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May 26, 2006

The Pandora Servers are Moving

On Friday, May 26th at 7PM Pacific Time we'll be moving the servers that power Pandora from one datacenter to another. Pandora's new home will give us additional room and capacity for scaling up the service as more and more people stop by to listen. The move should take us 8-10 hours.

Assuming everything goes according to plan, we'll be up and broadcasting throughout the move, but you'll not be able to create new stations, give us feedback on songs, or edit your account in any way. Pandora will be in this state until early in the morning on Saturday May 27th at which point we expect things to be back to normal. Thanks in advance for your patience.

Update 7:34PM: We've started the move. Cross your fingers for us :-)

Update 9:15PM: The first of the servers are racked up in their new home.

Update 9:36PM: We've just updated our DNS so some traffic is now making its way to the new datacenter! So far so good.

Update 10:38PM: All traffic is now being routed to our new datacenter. We still have lots of hardware to move, but things continue to go well. We'll be in "read only" mode for a few more hours. Thanks again for your patience with us as we work through this.

Update 11:50PM: Our databases have made the move and we're able to take your "thumb" feedback and account changes again. You should also be able to create new accounts and stations. There's still a fair bit of hardware to move, but with some luck, the rest of the operation will be invisible to you.

Completed! 3:45AM: All our servers are now tucked happily into their new home and are serving traffic. Thanks to the truly remarkably team here everything went absolutely perfectly. Thanks again for your patience with us tonight. We're excited to be in our new home.

Posted by Tom Conrad at 03:41 PM | Comments (259)

No Mainstream Fridays! Vol. 6

Welcome to another list of Friday finds that are:

1. worth listening to
2. probably not being featured elsewhere at the moment
3. would be mainstream if there were such a thing...

Go here to see the great stuff featured in Volume 1, Volume 2, Volume 3, Volume 4, and Volume 5.

First off this week:

The Empty Boat by Caetano Veloso. I looked for this record for a few years and finally found a copy. I love Caetano Veloso, and had heard that this record, which he recorded in prison (the backing tracks were added later) is early work that's partly in English. This particular song is mesmerizing and sad, repetitive and dark, with an ostinato acoustic guitar riff embellished with all kinds of minimal and subtle reeds, percussion sounds, and the like. It expands into more of a classic early 70's fuzz guitar freakout. Contains the line: "My hand is empty from the wrist to the nail...."

Break This Time by Alejandro Escovedo. Damn straight! This is like something off of "Some Girls": straight up, roadhouse, crowd-pleasing rock music, but happily Escovedo brings a sensibility to the music that keeps it from devolving into pandering (anyone who knows the work of this great American songwriter knows to expect nothing less). This is "pulse-check" music: hard to deny the power of this kind of chugging I-IV thing in the typical American reptilian brain. Throw the kids in the back of the pickup and meet us up at the lake! We're havin a bonfire!!

Fly by Blind Guardian. Uh oh! Like Queen meets 80's Yes. Super clean, technical, German "fantasy-tinged power metal" (All Music Guide). This song poses the tired old question: "will there be fairies or things to feel?" If I hear that one more time... Excellently, Allmusic.com gave the EP from which this song is taken 1 measely star! Sweet! I don't know, I somehow love this song because it's both hilarious and refreshing. It's also incredibly, ridiculously well-done.So I guess there's some irony in my fond feeling for this song, but it's also just a matter of giving in to the cheesy tsunami... and the guy can sing like Geddy Lee!

A Night on Earth by Brave Combo. This is funny and cheerful polka-fusion music, which is much better than that description makes it sound. The songwriting is good, the melodic sense is quite nice (starting with a major 7th in the melody always wins points with me, anyway…. Nerd alert.) This blends the faintest tinge of Ray Davies' genre pieces with a more low-key American attitude.

Wrestling Match by Carolyn Edwards. Interesting piano pop, with intelligent chord changes and melodies that manage to avoid intellectualism. Some of the lyrics are a bit arch, but that's part of the schtick here, I think. This is a really strong record that deserves to be listened to in its entirety. Check it out!

Deep Safety by Chas. Mtn.. Bedroom droney acoustic guitar groove that manages to be both appropriately narcotic and also abrasive enough to keep the mind engaged. Like Nyquil spiked with a bit of no-doz. Or something… Anyway it's cool, right?

Steel Guitar by Chris Smither. Some guitar-based, rootsy Americana. There's a fine line between being generic and being traditionally authentic, and Mr. Smither is clearly on the right side of that razor's edge.

Makeba Revisited by Mumbles. From the excellent Sound in Color label, this is Mumbles, spooling out elegant, sensual downtempo instrumental hip-hop / electronica that will slow you down in the choicest way. So much attention to texture in this stuff, it's incredible!

Panis Et Circenses by Os Mutantes. More Brazilian perfection, this time in the form of a colorful psychedelic song in English from the greatest Brazilian psych pop band, and in fact one of the greatest Brazilian bands ever in any genre. This one's charmingly simple, with recorders, lots of vocal harmonies, and organ. It sounds a bit like Nico-era velvets, but it sounds warmer and sunnier. mmm. The best part, though, is the lyrics: "I sent the lions to my neighbor's back yard, but all the people having dinner inside are very busy with their food.... I told the man to make of stainless steel a very sharp sword to kill my girlfriend... and I did at five o clock at that same crowdy bus stop but all the people having dinner were very busy with their food." Oh dear, it's all about violence and murder. Beautifully subversive. I LOVE this.

Cha Cha Cha by The Little Ones. Pretty much every song on this new band's strong 6-song EP is incredibly smart and also super memorable. Very much in the vein of The Shins and similarly melody-oriented indie songsters, this band is doing excellent work and really should be heard farther and wider! Pass the word!

One Day You'll Dance For Me, New York City by Thomas Dybdahl. Fingerpicking guitar, a dark and swirly sonic field, a beautiful voice set into a rich, tasteful (nearly too tasteful) arrangement. Pretty impressive start. Things get a bit lush (and dangerously saccharine at points), but the sonic beauty of this recording somehow justifies all of that for me. Dybdahl is big in sweden but not well known here.

Construcao by Chico Buarque. Finishing things up with an absolute stunner: one of the most incredible songs I've heard in a long time. First of all it has the typically irresistible coolness and beauty of so much Brazilian music, but touches of dissonance emerge in the harmonic and melodic choices, and foreshadow the astounding orchestral and vocal james bond touches that jump in later. Holy Rio di Janeiro, Batman! Magnificence.

until next time,
mz

Posted by Michael Zapruder at 02:04 PM | Comments (4)

May 24, 2006

Seattle 'Town Hall' Meeting at the EMP May 31st, 2006

Come join me for an informal get together in Seattle next Wednesday, May 31st. I'd like to meet local Pandora listeners to have a conversation about the service and more generally about the future of online music...

When: Wednesday, May 31st, 2006 - 7pm
Where: JBL Theatre at EMP (Experience Music Project)
325 5th Avenue North at the Seattle Center Directions

This is a FREE event. If you'd like to attend, please RSVP to tim.westergren@pandora.com

Guests are welcome, but please provide names as we'll have a guest list. Seating is limited.

Should be a fun evening. Hope to see you there! Tim (Founder)

Posted by Tim Westergren at 08:47 PM | Comments (74)

May 19, 2006

No Mainstream Fridays! Vol. 5

Hello and welcome to Volume 5 of "No Mainstream Fridays," my weekly listing of songs that are:

1. worth listening to
2. probably not being featured elsewhere at the moment
3. would be mainstream if there were such a thing...

Go here to see the great stuff featured in Volume 1, Volume 2, Volume 3, and Volume 4.

Ezra Pound said "poetry is news that stays news." So is music, and in that spirit, here are some songs and bands from past and present that merit headlines...

This week's news:

Hoover Factory by Elvis Costello & the Attractions. Somehow, amidst all the others, Elvis C has sort of been my center of the wheel, and this 1:46 song was (and maybe still is) my favorite choice gem of them all. When I was in my early teens, this song fascinated me endlessly. It sounds faster to me now than it did then (how trite and symbolic!) A slice of b-side heaven for everyone....

The Spirits And I by Royal Wood. This is a new record from a new artist who sings like Andrew Bird and writes pop songs that are both endearing and good. Melodies and hooks, people. I love the phrasing in this one.

Drink To Sher by Tanakh. Getting into some deeper waters here, this is a beautiful song that combines the sensibilities of orchestrated indie rock with larger, more grandiose rock idioms. Somehow, it's both dry and lush, and always very tasteful. A lovely balancing act that just needs repeat listens, not in order to be enjoyed, but in order to be savored.

Bazooka Tooth by Aesop Rock. Changing course, here's the brainy and zany Aesop Rock with some deliciously cluttered and crazy wordplay over gritty samples and beats. More killer hip hop from Def Jux. Warning: Contains "embargo piggybackers... bumper bolt monster mash... tim libby's lava lamp... lobster hands... nocturnally orchestrated car alarms..."

Degradation of Tapes by Merzbow. Merzbow is the most important artist in noise music, a fearless pioneer, invincible genius, sonic wizard, and crafter of slabs of hideous, grating, hellish pieces like this 19 minute crusher. The beauty of this music requires faith and dedication in order to be discerned. Don't let that fool you into thinking that it isn't there....

Manzanita (First Variation) by The Tony Rice Unit. From the storm to the calm, here's the flatpicking titan Tony Rice with a bit of newgrass. A breezy intro of typically crisp picking detours into some modern bluegrass. As always, the appeal here is greatly connected to the instrumental facility of the players, which makes it seem a bit technical to some. Decide for yourself!

Cowboys Lost At Sea by For Stars. When I first heard this record, it was maybe the first thing that a friend of mine had done that really worked as a record from start to finish. It stands up, with gorgeous melodies and a commitment to mood and focus that can teach any record-maker important lessons about how to eliminate everything but the essence. And the songs kill, too.

Rainy Day Mushroom Pillow by Strawberry Alarm Clock. Ah, my sunshine psych pop (maybe people are starting to figure out that I have a bit of a sweet tooth for this stuff…). Rainy Day Mushroom Pillow?? Are you kidding? I'm SO listening to a song called that! This one has some great harmonies, and the usual charming innocence and technicolor instrumentation that characterize the genre. We have lots of this stuff in Pandora, so make a station with this one and see what you find!

Indian Giver by 1910 Fruitgum Company. This song is borderline offensive (I do like to provoke you now and then - you know that, right?). It's called "Indian Giver," which is really unfortunate, because it's an interesting song. But it's kind of cool because 1) it's by the 1910 Fruitgum Company for cry eye! and 2) it somehow sounds a lot like mid-period Elvis Costello even though it's from 1968. Wonder if he ever listened to these guys.

Metallic Sonata No. 1 by The Lothars. Just when you thought it was safe to start singing along… here are The Lothars, with 3 theremins, one electric guitar, and great patience. This is drone-licious. Dark. Beautiful. A great new world of sound awaits you, should you choose to enter here…

Lost Diamond by Gregory Paul. This is a solo record by the man behind The Autumndivers, and this particular song is epic, mysterious and very very cool. The narcotic melody and good singing lead the soft charge here. Touches of strings make it even heavieer, and the reckless use of reverbs somehow manages to avoid cheesiness entirely. Right on!

Bears by Steven Fromholz. I guess Lyle Lovett covered this song, but this is the original, with banjo and (in an inspired moment of wacky genius), clavinet. It's always interesting to listen to the songwriter's version of a song that someone else made famous, so here ya go. Love that clavinet.

Whatcha Gonna Do by Peter Tosh. Love that clavinet so much it reminded me of the classic Peter Tosh sound from back when - I wore this record out when I was in high school in the 80's.

Five Years by David Bowie. And finally, as a closer, here's the classic Bowie tune that opens Rise and Fall of Ziggy Stardust. This was on the other side of the tape that had the Peter Tosh on it. I will forever associate the two records with each other, and with my walkman, backpack, and long walks through my beloved suburban Maryland commercial and residential wastelands.

happy listening!
mz

Posted by Michael Zapruder at 02:33 PM | Comments (39)

Your Favorites......and your research guide

As we've discussed, when you thumbs up a song, that act changes the station you're listening to. Your Favorites, however, is a place to "bookmark" songs so that you can keep track of them for later. This will not change your stations one bit; it only keeps a list of songs so you don't have to write down song or artist names on (gasp) paper. These two features are complementary, but distinct.

Favoriting a song (do this by clicking on the album art) will not alter your station, and thumbs upping a song will alter your station, but it will not keep a handy, printable list for you. Sometimes, you may want to thumbs up and favorite a song. That way you can mold your station while keeping track of the song for later reference. Whee, we're geekin' now!

"Favorites" is kind of a misnomer for me. These songs aren't necessarily my favorites; I use it as more of a To-Research List. I add songs to my Favorites list when I like the song, sure. I've got five pages of Oh Wow, This Is A Great Song. But I also add songs to my Favorites page because I'm busy when the song comes on, and I really just want to research it later.

The unassuming Favorites list has all kinds of handy-dandy features.
* Click on the artist name to find out more about them at the info-licious allmusic.com.
* Listen to clips of the songs.
* Arrange the list by date, song title, artist name, or by the station on which you heard the song.
* Click on the song name to see the cover and name of the album it came from.
* Click through to buy the tunes or albums from iTunes or Amazon.
* Print the whole beast out and bring it to your neighborhood record store so that you don't draw a blank about what to get when you're there.
* Here's an idea that one listener clued me in to: print out your list and hand it to your loved one who doesn't know what to get you for your birthday! Or (if the artist isn't too obscure to be found on Amazon), click through our page to Amazon and add it to your Amazon wish list!

Another thing I do is plan CD playlist mixes via my Pandora Favorites list. Whenever I hear a song that fits whatever theme I'm working for the next mix, I keep track of it in my Favorites. Then I buy the tunes and organize them in iTunes (or similar software), creating, I must say, a work of Art.

You can add a song to your Favorites list even after the song is done playing...
This is handy for times when you step away from the computer for a bit and miss some songs...but now you want to know what those missed songs sounded like! As you know, you can't rewind to re-play the song. Our music licenses don't allow for that. But you CAN add the missed songs to your favorites list and listen to clips of them at your leisure. You can even still go back and give feedback on the song even though it's no longer playing. (and feel free to delete the songs from your fave list by clicking on the little arrow to the left of the song name)

Any time you add a song to your Favorites, the list should pop up for you. Or, any time you just want to take a peek at what's listed there, click on the little 'Your Favorites' box right above your tuner.

cheers, Lucia

written while listening to:
The Dead Texan Radio

this station is very mellow and spare. don't let the name put you off.

Posted by Lucia at 10:55 AM | Comments (33)

May 17, 2006

Care and feeding of your stations

Two comments we get now and again here at Pandora headquarters are these:

1. My station is too boring; it doesn't play enough variety
2. My station is too varied; it plays too many different styles

I am here to tell you that these issues are fairly easy to remedy.

1. For more variety on your stations, add more music!
Click on either 'Guide Us' [for the station you're currently listening to] or on the triangle next to the station name in the left-hand menu [for any station, any time] and choose to 'Add more music.'

2. For more tightly controlled stations that don't stray too much, don't add too many artists, songs, or thumbs ups; every time you add more music your station reaches out in another direction. Me, I like that. You, you may not.

Personally, I've got both kinds of stations. Some are vanilla and some are seasoned beyond recognition. The "purer" stations have hardly any station seeds and only a few, if any, thumbs ups. On these "pure" stations I hear some of the same songs repeated over a few days of listening, and I get a more controlled station that actually sticks to a specific style of music. My wildest station, and my favorite, Radio Lucia, has maybe sixty seeds and oodles of individual thumb opinions. It represents decades of musical styles, and many many hours of listening and tinkering on my part. I get lots of surprises. I rarely hear the same song twice, even with weeks of listening.

Adding more music to your station is powerful. You can send your station off in a completely different direction with just a few new songs or artists. Remember, you're not just saying: I like this song/artist so please play this more often. You're also saying: play more songs in this style.

As it turns out, you may or may not want to hear more of that style. Maybe you like that artist because it reminds you of skipping classes in high school. (Def Leppard, in my case) Maybe your Dad used to play the artist's records non-stop while you were growing up. (Oscar Peterson) Maybe their songs remind you of road trips with friends. (Holly Cole) Perhaps someone once sang the song to you as a lullaby? ('Dear Prudence' by The Beatles)

There's all kinds of nostalgic and unique reasons for liking a song or an artist...but that may not mean that you want a whole slew of that style of music to play on your beloved and carefully crafted station! I get teased by our engineers for having such a trigger finger with feedback on my stations. I'm learning to sit still and not compulsively give my opinions to Pandora. I sit on my hands.

But remember, you can always change your station feedback and definition. Review and/or edit your station by going to the 'Edit this station' option for any station you built. (again, under the triangle next to your station name in the left menu) From there you can review the artists/songs you've added to the station as seeds and review the songs you marked as 'liked' and 'disliked'. Clicking 'remove' next to one of these will set the feedback for it back to neutral.
You can also scroll back to rate past songs at any time, even after they're done playing (as long as you haven't closed the window yet). If you can still see them, you can still rate them.

Happy tuning!

cheers, Lucia

written while listening to:
Dave Brubeck Radio
(one of my few completely "pure" stations...this one requires no tinkering...just let it play.)

Posted by Lucia at 02:53 PM | Comments (51)

May 15, 2006

Nashville Part 2

Left Gibson's and headed over to meet the folks at Grimey's - a happenin' indie record store. Mike Grimey and Doyle Davis are clear music fanatics. They had a downstairs club to boot.

Was really heartened to hear that their sales are growing rapidly. My new theory about music retail is that it's the real music-centric indie stores that are going to start thriving in the new digital age. As digital tech skims off more and more of the mass audience that are the primary buyers of music in big box stores, success in retail is going to come more and more to those who really emphasize service and value for shoppers, to draw music fans that still long for that experience. People who like walking through narrow aisles stuff with music.. surrounded by music obsessed shop clerks eager to help out...

Had a nice lunch and chat, scooped up a bunch of CDs and headed out to the evening meetup at Cabanas.

Great dinner meetup. lively conversation and great food with great group of local music lovers.

You definitely get the sense in Nashville that the love of music runs deep. At the meetup I met a number of folks who had moved to Nashville because they were music fans, not because they had a particular job in mind.

First stop for the evening, the aforementioend Bluebird Cafe where they don't even let people walk in during a song. Love it!

Watched a nice long set from a three piece acoustic group then club hopped the evening; the Basement, the End, and more...

Posted by Tim Westergren at 11:04 AM | Comments (29)

May 12, 2006

No Mainstream Fridays! Vol. 4

Hi!

Got some choice nuggets for everyone this time, but since there's been a bit of confusion about the name of this blog, let me just clarify something. This blog is not called "No Mainstream Fridays" because it's against the music that we call "mainstream." The title refers to the idea that the "mainstream" is a mutable construct, not a permanent, immutable feature of our culture; and as such, these sounds could (and maybe should) ALSO be mainstream.

anyhoo - check em out!

Nudes by Rites of Spring. My brother and I listened to this record "end on end" (danger: nerdy insider rites of spring reference) back in the early 80's. Guy Piccioto's band before Fugazi. Absolutely essential.

Gotta Have You by Weepies. This is a (borderline) guilty pleasure, but it's really SUCH A GOOD POP SONG. I fully expect to hear this song in 30 tv commercials before the year is out, and as the title music for a major motion picture. There's something really brilliant about the marriage of the phrasing and the melody that elevates the fairly familiar chord progressions. I love this one. I confess.

Night Riders by Mahavishnu Orchestra. wow, some 80's synth fusion. Let's go there. This stuff has NOT aged well, but I still like it. Kind of like U2 (oh, SNAP!) relax, everybody, I'm just kidding.

Lila's Dance by Mahavishnu Orchestra. OK, here's some redemption for Mahavishnu. Although this one's also a little saccharine, it's also total brilliance. I used to listen to this before getting on the bus to go to high school. And no, I was not smoking anything! (I was a super clean kid!) It took me a while to figure out how to play that guitar riff, which is in 5/4, or in 10/4 (good buddy), depending on your mood. strictly speaking it's 5.

Odessa (City On The Black Sea) by Bee Gees. Believe it or not, this song was one of the central initial inspirations for the record my new band just finished. Don't knock the early Bee Gees. Even though this record (it's called "Odessa") is like a thrift store that's full of really fun junk, none of which you really want to buy; the singing is perfect, and the arrangements and general doofy scope is adorable (although Maurice's vibrato is almost in joan baez territory...).

Naima by John Coltrane. ok, here's one that's just impeccable (since some of my other picks this week are all dangerously cheese-tastic). Is there a lovelier melody than this? As they say in France: "non."

Blue Lake by Don Cherry. with a charming spoken word intro, this is a spare piece don cherry plays on a borrowed native american holy flute. You can hear the lovely purity that is at the core of don cherry's appeal. Good stuff.

Take it So Hard by Keith Richards. We're all thinking about Keith these days, hoping he's ok. Here's a recorded version of one of the songs that usually signals a trip to the loo at most stones shows. Get well soon, Keith!

Matte Kudasai by King Crimson. King Crimson fans are going to hate me for picking this softy instead of one of the great epics from court of the crimson king or red, but I think this is an under-represented one. It's so 80's! but adrian belew manages to transform his guitar into seagulls, and the way the melody works in the chorus is just cool.

Words of Advice by Material. William Burroughs dropping science over a Bill Laswell - curated funk groove, including a perfectly placed sample of Ornette Coleman's "The Blessing." I have taken these words to heart: "If, after having been exposed to someone's presence, you feel as if you've lost a quart of plasma, avoid that presence. You need it like you need pernicious anemia...." SO true. [this sample contains profanity]

Ravishing Grimness by Darkthrone. This is black metal, a genre in which bands are criticized for being "not as evil as they used to be." sweet! This is the real thing, from Norway via you know where. Part of the fun of metal is not knowing whether it's evil for evil's sake, or if it's just "Fun-evil." horns up!

Look Back and Laugh by Minor Threat. Full circle from Rites of Spring back to the source, here's Ian Mackaye's classic DC punk band Minor Threat. I recently ordered everything we didn't already have from Dischord, but this is where it all began. The Dischord label has consistently put out excellent music while remaining true to principles that become more important to fight for every day. Ian went on to form Fugazi weith Guy, and now has a great new band called The Evens. [this sample contains profanity]

see you next week!
best,
mz

Posted by Michael Zapruder at 11:23 AM | Comments (6)

May 10, 2006

Nashville Part 1

Any city that has a music club where they kick you out if you talk during the performance is ok in my book... such is the Bluebird Cafe, an unassuming little venue that is a coveted spot for visiting musicians (also a consensus favorite from the many comments to our TN post - thanks everyone!)

Nashville... what a music town...

Spent the first part of my day touring the Gibson Guitar factory (Kate thanks so much for setting this up, and Steve thanks for taking so much time to walk me through the whole operation). I just love the passion with which they approach their guitars. Everything is handmade, from a group of guitar-making enthusiasts who's average tenure at Gibson was north of 20 years. Darrell, Sharry, Vera, Brian, Larry, Phil, Marsha, Adam, Wanda, Butch.. It's one big family.

Rather then write more, I'll let the pictures tell the story. A lot of TLC goes into every instrument...

Not surprised to learn that the guitars start around $3500 and up. They even had someone offer $1M for their prize possession.. which they turned down of course.

Left with the smell of sawdust and lacquer in my nose... Ready to hear what these guys sound like plugged in... more on the evening in Nashville on my next post. Coming shortly.

Posted by Tim Westergren at 11:58 PM | Comments (17)

May 09, 2006

While you listen to Pandora, I listen to you.

**Update**
Here's a couple more of my recent blog posts that you may find helpful!
Tips for perfecting your Pandora stations!
How to use Your Pandora Favorites Page
The use of Pandora in classrooms

** **

Hi, I'm Lucia. I'm your Listener Advocate here at your musical playground, Pandora. I've had the pleasure of "meeting" thousands of you already, via email. Pandora employs me to make sure that your Pandora-related needs and wants are being paid attention to. Back when Pandora was being tested on a few listeners, I was a die-hard Panfanatic and couldn't stop talking about Pandora to anyone who would listen. Now that I work here, it's considered a good thing that I obsess about Pandora all the livelong day.

If you were to walk around our office on any given day, you would hear numerous exciting (and excitable) discussions about how to make Pandora better. This team is at work night and day coming up with new ideas and new-and-improved plans. The Pandora brainiacs work passionately at bringing you the best music, the best service, the best of the web.

One of my favorite parts of the job is hearing your anecdotes about Pandora. Many of you are kept saner at work because of Pandora. You tell us that your city only offers up tired radio stations, and that Pandora has saved you from musical boredom. Others of you have abandoned your radios and even your ipods because of us. And many DJs have written to us to thank us for providing them with a perfect way to find new tunes. Pandora has become your musical companion, and that makes me happy! All we want is for you to find music that moves you, and for more moving music of all kinds to be heard.

Speaking for myself and my group of friends, we have discovered so much amazing music on Pandora, music that we had never heard of, that we're spending more and more of our free time and free cash attending live music shows; the shows of the artists we discovered on Pandora!

Sunday night, in fact, some friends and I went to hear KT Tunstall at The Fillmore. It was a superb show, and as the three of us chatted, we realized that none of us would have heard of her if not for Pandora. In fact, the reason KT's music was added to Pandora this winter was because you wrote to us and suggested that we add her music to our collection. So thanks to you, our unofficial music scouts. We're all reaping the benefits of your careful listening.

cheers, Lucia

written while listening to:
Benny Goodman Radio

An elderly gentleman wrote to me last week to tell me how much he and his wife are enjoying Pandora. He said that this Benny Goodman station was taking them back in time to his high school days, almost 70 years ago. Benny Goodman, Tommy Dorsey, Red Norvo, Eddie Daniels, Count Basie, etc. I added Benny Goodman Radio to my list of stations, and I've got to say, it's putting a big fat smile on my face.

Because it's not just about discovering brand new music, but also about (re)discovering the stuff you've missed or forgotten about.

Posted by Lucia at 01:31 PM | Comments (121)

May 05, 2006

No Mainstream Fridays! Vol. 3

Welcome to Volume 3 of "No Mainstream Fridays." For the uninitiated, NMF is a weekly listing of songs that are:

1. worth listening to
2. probably not being featured elsewhere at the moment
3. would be mainstream if there were such a thing...

Go here to see Volume 1 and Volume 2.

ok, I picked a baker's dozen this week, and so without further ado, the nominees are:

Imogen Heap -Hide and Seek - one of those fascinating and frighteningly catchy pop songs... for everyone who thinks autotune and noise gating are cheating, check this out.

Tyrannosaurus Rex -She Was Born To Be My Unicorn - oh, how I love Tyrannosaurus Rex. this song is full of weird magic.

Those Transatlantics -Boys and Children, Sing for Summer - I don't know if this record is even out yet. intelligent, orchestrated indie-pop from the midwest. look em up.

Euros Childs -Circus Time - one of the most deeelightful songs I've heard in a while. I guess Pitchfork mentions it in a review, too, so maybe this one's going to get some attention.

Spunkshine -Jambic Reel - propulsive and kind of heavy groove stuff with sampled vocal bits. this was an indie submission that came in a few weeks ago.

Itals -In a Dis Time - heard someone say they hate reggae the other day. I dare you to hate on this .three part vocals, joyous, with just enough grit to keep it feeling real…

One Ring Zero -The Ghost of Rita Gonzalo - this is a song from an interesting project wherein well known writers write lyrics to pop songs. I'm not sure why people think that just because someone can write prose, he can write songs. It's not as easy as it appears to be. but that's kind of why it's cool to listen to. This lyric was written by dave eggers.

Mozart Rottweiler -Back Stabb'in Ma Ma - this is one of the oddest indie submissions we've received so far, and it somehow fascinates me. I don't even know if that's good or not. this is like rainy day women #73 or #96405... It's from 1992 but it could be 1972. I like to think of them rehearsing.

Townes Van Zandt -To Live is To Fly - "days up and down they come, like rain on a conga drum. Forget most remember some, but don't turn none away." "I'll miss the system here, the bottom's low and the treble's clear, but it don't pay to think too long on things you'll leave behind." "You're soft as glass and I'm a gentle man, we've got the sky to talk about and the world to lie upon." "we all got holes to fill, and them holes are all that's real. some fall on you like a storm sometimes you dig your own." hmm. let's just say that this is some part of what people mean by "good lyrics." if you're not hip to townes, you're not hip. happily, his records are easy to find. a must for all would-be song writers, and for everyone else as well.

The Stares -From the Sky - a slow, lovely song replete with stunning strings. The Stares are a current, Seattle based band. so good. and I hear they are working on a new record right now.

The Id -The Inner Sounds of the Id - ah, 1967! Spoken word, sitar. contains the initial incantation: "come, Id. Rise from the depths. The deep one. The one deep down inside now crawling slowly up the spine…" ok it's not exactly leaving much to the imagination (how ironic). it starts like snake charming (kundalini is mentioned) and goes god knows where. priceless!!!

Skalpel -1958 - nice analog samples collaged into a sort of nu-jazz (but good!) electronica mashy mash!

Ron Sexsmith -Summer Blowin Town - just a great, good old song. Ron Sexsmith is excellent, and I especially love this album (the self-titled one).

enjoy, and have great weekends,
best,
mz

Posted by Michael Zapruder at 07:17 AM | Comments (22)

May 04, 2006

We're coming back to New York City on May 15th and 16th, 2006. We're planning a gathering on the evening of the 16th. Please leave any comments or suggestions here - always looking for fun music-related things to do and hear. So much to do in the big apple, and so little time! We'll post details on the get together as soon as we have more specifics. Really looking forward to this visit.

Posted by Tim Westergren at 10:49 AM | Comments (39)

May 02, 2006

Welcome to the Music Genome Project

We've learned a lot during Pandora's first 6 months and, candidly, one of those lessons is that purely "musical" matches don't get it right 100% of the time. While we work hard 7 days a week to get it there, if you've listened to Pandora for any length of time you know that the Music Genome is not perfect. The great thing though is that when we're wrong, you tell us with your "thumb" feedback.

So starting tonight, we're making you part of the Music Genome Team.

We've just given Pandora's playlist system a big upgrade so that now when our listeners as a group overwhelmingly tell us that a song is a terrible fit for a particular station, we listen and everyone listening to that station benefits from the feedback.

For example, since you've clearly told us that "It's Not Right But It's Okay" by Whitney Houston doesn't make sense as a match for Massive Attack, we're not going to play that song on anyone's "Massive Attack Radio" anymore*.

Incorporating your feedback and input in compelling ways is a major priority for us, and it won't stop at playlist improvement. We're cooking up lots of ways to bring your collective wisdom and knowledge to bear at Pandora in lots of interesting ways.

Welcome to the team!

Tom
CTO @ Pandora

* In reality it's a tiny bit more subtle than that -- what we actually do in a case like this is radically reduce the play frequency of "It's Not Right But It's Okay" on the Massive Attack station. That way there's some room for the song to come back into more frequent rotation if the listeners as a whole or individually change their mind about the song at some point in the future.

Posted by Tom Conrad at 11:50 PM | Comments (73)