Discovering Music: last.fm Alternatives Part 1

In my last article discussing the recent addition of several features to last.fm, I discussed the possibility of many of it's members leaving due to the decision to require members living outside of the US, UK, and Germany to pay a subscribtion fee to be able to use their software. Since being bought out by CBS in May of 2007, last.fm has implemented a number of changes to it's website and software based on a corporate business model being implemented rather than listening to it's members. Last July last.fm angered thousands of it's users by overhauling the entire site without giving them an option to revert back to the old layout. In the process they changed much of the functionality and did away with the simplicity that attracted many users in the first place.

last.fm still remains my preferred method for discovering new music, but I must admit that the alternatives are beginning to look better and better. So without further ado, allow me to introduce a few great alternatives to last.fm for discovering, streaming, and downloading music.

Social Networks

I would consider last.fm a social network for discovering music, so I will start with the services that best match up with the features that last.fm has to offer. First up is the network that has been making a lot of headlines recently:

Spotify - http://spotify.com

Many are calling Spotify the last.fm killer. This is a bold claim considering it is still in it's infacy, remaining in the beta testing phase at the moment. Membership is also limited to UK residents for now, but this will change as soon as they transition out of beta phase, and there are methods for bypassing this restriction. Spotify isn't as much of a social network either, but I have included it in this category because it is the most like last.fm in it's functionality, and for it's features such as collaborative playlist sharing, Spotify boasts an impressive number of features, a vast collection of music ready to stream, and most importantly, the necessary momentum that would make it the most likely candidate to eventually win over last.fm's members.

Pros: Massive selection including many full albums available for streaming, advanced player with "previous track" and "pause" buttons, Create and share unlimited playlists, playlist Sharing

Cons: Only available in the UK for now, Audio Adverts (Removed by paying a fee) Lesser known genres and even some mainstream artists aren't represented yet.

Mog:
Mog shares many features with last.fm, although it's limited selection of streaming music will prevent if from ever topping last.fm. Mog generates charts based on the tracks you have listened to, allows members to create a profile page, and recommends music and user contributed articles based on your taste. Unlike last.fm, Mog requires you to download a small program called MOG-O-MATIC which is used to auto-sync your music library and listening history with your Mog profile.
User generated content is more prevalent on Mog, as member's blog posts are presented as articles, and delivered to you based on your listening habits. The biggest downside to Mog is that it appears to be geared more towards allowing you to discover new music, rather than actually listening to it, as the selection of songs available for streaming is very limited at the moment.

Pros: Very active member base including many well known artists, Recommendations based on your musical taste, Personalized feed informing you of new albums and friend's activities

Cons: Poor selection of music available for streaming, No player for streaming music offline, MOG-O-MATIC client tried to take control of other services and apps

Grooveshark - http://grooveshark.com

The power of Grooveshark lies in it's simplicity and speed. Upon visiting the site, one can almost instantly search for and play music, build a playlist, and share it with anyone. The great thing is that there are millions of fully streamable tracks to choose from. Although social networking features are available, they take a backseat to the music discovery aspect of the site. The recent addition of the "Autoplay" service turns the site into a Pandora style radio station as it allows visitors to search for tracks, listen in and then click on "Autoplay" which will build a playlist based on your initial choice. Autoplay can then proceed to build a picture of your listening interests as it gives you the option to give tracks the thumbs up, thumbs down or add the it to your favorites. Another great feature offered by Grooveshark is the ability to upload your music collection using the Grooveshark Music Uploader, and then then play it from any computer via the Grooveshark website. I have yet to test out this feature, but a few friends have informed me that they have been using the uploader and listening to their collection from work without a hitch.

Pros: Simplistic speedy interface, large selection of full length streamable songs, upload your music and access it from any computer, embeddable web widgets

Cons: Search results need work, social networking features are lacking, deep navigation can be tedious

Blip.fm - http://blip.fm

Blip.fm is the equivalent of Twitter for music fans. Once you sign on you simply search for a song or upload your own mp3, "blip" it, and write a short message limited to 150 charcters. Each member is dubbed a DJ, and you are given 13 "prop credits" when you first sign up to give out to other DJs. The developers have hinted to the fact that these credits will serve some sort of practical purpose in the near future. Once you find fellow members with similar taste, you can follow them and their updates will appear on your personal page (not to be confused with your profile page). You can also automatically send updates to a select number of social networks including last.fm, twitter, friendfeed, and ping.fm. I recently wrote a more in depth review of blip.fm which you can find here: Join me on blip.fm

Edit: I just read a bit of unfortunate news on the official blip.fm blog. Blip.fm will no longer allow their members to upload their own mp3 files, and they will be be offering streaming music exclusively through Imeem. This is a huge blow, and has outraged a number of long time and devoted blip members. This could prove to be the beginning of the end for blip unless they are able to implement a new plan soon.


Pros: Simple to use, integration with social networks, embeddable widgets

Cons: Lack of a message board and private messaging system, Developers have opted for stream tracks exclusively through Imeem, and will soon no longer allow members to upload their own mp3s (This has yet to be implemented)

Deezer - http://deezer.com

Deezer, formerly known as Blogmusik, is a French site which provides free on-demand music from several major record labels, including Universal, Warner and Sony BMG. Deezer's main strength is that it allows you to play any track from it's catalogue on demand, which is the only major advantage it has over last.fm. There are currently over 2.6 million tracks to choose from, which is mighty impressive for a relative newcomer to the scene. As with similar sites, members are able to create profiles, create and share playlists, along with a few other basic social networking features. There are also a few generic radio stations to choose from, although don't expect to hear anything too obscure being played.


Pros: Massive selection of free on-demand music, active community and forum, SmartRadio plays tracks based on your favorite artists and previous input

Cons: Recommendations need more work, developers are considering using adverts in the near future, record companies are pressuring deezer to put regional restrictions in place

Next Installment: last.fm Alternatives Part 2

Due to time restraints, I will have to conclude this segment of last.fm alternatives. In the next installment I will finish reviewing music sites which incorporate social networking elements. I plan to cover iLike, Imeem, as well a few other lesser known services. Once I’ve finished up with the social networking segment, I’ll begin the next segment which will be covering music discovery sites, ranging from those that help you discover music based on similar artists ala Pandora, to those that recommend music based on a mood you select, such as Musicover. In the final segment I will focus on programs and web services which focus on streaming radio.

If you know of a good website for discovering music please help me out by leaving a comment. I will continue to update each segment of the “Discovering Music: last.fm Alternatives” series of posts as I am made aware of and review new websites. As always, feel free to share your thoughts concerning the services I have reviewed, as well as any criticism you might have, constructive or otherwise.