On music and free MP3s

If you'd like to check out some new music, listen to these songs by Hey Rosetta (more songs here) and Adam Harnett (links via Cove Blogger and John Gushue).

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Also on the subject of MP3s... if you haven't heard of eMusic yet, check it out.

It's a music subscription service, similar to PureTracks or iTunes, but much cheaper, and you get MP3s unhindered by restrictions on how you can use them. I've been using it for the past couple of months, and I love it!

They don't have most of the big-name artists, but they have some, and they have a ton of lesser known artists, indie artists, and artists on labels such as Nettwerk, Koch, Sun, Rykodisc and Matador. They also have a good jazz back-catalogue, and for those who like classical, eMusic has almost the entire Naxos catalogue. I've found some great artists on there through their 'similar artists' lists and member recommendations.

It's legal, DRM free, and eMusic pays the artists royalties. In my opinion, the best part is that once you've downloaded a song, you can download it again, anytime, without having to pay for it again - particularly helpful if your computer crashes.

You can sign up for a free trial, and keep the MP3s even if you cancel your trial subscription (they're offering 25 free MP3s right now). I signed up for the free trial, and liked it so much that I signed up for a month-to-month plan - $9.99 a month for 40 songs (25 cents a song!).

Some of the artists I've downloaded so far:

  • Lisa Loeb
  • Tom Waits
  • The New Pornographers
  • Willie Nelson
  • Judy Garland
  • Ray Charles
  • Johnny Cash
  • The Weepies
  • Colin Hay
  • Patty Griffin
  • Spirit of the West
  • Neko Case
  • Jill Sobule
  • Kris Kristofferson
  • Chris Bryan
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And for Newfoundland tunes, check out Avondale Music for some of the province's best traditional music. Avondale is the company behind the Homebrew and Downhomer Presents... CD series, as well as The Christmas Wish, Singalongs and Shanties and Our Songs compilations. Avondale also produces and/or distributes albums by tons of Newfoundland music groups including Shanneyganock, The Punters, The Celtic Connection, Great Big Sea, The Ennis Sisters, Ryan's Fancy, and many more.

New releases for this summer will be posted on the website soon!


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2 comments:

  1. I'm always looking for cheap/free mp3s. And we have similar tastes in music. Have you looked at Amazon's free mp3s? They have some great ones- I've downloaded Moby, Tom Waits, Postal Service and a ton of other songs there. It's kind of hard to find the page. Just do a search for Amazon mp3 and you'll turn it up. I've also found some great indie downloads (also free) at download.com.

     
  2. Great tip, thanks! :)

    I used to visit MP3.com before they revamped it, and that was a great resource for free MP3s by indie artists. Soundclick.com fills some of that void now. I didn't realize download.com had free MP3s though! I'll be sure to check it, and Amazon out.