Discovery

For me, discoveries of a new band for my collection are usually an exercise in critical mass over time. I come across an act thorough too many independent sources not to check them out. Two recent unearthings that fit firmly in this category are Death Cab for Cutie and John Hiatt.   How I missed these two for so long when they fit so nicely into my soundtrack is beyond me.   

This model can be bad if you tend to get obsessed with artists. Is the one record enough, or must you own everything? All of a sudden there may be 3 or 5 or 10 albums to buy and digest. What if you happened upon their best work, and the rest is either no good or repetitive? On this, Pandora is such a double edge sword. On one hand it often answers some of these questions and gives you free (legal) access to a lot of a bands’ music. On the other hand in an hour, it could send you down even more rabbit holes fraught with the same peril! (In the course of writing this I bookmarked 2 other artists on the DCFC channel.)

Not to mention figuring out of where the new band fits into your sonic landscape. Do they have a ‘go-to’ album? When do I like to listen to them? How will I see them live? Will I travel to do it? Do I run out and tell my music junkie friends they MUST get into this band? Strong recommendations are not made lightly, lest you miss. Seriously though, finding, appreciating and sharing a new artist is about the best part of being a music nut, and has been a great source of happiness and friendship for me over the past 15 years.