How do we pick our music? Here's one way

Lots of listeners wonder how we pick the music we play on Radio Milwaukee. We’ll be explaining that in a series of stories. This is the first.

So...we have a panel of listeners. We call this “Sound Judgment.” (Yes, “judgment” is spelled correctly. No “e” after the “g.” Don’t you love English?)

The panel is made up of 25 Radio Milwaukee members. And, each gets to bring a friend. So, 50 total.

Once a month, they come to our studios. We play 20 new songs. They give each song a score from 1 to 10. We’ll play the songs with the highest scores.

We held our first Sound Judgment listening session this past Tuesday (Feb. 10). Our listener panel liked these the best:

So, who are these Sound Judgment people? We’ll profile five each month over the next five months. Then they will rotate out, and we’ll start with a new panel. If you want to be considered for a future panel, please become a member (if you’re not already).

?

Liz Ritter, Greenfield

Favorite music right now? -- "Hozier and Ed Sheeran, after his Grammy performance."

Favorite local restaurant? -- "Conejito's"

Coke or Pepsi? -- "Definitely Coke"

First concert? -- "Rush, 1978, Milwaukee Arena"

?

Karen Diaz, Milwaukee (UWM student)

How long have you been listening to 88.9? -- "Since 9th grade"

Favorite music right now? --"Charli XCX and FKA Twigs"

Vinyl, CD, streaming? -- "Vinyl"

First concert? -- "Chromeo at Turner Hall"

?

Joe Manske, Bay View

Why did you start listening to Radio Milwaukee? -- "I was bored with my CDs. I was in the car flipping through stations, and this station caught my ear. Haven't stopped listening since." 

Favorite music right now? -- "Glass Animals"

Favorite local restaurant? -- "Points East Pub. Best wings in the city." 

First concert? -- "Joe Satriani, on July 3rd at Summerfest."

?

Kiara Hinton, Bay View

Favorite music right now? -- "My Spotify is all over the place. But, probably Banks' album Goddess."

Favorite local restaurant? -- "Depends on my mood. I'm a foodie. Mostly Walker's Point and Bay View restaurants. The last one I went to was La Merenda."

First concert? -- "Lauryn Hill at Summerfest. I was in Middle School."

How do you listen to music? -- "Some vinyl, Spotify, Radio Milwaukee." 

?

Scott Oakes, Wauwatosa

Favorite music right now? -- "Father John Misty's new album is in regular rotation."

Favorite restaurant? -- "La Reve, in Wauwatosa"

How do you find new music? -- "Blogs and websites like Pitchfork, Stereogum; Radio Milwaukee, friends."

First concert? -- "Beach Boys at the New York State Fair in 1988."