Wednesday, April 08, 2009

Wot No Spotify

We're not going to write a habit of writing about things other than actual music, but for this, we think you'll appreciate the exception.


You might have noticed that a lot of our recent posts have been including links to this thing called Spotify, or mentioning it at least. Well, that's because it's the most exciting thing to happen to the internet + music since Hype Machine or Last.FM. Trust us, this changes everything. I can't remember where I first heard about Spotify, sometime as January was slowly limping along, but within a few hours I'd sent excited texts to as many people as I thought would listen and signed up a handful of friends. Needless to say they all had the same gradual feeling of epiphany as me upon realising just how big this thing was. And then they made their parents sign-up. Dad's became lost in Meat Loaf's back catalogue, Mum's enjoyed every last song from U2's latest album a week before everyone else. And together, we were hooked.

Put simply, Spotify is all the music in the world at your fingertips. It's a bit like iTunes, but if the 30-second previews weren't just previews. And it's not a half baked collection of "all the music in the world", it really is all there. Well, apart from The Beatles obviously... And some American indie label stuff such as Band Of Horses. Plus, it just keeps growing. My twitter regularly informs me that Spotify "just added another 5,000 tracks to the library", alongside weekly releases being added even before the shops are open or the post has arrived. You simply sign-up for a Spotify account (free, with the option to upgrade to premuim) and then download the small programme for your laptop. Fire it up, sign-in, and prepare to lost yourself. You'll hear a short 30-second advert every 7 to 10 songs or so, mostly just cute little messages from a Swedish girl appreciating how much everyone is enjoying the service. Or Iggy Pop.

[SIGN-UP] Get started on Spotify here.
[DOWNLOAD] And grab the download here.
[PLAYLIST] Add the Our Iron Lung playlist to your Spotify.