Personally, I just enjoy reading about music and sounds in general. Especially before I hear it. Makes me render this ghostly, idealized, vague version of the tracks in my head. That's why I like long, old fashioned album releases too. I like it when my first contact with an album is spectral, an anticipation, a legend.
Journos and reviews are nice and all, but nothing beats a fan with a damn CD. Someone on a thread somewhere -- mr X -- has a promo for some reason. I always imagine a CD, like literally in a CD tray saying TRACK 01 -- 00:02... as the seconds start ticking. The jewel case cover on the floor next to a glass of OJ says, in an austere black and white text, the name of something absolutely new...
MANIC STREET PREACHERS
RESISTANCE IS FUTILE
...that I've never heard. And they take like two sentences to say some song is massive and people will be surprised about X or Y. Tremendous stuff
.
I remember getting feedback like that about RTF -- 30 Year War being a great track. Made hearing the song for the first time pretty damn exciting.
I think music is so easily undervalued, underpriced, incorporeal and vaporized that any ritual, or description helps incorporate it into this reality. Anchor it down a bit. Give more meaning and heft to it, especially one that proceeds actually hearing it myself.