A common question among students who are meeting for the first time is: “What type of music do you like the most?” The student being asked may reply with the usual pop, rock, rap, or indie. Someone may wonder if the student is telling the truth. Perhaps even the student may be wondering if he is telling the truth. Does he have a more varied taste than he knows? Does he listen to another artist twice as much as his favorite artist? Does he like a song or artist more than he is willing to admit?  Signing up for Last.fm may be the best way for him or anyone else to answer those questions.

Last.fm forms accurate charts of all the artists and songs someone listens to, automatically organizing every artist and song from most listened to least listened to with the information The Scrobbler software gathered from a user’s iPod and elsewhere. The Scrobbler software “scrobbles” or records every song users listen to on their iPods or compatible on-computer media players. The site also recommends music to users and allow users to find “neighbors,” or people who have similar music tastes to themselves.

First-time users most likely will need to read the FAQ section on Last.fm about iPod scrobbling and general scrobbling to help with setting The Scrobbler software up or troubleshooting problems.

Features on the Last.fm site range greatly. Users can spend hours exploring the many additions to the site and seeing how their music tastes match up to other users’. Recently, the site added an “Originals” section that shows concerts of and features on a user’s favorite artists. The complete “Live on Letterman” Mumford and Sons concert streamed live on the site Wednesday, September 26. The concert is still on the site, if any MHS students would like to view it. Users can visit  Last.fm Tools (not run by the Last.fm site, but affiliated with it) to create a “cloud image” of their favorite artists, albums, music genres, and other options.

Spotify (a downloadable music player), Rdio.com and Mog.com all scrobble music to a user’s profile. Just follow the steps provided by each individual software or site.

Last.fm is an excellent site for any MHS music lover to sign up for. The site would also do for anyone who just wants to see what he or she truly listens to. Maybe a student will discover that Mumford and Sons isn’t –but Rihanna is–the artist he listens to the mostt.