music to die for

Music knows no boundaries, and neither does this site.

Here you can find music from across the globe : rock music alongside Celtic folk music; hip hop and west African kora music; reggae and drum n bass. Some will be familiar to you and some won’t. Every song selected has a link to a music video, and I hope that as many of you as possible will click on some of the links and discover a track that brings a tingle to your spine.

All the lists here are my personal selections (though I’d be quite happy to host your own lists, following the same general format – contact me if you’d be interested in this). So I’ve tried to pick out songs that do something for me and which I really want to listen to again and again, but I’ve also seen to it that each list is properly researched and genuinely representative of the subject genre. Each time that I do this, I discover a whole host of great songs that I’d never heard before, so that I’m constantly expanding my musical knowledge !

As the site has grown, I’ve become passionate about promoting new bands. Many of you have been saying to me that this is what you’re looking for. And it’s been rewarding to delve into the new stuff that’s coming out and then publish the best of what I’ve found. My Band of the Month and Acoustic Showcase features help me to focus on up and coming artists, and ones yet to receive much national exposure.

Recent lists include my 50 greatest traditional blues songs of all time (April 2009), 40 roots reggae classic tracks (June 2009), and my gypsy punk showcase (July 2009). And I’m very proud to add to these my list of favourite female vocalists 2000 – 2009 (September 2009)..

Next up : your nominations are invited now for my best of 2009 chart.

Finally, it’s great to get reactions : please leave a comment at the bottom of the page when you’ve had a good look at one of the lists (and let me know of any links that no longer work).

Nick

mp3 corner

The mp3s published here will only be tracks which the artist or the record label have provided or given permission to appear. And any links will all be to sites run or officially approved by the artist or the record label.

So here they are, your free legal downloads. If you like what you hear, why not go out and buy their music.

First, a music to die for exclusive. The Good The Bad are “three Danish desperados, bringing the finest New School Surf & Flamenco to the worthy masses”. This instrumental track is a sampler for their debut EP from 001-004, released next month on Stray Cat Records.

Singer songwriter Laura Veirs, recently featured in my 100 best female vocalists of the decade, is offering two free tracks from her next album (July Flame, due out January 2010), I Can See Your Tracks and July Flame.

NYC band Guignol is also giving away two tracks of gypsy punk music from the collaboration album (not yet released) Guignol & Mischief Brew Fight Dirty. Check out the brilliant song Fight Dirty.

They fell from the sky is a new hardcore punk band formed by Pitchshifter drummer Jason Bowld and Hundred Reasons vocalist Colin Doran. Now a 5 piece band, they are giving away their debut single Crush this World as a sampler for their debut album, scheduled for spring 2010.

Finally (for US residents only I’m afraid) here’s a couple of albums currently available for free download from Amazon. The first is courtesy of the Anti- record label who have provided a 19 track sampler of 19 of the label’s own bands. Recommended : In These Arms by The Swell Season. The second is a compilation of bands on the indie label Sargent House. Here it is. Recommended : Chinchilla by This Town Needs Guns.

Band of the month

NOVEMBER 2009

Electronic wizard Jason Chung describes his art as “like a conductor calling up the violins and the cellos – I can pretty much mix and match any part of any song”. Chung started DJing when he was 13. Early influences included hip hop and drum n bass, but he takes inspiration now from many souces. Now 24, the Californian released his debut album Drift earlier this year under the name Nosaj Thing (Jason spelled backwards – geddit ?). It marks a big step forward for him as an artist.

Drift is a beautifully structured album in which the mood shifts subtly from track to track. As you’d expect there’s a huge range of electronic effects, lots of interesting things happening, but the integrity of the track and the melody is never sacrificed. The beats are softened, the hard edges removed, to create a mellow, at times ambient array of electronic soundscapes.

Coat of Arms

Fog

Quest

Us