I’m Streaming… But I Can’t Stop Buying Music!

I’m currently way down the rabbit hole with The Motels.

I’ve always loved the ‘hits’ (“Only the Lonely,” “Suddenly Last Summer”), but I never really took a deep dive into their catalog.

Until now. And what usually happens when I fall into the deep end of an artist’s catalog, I freak out and start consuming music content like a mad man.

I get a massive thrill when I discover music I missed the first time around, whether it’s from last year or 20 years ago. It’s like stumbling upon a pot of gold.

So here I am with The Motels.

And I want to know why “Little Robbers” is not available on Spotify or iTunes?

Anyway…. So I have Spotify open and I’m streaming away with old school Motels.

“All Four One” was released in 1982. I was 10. What I know of the album is “Only the Lonely,” which is a classic.

But now I’m loving tracks like “Art Fails” and “Change My Mind,” which I am listening to over and over again.

But I have my iTunes open and selectively picking a few Motels songs to purchase.

I’m a child of the iTunes/iPod revolution, so I have a special connection to my iTunes library and old (old) iPod. I like the idea of ‘ownership.’ I like knowing a certain song is on my iPod or in my library. I might not go back to that song for months, but I know it’s there!

I have Spotify ready to rock on the desktop, but for some reason I still have a compulsion to purchase music.

I certainly do not buy as much music as I did a few years ago, but my Wish List is stacked with songs close to the edge of purchase. If I sample a certain song enough times I often lose the excitement, then it just sits there in Wish List limbo forever.

I’m at that stage of phasing out of purchasing music where I really (really) need to love the song to buy it. A.C. Newman’s “I’m Not Talking” from the album “Shut Down the Streets” has been sitting patiently in Wish List for seems like years, but I won’t commit. I like the song, but I am happy to stream stream away.

But I did just buy “In the Blood” from John Mayer’s new album, along with Jake Xerxes Fussell’s “Pinnacle Mountain Silver Mine” off “What in the Natural World,” so there’s really no rhyme or reason.

I’ve hemmed and hawed over Genesis’ “Dusk” forever, but I’ll go off and buy every Gregory Porter song I can get my hands on.

It’s a compulsion.

I love streaming, and my streaming adventures have introduced me to a wealth of amazing music — old and new — I probably would have missed without the opportunity to stream.

My daily email newsletter is about music streaming, not music buying, but I’m still not beyond the occasional song/album purchase.

I’ve moved over to The Motels’ “Shock” album. And don’t sleep on Martha Davis’ 2004 solo album …So the Story Goes.

It’s not on iTunes! It’s on Spotify!

Streaming wins!