Ben Alexander was the guy who ran Constellation.fm and helped shepherd the short Crush On Radio third season into the world. This was a fascinating talk on how discovering music changed, along with some weird musical synchronicity in our lives. Ben seems to have disappeared from the Internets, but if you’re out there, say hi. You’re missed.
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Original Show Notes
Ben Alexander joins Rich to discuss The Postal Service’s first (and only) album Give Up, which ends up into a discussion of music discovery in the pre- and post-Internet age.
0:01:03 It’s Been Invigorating
The almost anonymous ubiquity of The Postal Service, and the darkness of music, post 9/11.
- WMMS
- KCRW
- The Postal Service
- Death Cab for Cutie
- Give Up
- The District Sleeps Alone Tonight
- Iron & Wine – Such Great Heights
0:09:05 We Have Great Bands And They Leave
The discovery process for music, and how the world of music gets smaller in the early 2000s, shifting from radio to the Internet.
0:18:22 We Can Talk About The Album
Actually talking about Give Up, and analog and digital.
- We Will Become Silhouettes
- Jenny Lewis
- Rilo Kiley
- Sub Pop
- Sub Pop Records lands at Sea-Tac
- Casiotone for the Painfully Alone
25:18 Music Production is Officially Democratized
The production of Give Up and the movement to digital music production—limitations and the lack thereof.
- Everything That Happens Will Happen Today
- Love This Giant
- GarageBand
- Steinberg Cubase
- The Long Winters – Scared Straight (Live)
- Muscle Shoals Sound Studio
- Muscle Shoals
- Lynyrd Skynyrd – Sweet Home Alabana
- Muscle Shoals Rhythm Section (aka The Swampers)
0:33:45 Would You Recognize Ben Gibbard On The Street
Popular music in the Internet age, being a music celebrity (or not), and what make s a band, then and now.