As I think about how I hear about and listen to new music it usually comes from two main sources. The number one source is my wife and the second is my students. Although, in the last couple of years, the latter has been validating that I’ve been in a music listening rut. They bring Guitar Hero song requests taking me back to when I started playing guitar.
Adele, Bon Iver, Fiest, Sia, and Buena Vista Social Club are just a few examples of music I never would have listened to if my wife hadn’t started listening to it first. Almost everything she listens to is different than I would search out and because of this I learn a great deal musically as the ideas are not usually ideas I would every think of. There have been a few really horrible selections that she has made however. Like the french Starbucks Compilation that I had to ban from my car. But for the most part it is a really great source of new music that keeps me from staying stagnant in my ideas.
When I was younger I couldn’t separate the musical execution of the musical idea (how well it was played) with the idea itself. If I listened to music that wasn’t executed well I wrote it off and didn’t learn anything from it. Oddly enough that’s what kept me away from learning Jimi Hendrix, Led Zepplin when I first started playing guitar. I know!!!! How could I not learn guitar and not learn the fundamental guitar licks that every guitarist should know. As I played more and looked at my ideas and listened to other guitarists ideas I started to realize that I needed to continually learn music that I didn’t naturally gravitate to to keep my ideas fresh.
So although theory, ear training, knowing your guitar is really important, at the end of the day it’s what comes out of your amp that counts so step out of your comfort zone and let my wife recommend some music to you. 
One student in paticular deserves honourable mention for his knowledge of modern music (1960 – now) and for pointing me towards music I never would have listened if he did not take lessons with me. Thanks @SkochP, I learned a lot.
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Andrew Gingerich is a guitarist and producer in Calgary, Alberta Canada and is the owner of freteleven Calgary’s best choice in guitar education.
