Music Scene at Edmonds

[[[ Article for the school paper... I'm particularly proud of this one since I've never downloaded in my life, and a 48-hour deadline was pretty rough after randomly drawing this prompt. Still needs to go through copy editing though. It's still too wordy and blah blah blah... ]]]
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Rylan Yee, an Edmonds Community College student, sports a red iPod Nano covered in an eclectic sticket compellation, and proclaims with a smirk, "I am a pirate, and I have scurvy."

With a taste for the classics, as well as new hits, Yee keeps his playlist fresh by frquently downloading from iTunes.com. However, he bashfully admits to pirating music from other, less-than-legal sites.

Despite knowing that piracy is bad news, it turns out that Yee isn't alone on the pirate ship. Several students mentioned "peer-to-peer network" sites, such as Limewire, Kazaa, and Torrents.

These sites allow users to download legal and illegal files from another person's computer through an open connection. "Limewire or Torrents: those two are the best out there right now," said Kyle Strumbeta, an EdCC student. "Well, that you don't have to pay for."

If downloading isn't your thing, there are still other option. For instance, Nick Kirkpatrick, a Running Start student, ditched his CDs years ago. He then began to upload the contents of his CD collection onto a computer so he could transfer music to his new iPod. His taste in music ranges from Christian to classic rock. Kirkpatrick uses rhapsody.com to add new additions to his playlist. Kirkpatrick is happy to be able to easily download from the internet or upload old CDs. "If it weren't for the evolution of the computer, music distribution would not have reached the level it is at now," Kirkpatrick said.

For those who still prefer the random grab-bag selection of the good ol' radio, there's now a method of creating your own station on the web, with music to fit your taste. On Pandora.com, users can type in an artist or song, and the site will generate a playlist based on a "sounds like" pretense.

"You can type in any artist or song you like, and it will match similar songs, and it's free," said Angelica Montanari, an EdCC student and frequent listener. "There are almost no commercials." Even though the site requires users to sign up for a free membership, the perk of having radio on demand has Pandora's listeners streaming with joy.

So whether you're uploading or downloading, streaming or file-sharing, remember that you are one of a great population doing the same, so do it right and keep it legal. However, if you're set in your ways, please remember to unleash your inner Jack Sparrow somewhere other than on the school's computer.