New web app uses Discogs to try to emulate the experience of crate digging

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Introducing Cratedigger FM, the latest app to tap into the Discogs database.

Following on from MilkCrate, the phone app that lets you manage your Discogs collection and (sometimes) scan barcodes on records, another application has emerged that utilises Discogs data in an attempt to marry the disjuncture between physical and virtual digging experiences.

Cratedigger FM attempts to recreate the visual stimulation of walking into your local record store and digging through crates; an experience which according to its founder Matt is currently lacking in the online world, or at least has not yet been adequately virtualised.

In an interview with Noisey, Matt explains how the app works:

“You type in an artist or label to kick off a search, and we return all of the releases chronologically with the original album art in a crate-like fashion along with the format, year, label, etc. You see one that catches your eye, just as you would in the store, you flip it over to reveal the tracklist and you can play through the entire album. Pretty cool as a utility, but then the real digging comes in when there’s a hotlink you click to spawn a new crate. ”

Cratediggers

Essentially the app grabs data from Discogs on track titles, artists and labels to generate crates which you can search for and sort of virtually sift through by clicking up or down. As you dig through, the record at the top of the pile is spotlighted: you can glance over its tracklist and listen to it (if there’s YouTube audio that can be pulled across). It sounds quite promising but in its current form it’s not especially intuitive and although crate digging is a supposed to be a slow experience, the app is not quite as speedy as one might hope. Nonetheless if developed further it could have the potential to offer users an alternative way to explore the Discogs database.

Have a play with it yourself here.