Music - any other audioscrobblers?

[Ian Pollard]

Dipping out of the debates for a minute, do any other music geeks here use Last.fm? I use it as a plugin for iTunes and it rocks, especially if, like me, you listen to music at work all day long and have a perverse interest making lists of everything in your life. Absolutely vital information -- like the fact I listened to 18 Smiths songs in May, but only 10 Bowie -- is available for my pondering.

You just download a plugin (e.g. for iTunes), and the Last.fm website logs every track you listen to, suggests similar music you might like (which you can stream), connects you to people with similar tastes, and "scrobbles" tracks in real time. The scrobbling is a bit like blogging and RSS, and your listening habits are available as mashups, lists, graphs, etc. I've actually discovered a few bands I really like through scrobbling. I think that's how I found the Great Lake Swimmers, in fact.

If you're a user, add me: http://www.last.fm/user/D34K/

Ian

[Lee]

I do use Last.FM from time to time, not with my Ipod though, coz I
aint got one of them crappy things! ;¬)

[Ian Pollard]

2008/7/3 Lee <l...@rdfmedia.com>:

I do use Last.FM from time to time, not with my Ipod though, coz I
aint got one of them crappy things!  ;¬)

Hi Lee,

I don't have an iPod either. My third one died about a year ago and I've since vowed never to buy one again. Those rotters at Apple put self-destruct devices in them, perfectly timed to bugger the thing up mere days after the warranty expires. Fact.

My phone handily takes those tiny M2 memory cards --  I have a few 2GB ones -- and that's basically my personal stereo these days. I've long since given up on high capacity MP3 players to try and carry my entire music collection around with me.

Ian

[Lee]

I'm well impressed to see Helmet near the top of your list mate!

[Lee]

Yeah I guess even though I work in IT, I'm not that much of tech head,
I have a small MP3 player which I manualy update with the music I want
to take out with me at that time, most of my stuff at home is still on
CD.

Ohh Fu Manchu as well!

This month I have mostly been listenting to Soul/Northen Soul and Otis
Reading.

On 3 Jul, 17:01, "Ian Pollard" <ian.poll...@gmail.com> wrote:

[ornamentalmind]

Ian, I have a similar MP3 setup with a Palm TX. 2G memory cards. I
carry about a dozen or so of 'em around in a very small case. This is
all I need for this use.
And, at 'work', I find Pandora about all I need. It gives a more
diverse set of music. For those of you outside of the US, it may take
a little work to access it, or so I'm told. Other similar websites
include:
Jango
Pandora
SeeqPod
Songza
SkreemR

[Chris Jenkins]

Yeah, I'm a huge fan of Pandora, especially with the Pandora's Box wrapper, which turns it into a systray app. I have about 50 stations, and my current favorite is based on the Brazilian Girls' Corner Store.

 

I also have a Bauhaus station. Peter Murphy will be here this weekend!

[Pat]

On 3 Jul, 16:33, "Ian Pollard" <ian.poll...@gmail.com> wrote:

Ian, on that link, is that a picture of you in the upper left?

[ornamentalmind]

Excelent question Pat! :-)

>     Ian, on that link, is that a picture of you in the upper left?- Hide quoted text -
>
> - Show quoted text -

[Ian Pollard]

2008/7/3 Lee <l...@rdfmedia.com>:

Yeah I guess even though I work in IT, I'm not that much of tech head,
I have a small MP3 player which I manualy update with the music I want
to take out with me at that time, most of my stuff at home is still on
CD.

I've done a very similar thing for the last few years, basically since my digital music collection filled my 60GB iPod. iTunes' interface is great if you're just syncing, but it definitely became a bit clunky when I had to start messing around with playlists to move music on and off. 

 

This month I have mostly been listenting to Soul/Northen Soul and Otis
Reading.

If you're ever in Brighton, you have to visit the Funky Fish. It's a club up on the seafront which looks a bit like disco in a school assembly hall, but that's all they play. Fantastic fun and no teenage posers. :)

Ian
 

[Ian Pollard]

2008/7/3 Lee <l...@rdfmedia.com>:

I'm well impressed to see Helmet near the top of your list mate!

Whenever I play Helmet at work, people stop talking and productivity goes right up. It's the heavy driving rythmn, you can't help but lock into it. :)

I saw Helmet live years ago. It was the most disceplined mosh pit I've ever seen, absolute synchronicity.

Ian

[Chris Jenkins]

I saw them back in 93 right after Unsung blew up the charts here. They are extremely precise gents.

[Ian Pollard]

2008/7/3 ornamentalmind <ornamen...@yahoo.com>:

Ian, I have a similar MP3 setup with a Palm TX. 2G memory cards. I
carry about a dozen or so of 'em around in a very small case. This is
all I need for this use.

I really think this is the way to do it. It's a pain carrying around a phone, a PDA, *and* an iPod. I decided that I didn't have enough pockets for that nonsense, so I've downsized to just phone. It does a reasonable job of it too. I've also started reading books on trains and planes again, which is another welcome side-effect.

And, at 'work', I find Pandora about all I need. It gives a more
diverse set of music. For those of you outside of the US, it may take
a little work to access it, or so I'm told. Other similar websites
include:
Jango
Pandora
SeeqPod
Songza
SkreemR

I shall have to check out Pandora.

Ian

[Ian Pollard]

2008/7/4 Chris Jenkins <digitalp...@gmail.com>:

I saw them back in 93 right after Unsung blew up the charts here. They are extremely precise gents.

They really are. I was wondering how they would recreate the sound of 'Mean Time' live, because a lot of the really right guitar was sampled and then quantized to the drums (with some live guitar overdubs). They did a great job though and I wasn't aware of a backing track.

I'm eating my breakfast here and you really should be in bed, Jenkins.

Ian

[Ian Pollard]

2008/7/4 Pat <PatrickDH...@hotmail.com>:

   Ian, on that link, is that a picture of you in the upper left?

It is. That's in a diner near Gracelands. :)

Ian

[gabbydott]

I still remember vividly, back when I was a teenage poser, how
ridiculous I found those oldies who were mired in their "fresh" music
taste. And I'm still laughing.

[Ian Pollard]

2008/7/4 gabbydott <gabb...@gmail.com>:

I still remember vividly, back when I was a teenage poser, how
ridiculous I found those oldies who were mired in their "fresh" music
taste. And I'm still laughing.

I've heard you are also amused by lint.

Ian

[gabbydott]

I haven't forgotten how a princess should sleep on a pea, that's
right. I hope the mother of your daughter is feeling better now.

On 4 Jul., 12:34, "Ian Pollard" <ian.poll...@gmail.com> wrote:
> 2008/7/4 gabbydott <gabbyd...@gmail.com>:

[Ian Pollard]

2008/7/4 gabbydott <gabb...@gmail.com>:

I haven't forgotten how a princess should sleep on a pea, that's
right.

 You might not have forgotten about that, but do you remember that you don't get to London by shaving a blind tortoise?

I hope the mother of your daughter is feeling better now.

If "better" is measured by sheer quantity of food eaten, then I'd put my mac 'n cheese on "yes" (and wash it down with some Fanta). Thanks for asking.

Ian

[archytas]

Three cheers for the German lady! Listenning to music is punishable
by death - my anti-antisocial robot will be reprogrammed to
materialise put of Pollard-bourne earphones!

On Jul 4, 1:53 pm, "Ian Pollard" <ian.poll...@gmail.com> wrote:
> 2008/7/4 gabbydott <gabbyd...@gmail.com>:
>
>
>

[gabbydott]

Oh, my baby would be shot within the first week in the U.S. He would
shoot himself within the first week in Britain. So I think we are save
here in the middle of B.E.A.R.lin. ;-)

On 4 Jul., 14:53, "Ian Pollard" <ian.poll...@gmail.com> wrote:
> 2008/7/4 gabbydott <gabbyd...@gmail.com>:
>
>
>

[ornamentalmind]

"I've also started reading books on trains and planes again, which is

another welcome side-effect." - Ian

Ian, I too read books on trains and busses. Most of the time it is one
I've downloaded to my Palm though. I can either read the text or, in
some cases, listen to a recording of a book.

On Jul 4, 12:08 am, "Ian Pollard" <ian.poll...@gmail.com> wrote:
> 2008/7/3 ornamentalmind <ornamentalm...@yahoo.com>:

[Chris Jenkins]

The combination of steroids and opiates which are the cocktail prescribed by the ortho for my rotator cuff injury, along with the pain, has made sleep rather a difficult proposition. I tend to sleep best sitting up in a chair, with pillows propped around me.

[ornamentalmind]

Chris, I empathize with your medical situation (rotator cuff injury).
Almost 20 years ago I tore mine and know how painful it can be. I did
not take medication for it though and, after many years of physical
therapy can now use both arms with very little limitation. On rare
occasion though, it does still affect my sleep a little too.

On Jul 5, 12:05 pm, "Chris Jenkins" <digitalprecip...@gmail.com>
wrote:

> The combination of steroids and opiates which are the cocktail prescribed by
> the ortho for my rotator cuff injury, along with the pain, has made sleep
> rather a difficult proposition. I tend to sleep best sitting up in a chair,
> with pillows propped around me.
>
>
>

> On Fri, Jul 4, 2008 at 3:10 AM, Ian Pollard <ian.poll...@gmail.com> wrote:
>
> > 2008/7/4 Chris Jenkins <digitalprecip...@gmail.com>:

>
> >> I saw them back in 93 right after Unsung blew up the charts here. They are
> >> extremely precise gents.
>
> > They really are. I was wondering how they would recreate the sound of 'Mean
> > Time' live, because a lot of the really right guitar was sampled and then
> > quantized to the drums (with some live guitar overdubs). They did a great
> > job though and I wasn't aware of a backing track.
>
> > I'm eating my breakfast here and you really should be in bed, Jenkins.
>

> > Ian- Hide quoted text -

[Chris Jenkins]

It's probably not the best recipe for making clear statements which cleanly translate my position without providing openings accidentally included through conflation or confusion. Thanks for the thought.

[Pat]

On 4 Jul, 08:11, "Ian Pollard" <ian.poll...@gmail.com> wrote:
> 2008/7/4 Pat <PatrickDHarring...@hotmail.com>:

>
>
>
> >    Ian, on that link, is that a picture of you in the upper left?
>
> It is. That's in a diner near Gracelands. :)
>
> Ian

Ian, you remind me of someone, but I can't, for the life of me,
figure out who it is. You look very familiar, whatever the case. I'm
sure it'll come to me, and I'll be pondering it over, for sure.
Anyway, it's good to put a face to the name. ;-)

[ornamentalmind]

Uhh, perhaps I'm missing something here.
And, Ian has his photo on his profile. It looks almost the same.

[Pat]

On 5 Jul, 22:35, ornamentalmind <ornamentalm...@yahoo.com> wrote:
> Uhh, perhaps I'm missing something here.
> And, Ian has his photo on his profile. It looks almost the same.
>

But the pic on the profile only reminded me of someone I used to
work with (a guy by the name of 'Edward Woodward', but NOT the actor),
the smile shows Ian's teeth-set (and a bit of a 5-o'clock shadow),
which, in my mental face-recognition programme, triggered something
else. I had a re-look at the photo on his profile and don't think I
would recognise him at all from the profile photo but, from the D34K
photo, I think I would, if I saw him on the street. I suspect we see
different things.

> On Jul 5, 2:24 pm, Pat <PatrickDHarring...@hotmail.com> wrote:
>
>
>
> > On 4 Jul, 08:11, "Ian Pollard" <ian.poll...@gmail.com> wrote:
>
> > > 2008/7/4 Pat <PatrickDHarring...@hotmail.com>:
>
> > > >    Ian, on that link, is that a picture of you in the upper left?
>
> > > It is. That's in a diner near Gracelands. :)
>
> > > Ian
>
> >     Ian, you remind me of someone, but I can't, for the life of me,
> > figure out who it is.  You look very familiar, whatever the case.  I'm
> > sure it'll come to me, and I'll be pondering it over, for sure.

> > Anyway, it's good to put a face to the name. ;-)- Hide quoted text -

[archytas]

Chris - you are sounding like Frederick Taylor the 'scientific
management' guy. He used to sleep with spikes in his bed to wake him
up if he got in the wrong position and later used to draw two chest of
drawers together and sleep with his neck between them and generally
suspended. Unlike you, he was anally retentive (Freudian rather than
constipated), though I expect this would come to you to should you
write a management textbook!

On Jul 5, 8:05 pm, "Chris Jenkins" <digitalprecip...@gmail.com> wrote:
> The combination of steroids and opiates which are the cocktail prescribed by
> the ortho for my rotator cuff injury, along with the pain, has made sleep
> rather a difficult proposition. I tend to sleep best sitting up in a chair,
> with pillows propped around me.
>
>
>

> On Fri, Jul 4, 2008 at 3:10 AM, Ian Pollard <ian.poll...@gmail.com> wrote:
>
> > 2008/7/4 Chris Jenkins <digitalprecip...@gmail.com>:
>

> >> I saw them back in 93 right after Unsung blew up the charts here. They are
> >> extremely precise gents.
>
> > They really are. I was wondering how they would recreate the sound of 'Mean
> > Time' live, because a lot of the really right guitar was sampled and then
> > quantized to the drums (with some live guitar overdubs). They did a great
> > job though and I wasn't aware of a backing track.
>
> > I'm eating my breakfast here and you really should be in bed, Jenkins.
>

> > Ian- Hide quoted text -

[Chris Jenkins]

Sounds like my kind of party.

 

While we're engaging in off topic fun, if any of you are registered Digg users, I'd appreciate a click in support of our upcoming sketchwalk:

 

http://digg.com/arts_culture/St_Pete_SketchWalk_Obama_Fundraiser_July_12th_2008