By: Mason Mattu, Humour Editor 

Do you ever feel like you’re an NPC after listening to the same artists over and over again? Or do you feel trapped within a musical echo chamber, unable to escape the reverberations of the same artist, genre, or vibe? 

I experienced this over the summer — and to counteract it, I started doing something unusual. I’d open up a streaming platform, head into the search bar, and type in a random combination of names and weird words. Basically, whatever spontaneous thought popped into my head. After scrolling down a bit (since it’s likely that songs you’d like would be at the top of the search results), I’d haphazardly select a song or artist. 

Through this method, I discovered “It Might Be Raining” by Dan Mangan, a melancholic song about holding on to memories and Vancouver rain. “Ensemble” by Aliocha Schneider, a song of longing and pain, graced my ears because of this strategy. Without these unpredictable searches, I would’ve never found such niche and captivating tracks.

Music streaming apps are designed to predict and suggest music based on our tastes. If you want the feeling of sorting through a variety of records at a thrift shop, forget the algorithm and embrace the random.