How do we hear about new music? You might say the radio or MTV. Let’s be serious though, MTV doesn’t play music videos, not anymore at least. As far as the radio goes, I can only stand listening to the same 10 songs over and over again only so much. What about friends? Word of mouth is a great way to hear about new bands. If you know that one of your friends has similar music taste, you’re more inclined to listen to a new band per their recommendation. Now with the internet you have an additional resource to aid in discovering new music.

Last.fm is a site I’ve probably talked about before (whether on this blog or in person). It combines the last two ways of finding music: your friends and the internet. I’m discovered many bands such as Silversun Pickups and Mogwai based off of what my friends were listening to. One of the other reasons I love last.fm is how they recommend new bands. Not only do they let you see and read about bands who are similar to bands you already love, but they let you hear those bands too. I believe I was looking for artists similar to Mogwai when I stumbled upon “Explosions in the Sky” on the similar artist radio station. After one listen of “The Birth and Death of the Day” I was hooked.

You might say that I’m just going through a phase, which is true. I usually go through phases where I’ll listen to the same artist over and over again until I find the next one (Sigur Ros, Stars, Broken Social Scene were some of my most recent phases). Right now I’m on my Explosions in the Sky kick and I look forward to discovering other Post-Rock bands.