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Discovering New Music Through Internet Radio

This is the first post in my series of articles on taking back ownership in your relationship with technology. Learn the idea behind this series in my initial post.

Spotify doesn't help you discover music

When Pandora first came out, it felt like a revolutionary way to discover new music. Just feed it your interests, and get a never ending playlist of relevant songs. Nowadays, this functionality is standard in all streaming music services. Just like infinite scroll, it keeps the user engaged and on the platform, giving providers incentive to make sure the music never stops.

While never ending music streams based on your interests sounds like a good thing, there are drawbacks. First and most obvious, streaming music services are yet another monthly subscription cost. Less obvious though is the lack of curation and connection with music when it's served via algorithm. Spotify will throw anything that vaguely fits into your music profile with hopes of keeping you engaged. There's no human curation, no why behind the music selected. This limits your exposure to new genres and artists, keeping you in a musical echo chamber.

The alternative, internet radio

Internet Radio is nothing new, in fact it's been around far longer than Spotify or Pandora, starting with "Internet Talk Radio" in 1993. Today it's less popular, but still very much alive. While there are paid platforms, such as Sirius XM (now streamed via internet rather than satellite), there are also thousands of free, independent stations to discover.

With internet radio, you can break free from a monthly streaming subscription. You'll be exposed to music outside of the artists algorithms typically throw at you. With high quality stations, you can even enjoy curated playlists with DJ interaction. Let's dive into how to get started!

The tools

Tuning into internet radio is easy, there are apps and websites that work on every device! Here are some recommendations:

Discovery

Once you've got your internet radio player, here are a few recommendations for discovering stations to tune into.

Station recommendations

Stations I regularly tune into.

Take it further

Turn your internet radio into something physical with a Raspberry Pi! I haven't personally done this project, but it seems like an excellent idea.

Bob Rathbone - Raspberry Pi Internet Radio

You could also hookup an old laptop or phone to a set of speakers for a dedicated experience in your home.

Using internet radio to discover music

My favorite way to discover new artists is by pinning Shortwave on my desktop using the mini-player feature (see screenshot below). When I hear a new song I love, I'll note the artist and keep an eye out for their albums next time I'm at the shop.

Screenshot of Shortwave App

If you found this article helpful, or have suggestions on tools/stations/etc, send me an email at hi@thatalexguy.dev