We’ve released our debut 6-track EP as a FREE download, delivered as high-quality DRM-free MP3s. Sign up below for immediate access. For $2, you can upgrade to the HD package, which adds options for lossless audio (24-bit 44.1kHz WAV and 16-bit FLAC and Apple Lossless) and the music video for “The Space in Between” in 1080p and 480p. An immediate download of the HD package is included FREE with any merchandise purchase.

That is absolutely brilliant. Give a bit for free. For a small fee give a hell of a lot more.

Thankfully most of the bands I like are on independent labels¹ and generally have lower prices and more money can go to the artists². One benefit of this is that I can often times buy the albums directly from the artist, thus ensuring that the maximum amount of money makes it into their pocket.

Where is all this leading? Well, recently Radiohead did an online album sale by themselves. Following closely behind them is Saul Williams. I come to know of Saul Williams via his connection with Trent Reznor and his remixes of Nine Inch Nails tracks³. Saul has put out an album, The Inevitable Rise And Liberation Of NiggyTardust! that is online for free if you want. If you pony up five measly dollars you’ll get a higher bit-rate or uncompressed version, your choice. Needless to say it wasn’t hard for me to decide to drop $5 directly to the artist to get an album.

Quite a few people I talked to about Niggy Tardust were reluctant to try it because they thought it might be too much rap or hip-hop. I ended up loving the album. It’s produced by Trent Reznor and Trent ends up singing on a few tracks. From start to end the album flows and is lyrical in the way I love. If you like NIN and you aren’t abject to trying the online music thing you should give it a spin and then if you like it I suggest you buy it.

1. not in the big RIAA piss-pot
2. I’m not saying it always does, but it can.
3. By the way, NIN now has an official remix site up and running with a lot of cool tracks on it.

(via How to Avoid a Bummer Life)

I’ve been listening to it this afternoon and there’s some very inventive
mixing in there. I like it so far.

I wonder how long it will be allowed to stay up before some rights holder
gets their knickers in a twist. Well, I’ve got it now, so I can keep listening
to it.

• Rise Against – Siren Song of the
  Counter Culture. Okay, Rise Against put out an album last year,
  Revolutions Per Minute. Honestly, it was my href="http://danimal.org/SenorTaco/2003/12/31/">album of the year for
  2003. I still listen to it all the time because it’s just that good. Their
  new album, Siren Song of the Counter Culture is also a fantastic album,
  but I tell you, it’s hard to beat Revolutions. While spinning this
  album for a while I realize it would be a prenominal album if Revolutions
  had never come out, but it did and now we have more good stuff to
  listen to.
• Pretty Girls Make
  Graves – Good Health and The New Romance. This band
  is just supper solid. Sort of along the lines of Le Tigre and
  Sleater-Kinney in that they all have female singers and play similar styles
  of music, PGMG is a super solid and plays well for me in the background
  while I’m working. Everyone I’ve played them for has loved the sound
  immediately.
• Alkaline Trio – From Here to
  Infirmary and Good Mourning. I really used to love Alkaline Trio,
  then right before Infirmary came out something turned off for me so I
  skipped getting their last two albums. This year I got the
  
  Alkaline Trio/One Man Army Split. I immediately fell in love with the
  work of both bands on the split. That caused me to re-thing not having all of
  the Alk3 albums. I’m glad I decided to pick them up (besides being a
  completist) because Infirmary is good but Mourning is great.
  It’s right up there with the work on the split and has been very easy for
  me to listen to. The video for “We’ve Had Enough” is also really good (see
  the mention about the Rock Against Bush album below
• Less Than Jake – B is for
  B-sides. LTJ took 12 songs from the href="http://danimal.org/SenorTaco/2003/05/24#mall-n-music">Anthem
  sessions and put out a whole new album. It’s short but very good. It is LTJ,
  what more could one expect. I’m just blown away that they had enough
  material to release another album from just the recording of one.
• Various Artists – Rock Against Bush
  Vol. 2. Another in the series. While all the music is great and
  a nice cheap buy the winning aspect of this disc is that it comes with a
  bonus DVD. On the DVD is a performance of Will Ferrell as George Bush and
  several music videos by bands like Alk3, Flogging Molly, and Bad Religion.
  All in all yet another great comp from Fat Wreck.

• 
  Coheed and Cambria: The Second Stage Turbine Blade and In
  Keeping Secrets of Silent Earth: 3
  Where have I been these last two years? These guys are amazing. I love that
  they’ve got a concept that will span four albums and these two are #2 and #3
  respectively. The singer has a high pitched voice and more than one person
  has likened him to Getty Lee of Rush and while similar he’s not the same at
  all. The music is good to listen too and has several catchy songs. I mean
  how can you not like a band with a singer/song writer with such href="http://www.coheedandcambria.com/images/co.ca5.jpg" title="go Claudio">
  great hair. Right now I’m really digging these guys while I’m working
  out. Check out their videos.
• Swingin’ Utters: Live in A Dive
  Well, I love these guys. href="http://danimal.org/SenorTaco/2004/07/19#utters-slims-2" title="great
  show">The last show I saw by them was excellent. This live recording
  is no exception. A good mix of old and new and well mixed this I will
  enjoy listening to for a long time to come.
• 
  Alexisonfire: Watch Out!
  I had heard of this band here and there, but never heard them. My friend
  Matt suggested I give them a listen as usual he’s right on (we have near
  identical tastes in music). I will admit the album took a little bit to
  grow on me, but now that it has I like it. There are definitely points where
  I’m glad the singer sings instead of the screamer screaming.
• Only
  Crime: To the Nines
  Take several of the best musicians in punk rock today from bands like Good
  Riddance, Hagfish, Bane, and The Descendents/All and you get Only Crime.
  Because Russ Rankin is the singer there are many direct parallels to Good
  Riddance, but the music is much different in a good way. For hard rocking
  punk this album is a must have. It’s also good work out music.
• Tiger Army:
  III: Ghost Tigers Rise
  Tiger Army, how I love you. With this third release Tiger Army shows no
  signs of slowing down. Some of the songs are a little slower than one might
  expect, but overall the album is solid and has a lot of energy and great
  song writing that we’ve come to expect from the Army. If you like psychobilly
  then you’ll want this release in your catalogue.
• Subhumans:
  Live in A Dive
  Yet another in the Live in a Dive series. Again, Fat Wreck does not
  disappoint. While I’ve heard the Subhumans in the past I got into punk
  in the era post them. Slowly I’ve been picking up older stuff and this
  album is a great addition since it’s well mastered and a good mix (a “best of”
  if you will). Definitely a buy for anyone that likes the Subhumans.
• Bad
  Religion: The Empire Strikes First
  What more can one say about these legends of punk? Not much except that this
  album is great and spot on exactly what I’d expect from them. They did
  manage to release a couple of albums in the 90s that are just not recommended at all,
  but that’s all over now (and has been over for the last couple of albums).
  Bad Religion will rock your lame ass, believe it.
• Sparta:
  Porcelain
  A sophomore effort from some of the members of At the Drive-In. This album
  is solid but I will admit I haven’t given it enough listens to really
  embrace it yet. I liked it on the first couple of listens so it’s going
  to fall into regular rotation now.