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Secondary MP3 Resources  
wide-ranging, eclectic, obscure, lovable, etc.

Here are a number of web sites that either host or point to MP3s that for one reason or another I didn't want to include on the main Music Site Guide page. It's a fine line, but sites that feature an overwhelming percentage of largely unknown musicians, even if they're not upload free-for-alls, are usually going to end up on this page rather than on the Music Site Guide page. Also, sites that point by and large to MP3s found on sites already in the Music Site Guide are mostly going to be listed here.

There are more sites like these on the web than you'll find below; I seek to point you to those I find particularly agreeable, for one idiosyncratic reason or another. Note that the number of sites on this page, however, has been shrinking through 2006 and into 2007, as more and more of these sites seem to be withering on the electronic vine.



Oddio Overplay
Oddio Overplay is an expansive, friendly site that points to all sorts of places where free and legal music can be had on the web. The specialty here is on sounds that are "far from the mainstream," as the site says; the vibe is home-spun and affectionate. Katya, who runs the place, has an unending capacity to find hidden and wide-rangingly obscure music online and a joyful, infectious willingness to share her discoveries. This has always been one of my favorite, offbeat sites to visit to find interesting music; the vibe is so friendly and welcoming, the design so crisp and appealing, that I tend to overlook how kind of confusing it can be. Poke around, you will be amply rewarded, and consistently reminded that in the 21st century, the gems are much more likely to be found on the fringe than in the middle of the fabric.


Phlow Magazine
Phlow is a nicely designed and very friendly European site devoted to sorting through all the music out there released under a Creative Commons license and featuring the best stuff they can find. A lot of this stuff comes from so-called "netlabels"--tiny online record labels that release all their music for free. Here at Fingertips I don't much dive into this world, in part because the genres tend towards areas I'm not as knowledgeable about (e.g. electronica, techno, ambient, dub, et al) and in part because it's all I can do to sort through the easier to find and more accessible to listen to stuff that I tend to feature. But I like the vibe here and it looks like a great portal into a previously untapped area for me, so I'll keep an eye and ear on it. A good place to start is on their free MP3 downloads page.


Artist Direct
My goodness, the name Artist Direct brings back memories of the early years here on Fingertips, back in '03 and '04, when all sorts of interesting and exclusive MP3s might be found on the this otherwise mysterious site. (Okay, it claims to be "a network of web sites offering multi-media content, music news and information, communities organized around shared music interests, music-related specialty commerce and digital music services"; like I said, it's a mystery.) Eventually the site appeared to pull all of its free and legal MP3s but out of the blue in 2008 the site appeared to be back in the business of free and legal MP3s. Initially there were a few dozen; as of 2009 the total is up to 400(!). What's the catch? Well, the site is overly commercial looking; beware of pop-up ads. And the songs appear to be in no order whatsoever. But there are any number of Fingertips-featured artists here, including the Morning Benders, the Autumns, Julie Doiron, and School of Seven Bells, among others.


Tonspion
Even though I can't speak German, I can tell that Tonspion is a pretty darned interesting and useful MP3 site, and that the folks behind it are doing their legwork and their homework. A lot of the music the site features is in English, even if none of the descriptions are. While there's nothing exclusive here, and they do borrow a good bit, MP3-wise, from both Better Propaganda and Insound, they also find enough MP3s in many other nooks and crannies on the web to make regular visits here definitely worthwhile. The site has taken to offering an "English" option at the top of the front page, but it's just an automated translation via Google, and it's hardly any better than trying to read German.


MP3 4U
Functioning as a sort of group MP3 blog, MP3 4U uses a coterie of some 80 internet-surfing music fans (called "sources") to track down good free and legal MP3s from various nooks and crannies around the web. It's a cool idea, so don't let the somewhat confusing and cheesy-looking layout deter you from poking around. When all is said and done, MP3 4U turns out to be a worthwhile place to visit semi-regularly, particularly as you familiarize yourself with the tastes of the various sources. Somewhere along the way, in 2007 or so, MP3 4U became part of a larger network of sites at the base of which is something called Muzic, which aims to be another music community site but this one focused entirely on free and legal MP3s.


Daytrotter
Daytrotter is one of the few unique MP3 resources online: rather than scurrying around to find overlooked MP3s that are posted elsewhere, Daytrotter generates its own content by bringing touring musicians into a recording studio, having them record live their four favorite songs, and putting the resultant MP3s online for free. The Daytrotter folks are located in downtown Rock Island, Illinois, off I-80, which makes it relatively convenient for indie rockers on the road to stop by and do their thing. The site has been up since March '06; among the many who have recorded songs for Daytrotter so far are Ron Sexsmith, Asobi Seksu, Robbers on High Street, and Heartless Bastards. Go here for a list of all the acts to date. (And note one more unique feature of the site: it has its own in-house illustrator.)


Fresh Deer Meat
Self-described as "The UK's hub for Folk, Roots and Country," Fresh Deer Meat is a relative newcomer to the online music scene. Focused on what the site's editor likes to call "rural" music, Fresh Deer Meat gives us a nicely focused, relentlessly cheerful site that does not overwhelm us with endless content or distractions. On the MP3 page, there are typically between 10 and 20 MP3s posted per month. I believe there's an occasional exclusive here, but in any case the assortment is always thoughtful.


RCRDLBL
A well-publicized new site featuring free and legal MP3s from a consortium of independent record labels--including Dim Mak, Seen, and Warp--RCRDLBL is a nice idea in theory. In practice, it's a disorienting combination of a blog and a web site, offering neither a standard home page to plainly introduce us to what's going on nor an obvious blog experience with a proper sense of continuity of posts. While there are no doubt some good MP3s to be had here, really, I find RCRDLBL an unexpectedly dissatisfying experience. And this tunnel-visioned site nevertheless gets selected by Entertainment Weekly as one of the best music sites on the web? Because you can (with difficulty) find free and legal MP3s there? Hello? Old media still doesn't get new media, much of the time.


Canadian Audio/Video
Billing itself as "Canada's A/V, Band and Music Information Source," this blog-like web site often features a free and legal download in its daily postings. Note that these MP3 links are from artists from all over the place, not just Canada. The site also has extended page of free and legal MP3 links which you'll find here; be warned that this list is not cleaned for dead links. These too feature artists who are not just Canadian--not that there's anything wrong with Canadian musicians, who are in my opinion among the world's finest. Be warned too that the site is less frequently updated in 2009 than it used to be.


Spacelab
Subtitled "Reinventing the Future," Spacelab describes itself as a "broadband multimedia magazine" that has mostly to do with music and technology. They've gathered quite the array of free and legal MP3s on their downloads page. Some of them you'll have already found out about via Fingertips if you're a regular visitor here, but I'll never pretend to be comprehensive, so you may find any number of new and worthy things here. Then again, the site gives us no idea who is passing judgment on these songs and why we trust their taste; it's a typical (for the web) context-free environment, complete with no informatoin whatsoever about when the songs were posted, or when they were released. Given how hard Spacelab seeks to sell its "indie" cred I find the site's sterility and facelessness particularly ironic. That all said, hardy seekers of intersting free and legal MP3s should probably still give the site a visit. Thanks to visitor Julie for the lead here.


indiepoprock.net
This is a French site; I don't understand French; I therefore and unfortunately cannot tell you anything useful about this site except for the fact that it contains one extended page of free and legal MP3s collected from around the net. Among the many offerings are a number of former "This Week's Finds" selections (among them songs from the Shins, Okkervil River, Band of Horses, and Super Furry Animals), which suggests there are perhaps any number of other songs here worth listening to.


Triple J
Triple J is an Australian radio station focusing on new music from both Australia and around the world. About a dozen MP3s from relatively unknown bands are available at any given time on the "Listen" page. You can also, of course, listen to the station itself here, as a stream, along with interviews, celebrity mixed tapes, and other interesting features. Thanks to visitor Andrew for the tip.


No Karma
No Karma appears to be both a record company and an online store featuring music from a variety of other small labels--in the process of which it also appears to have gathered a goodly assortment of MP3s, some of which may in fact be exclusive. It's a mixed bag to be sure, and it's hard to tell how often, if at all, things are updated here (it looks like basically never).


Ektoplazm
Ektoplazm is a site devoted to a subgenre of music called psychedelic trance, or psytrance. Psytrance inspires a small but loyal flock of devotees, who no doubt appreciate the regular offerings of free and legal music to be found here, in addition to news, event listings, and reviews all related to the psytrance scene.



updated 11 Feb 09





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MP3s HOSTED ON LOCAL AND REGIONAL PUBLICATION SITES

One separate kind of secondary MP3 resource is that offered by local and regional publications around the country. These publications--sometimes traditional newspapers, but usually so-called "alternative" newspapers--allow local musicians to upload songs to the web site for people to listen to. This is a nice service for the local music scene, to be sure. How useful such sites are to music fans around the country or the world is questionable, as what these publications tend to create are local versions of upload free-for-alls. That said, I am going to continue to collect a list of local and regional publications with free and legal MP3s on their sites and I'll keep that list on a separate page for anyone interested.