I'm an INTJ with OCD, and as such I study my latest musical discoveries of micro-genres, artists, or movements obsessively for days or weeks at a time, with a meticulous methodology for listening.
I drafted a process guide at one point but I've honed the procedure so that it has become invisible and instinctive.
But for the sake of simplicity, here is an excerpt from pp 32 of The Innerspace Library Emergency Reboot Manual which summarizes my listening process:
Quote:
GOING FORWARD – EXPANDING THE LIBRARY
1. Discover something which would be of value to the archive
2. Research the history of genre, historical/social context, etc
3. Read Wikipedia entry for the genre and log all relevant artists
4. Read related literature (e.g. Mark Pendergast's The Ambient Century in the case of ambient music)
4. Check for essentials Collages of the genre
5. Generate a Custom Chart at RYM with the following parameters:
TOP + ALBUMS + ALL-TIME + ONLY INCLUDE GENRES: + [GENRE] + SUB-GENRES + AS RATED BY RYM USERS
6. Log the top 20 entries / albums with a score of
3.5 or higher
7. Cross-reference Collages, Wiki recommendations, literature highlights, and RYM Top 20 to find recordings named in 3 or more sources.
(Get these albums first.)
8. Obtain all box sets and compilations related to genre
9. If there is a label directly associated with genre, pick up a discographic archive of the label (Ninja Tune, Warp, Ohr, Nonesuch, Deutsche Grammophon Avant-Garde, etc)
10. Pick up all albums, EPs and singles from the artists within the top 20 release map
11. Structure ALBUM tags and folders chronologically by date of release: "[YEAR] ALBUM"
12. Construct playlists:
A. ~60-100 disc map of albums representing genre
B. Record label playlists (if applicable)
C. A top 10 essential albums set
D. Separate playlist for artists with 50 or more albums in their discography
13. Listen to recordings, beginning with albums from step 7, then top 10 essentials list, then first 2 LPs from each artist, and so on
14. Purchase original or best-mastered pressings of the finest examples from these collections. Buy directly from their labels where available. Secure imports from established channels. Combine shipping where possible.
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I may modify this process to incorporate the RYM Ultimate Box Set, which might streamline a few of the stages. But at present this is how I listen to music.