here was a time in New York City when the boom box would make its appearance in every other subway or bus.  But then, as it became evident that what was music for some was noise to others, walkmans, Discmans and now iPods have become the norm in a city all too happy with minding its own music.  Until recently, when a certain Gideon D'Arcangelo, otherwise known as the Walkman Buster, began to tap into the headphones of random New Yorkers in parks and subway stations.

Preparing a bust at Union Square. PHOTO: Gabriel Rodríguez-Nava

But D'Arcangelo is not happy with just listening; he also records the music and the stories behind them.  Geared with a Marantz digital recorder, D'Arcangelo goes out prepared to bust walkmans like a professional.  And he's relentless.  He may only need four busts for his spot in The Next Big Thing — a radio show that airs every week on WNYC — but on average, he interviews close to 40 people per show.  The reason for this is that D'Arcangelo is not only looking for random tracks, but for the human details that make those songs meaningful to people.  In other words, he's also looking for the noise in their heads.

"Music is a way into people's lives.  This isn't so much about music as it is about being a social document about people," said D'Arcangelo.  "It's not like a systematic musical survey, but an interesting way to get people to open up and talk."

n occasions, people take him for just another nutty New Yorker with a radio show and fail to deliver what D'Arcangelo is looking for.  But in what he estimates to be one in every 10 "bustees," a good story awaits him.  For example, he recalled a woman who was listening to "Fabulous" by R&B artist Jaheim, while she was on her way to visit her son at Sing Sing prison.  "So now," said the buster, "I can't think about that piece of music without thinking about that women's story.  And to me, that's much more interesting than just knowing that song."

From private headphones to public airwaves. PHOTO: Gabriel Rodríguez-Nava

Interactivity is another subtext in Walkman Bustin'.  As an interactive designer at ESI Design and an adjunct assistant professor at New York University's Interactive Telecommunications Program, D'Arcangelo sees his radio hobby as a form of low-tech interactivity.  "The idea is to hijack this one-way communication experience into a two-way communication experience," said D'Arcangelo.  "It's about creating a two-way channel where there was only a one-way channel before."

But what initially got D'Arcangelo interested in bustin' walkmans was the notion that for the first time in millennia, music went from being something public to something totally private.  In this sense, what D'Arcangelo does is to return music back to its collective sphere.  "Music is about being together with more people," he said.  D'Arcangelo suspects that people tend to be more approachable when they're listening to music because music puts them already in a social mind frame.  "When I go out, I would say that I have 90 percent success rate in terms of people agreeing to do an interview-and we didn't expect that at all when we started out," he said.

He also didn't expect to find a guy in full punk gear listening to Enya in Washington Square Park.  "Of course," said D'Arcangelo, "he told me that it was his roommate's CD and that he just happened to have it.  It's exciting when someone's not listening to what you'd expect, someone who's not fitting the stereotypical mold."  Other weird encounters include Rodney, an aggressive astrologist for hire who ended up chasing him for a while around the park.  "There's no doubt you also hook up with some crazy characters when you're willing to put yourself out on the street," said D'Arcangelo.  But it's all in a Walkman Buster's work.

Images of a Walkman Bust.
Photos: Gabriel Rodriguez-Nava

The Next Big Thing is the soundchild of radio junkie Dean Olsher. Click on the logo above to learn more about this weekly show.

Or, click below to link to complete Walkman Bustin' sessions (once there, you'll need to scroll down the page): First Bust Second Bust