So you like to listen to music while you’re surfing the web. I don’t blame ya, I listen too. So many sites to choose from, but none really play anything all that great, and mostly what you hear are the “main” songs from certain CD’s followed by 60 minutes of commercials every few songs. There’s one site that I use quite frequently that isn’t as well known as some of the others but plays the music the “people” want to hear. How do I know this? I’ll explain.

Most of the “other” sites are headed by some lazy guy, sitting in a $2,000 leather office chair, in some office downtown somewhere worried about overhead and keeping the site afloat, all while dictating what music can be played via sponsorship by record labels, artists and what have you. Live365.com is run by the average joe, maybe sitting in a broken, plastic beach chair in front of a computer that’s paid for and has no overhead to worry about or “corporate sponsorship” to keep happy. Still don’t really get it? Ok. I’ll break it down as best I can for you.

Stations

Currently there are over 38,000 stations you can choose from. In a variety of musical genre’s. All the major music groups are of course here. Alternative, Oldies, Pop, R&B, Country, Rock, Talk, WorldBeat, Reggae, Blues, Classical, Comedy, Ambient, Electronica, Hip-Hop and Jazz. At the same time, some of those groups are broken down into separate genre’s within themselves. For example, the Electronica section is broken down into: Ambient, Jungle, Drum and Bass, Dance, House, Hard House, Trance, Techno, Experimental, Downtempo, Dub and Garage. Pick the style of music you want, if there happens to be a sub-category, choose that and browse the stations available for listening.

Station Types

There are five (5) station types. Commercial, which is a commercial station, much like what you will get on FM radio. Independentm which is created by an independent record label or recording artist. Live, a station broadcasting live. (You can even request music via AIM, MSN, ICQ etc. The broadcaster will have a contact name/number listed in his broadcaster profile) Official, which is an Official station of a recording artist or record label. And finally, Editor’s Pick, a station selected as buzz of the week, or featured broadcast.

When browsing the stations you will see 2 different icons, Stars and little people. The people tell you how many listeners are tuned into that station and the stars tell you how the listeners actually rated the station.

Referrals

You can refer people to the site, but you won’t make any money unless they sign up for a “Pro-Broadcasting” membership. There are two types of paid pro broadcasting tools basic and premium. Basic allows 150 listeners (simultaneously) for &150-$375 per month depending on the options you choose. Commercial free broadcasting and 365 MB of space to store music. (You don’t need to store it to play it, you can broadcast from your local machine) Premium gives you 365 listeners for $750+ monthly (again, depending on features chosen) commercial free and 500 MB space. I use the free service which allows me to play whatever music I like, when I like, on-air for people to enjoy and make a request if they like. My station is in the Electronica section under Hard House. Since I am a DJ (I do clubs and raves) I play mainly my mixes from live events that I have online as well as other performances from other DJ’s that are popular. As we speak, and as I type this epinion I am broadcasting live. If you’d like to take a listen (this is not a referral link, nor will I benefit at all if you visit) you can tune into my broadcast at

http://www.live365.com/stations/254107

Take a listen, and take a look, it just might change the way you listen to music online forever!


Recommended: Yes