Sunday, April 15, 2007

Pandora Internet Radio

It's possible that I'm behind the curve on this one, but I've just recently found out about Pandora Internet Radio. Basically, this site allows you to customize your own user-created "internet radio station" -- if you suggest artists or songs that you like, then the site will play songs from its database that are supposed to be similar to what you suggested. The idea, of course, is that you can discover new (to you) performers with similarities to those you already like.

Having only discovered Pandora this weekend, I haven't spent much time learning all its features, but it looks like over time you can "tweak" your user-created stations by giving either a thumbs up or thumbs down to the different tracks that come up.

I started one customized station based on the band Ween, and two of the tracks that the website chose to play for me were by a guy from Vermont who I'd never heard of before, James Kochalka. The two of his songs that Pandora played for me were "Bad Astronaut" and "Magic Finger". I found them very entertaining. His compositions struck me as funny, tightly crafted, and indicative of an offbeat sense of humour mixing the adult and the childlike.

On Youtube, you can watch videos for the James Kochalka songs Monkey vs. Robot and Wash Your Ass.

8 comments:

Anonymous said...

can you use it in Canada now? when i signed up it was still American only and i had to look up a code.

Skullturf Q. Beavispants said...

I lied and said my Zip code was 90210. I have a feeling a lot of people do that.

Young Curmudgeon said...

I figured any TRUE Canadian would pick the zip 46201. Come on Skullturf you can name the reference. If you need a hint let me know...

Skullturf Q. Beavispants said...

I'm ashamed to admit I don't know the reference. I know US zip codes start with small numbers on the east coast and end with big numbers on the west coast, so 46201 must be somewhere in the middle. Because you said "true Canadian" I'm going to guess it has something to do with the Guess Who, or the Tragically Hip, or the movie Highway 61? I dunno.

Young Curmudgeon said...

Any Winnepeg boy should know the answer. Its just like 46201....
Leave it to a Canadian to run out of words in a bridge and use a zip code from a piece of mail sitting on the piano to finish the song....

Skullturf Q. Beavispants said...

I looked it up, and I was pleased to see that some of my guessing was right on track (but I'm sure I was heavily influenced by earlier conversations you and I have had about certain Canuck rock performers).

It turns out 46201 is in Indianapolis. I wonder if this means that somebody over at Pandora.com is going to be wondering, "How come so many listeners live in Indianapolis and Beverly Hills?"

Anonymous said...

im pretty sure i used one in seattle.

Leila Louise said...

Yay Ween!
I use last.fm, a similar, England-based internet radio, and I like it a lot. Faithful CC reader Gadge Cubic, Mole Preener is on there too.
By the way, I am the one known as Non-Shannon.