Inertia

Ever since 2006, whenever I was in the mood for music (training for dance, having a party, cardio at the gym), Pandora has been my go-to application. I’m used to it. It works. Okay, things were annoying – like that six month stretch when the only ad it played for me was for feminine hygiene projects – but it was an easy, no-brainer choice.

Working from home has had me wanting some background music. I was using Pandora until it told me I had to disable my popup blocker, which wasn’t running on the site. It put me in a perpetual loop. That bumped me from annoyed to pissed, and there was no looking back.

I used Amazon Music (the paid version!) for our wedding. I put it on an extended time out because it is the reason our ceremony started five minutes late: The night before the ceremony it randomly downloaded hundreds of songs into the folder that was supposed to have only two – the processional and recessional. Somewhere in the back of my head I figured it was probably operator error, but with Pandora at the ready, I didn’t need to think about that.

But Amazon Music has a free version and there would be no learning curve as there would be for any other service, so I tried it again. I cried when I saw that the playlist DH2U and I had worked so hard on for the reception was still there. I listened to that. I listened to all sorts of new-to-me stations. And it is wonderfully commercial free!

It didn’t have the equivalent of one of my Pandora stations – Oh Brother Where art Thou – so I had to build my own. This was quite an enjoyable rabbit hole discovering wonderful new-to-me music from the 1920s and 30s. It is so … me. The other day I had the song “Easter Parade” stuck in my head.

When I found myself missing my grandparents, I found a station of classic country music. I can picture being at their house with that music playing in the background. Steel guitars bring back those memories. I love it.

What new-to-you music have you discovered during the pandemic?