This week I thought I would explore the world of net radio. I have been active with radio online for quite a few years, and I thought that it would be worth exploring these types of sites this week. Enjoy!

Launch - http://www.launch.com

Launch was a small mp3 service that just exploded, becoming one of the largest online radio outlets, especially after Yahoo bought them out. Unlike terrestrial radio services, your "station" is created by you, by rating music on the service, from individual songs and artists to genres and sub-genres, which allows a lot of flexibility and diversity of radio experiences between individual users. Additionally, the site also features a lot of music videos for you to watch, but the main focus of the site is audio. There are only 2 drawbacks that I can think of at the moment to using Launch. One is the limitation on the free service of only around 350 songs per month, which makes listening to it every day perhaps problematic, and secondly, it runs on Windows Media Player, so non-Microsoft systems may not be able to use the service.

Live365 - http://www.live365.com

Back when in the dark days of 2000, I had a station here myself... and then the bandwidth charges started for station owners, and that ended a lot of budding E-DJ's careers dead in their tracks. That being said, even after that diaspora, it still has quite a few excellent stations to listen to, and I've always found the fact that stations are programmed from mp3's their owners have uploaded refreshing, as it allows a level of  local and cult music that other services may not be able to match. They've also made it easy to find stations that play artists that you particularly like, which is always a plus.

Now, let's go a bit off the beaten path.

SpankRadio - http://www.spankradio.com

Based in Dallas, this station is a real labour of love. Started back in 1997 as part of a larger service, SpankRadio is a streaming indie/eclectic station that has a vast repertoire of artists on its playlist. I learned about the station on Friendster, and from the first time I listened to it, I found it quite enjoyable. But as it is a labour of love, Angela Harlan, the CEO/President of SpankRadio has been working 2 jobs to keep it running... so it might not last too much longer without donations. 

Hober - http://hober.com/ 

As described on bandlink.net: "Listener-supported online stream playing a wide variety of Old Time, Traditional, Folk, Celtic, Bluegrass, World, and music by emerging artists." I have been pleasantly surprised when I've listened to Hober in the past, as they've always managed to play something that I've never heard before, and it's in a style that just makes me want to hear more of that kind of music. A great selection, and great play order make this wonderful station a can't miss. I also like the fact that they print letters from their fans, and post recipes of all things as well.

Batanga - http://www.batanga.com/en/default.asp

All Latin, all the time. If you like Latin music at all, then this is the site for you. Available in both English and Spanish(the site, not the music), this site has 19 different streams to fill your hunger, from Spanish Classic Rock to Merengue to Cubanisimo... and almost everything in between. It provides a great cross-section of Latin music, and the rhythm's to die for. One problem is it does have some occasional small pop-up ads for CD's, but that is about it. Now, can I stop saying Latin... I think I can

QUICK BIT: 89.9 FM KCRW, Santa Monica's most eclectic radio station... with great interviews and studio performances worth checking out.

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