Category: Audio

Reviews for free music. Short articles pointing out foobar2000 usage.

Nine Inch Nails – [2008] Ghosts I – IV

Nine Inch Nails is a industrial rock band with experimental touch. Experimental not only in the musical sense, but also in that they try out new forms of music distribution like giving it away for free. Ghosts I-IV is an improvised 36 track album with anonymous tracks, only grouped in “Ghosts I” to “Ghosts IV”.…

Wed, 8th Feb 2012
Iambic² – [2007] Under These Stars, We’ll Sleep Again

Electronic piano ambient. A smash-hit, considering that it is a forerunner for a niche genre with a niche publishing model in 2007.

Wed, 1st Feb 2012
Per – [2010] Ettertid

This release features timeless, synthy IDM. It was released in 2010 by the Fwonk netlabel. Also checkout Fwonk’s anniversary compilation FWONK*50 for an overview of their extensive catalogue. But back to this review: 10 tracks with approximately 50 minutes length hover around a quite neutral mood, similar to Pluxus. Some tracks are slightly upbeat, but…

Mon, 2nd Jan 2012
Bachelor Machines – [2011] Fatal Error

The UK based netlabel Fwonk finally got me with this clicky, dancy house release by the Bachelor Machines. To me they sound like a younger Justice or a more mature Stay Ali. Stompy beats, chiptune aesthetics and very memorable (not to say catchy) melody lines make me like their Fatal Error. 10 tracks with over…

Mon, 19th Dec 2011
Knoxband – [2010] Emerging From The Shadows

50 minutes of pure harmonies. Walls of synthetic chords, structured by spares percussion. Knoxband on diym netlabel is a wonderful example that soundscapes don’t have to sound blurry. If I wanted to describe the album in three words, “musical space journey” would be my best bet. Find previews to my two favourite tracks below.

Wed, 7th Dec 2011
Lunatic Scale – [2011] VII

The Clinical Archives is one of the major netlabels out there. While most of their releases are too experimental for my taste, over 400 releases allowed me nevertheless to find some good ones. VII by Lunatic Scale is fresh, melodic alternative (or mainstream) Rock from Russia. Three sweet tracks, short and good.

Wed, 30th Nov 2011
WSHtpc04 – new HTPC fullscreen panel for foobar2000 released

Download and instructions

Wed, 23rd Nov 2011
Various Artists – [2008] The Silent Ballet: Volume 9

The netlabel Lost Children specialises in Progressive Rock and related music genres. They offer a magnificent collection of free music compilations called The Silent Ballet. Here I present my favourite release of this series, being on the quiet and ambient side of the musical spectrum it offers. Volumes 1, 5 and 6 are my next…

Tue, 15th Nov 2011
Colida – [2006] Eyes Shut and Ears Wide Open

Colida is a hard alternative rock band. And pretty good at it. This release at the German netlabel analog und ehrlich was recorded in 2005 in Oldenburg and is Colida’s third album. It only has four tracks, but those are worth the download. Fast, driving riffs, dry drums and a great voice — what else…

Sun, 2nd Oct 2011
Derek Clegg – [2011] Beautiful World

This album is so conventional that it’s almost boring. It has the default Pop-Rock instrumentation, that familiar singer-songwriter sound and unsurprising song structures. But hey, that does not have to be bad. Especially when it sounds as good as on this release by DIY Musicians. Like always, two commented preview tracks await you below, together…

Sat, 17th Sep 2011
Carlo Serafini – [2011] Gammatar

Why always stick to the boring, twelve-halftones-per-octave, well-tempered diatonic scale? That’s what Wendy Carlos (creator of the soundtrack for Stanley Kubrick’s masterpiece Clockwork Orange) might have thought when inventing his muscic scales Alpha, Beta, Gamma and Delta. Carlo Serafini took the Gamma scale, tune his guitar and recorded nine songs with this tuning. The sound…

Sat, 17th Sep 2011
Pretty Lights

Usually I only write reviews of music that is hosted on the Internet Archive, from time to time I have to make an exception to this self-imposed rule. Remix artist Pretty Lights from Colarado, USA, has distilled a glitchy style of sampled instrumental hip hop with disco attitude. Fortunately, I found two of his tracks…

Wed, 6th Jul 2011
IlKobra – [2010] Cogito Ergo Beat

This week’s release is unusually hard electronic music by released last year at the Sostanze netlabel. It features monotonic, stomping, pure Breakbeats or Drum & Bass — I’m not so sure about the exact classification. Six tracks with well chosen names like Preludio or Santo Hertz await to thrill your nerves and your neighbours if…

Wed, 23rd Feb 2011
How to find free music

20 years ago, when you wanted to find new music, you went to a record store or switched on the radio. Things have quite changed since then. In this post I list starting points for searching good free music on the internet.

Wed, 2nd Feb 2011
Various Artists – [2010] The Best Creative Commons Music Moments 2010

Huge multi-genre compilation. Electro, dance, acoustic vocal pop, all represented in exquisite detail. A good year to choose from.

Wed, 19th Jan 2011