If you have a computer and listen to anything other than your “new message” alert noise on it, you probably take advantage of one of the many online music services. But each one has its own vibe and constituency; which one is most appropriate for you? Take our quiz and see!
Whose taste in music do you trust the most?
A. I used to listen to my British friends’ mix CDs; now I listen to their playlists
B. I could stare at my own “most played” list for hours
C. I love current pop hits, I just wish the radio didn’t have ads
D. Who needs a person’s “taste” when you have the Music Genome Project?
E. If you don’t at least have a Blogspot account, you’re dead to me
F. Steve Jobs is correct in all matters
Who’s your favorite artist of all time?
A. Daft Punk will be playing at my house forever
B. Radiohead. No contest
C. Susan Boyle is really inspirational
D. I bet you can guess from all the other artists on my station
E. You’ve probably never heard of them
F. The Beatles–I’m so happy I can finally listen to them on my computer!
Who’s your favorite new artist?
A. The XX still count as new, don’t they?
B. Okay, fine, I love Willow Smith’s “Whip My Hair”
C. Wiz Khalifa has a surprisingly deep repertoire
D. I heard something great the other day, but I didn’t catch the artist’s name
E. You’ve definitely never heard of them
F. Whoever’s in the current iTunes ad
Do you like to talk to your friends about your favorite music?
A. Dude: I have the best-curated neo-dubstep playlist ever
B. I think it’s more important that they know exactly what I’m listening to
C. Not really, but my friend made a totally sweet Black Eyed Peas lipdub video
D. My girlfriend made me a customized station, is that what you mean?
E. Endlessly, ideally while wearing Hipster Ariel glasses
F. I like giving my friends the opportunity to buy more tracks from iTunes
Are you willing to do a little hacking to have access to your service of choice?
A. Sure, proxies are easy enough to set up
B. You mean plug-ins to customize it, right?
C. Can I just pay a little bit of money and not have to worry about it?
D. I can’t even go into a coffee shop without “having access to it”
E. All I want to do is hoover up MP3s
F. How do I turn this thing off again?
SCORING
Guess what? You’re totally allowed to use more than one music service. But your answers above suggest where you might feel most at home.
A: Spotify (you do live in a country where it’s already available, right?)
B: Last.fm
C: MOG
D: Pandora Radio
E: The Hype Machine
F: iTunes Ping