Frisco radio

NaBloPoMo Day 24: We're scheduled to hit the road some time today, so I guess it behooves me to post a bit earlier than the stroke of midnight. A friend recently asked me in an email whether I'd found any good new music recently, a somewhat odd question for him to pose to me, for the transfer of musical knowledge between the two of us has always run in the other direction.

I don't buy much music anymore, though I might start again at some point, and I've largely stopped listening to music with vocals except at concerts and as treadmill accompaniment. Riding the T or walking the sidewalk I normally listen to podcasts (Bill Moyer's Journal, Planet Money) on my iPhone in order to catch up on news and commentary. But when coding at work (and occasionally at home) I frequently slip on my headphones to tune in to internet radio, especially when I need to aurally escape from the office hours being held by my officemates. Music with vocals is too distracting for me to listen to while programming, but usually avoid classical music while working because it only liminally registers when I'm concentrating and I feel as though I've missed something important when my consciousness drifts back to the music.

So I listen to various electronica, and SomaFM is my source: Groove Salad, Secret Agent, and Space Station Soma are my top choices, and I sometimes channel surf towards Beat Blender. This all-internet radio station based in San Fran has 18 channels (including two holiday music channels during the season) and a pretty wide variety of music, no commercials and no irritating DJs or stupid morning shows. I dig it.