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A visualization of Metallica’s live shows, using data from Setlist.fm and Last.fm. Click through for the insanely-detailed full version.

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Gorgeous and illuminating: the design firm Stamen created a visualization of ambient noise in the Tenderloin area of San Francisco, showing how it changes (and spikes!) during the day. 

(via @disquiet)

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SoundAffects takes sensor data from the streets of NYC (noise, colour, proximity, temperature) and turns it into a gorgeous visual and musical representation.

(via Sheri)

Notations 21 is a compendium and anthology of scores from composers who use non-traditional music notations. The score above is for Steven Roden’s “Pavilion”; click through to see more examples or buy the book.

Pure Data read as Pure Data (that is, the source code for the audio/video/graphical processing software itself processed with the software).

Appealingly glitchy and oddly mesmerizing.

(Source: rhizome.org)

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(Source: dubstepfriday, via ilovecharts)

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Off the top of my head, I’d add “Bleecker St and Broadway” from The New Pornographers’ “Myriad Harbour,” but I’m sure there’s lots more missing.

(via ilovecharts)

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About a year and a half ago, I wrote about the Seattle Band Map, which graphed all the connections between local bands. In the time since, it’s been turned into an interactive visualization; you can explore connections, search for a particular band, or contribute to it. Go check it out, or read more about it here.

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Fantastic heatmap of Internet-based music services, based on estimated traffic data. Green = growth, red = declining visits, and the size is proportional to the traffic.

Click through for in-depth analysis, including a detailed view of the non-YouTube quarter, and for stats for each site.

(Source: warrenellis.com)

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Timeline of band members in Nerf Herder, from their Wikipedia entry.

Would love to see this type of visualization more often.

[via Tom Igoe]

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FavMap: a map of best-loved music. Click through for the full interactive visualization, which uses last.fm statistics to plot ‘addictiveness’ (number of plays per listener) against year of release, with the size of the circle indicating the number of listeners. It’s also searchable so you can find your favourite artists.

[via Fine Tuning]

Counterpoint, visualized.

I think I like this video mostly because it drives home how cliched every other video of piano playing is.

(ht Alex Ross, via Matthew Battles)

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A Nightclub Map of Harlem (1932)

Love the little details and guidance eg “Nothing happens before 2 am.”

Also, “*Marahuana cigarettes 2 for $0.25”