Tired of downloading? Try Pandora!
Dawn McGarrigle
Issue date: 5/8/09 Section: Lifestyle
If you've ever been sick of the same old music downloads on your computer and want to find new music you know you'll love, you should check out pandora.com.
Pandora is internet radio that does just that. By searching for songs you already love, Pandora finds similar songs and plays them in seconds. You can also look up lyrics, find out more about the band, see bands that sound like the one you're listening to and buy the MP3 of the song with a simple click of your mouse.
Pandora is part of the Music Genome Project - a project designed to analyze each individual song, not just lyrics and genre but the sound of the song - "everything from melody, harmony and rhythm, to instrumentation, orchestration, arrangement, lyrics and of course the rich world of singing and vocal harmony," pandora.com said. You do not just get another band that you've listened to 100 times, you're getting different kinds of music that are similar to the ones you already enjoy.
If you do not like a song, you can skip it - up to six times - or you can click the thumbs up, indicating that you like the song and Pandora will play more like that song.
Pandora also has an extensive selection of obscure bands. The website boasts that they started in 2000 and have since "carefully listened to the songs of tens of thousands of different artists." Finding new bands and artists to love is easy with Pandora. "We endeavor to include all the great new stuff coming out of studios, clubs and garages around the world," pandora.com said.
The site is very easy to navigate and can even be put on your cell phone, all for free. You can add and remove stations as you please and have as many as you like. You can also learn about upcoming music festivals and musical events.
So if downloading has got you down and you want a new way to listen to music, Pandora is free and easy to use - and worth trying out.
Pandora is internet radio that does just that. By searching for songs you already love, Pandora finds similar songs and plays them in seconds. You can also look up lyrics, find out more about the band, see bands that sound like the one you're listening to and buy the MP3 of the song with a simple click of your mouse.
Pandora is part of the Music Genome Project - a project designed to analyze each individual song, not just lyrics and genre but the sound of the song - "everything from melody, harmony and rhythm, to instrumentation, orchestration, arrangement, lyrics and of course the rich world of singing and vocal harmony," pandora.com said. You do not just get another band that you've listened to 100 times, you're getting different kinds of music that are similar to the ones you already enjoy.
If you do not like a song, you can skip it - up to six times - or you can click the thumbs up, indicating that you like the song and Pandora will play more like that song.
Pandora also has an extensive selection of obscure bands. The website boasts that they started in 2000 and have since "carefully listened to the songs of tens of thousands of different artists." Finding new bands and artists to love is easy with Pandora. "We endeavor to include all the great new stuff coming out of studios, clubs and garages around the world," pandora.com said.
The site is very easy to navigate and can even be put on your cell phone, all for free. You can add and remove stations as you please and have as many as you like. You can also learn about upcoming music festivals and musical events.
So if downloading has got you down and you want a new way to listen to music, Pandora is free and easy to use - and worth trying out.