Curation. The buzzword of the hour. It’s the impetus behind so much we experience these days, particularly as everything becomes more niche.

It’s supposed to be the great strength of Apple Music — human-curated playlists (as opposed to automated algorithms) to bring you new, interesting sounds; live DJs on Beats 1 Radio to taken you down the road less traveled. However, I have yet to really be blown away by Beats 1 Radio and the curated playlists (the latter of which I’ve only skimmed lightly, admittedly). Beats 1, to me, appears to be the Clear Channel sheep in hipper, edgier alternative wolf’s clothing. Rick Dees may be absent and Delilah‘s been traded for St. Vincent, but the overall formula remains. Three separate times over the last few days I’ve tuned in to hear that song from The Weekend that Apple has been pumping. Other times I’ve been greeted with Pharrell, Adele, and myriad other hit paraders. Last night, during the Grateful Dead’s intermission (broadcast live on SiriusXM), I listened to the last half of Q-Tip’s Abstract Thought, which I quite enjoyed. However, it took me a while to figure out what show I was listening to, as there’s no user-friendly way to find a full Beats 1 Radio schedule, particularly via the desktop. I just happened to come across this article after a few searches, and I did manage to find this via poking around Apple Music on my iPhone (though it’s still not straightforward). And that’s to say nothing of Apple Music’s near exclusive focus on pop music. Yes, I love pop music (in the broad sense of the term), but it’s gross to see the “Classical & Jazz” category in the radio section. Pure lip service. The few jazz playlists I’ve come across are all right at best. And, of course, the biggest drawback of digital-only music is the lack of liner notes. Who’s playing what? Who wrote what? When and where is this from? Woof.

The saving grace comes from an expected source (for me): Trent Reznor. I’ve not written about him or Nine Inch Nails much on this blog, but I do hold him in a special place. I absolutely adore The Fragile, an album that I only appreciate more as time passes (“La Mer” is such a gem), and Reznor’s film scoring for David Fincher is truly top notch. I’m glad to see him getting some more widespread/mainstream recognition these last several years. As far as Apple Music exclusives go, the instrumental remix of The Fragile is a heavyweight for me. That’s worth the first month’s subscription fee, but, at this point, if the option to purchase it comes about – a nice companion to Ghosts I-IV – I’d rather just buy the remixed album and opt out of Apple Music. Having Reznor at or near the creative helm does give me hope, but we’ll see…

I’ll continue to give it a shot, but I’m not holding my breath.