Streaming Music

In my ever-changing search for the best and easiest way to listen to music for free while on-the-go, I've tried several methods.

The first was to simply use a separate mp3 player. This allowed for the most control over the music I'm listening to, at the cost of obtaining the music and manually synching it. There was also the issue of creating playlists, which is something I'm not good at. Another downside was that while listening to the mp3 player, I was unable to hear phone calls/texts/etc. However without having a smartphone, this was my only option.
Once I got a smartphone, I discovered I was able to listen to FM radio stations through my phone. This allowed me to be able to hear incoming calls/texts/notifications while listening to music. Since it was a radio station I was exposed to new music that I wouldn't have in my collection. However, not only did I have to put up with commercials, but also static and noise due to poor reception or interference.
The next thing I tried was Slacker Radio. I chose them because their app came pre-installed on my phone and was unremoveable. I had used Last.FM in the past, but their mobile app was not free, and that was a deal-breaker. Slacker radio initially seemed to be a good choice. I was able to choose genres and let them pick a playlist for me. The service was free, and the commercials were few and far-between. At least initially. With each update to the application, they removed more and more features from the free version, and increased the frequency of commercials. On top of that there were blatant bugs that were never addressed, like songs skipping randomly, or the app crashing.

Then Google Music came along. "This is Google," I thought. "Surely their product will be flawless, free, and feature-filled."
For starters, you have to upload your personal music collection to their servers, so no discovering new music. Not to mention it takes ages for anyone with a decent music collection (although that is more of a complaint against my ISP and the poor infrastructure in the US). Not a deal-breaker, although with each corrupted or mislabeled song it becomes a bigger issue.
The app's UI is decent enough, although it takes longer than I'd like to start playing music. An instant-shuffle of an artist, album, or genre should be more easily accessible. Another thing is that when a notification plays on the phone, the music dims, but does not pause. This may not seem like much, but even Slacker radio paused the song then automatically resumed it when the notification sound stopped. The instant playlist option is nice, though it heavily favors the artist of the first song, and the playlist is too short. Ideally the playlist would continue to add new songs as needed.
The bugs are not disastrous, but are still annoying. Songs will sometimes repeat without the repeat option being on, and without updating the display to indicate that it is being repeated. It also often takes more than one try to get a song/playlist/etc to start playing.

Overall, Google Music lacks the polish and quality of Google's other services. After some improvement, it could be a very good replacement for carrying around a separate music player, however it's unlikely that it'll be able to replace music streaming services.
Right now its biggest upside to me is that it's free and I don't need to create yet another account solely to stream music.

Filling the Musical Hole

I was raised in a very musical household. Both my parents are music teachers, and teach piano or other instruments, as well as direct choirs. Both play musical instruments, my dad being able to play essentially every non-string instrument in an orchestra.
So naturally I was heavily involved in music from a very young age. I was in every choir I could, even making it into the "elite" choir in high school. At the same time I played trumpet in band, jazz band, and pep band, going on to be the section chair my senior year (in case any of this sounds too impressive, it was a very small school, so the "elite" choir only had 14 students in it, and being the upper brass section chair in band meant I was the head of a group of about 7 people).

Being also a very religious household, the music was at every possible opportunity tied to religion. The church choir performed during church services, the high school band and choir concerts were at Christmas and Easter, and every year choirs from various Lutheran high schools would gather and put on a big concert.
So when I realized I was an atheist, the music I had performed was another reminder of my old religious life. Sure I had performed non-religious music, but religion and music were so closely connected that I couldn't comprehend being part of a secular musical group. It was partially for that reason that when I went off to college, I didn't join any musical groups (the other big reason was I feared I wouldn't be nearly good enough).

From time to time I've missed being in a choir or band, especially when hearing jazz music. Then there was the night I got wasted and decided to play my trumpet for the first time in four years. I was told I didn't sound too bad.
What really made me realize I missed being musical though was the song "It's You" from The Music Man soundtrack coming up randomly in my playlist. My high school performed The Music Man my junior year, and I was the bass singer in the barbershop quartet. Even five years later, I could still sing along with the bass line, albeit with a few mistakes.



I've written before about my motivational problems, and I think a lot of it comes from my bleak outlook on life. I don't seem to have any lasting sources of enjoyment. The fun I do have is temporary and more often than not includes alcohol and/or video games.
Hearing that barbershop quartet made me realize just how much I missed performing music. Musical ability is literally in my genes and I've been avoiding or denying that for years now. Performing music was a genuine source of enjoyment for me, and perhaps it still is. Perhaps that is what I need to improve my outlook on life.


Now then, how do I get back into it? As my drunken trumpeting showed, I still have the capability to play, but I'm nowhere near at the level I was back in high school. It would take months of practice before I would be ready to even think about trying out for one of Purdue's bands, and even then I'm not sure if I would have the time.

Bah, excuses. The only hurdles I have to face are getting music, getting a room to practice in, and getting my ass to practice regularly.
But like so many other things, music is more fun if played in a group. I would love to get together with a group of like-minded individuals and just do some casual playing. No long hours of practice, no fancy concerts, just a group of people performing music for the love of it.
I would also like to be part of a barbershop quartet again. Nothing professional, just four guys singing for the sake of singing. I would imagine we would be a hit at parties. Barbershops are very hip, right?

I Have Anger Issues

I punched a cup. And broke it.

Context: Modern Warfare 3 went free for the weekend, and those games tend to make me rage. Now going back to TF2 I can feel my blood getting hot when my team sucks.

Modern Warfare, WHAT HAVE YOU DONE TO ME?