Part 1 of this post is available here! This is the overdue second post where I look at what albums I listened to. I’m having a drink with this one. It might get nonsensical by the end. The way albums are calculated is that each track play counts towards an album play - the number given is the cumulative count of all track plays from the same album. Albums Total Number of Unique Albums Logged: 1,327 …

It’s no secret I like music. I get pretty excited about my favourite tunes and take great pleasure in finding new stuff to listen to. I’ve been using last.fm since 2005, when it was known as audioscrobbler. I’ve got a lovely long history of stuff built up there, tracking my music taste over the years from Flogging Molly to Sigur Ros to James Blunt and to whatever kind of a mess it is now. I fall in and out of scrobbling as time and convenience allows, so my annual listens aren’t that accurate. It doesn’t account for podcast mixes (which accounts for a large amount of my listening) and music I listen to in my car, as well, but that’s not that much these days, comparatively. …

Ugh, I’ve been meaning to blog for a while. Little projects to write up for future hibby. I’ve been so tired lately I’ve been forgetting, so I’ve tried to get into the habit of writing in my notepad what I’ve been doing at the close of play. It’s been quite productive - that’s where the last few blogs have come from and the RSGB convention writeups came from. 33C3 is nearly upon us and I’ve been horrifically disorganised for it. I felt I didn’t take advantage of last year’s conference enough, so I’m committing to do and see more this time round. My notepad and a pen are going to each talk I go to, and I shall take notes. I shall then write up my notes in a similar fashion to the RSGB convention notes. …

So last year, I did a video blog (vlog, I believe the kids call them) about Spotify. This year, I’m on a new service, and figured I’d share my thoughts for continuity. Plus, I get to go to bed earlier by starting earlier. (Note: I started this and it took 3 days to write. Turns out I had to do some thinking…) Here’s the old one, just FYI. What’s all this noise about? So - ‘All you can eat’ music services are great. I mean, you pay a negligible monthly fee and get access to millions of tracks to listen to. That’s great. Really great. Buying music, we all know, can get expensive if you’re not a mean bargain bin hunter at the 2 remaining record stores, so these fill the gap nicely. They also cater to, and possibly feed, the growing popular way of consuming music - randomly, all the time. Music is no longer an event - It has evolved from going to a concert to see an orchestra, going to a bar to see a singer or sharing folk music with your neighbours to being someone’s constant soundtrack. We run with headphones in, we drive with music playing, many workplaces are constantly buzzing with tunes or workers have headphones in. It’s absolutely everywhere. I’m just as guilty - I rarely have music not on ( Above and Beyond - Group Therapy now if you’re curious) - when doing all of the above and more. I use it as a mood modifier, as a background to thought, as a way to clear my head. Constant. Everywhere. Always. Don’t get me wrong - I’m not complaining, I love it. …