A fascinating and important viewpoint.

I tend to do these takes (occasionally) except #2. To these strategies, I would add: follow up on reviews / discussions of musicians who share something with the artist in question (this is something you do quite frequently and comfortably in your own articles).

Often when you explore Artist Y who influenced Artist X, you discover links and influences that you didn't know existed (especially from some time in the past or from a geographical distance--one of your greatest strengths imo).