poll: Muzak.com bankrupt - good or bad news?

too many illegal downloads?

end of an era, kind of, but not really, because they were supplanted by the ideology they helped advance - that of music as an environmental accessory. at one point, muzak seemed intrusive; as the concept took hold, people began using regular ol' music-music, and the need for a specialized "music that can play in the background" dropped. to the detriment of public life in my opinion - I wish I didn't have to hear oldies radio at intrudes-on-conversation level at my bank - but that's another discussion.

I think they've been partially supplanted by niche 'backround music" companies that have skimmed off the high-end retail/hotel/lounges.

killed by indie-friendly electrodribble

stop

Although Muzak is best known for its elevator music, in recent years the company has shifted its focus toward music-related services, such as designing playlists and installing sound systems in retail stores.

The playlists – the PLAYLISTS are the thing. Muzak now works like a satellite radio w/a couple of different stations that play different kinds of music (innocuous modern pop, oldies, classic rock, etc, like you'd expect). And the thing is it's just a four hour playlist of that station's genre LOOPED every four hours. So if you work retail you know what's coming up next after every single song, and you start to get all Pavloved out for the specific times of the 3 songs you really like in the four-hour set. At the first of the month they change the playlist.

I found a bunch of stations on Muzak that were not advertised on the box (that showed 10 popular frequencies). For example, one that played only Hawaiian music. The holiday station was great, too – it got turned on at Christmas, but they did set up playlists for pretty much every holiday. Halloween's was great, of course.

j/k x-post

i like hearing actual songs in grocery stores now. it seems like restaurants haven't caught on to this, which is weird to me. most restaurant music is distracting in its blandness imo

an index of places that pump out tailored and looped playlists + the songs they play would be interesting. what are the companies that do this kind of thing or does banana republic or whoever do it themselves.

The problem w/Muzak having actual songs is I got all Rain Man at work. "Hey! This song! It's 'Automatic' by the Pointer Sisters! I know, I know, I thought it was dudes singing at first too, but nope – Pointer Sisters!" and the person next to me wld be like O.O

Also not at work and feeling ridic for singing along to Solsbury Hill in the grocery store.

"I bet you wouldn't guess this song was on the Beverly Hills Cop soundtrack, but it ii-is!"

The weird thing is Muzak plays album versions of all the songs, not the singles.

WEIRD.

yeah it's like being in a place where you REALLY shouldn't be singing along/caring about the music, what subtle damage it does to your psyche when the checkout lady has to ask you twice for your fresh values card.

x-post yea that always trips me out. like i want a precise account of how that wtf album track got there, it's own little journey.

Last time I was at the grocery avtually I got a clerk to geek out with me about Peter Gabriel (who was on w/'Digging in the Dirt,' which is a weird song to hear in an Albertson's) and my poor husband like making the 'I wish she wasn't always talking about Peter Gabriel' face.

Automatic thread bump. This poll's results are now in.

honestly the person that voted good news about a perfectly harmless business going out of business in this climate ought to drink some fucking act right.

Is this the next frontier for crate diggers? I can see the same people who geeked out over library music and exotica re-visiting muzak.

^totally! i could see that def.

honestly the person that voted good news about a perfectly harmless business going out of business in this climate ought to drink some fucking act right.

seriouslyyyy. wikipedia: Employees - 1,256