Expand Your Music Collection: How to Find New Music, Old Music, and Obscure Music, but Mostly Just Good Music

If you’re bored of your music collection and interested in expanding it, there are a couple of places you can look. One of the web’s best kept secrets in terms of music sites is www.musicaltaste.com, a music recommendation website. If you like obscure music, you can find it here. It’s a pretty simple format – people recommend songs, stating the name, who performed it, and sometimes more in-depth information like which album it can be found on, what year it was recorded, which country it hails from, the mood of the song, etc. Also, the site encourages the recommender to write a brief description of the song, why they like it, etc. In the past few years, I found a lot of great music just from that site.

A good way to find something that you’ll like is to search for a song you already like, then check out more recommendations by a person who recommended it. You can also join (for free) and recommend music. It’s really a nice little website, no weird ads or pop-ups, just a small website started by someone who is just sincerely interested in music and sharing great songs. Nobody is trying to make money off of this site, and it’s barely changed in the three years I’ve been using it, except to grow a little larger. It’s also got a nice, aesthetically pleasing format.

As I said, a lot of the songs are indie and kind of obscure, but there is a good mix. People also like to recommend classic songs from the past, classical music, electronica, and a nice variety of world music. This site is especially good for the music afficionado with a varied, ecclectic music collection or anyone interested in exploring different styles of music. It’s also great if you have a favorite band or album that nobody seems to know about, or a great song that you just want to share with others.

Another website I’ve found to be very helpful in finding new music is www.amazon.com. Amazon is a huge site now, but when I first started visiting it, it was mainly a book and music website. Their music section has grown with the site and is now bigger and better than ever.There are plenty of ways you can find new music navigating amazon. One is by browsing. This is good if you have a specific genre you would like to explore more deeply. They have an entire section devoted to this, and the genres get pretty specific. Just browsing for “blues” will leave with you twelve different sub genres to choose from. If this proves to be too overwhelming, or you’d like to do a more general search, they have lists compiled of the best music of 2006, 2005, etc.

In addition to that, they have artist’s picks, so you can find an artist you love and see their recommendations and favorite music. Another way to search for music on amazon is to begin by looking up an artist or album that you love. Alongside pretty much any album you can find, there will be lists compiled by other amazon users who also liked that album and recommended some more along with it. Sometimes they compile lists based on genres, sometimes the lists revolve around a certain mood, and many times the lists are just comprised of a variety of music that the creator of the list likes. Either way, you’re bound to find something else that appeals to you. Another advantage of amazon is that they have a (small) selection of free music downloads.

As for other sites on the web, just googling “music recommendation” will provide you with a bevy of sites that you can use to find new music based on music you already like.

If you do not have the internet, or would prefer other means of finding music, there are a few options for you also. There are some great music magazines out there, my personal favorite being Paste. Not only is Paste full of music reviews, artist interviews, and new music, every issue also comes with 2 mix CDs filled with songs by artists mentioned in the magazine. These CDs are especially nice because they have a great variety of music, from hip hop to rock to folk to punk, and often include some fairly well known artists in the mix of mostly lesser known artists.

If you’re looking for a cheaper way to find new music, try listening to the college radio stations. They usually have specialty shows and play an ecclectic mix of music and are usually on top of the latest music also. If you hear a song you like but don’t catch the name, you can always call in and ask the dj. Also, if you’re ever listening to the radio and hear a song you like but don’t know, just remember when you heard it and the radio station you heard it on. Many radio station websites have a section devoted to the songs that were played on any given day and you can find the song you heard simply by looking up the date and time you heard it.

Another free way to find music is in a free news publication or weekly entertainment guide that can be found in cities.These often mention new music, have music reviews, and can keep you aware of upcoming local bands.

If you’re looking to pick up some free music, go to your local libraries. Lots of the larger libraries will have CDs available to borrow. They’re aren’t usually the most current, but you can sometimes find something pretty interesting.

And of course, there is the obvious option: raid your friends’ music collections. Ask them to make recommendations. Beg them to make you mix CDs. This is my favorite way to get new music.