Be Cool Like Me (sic)...

People never say to me, “Rob, there’s no way that I can match your rugged good looks, laissez faire charm or razor sharp intelligence, can you at least tell me how you have such an awesome and up to date taste in music?” If however, this unlikely scenario does occur then I thought it might be worth giving a few top tips on how to keep on the ball without spending a penny.

1. Read the Press

Now I understand that the thought of shelling out for the NME, a music weekly that has a 50% bloated opinion 50% nonsensical metaphor ratio, might make any self-reverential snob cry into his 7” copy of ‘This Charming Man’ in revulsion but I firmly believe this much derided publication represents as good a starting point any. Furthermore, with the advent of nme.com, no-one has to know your secret shame. The website contains one of the most up-to-date music news feeds on the web, all the magazines reviews are published online and its blog section has turned me onto some hidden gems that may have otherwise passed me by completely.

Make sure you check out: 10 Tracks You Have To Hear This Week

If you can’t bring yourself to do it: pitchforkmedia.com, drownedinsound.com & gigwise.com

2. Keep Ahead Of Trend

There’s nothing more self-satisfying than uttering the phrase “Oh, I thought everyone heard them ages ago”, you may be surprised to find though that this level of pretentiousness is easily attainable. Any hit record needs the Radio 1 seal of approval to make a splash as radio is still vital to making a breaking an artist. All BBC stations release their playlists on a Wednesday afternoon, A & B lists will usually contain a number of familiar ground but the Radio 1 C and 1 Upfront lists are specifically designed to test the public’s response to more off kilter records. Keep your ears trained on these tracks and you’ll be more than familiar with them when the bands hit the mainstream.

Make sure you check out: Radio One playlist

If you want to look further afield: Billboard Hot 100, Last FM Hyped Artists & MusicWeek.com

3. Listen, Listen, Listen

The most obvious answer but also the hardest to pull off (legally) whilst adhering to a budget. Until the advent of Spotify, that is. If you have no qualms about holding ownership over the music and can live without the likes of AC/DC, The Beatles, Metallica, Led Zeppelin and Pink Floyd then welcome to a world instantly streamed free music. Adverts will occasionally punctuate the tracks but when the library contains thousands of classics and as of this week, every top 10 release since January, does anyone care?

Make sure you check out: Spotify

Feeling crafty: file2hd.com (MySpace track ripper), Hype Machine (aggregator of mp3s posted on blogs) and Sordo Music Database (password: quack).