Where are you based?
Sleepy Hollow, NY
Where do you work? What do you do?
I’m the founder and president of Toolshed, a digital music strategy and licensing consultancy.
What are you listening to?
Gillian Welch, Run the Jewels, Kendrick Lamar, Sufjan Stevens, Local Natives
How do you discover new music?
I read Pitchfork’s emails daily. I pay attention to a number of blogs including Largehearted Boy, Stereogum, Brooklyn Vegan, and Consequence of Sound. I follow a handful of playlists, but not really any genre-based playlists. Enjoy Release Radar and Discover Weekly…and am a subscriber to a variety of artist-focused subscription programs, private ones and also on Patreon. Also subscribe to a large number of music newsletters and emailouts direct from artists. Follow a variety of labels and artists I like on social media.
What formats do you usually listen to? LP, CD, Cassette, Digital, Streaming Services? Why?
I regularly purchase vinyl, and listen to it as well 🙂 Other than that, primarily streaming services.
Where do you do most of your music listening?
I listen when I’m cooking dinner over my Echo streaming device, and on the weekends at home on my Marantz stereo (the big guns). I am always listening to something in the car – these days, probably split 50-50 between podcasts and audio. I subscribe to a variety of services – YouTube Music, Spotify, Apple Music, Tidal. I’m part of Third Man Record’s vinyl subscription through Tidal. I might be one of the only people who regularly still uses a Pono player on airplanes, with noise-cancelling headphones…
“I might be one of the only people who regularly still uses a Pono player on airplanes, with noise-cancelling headphones…”
How do you find and listen to pre-release music?
I used to spend a lot of time looking for pre-release music. These days, with “Follow” buttons on streaming services, I’m usually happy to wait for the music to just come out 🙂
What are your frustrations with listening to music digitally? Any benefits?
I don’t get as many links as I used to when I had a music marketing company. I do use iTunes Match, have been subscribed to it since it started. I like listening to digital music in my car and when cooking. More likely to listen to hi-res digital music if I’m really listening. I listen to albums when I want to *really* listen.
How do you keep track of everything you are listening to?
I “like” an album, and when I’m in an exploratory mood, I go through and listen to music I haven’t heard before. I also shazam music regularly.
Do you tip other people off to new music? How?
Yes I do – a smaller circle than I used to. Use Twitter primarily for this.
