I’ve become a massive Phantom FM fanboy in the past few weeks. It’s a seriously good station, for my eclectic tastes anyway and they certainly do an amazing job of promoting local talent too. I’ve not found loads of new Irish bands because of them and I’m very grateful for that. The DJs and the management also seem to *get* the idea of social networking sites and blogs and web forums with strong presences on Bebo, Facebook, Boards.ie and their various DJ blogs. All good but, the influence on my musical tastes from the station means I am listening to more new music than ever before after I had given up on other radio stations. Up to my Phantom epiphany, it was Sinead, Nialler, Una, Torture Garden, HiFi Popcorn and American music blogs that influenced me and one colleague in work who has great taste. I’m finding I’m listening less to my mp3 collection and instead I’m just tuning into Phantom, except the mid-morning and lunchtime slots. Sorry guys 🙂
But my gushing about Phantom is leading somewhere. I’d love to have a device, not necessarily a phone, with a 3g connection which allow me to bring Phantom with me as I travel about, with an additional “Want” button which will allow me to find out more info about the song playing and add it to a wishlist on my blog and which can plug into iTunes and every other music store too. I think I wouldn’t be too pushed about local storage anymore on a device, once it has a net connection and I can stream my own music and radio stations. Fits in a pocket with ease too. Last week Universal Music at the Nokia Go Play event said subscription services are on their way very soon and if so, where the hell is the capabilities in music devices for them? The latest iPod line missed out on that and Jobs seems to make bitchy statements about 3G:
WiFi, as you may know, is faster than any 3G cellular network, so it’s really fast.
It will take more than WiFi to have a proper streaming device if you want to walk around the streets listening to a radio stations 100s or 1000s of miles away.
Could you name some of the good American music blogs that you like?
http://iguessimfloating.blogspot.com/ I Guess I’m Floating You Ain’t No Picasso – http://www.youaintnopicasso.com/ Said the Gramophone – http://www.saidthegramophone.com/ (Actually Scottish) Good Weather For Airstrikes – http://www.goodweatherforairstrikes.com/
these are a few of my favourite things. 😉
Have you listened to Phantom while using a 3G mobile and walking in HS coverage? You could have part of the experience you crave. And you can get the “more” option if Phantom changed its streaming server to a Real box.
Here’s another two good state-side music blogs:
http://tankboyprime.blogspot.com/ TankBoy
http://pulpandcircumstance.blogspot.com/ Pulp and Circumstance
http://www.blogotheque.net/takeawayshows is pretty cool too…
although the main site is en francias (it’s Canadian), this section is bands like Arcade Fire / Lonely Dear / Sufjan Stevens etc playing live for webcams in bizare locations like the tops of buildings and inside lifts.
A “want” button? Sounds like you need TrackID (bundled with something along the lines of the 3network’s MusicStore), it comes with some of the Walkman Sony Ericson handsets.
It’s very usable.
I wrote a short blurb about it, back in March: http://www.sineadcochrane.com/?p=65
I’m a huge PhantomFM listener myself and I’ve tested it out and to my disspointement most of the Irish music they play isn’t listed in the Gracenote database – yet.
There’s always Visual Radio somewhere on the horizon.