new order & spoon entries are like looking in a mirror! though confusion (off substance) is my favorite new order song. thanks for sharing this, it was a blast to read :)
Very creative idea, Kevin....mad props! As Chris's skill sets, to me anyway, are so unusually coupled...and, certainly, enviable (the merging of the artistic with the analytical), I've been trying to think of ways to "use him," and have come up empty!
Chris, this had to be fun for you...I'm picturing Mr. Burns rubbing his hands together: "Excellent!" I'm trying to restrain myself from being the first to rush up to you, going, "Ooh, do me, do me!"
For those who would like Chris to "do you," the tactful and tasteful thing to do, of course, would be to....ahem.....drop a little coin into his subscription box....as the kids would mumble, "just sayin'!"
Kevin deserves a little coin-coin, too, yo, for this creative (and revealing!) idea, not to mention for his consistently delicious ear candy we're happy to consume!👂🍬🎶👍 Well done, gents!
Bravo Kevin and Chris! I already knew about your love for New Order and the B52’s but - The Go! Team and more Janet Jackson than I would assume made my heart do tippy taps. This is such an intimate way to get to know someone. I would want something like this read as my eulogy.
My question is whether or not you spin vinyl Because that would potentially significantly distort the numbers, depending on how you listen. I don't think my Spotify profile would be at all accurate because the most important stuff that I listen to is on vinyl.
I thought about that the other day. How a lot of artists are not going to be accurately represented in terms of their popularity on Spotify because they're the kinds of artists who get played on vinyl most frequently. Obviously the Beatles, but also Fleetwood, Mac, Pink Floyd, the Stones, etc.
I occasionally feel guilty for spinning vinyl because I'm not upping the stream count on my favorite artists. This is what the algorithm has done to our brains...
Tunnel of Love, huh? Solo Bruce. I do love a lot from that era. There's old Bruce, BIUSA Bruce, solo Bruce and new Bruce and I'd put Magic up against anything from old or solo Bruce.
This is so cool. It may not come as a huge surprise that I predominantly listen to music on vinyl (with the odd streaming whilst on the move). Some in the vinyl community like to point out that no one can “control” or “monitor” what you listen to when you spin vinyl. At the same time, gathering all this useful info about one’s own listening habits wouldn’t be so easy with vinyl, so I guess there are pros and cons with everything.
I remember when last.fm was a thing being mortified that there was no way to add an asterisk and explain all the Take That songs were for singalongs with my 8 yr old daughter.
Is Spotify the only way to make a playlist on substack?
This is a good start, but we need live, minute by minute analysis of what Kevin is listening to and what he is doing. Chris, can you set up a live data connection to Kevin's Spotify account an publish a dashboard? Also, we'll need a GPS tracker and brainwave reader if we really want some answers! But seriously, really great piece. Here's an idea, have as many people as you can submit profiles, do a similar alphabetical band name analysis and connected anyone with a match on Notes! Sure that would require a lot of work, but somebody has to do it (not me).
Kevin, let's talk about Jawbreaker some time. I saw them in 1993 at a show in South Carolina. It was certainly one of the biggest punk shows I had been to up until that point, and I actually knew some of their songs!
This was fascinating - thanks you Chris and Kevin! I had no idea that you could request your data from Spotify. I'm glad to see Husker Du is your top H band.
love this post! i often wonder what my spotify data would look like. As I also work as a music supervisor I would imagine its somewhat all over the place depending what show I am working on. Your top artist list shares a lot with mine, I imagine. #JawbreakerForever
What Am I Really Listening To?
new order & spoon entries are like looking in a mirror! though confusion (off substance) is my favorite new order song. thanks for sharing this, it was a blast to read :)
Great investigation of Kevin's listening history. I should check mine out now!
Very creative idea, Kevin....mad props! As Chris's skill sets, to me anyway, are so unusually coupled...and, certainly, enviable (the merging of the artistic with the analytical), I've been trying to think of ways to "use him," and have come up empty!
Chris, this had to be fun for you...I'm picturing Mr. Burns rubbing his hands together: "Excellent!" I'm trying to restrain myself from being the first to rush up to you, going, "Ooh, do me, do me!"
For those who would like Chris to "do you," the tactful and tasteful thing to do, of course, would be to....ahem.....drop a little coin into his subscription box....as the kids would mumble, "just sayin'!"
Kevin deserves a little coin-coin, too, yo, for this creative (and revealing!) idea, not to mention for his consistently delicious ear candy we're happy to consume!👂🍬🎶👍 Well done, gents!
Bravo Kevin and Chris! I already knew about your love for New Order and the B52’s but - The Go! Team and more Janet Jackson than I would assume made my heart do tippy taps. This is such an intimate way to get to know someone. I would want something like this read as my eulogy.
My question is whether or not you spin vinyl Because that would potentially significantly distort the numbers, depending on how you listen. I don't think my Spotify profile would be at all accurate because the most important stuff that I listen to is on vinyl.
I thought about that the other day. How a lot of artists are not going to be accurately represented in terms of their popularity on Spotify because they're the kinds of artists who get played on vinyl most frequently. Obviously the Beatles, but also Fleetwood, Mac, Pink Floyd, the Stones, etc.
I occasionally feel guilty for spinning vinyl because I'm not upping the stream count on my favorite artists. This is what the algorithm has done to our brains...
Tunnel of Love, huh? Solo Bruce. I do love a lot from that era. There's old Bruce, BIUSA Bruce, solo Bruce and new Bruce and I'd put Magic up against anything from old or solo Bruce.
Thanks for having me, Kevin. As a Springsteen stan I am still shocked by this Tunnel of Love knowledge. Lol
This is so cool. It may not come as a huge surprise that I predominantly listen to music on vinyl (with the odd streaming whilst on the move). Some in the vinyl community like to point out that no one can “control” or “monitor” what you listen to when you spin vinyl. At the same time, gathering all this useful info about one’s own listening habits wouldn’t be so easy with vinyl, so I guess there are pros and cons with everything.
Neat! tx guys
I remember when last.fm was a thing being mortified that there was no way to add an asterisk and explain all the Take That songs were for singalongs with my 8 yr old daughter.
Is Spotify the only way to make a playlist on substack?
This was so cool! And also introduced me to Chris’s newsletter, which is fascinating.
300 Points for listening to The Mountain Goats.
"Come, Come To The Sunset Tree (Demos)" is my favorite - but it's a bonus disc I can only find on YT.
I am partial to "Brilliant Disguise" over "Tunnel Of Love." But to each their own!
This is a good start, but we need live, minute by minute analysis of what Kevin is listening to and what he is doing. Chris, can you set up a live data connection to Kevin's Spotify account an publish a dashboard? Also, we'll need a GPS tracker and brainwave reader if we really want some answers! But seriously, really great piece. Here's an idea, have as many people as you can submit profiles, do a similar alphabetical band name analysis and connected anyone with a match on Notes! Sure that would require a lot of work, but somebody has to do it (not me).
Kevin, let's talk about Jawbreaker some time. I saw them in 1993 at a show in South Carolina. It was certainly one of the biggest punk shows I had been to up until that point, and I actually knew some of their songs!
"or tell you what you liked sucks."
Counterpoint: Florida Georgia Line and Imagine Dragons suck and people who listen to them need to know lol
Also, I am very excited about doing a Spotify Wrapped Notes discussion at the end of the year. Or even do a whole thread on it.
This was fascinating - thanks you Chris and Kevin! I had no idea that you could request your data from Spotify. I'm glad to see Husker Du is your top H band.
love this post! i often wonder what my spotify data would look like. As I also work as a music supervisor I would imagine its somewhat all over the place depending what show I am working on. Your top artist list shares a lot with mine, I imagine. #JawbreakerForever