, and I look forward to exploring the music of the Piedmont.
Check their site for sample MP3s.
It was a show where the musicians drive the audience with their energy, and the audience amplifies the musicians' performance with its response. There was dancing on the stage and dancing on the floor. There was clapping and singing from the audience. The members all played several instruments -- swapping banjos, violins (I mean fiddles), and guitars. And the oversized personality of Dom Flemons kept us entertained even when he wasn't amazing us with his jug virtuoisity.
The Chocolate Drops are black and they're proud. "Taking back the music" was a definite theme. They even called out the audience for being mostly white. Few artists talk about race at shows that feature predominantly white folks listening to what has historically been black music.
The show was a sublime event, and I look forward to exploring the music of the Piedmont.
Check their site for sample MP3s.