Music expresses that which cannot be put into words and that which cannot remain silent.
— Victor Hugo
There are certain things in the world we can take great comfort in knowing they will happen without any input on our part. Things like the sun rising tomorrow, a new app that is going to shake up your entire world, and the silos of social media doing their best to divide us further than we already are.
For me, one of these constants is music playing in the background regardless of what context I find myself in. The type of music playing is as a critical element of my workflow the same way the applications are. Since the days of WinAmp, before anyone in the world knew what a hashtag was, and when you had to load entire webpages over and over in order to see refreshed changes, SomaFM has been providing the world with some of the best music the internet has ever heard.
Having now traveled around several parts of the continental United States on a Midwest-style road trip, I can say with confidence that the musical taste of the Midwest is a very narrow band of what kind of music actually exists in the world. It was Country music, or what would have been considered “Classic Rock” back in the late 80s and early 90s. Think Creedence Clearwater Revival, Bob Seger, and Garth Brooks. But always Top 40 and very surface level. No Deep Cuts. The term “deep cuts” mean something entirely different and wasn’t just a buzzword slapped on every artists’ profile page. Everyone knew the songs by Queen that Spotify will now have on their main artist page, but few knew of the more obscure tracks that kept real Queen fans up late at night pondering the meanings of. They considered more conceptual artists such as Pink Floyd music favored by drug-ridden teens with no real ear for music.
We’ve all got our reasons why we are convinced our version of growing up was the best one when compared to others. A textbook Xennial, childhood was an analog one but spent my early teenage years propped up in front of an old school dial-up modem watching the Information Superhighway take shape and become what it is today. We grew up with electronic music and craved to find more of it and the internet was one of the few sources of this type of music for someone firmly planted in the middle of a cornfield in the Midwest United States.
It was by the aforementioned WinAmp that I first learned about SomaFM. They had a feature baked into the software that essentially provided you with lists of “radio stations” that were hosted on shoutCAST. Back then there were only a handful of stations compared to what they offer nowadays, but theres some sort of strange combination of the graphic used and the name of Groove Salad that drew me into the station. The AI DJ definitely helps!
There are so many options for music online nowadays, and with so many of these options being paid ones, it is worth mentioning that SomaFM relies on the donations and loyal support of its fanbase. They do not play advertisements on their stations and rely entirely on loyal fans to provide monetary support for the channel. Rusty Hodge is the primary mastermind behind the scenes and you genuinely welcome the messages that he inserts infrequently between the songs. It’s never more than a few seconds long and is often just to remind you you’re listening to SomaFM but they are so heartfelt that you actually feel emotionally connected to him and his passion for music.
Based in San Francisco, California, SomaFM provides over 20 channels of various types of music that are unique in their own right. Over the years, during holiday stations, Soma FM will play “special” stations in alignment with the holidays. Everything from Cinco De Mayo, St. Patricks Day, live sessions, livestreams from DEFCON and the much-celebrated Christmas Lounge, the undisputed gold standard of of all internet music.
Lets us now examine further the stations provided by Soma FM and provide samples of some of these songs through YouTube links for your eager ears to sample and enjoy. While thinking about how to best describe these channels for this article, I’ve decided to actually just directly quote the channels descriptions that are listed on SomaFM’s website because they are articulated perfectly and we cannot best their descriptions.
The artists listed below and the avenues of discovery they have provided me have been the framework for almost all newly discovered music and artists for the past twenty years. Taking note of artists with songs that stood out and then turning to streaming services in order to deep dive their art more deeply. For nearly 10 years, and almost entirely because it’s functionality was baked into whatever music player I was using at the time, I had also been “scrobbling” my music to Last.FM and it’s algorithmic magic also helped point me in various directions of music based on my listening of SomaFM.
Time is limited and unfortunately, we are not afforded enough of these precious hours to enjoy more of what SomaFM offers. Also, podcasts and audiobooks have become so deeply baked into my life that it requires time to be taken away from music. Believe it or not, there are actually other things that we listen to despite this article suggesting otherwise. I will not provide detailed explanations of some channels that do not get adequate time as it would be a disservice to SomaFM and any loyal fans of those stations.
Groove Salad – the New Gold Standard of Music for Anytime of Day
A nicely chilled plate of ambient/downtempo beats and grooves. Downtempo and chillout electronica.
Groove Salad is listened to so much that I have a command to play it thru mpv over the command line tied to my espanso installation so kick-starting the stream is not longer than two keystrokes away. When you fire up the station on their mobile app the “AI DJ” says ”spinning the virtual chill, this is Groove Salad” and that is exactly what happens. The music played here is never too intense and provides great background vibes for any sort of setting. Groove Salad helps provide a space with a vibe that pairs well with computers and colored-LED strips.
Germind – Mysteries of the Deep Sea
Groove Salad Classic: The OG
The classic (early 2000s) version of a nicely chilled plate of ambient/downtempo beats and grooves. A re-creation of the first few years (early 2000s) of SomaFM’s Groove Salad. Downtempo and chillout electronica.
This is the one that will always have a special place in my heart. Groove Salad has turned us onto so many pleasant tunes over the years, and turning me onto artists that I treasure to this day. This station is solely responsible for turning me onto Zero 7 and Thievery Corporation, something I feel I could never fully compensate them for, no matter how much support I may give them. The station is priceless.
Urban Species & Imogen Heap – Blanket
Yam Yam – Bahama Mama (Original Yam Yam Version)
Thievery Corporation – Le Monde
Folk Forward
Indie Folk, Alt-folk and the occasional folk classics. Contemporary indie folk music. Sometimes softer, sometimes a little harder, but always authentic. A modern take on classic folk music, with occasional appearances by the classic masters.
It almost guaranteed this station to be playing every morning while drinking coffee and reading email, or on Saturdays reading the Obsidian Roundup. This station provided with enough honorable music to help me appreciate folk music for what it was. Right around the time I came full-circle to folk music is right around the time I was gaining deep appreciation for Leonard Cohen as a musical artist and every once in a Blue Moon they will drop a classic Cohen track on the station to heighten your senses. It’s so easy to forget how expansive Cohen’s musical career was despite not starting until he was well into his thirties. It’s also not unheard of to have a John Prine track either. There are quite a few artists that stick out to me when I think about Folk Foward, but at the forefront of that is Damien Jurado, London Grammar and fellow Wisconsinite, Bon Iver.
Patty Griffen – That Kind of Lonely
The Decemberists – Don’t Carry It All
Lush
Sensuous and mellow female vocals, many with an electronic influence. Want to relax with a pretty voice singing to you? This is the station. Mellow electronica-tinged music but definitely not techno/EDM.
I’m going to be part of a minority in saying this, but I’ve often thought that Lush seemed more in alignment with the description of Beat Blender as it seems a little better suited for the latest parts of the night, but I digress. Lush makes those late nights seem like flashes in the pan. The wonderful music never stops. London Grammar makes appearances on this station as well, giving proof to that group’s diversity.
Beat Blender
A late night blend of deep-house and downtempo chill. A perfect blend of midtempo and more upbeat electronica.
If you’re familiar with what makes house music house music, Beat Blender is the perfect representation of what real “deep house” should sound like. When it is in the latest parts of the evening it’s often a coin-toss to see who gets played between this station and Lush.
DJ Shadow – What Does Your Soul Look Like
Troublemakers – Street Preacher
DEF CON Radio
Music for Hacking. The DEF CON Year-Round Channel. DEF CON is one of the world’s largest annual hacker conventions, held every year in Las Vegas, Nevada. Since 2013, SomaFM has provided the music for the DEF CON Chill room. That theme continues with SomaFM broadcasting this special year-round stream from San Francisco, hosted by the DJs who entertain the DEF CON chill room this year in Vegas.
In almost equal measure, DEF CON Radio and Synphaera are my default stations for when I’m composing text in Obsidian. The station IDs for DEF Con Radio are probably the best on all of SomaFM. My favorite is a classic. The DJ comes on in-between tracks and says, “This is a public service announcement from DEF CON Radio and Soma FM. Remember your 3, 2, 1s. Three Hours of Sleep per night, Two hot meals and One Shower.”
Julianna Barwick – Labyrinthine
Brian Eno – An Ending (Ascent)
Saul Stokes – My memory I hope you remember
Synphaera Radio
Featuring the music from an independent record label focused on modern electronic ambient and space music. Synphaera Records, founded in 2015 by Chris Bryant and Don Tyler of Ascendant, is an independent record label focused on modern electronic ambient, minimal electronica & atmospheric space music for the new age.
My other default writing station, Synphaera, is one of the newer additions to the SomaFM arsenal. The station IDs for this station are out of this world. When I first caught wind of this station I was a bit confused about it but now that I’ve afforded its proper time, I can understand why the music here has it’s own station. Synphaera is a very specific vibe, the same way Lofi Girl’s lofi music somehow feels different from other lofi from, say, a label like Chillhop.
Secret Agent
The soundtrack for your stylish, mysterious, dangerous life. For Spies and PIs too! An eclectic blend of cinematic downtempo, stylish lounge, sambas and easy-tempo sixties European pop music with an adventurous flair.
Speaking of stations that have their own vibe! Secret Agent is one of the defining stations of Soma FM. Might be the funnest of all the stations played. In between songs, they play one-liners from various old James Bond films. They are always so much fun. This station is playing in early afternoons or mornings on the weekend. You won’t find another station that sounds quite like this one.
Small Night Orchestra – Fried Chicken
Thomas Clausen – Bio Rhythm No. 3
Illinois Street Lounge
Classic bachelor pad, playful exotica and vintage music of tomorrow. Bachelor-pad music for sipping cocktails and dressing swanky in your mid-century-modern home. Vintage lounge music and exotica that was way ahead of its time. Settle down in your Eames chair, imagine you pressed play on your Reel-to-Reel tape deck and enjoy.
If we had to pair stations together, something akin to a “sister station” or something like that, it is easy to pair the Illinois Street Lounge to that of Secret Agent. Over the years, I don’t listen to this station as much as I used to. In fact, back in the day, I probably listened to this station more than I did Secret Agent and nowadays it would seem that the table has flipped on its head entirely.
Songs on this station are extremely difficult to find, nor do I have that money screenshots from this station anyhow. 😦
Left Coast 70s
Mellow album rock from the Seventies. Yacht not required. In the late 70s and very early 80s, when the mood was mellow, and the vibe was softer, many rock artists started creating slower, thoughtfully-produced tracks. Drawing lyrical influences from the folk singers before them, and bringing together some of the best session players of the day, these artists stepped outside their comfort zones to create some of the best mellow rock ever made, a sound that blossomed out of Los Angeles and spread up and down the west coast.
You don’t know what “mellow album rock” truly means until you’ve given Left Coast 70s a couple hours on your favorite set of speakers. With the aforementioned climate of music in the Midwest, this station represents perfectly the type of music that was often overlooked here in the Midwest. The best example of their selection of deeper cuts from Dire Straights. Everyone around here in the Midwest is wildly familiar with “Walk of Life” by Dire Straights but that is about the extent of it. This album gives merit the argument of how every other decade is great for popular music and in many circles of conversations in this part of the world, the 70s is largely associated with producing glorious music. It’s also shocking to hear so many originals that were sampled by 90s hip-hop artists.
Dire Straits – Single-Handed Sailor
Michael Franks – In the Eye of the Storm
Seven Inch Soul
Vintage soul tracks from the original 45 RPM vinyl. Drawing from the extensive vinyl collection of DJ Dion “The Watts” Garcia, you’ll hear the greatest soul singles that were ever released… and with a few exceptions, all are from the original vinyl 45rpm releases.
Seven Inch Soul is one of those stations that remind to keep trying to add new stations to my SomaFM rotation because it took me several years to get Seven Inch Soul to resonate for me. What finally did it for me was, while listening to the station one day a track by William DeVaughn came on, “Be Thankful For What You Got” which I actually first heard sampled on a Massive Attack track several years prior. That was all it took and we’ve since stumbled upon some great tracks and artists along the way since.
William DeVaughn – Be Thankful For What You Got
Franciene Thomas – I’ll Be There
Stevens & Foster – I Want To Be Love
Bill Moss – Sock It to ‘Em Soul Brother
Underground 80s
Early 80s UK Synthpop and a bit of New Wave. Centered around the UK Synthpop style of the early 80s with a bit of new wave splashed in.
An exhaustive list of local music files that I’ve ripped from CDs over the years take up lots of room on my external hard drives. In this collection there is quite the exhaustive collection of music from the 80s. There are so many tracks in that collection that sometimes I think I may have “heard every 80s song” but then Underground 80s quickly reminds us of how little we actually have. The 80s were a very special time for music. It has a lingering effect, obviously as well, when we see things like Synthwave making splashes nearly 40 years later. When we crave that healthy dose of nostalgia and like to escape back to the decade when we were single digit age, we turn to Underground 80s.
Orchestral Manoeuvres in the Dark – Enola Gay
Will Powers – Adventures in Success
The Human League – Love Action (I Believe In Love)
Very Specific Use Cases – but Essential in Their Own Right
These stations more often than not get played in the “office” under very particular conditions, as they provide the best sonic background ambiance for the task at hand. When I say office, I should really say something more like “the shop”.
- The Trip Progressive house / trance. Tip top tunes. ⭐
- Metal Detector From black to doom, prog to sludge, thrash to post, stoner to crossover, punk to industrial.
- Covers Just covers. Songs you know by artists you don’t. We’ve got you covered.
- Fluid Drown in the electronic sound of instrumental hiphop, future soul and liquid trap. ⭐️
- Boot Liquor Americana Roots music for Cowhands, Cowpokes and Cowtippers
(trying to) Work into the Rotation
There are only so many hours in a day. The reason we keep trying to add new stations from Soma into our lives is because it has proven to be a fruitful endeavor in the past. For what seems like years, I kept trying to work 7” Soul into my life and it just never clicked. Then one day out of the blue it did and now it’s higher on my rotation than some of my other stations were back in the day.
- Deep Space One Deep ambient electronic, experimental and space music. For inner and outer space exploration. ⭐⭐ (This one is quickly finding itself a regular in my rotation.)
- Suburbs of Goa Desi-influenced Asian world beats and beyond. ⭐️
- Sonic Universe Transcending the world of jazz with eclectic, avant-garde takes on tradition.
- PopTron Electropop and indie dance rock with sparkle and pop.
- n5MD Radio Emotional Experiments in Music: Ambient, modern composition, post-rock, & experimental electronic music
Listen to Infrequently
These stations I cannot speak on from experience because I simply do not listen to them. There have been times were we gave them a spin here and there to see what they were all about, but none of them stuck. With the most mellow of these stations, when we were seeking something in that way, we’re more than likely listening to lofi music purchased from Bandcamp (FLAC all day!) or Lofi Girl’s livestream. The one-liners from SomaFM’s website are listed in case it might be something you are interested in.
- Digitalis Digitally affected analog rock to calm the agitated heart.
- Heavyweight Reggae Reggae, Ska, Rocksteady classic and deep tracks.
- ThistleRadio Exploring music from Celtic roots and branches
- cliqhop idm Blips’n’beeps backed mostly w/beats. Intelligent Dance Music.
- Drone Zone
- Dubstep Beyond Dubstep, Dub and Deep Bass. May damage speakers at high volume.
- Vaporwaves All Vaporwave. All the time.
- Indie Pop Rocks!
- Mission Control Celebrating NASA and Space Explorers everywhere.
- Space Station Soma Tune in, turn on, space out. Spaced-out ambient and mid-tempo electronica.
- The Dark Zone The darker side of deep ambient. Music for staring into the Abyss.
- Black Rock FM From the Playa to the world, for the annual Burning Man festival.
- SF 10-33 Ambient music mixed with the sounds of San Francisco public safety radio traffic.
- SF Police Scanner San Francisco Public Safety Scanner Feed
Christmas Lounge 🎅🎄
SomaFM provides five channels of the best holiday music a person could ever have a use for. Suitable for all ages, and also provides a channel that’s suitable for when most of the relatives leave after the holiday and your siblings are all that remain and your younger brother just opened a bottle of Whiskey. There is one that stands at the forefront of this group, and it is the legendary Christmas Lounge.
There are so many timeless classics that get played on this channel and modern takes on some of these same classics. You don’t know what living is until you’ve heard a classic Bing Crosby track with a proper bass-line added to it to accentuate the positive. 😉
They also play some of the greatest modern versions of the classic songs we all grew up hearing. They turned me onto a track that has since remained my favorite rendition of Please Come Home for Christmas. Song just gets right up underneath me!
A family could let SomaFM play twenty-four hours a day the entire month of December and not be sick of hearing it come New Year. Without question, does it hold the honor of being the undisputed Gold Standard of what holiday music should be.
Department Store Christmas
This is the perfect name for this station. They play near to my heart due to how much orchestral music on this channel. During the month of December, it’s Christmas Lounge for most of the day, splash in some Folk Forward or some Secret Agent after work while we unwind, and then we’ll hop on Department Store Christmas for the first couple hours in the office. Makes a person all warm and fuzzy inside, especially if you’re with the added benefit of freshly fallen snow and have Hot Cocoa on hand.
Christmas Lounge and Department Store Christmas take up most of my time during the holiday season. This is not to discount the other three offered. Before you know it tho, it’s a New Year and with all our resolutions we’re back on our diet of Groove Salad.
LINK § Department Store Christmas
- Christmas Rocks! from SomaFM Have your self an indie/alternative holiday season!
- Jolly Ol’ Soul Where we cut right to the soul of the season.
- Xmas in Frisko SomaFM’s wacky and eclectic holiday mix. Not for the easily offended.
Extra Credit
Winamp is actually still kicking but not really what it used to be.
Extra credit bonus points with Thievery Corporation right here an intimate rendition of Le Monde Live on KEXP six long years ago at the time of this writing.
Asgeir singing In Harmony in his native language. I don’t know which one I like more!