There is a veritable minefield of sites awaiting prospective people looking for MP3 downloads. Many are illegal, many are a mix of legal and illegal, but some ARE wholly legal. They have free and legal MP3 files for download to anyone who wants them. The quality of the music at such sites is debatable. I suppose it depends on what kind of music you are into. Though some of the free and legal sites do list music by known bands and artists. In these cases the record labels and artists have given permission for the music to be freely distributed. Here is a list of sites which have free and legal MP3’s available for download.
1. 3hive
3hive is a music blog which has been going for quite some time. It tends to have reviews and heads-ups of up and coming indie and alternative bands. The feel of the site is friendly and the quality of the MP3’s is excellent. I can highly recommend this blog and there is usually a new band added every day.
2. Largehearted Boy
This is another blog which has new MP3’s to download on a daily basis. The site concentrates on literature, music news and music downloads and the quantity is certainly very impressive. Again, the music is mostly indie and alternative in style, though there are some big names of the rock world too.
3. Stereogum
Stereogum is probably the most visited music blog in the world. It is an eclectic mix of the latest music news, some tabloid gossip, new music videos and newly distributed MP3’s, many of which are exclusive to the site. It is updated daily and always has something of interest to listen to.
4. Chromewaves
Chromewaves is an excellent music blog with daily updates. It features articles about new and emerging indie artists and includes MP3 download links via the band’s own official website and record label. There’s always a lot to get your teeth into and a wide spectrum of music to download. The site looks nice as well, which is always nice.
5. Discontent
This is a relatively new site , out of Australia I believe, which spawned from the old fat planet blog. It features a nice line in dance and electronica MP3’s which are taken from official band websites and record labels.
6. Free Albums Galore
It’s not just individual songs which are available to download. This long standing and well respected site features totally free and legal MP3 albums to download. The quality is a little hit and miss and some of the artists are a not well known, but on the whole it’s a good archive of freely available legal downloads in album form. Expect to find a lot of netlabel releases mixed in with some bigger named artists and a few undiscovered gems. Worth bookmarking for sure.
7. Archive.org
This extensive site is often overlooked when it comes to free and legal music. It’s a massive library of MP3’s just waiting to be downloaded. There are many categories including the great Live Music Archive which has masses of live shows donated by bands who have agreed their gigs can be recorded. Theses are not unknown bands either, there are some big big names here. Other categories include the Grateful Dead archive, the Netlabel archive, audio books and a whole lot more. Excellent site.
8. Classiccat.net
As the name suggests, this is a site dedicated to free and legal classical music. All the famous and important composers are here, and many which you may not have heard of. It’s an extensive library of classical music in MP3 format.
9. music.download.com
For those of you who haven’t heard about this site, it’s a huge directory of all kinds, style and genres of music which is freely available for download. There are bands big and small here, and some real gems can be found with a little bit of digging.
10. BetterPopaganda
BetterPopaganda is an online music magazine which features music news and the latest muscial releases. However it comes into its own with its MP3 downloads. New MP3’s are added on a daily basis from the best indie and alternative artists around. Another very good place to find something new to listen to.
Anyway, hope this small list of sites helps you find something worth popping on your ipod.
