Currently there are several free downloads from the "up-and-coming" artist Katie Herzig... Compared by Paste to one of my favorite groups, the Weepies, Katie's music is described in their review as "brightly textured acoustic pop." I call it, "fun, intelligent music perfect for a sunny day... or for brightening a cloudy one."
Once you've downloaded the Katie Herzig tracks and clicked around a bit, you might notice the Campaign to Save Paste... the opportunity to help the magazine weather the present hard times and be richly rewarded for your generosity at the same time. In return for a donation of any amount, Paste is opening up their vault of 70+ free (and many of them rare) MP3s from a wide variety of today's best musical figures... including some of my absolute favorites, like Josh Ritter, She & Him, Brandi Carlile, Emmylou Harris, Over the Rhine, Switchfoot, and dozens of others I'm excited for the chance to explore. This is a positive treasure trove... and as Paste pointed out, even a donation of $1 from each of their regular readers would more than ease the strain of the recession season. A worthy cause... that translates into many more than worthy additions to your MP3 collection!
Another impressive thank-you offering currently comes from our old friend Coldplay... the entirety of their live album Right Left Right Left made available for free download. Yeah that's right, you heard me! Enter your email, and be taken to a page with the album offered as a zipfile... and let the Coldplay glow wash over you.
Also currently available on Amazon, stop by for a sampler of seven tracks that will wisk you away on an upbeat whirlwind tour of world music, and Tori Amos' new track Maybe California .
If you haven't been over to Muruch lately, be sure to saunter over there too for a variety of MP3 downloads and two giveaways for the newest CDs from Carbon Leaf and Tiempo Liebre. Both contests end this Friday the 29th, so hurry hurry! And pick up a new Carbon Leaf MP3 while you're at it too...
I'm so excited about this last one... I've struck another vein of gold for y'all! You may be familiar with Daytrotter... a recording studio that offers free-and-legal downloads of sessions with dozens of artists. My current gem (drumroll please!!) is Alela Diane -- a high school friend of Joanna Newsom with a style reminiscent of Dar Williams and Patty Griffith. I found her through the music video of "White as Diamonds" that's currently posted on Relevant TV, a beautiful, lush folk/Celtic combination piece that will tug at your heartstrings and lull you into revere with lines like "I was sifting through the piles, in my hand a tangled thread. Each patient tug upon the snarl, is a glimpse of what has been..." Both her albums are available for download on eMusic, so I'll probably follow up with a full review if my passion for her continues, but you can take advantage of a total of eight live-recording MP3s on Daytrotter, posted here and here. Don't miss "White as Diamonds"! It's still my favorite, and the video is can't-miss too.
That's all for this week, but it should keep you busy for a while! Let the music carry you away
Love the free music! You are so helping me grow my music collection! Thanks!
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