2008-02-04

In Honor of the New York Giants...

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Last night was one of the best Superbowl games I have ever watched. That's how the game should be played. Tough. Smart. Physical. Great defense. Heart and determination. Never say die.

I'm thrilled to the pieces that the Giants pulled a huge upset. Don't get me wrong, I like Tom Brady, but I also love a great underdog story.

So, in honor of Eli Manning and his Giants, we bring you a few celebratory tracks:

1. Spoon - The Underdog
"You've got no fear of the underdog. That's why you will not survive." One of my favorite tracks from one of my favorite bands.

2. Death Cab For Cutie - We Looked Like Giants
True, it's mostly about making out with a girl in the back of his car, but when you get to the "We Looked Like Giants" part, you can throw your arms up and scream triumphantly.

3. Phil Collins - In the Air Tonight
I can just see the team listening to this pre-game to get themselves psyched up. Creepy, atmospheric, and utterly defiant.

4. Joey Scarbury - The Greatest American Hero
The Manning family has that unassuming, all-American quality, don't they? I'm bracing myself for the new wave of Peyton/Eli commercials. In the meantime, how about giving Eli a theme song? Let's see: from the 80's, a bit cheesy, yet triumphant. This is perfect!

5. Tom Petty & the Heartbreakers Greatest Hits - $7.99
The halftime show was boring but classic. And I was actually reminded that Tom Petty existed, and that some of his songs are good! $7.99 is pretty decent for an 18 track greatest hits album.

Congrats NYGiants!

2008-02-03

Free Flight of the Conchords Podcast

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If you haven't seen Flight of the Conchords on HBO, it's a bit difficult to fully describe how entertaining this show is. It's kind of...quietly hysterical.

Basically, two New Zealanders who have a band move to New York to try to make it. They have a single fan, who stalks them mercilessly. Their band manager works at the New Zealand Tourism Bureau and calls attendance at the start of every meeting consisting of the three of them. The curiously side-splitting songs their band writes are interspersed into the episodes.

And their rap names? Hiphopapotamus and Rhymenocerus.

iTunes has a free Podcast promoting Flight of the Conchords that includes a number of the music videos from the show (including the Robots one above), and the video blogs of their crazed fan Mel.

If you want a bit more, iTunes is also offering an EP collection of a number of their best full songs for $5.94.

2008-02-02

Thriller and Faith: Classics you've gotta have for $7.99

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Michael Jackson and George Michael have a lot in common. I mean, there's the obvious fact that they both have "Michael" in their names. But the commonalities go even deeper than that.


Think about it:
1. Both were part of exploitative, soul-crushing bands when they were younger: GM with "Wham" and MJ with "The Jackson Five"
2. Both found themselves in weird legal trouble over sexually-related issues.
3. Both put out epic records in the 80's that will stand the test of time: Thriller, and Faith.
4. Both of those records are now available at the iTunes store for $7.99.

Let's take a look at these albums individually:
Michael Jackson - "Thriller"
What can I say about this album except to remind you of its tracklist? Wanna Be Startin' Something, The Girl is Mine, Thriller, Beat It, Billie Jean, Human Nature, Pretty Young Thing...

Every song is a hit. Every note a classic. It is a must-have for any serious music lovers' collection.
You have to be cautious when wearing heavy metals while listening to this album. Even things with high melting points are liable to do so in the presence of George Michael's soulful voice on his debut album.
The front half of the album contains the classics you know and love: Faith, Father Figure, I Want Your Sex, and One More Try. The back half has tracks that aren't as instantly memorable but are still brilliant showcases for GM's gorgeous, sexy voice.

Get Thriller and Faith for $7.99 at iTunes this week.

2008-02-01

Get $10 in Free iTunes Music in our Weekly Contest!

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Welcome to Free iTunes Music's first weekly contest!!
Every week, we will give one lucky winner a gift certificate for $10 in Free iTunes Music. All you need to do to enter is to sign up for an e-mail subscription. That's it!

Not only will you keep getting updates on the best deals in iTunes, but you will be automatically entered to win $10 in free music every week.

Right now, our e-mail list is really small, so your odds of winning are very good. The earlier you sign up, the better your chances are to receive new music.

To sign up for e-mail and enter the contest, click here.

Good luck!

Fine Print Rules:

  • You must be a verified subscriber (meaning you clicked the link sent to verify your address).
  • Your e-mail information is 100% private. We won't reveal it to anyone.
  • You must be subscribed by midnight, 2/8/2008 to qualify. If you unsubscribe before the drawing, you cannot be chosen.
  • All previous week's subscribers automatically qualify for the next week's contest.
  • Anybody suspected of cheating or scamming the system will be disqualified.
  • If you'd prefer to subscribe to the feed, that's fine, but I'll need some sort of proof (like a screenshot of your feed reader with the feed in it). Send me an e-mail with proof at freeitunesmusic@gmail.com, and I'll add you to the contest list (don't worry, no SPAM to your e-mail address).
  • Winners will be notified via the e-mail address they are subscribed with. Prize will be delivered via same address.

Puressence: iTunes Editor's Music Choice

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iTunes has started a new regular editorial feature called "Editor's Music Choice" where they select an unknown artist and significantly mark down their album.


This week's is a band out of the UK. Manchester, specifically, which is in the North. Where men are men and soccer is football.

Puressence have been around for quite a while, but they haven't done much lately. Apparently they left their record label after they were told they "needed to sound more like Savage Garden". Can't say I blame them.

But they are back, with a new album. The music is good. It sounds a bit 90ish, as you might expect from a legacy band. But the vocals (yes, that is a man singing) are intriguing, and there is an upbeat poppiness that sets my toes-a-tappin'.

2008-01-31

Free Podcast of the Week: iTunes New Music Tuesday

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One of the best ways on iTunes to get access to free tracks is through the Podcasts. This week, we are featuring a podcast that comes from iTunes themselves.

iTunes New Music Tuesday plays the new singles from the freshly released mainstream albums. Last week's included Natasha Bedingfield, Matt Costa, and CL Smooth. Previous weeks have featured Kelly Rowland, Kate Nash, Alicia Keys, and Radiohead.

The host's banter is a bit annoying, but it's brief. If you want to get some great new music for free, subscribe now.

2008-01-30

Kate Nash uses mouthwash, breaths out fresh tracks

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From across the Atlantic, waterskiing in the wake of Lily Allen, comes Kate Nash. Her two singles, "Foundation" and "Mouthwash" are everywhere right now.

Though she shares a country of origin with Miss Lily Allen, musically Kate Nash seems to share more in common with Regina Spektor. She plays piano brilliantly. Her music has humor, irony, spunk, spirit, and a knack for capturing the angsty joy of young adulthood. Plus: her accent is irresistible.

Her debut album "Made of Bricks" opened as #1 in the UK. In it she sings about dickheads and discos, trainers and tarts. The stories she weaves are true-to-life, and frenetically fun.

Made of Bricks is $7.99 on iTunes right now. Great deal for a universally acclaimed #1 album. Get it now before the price goes up.

2008-01-29

Free Music Tuesday on iTunes: 1.29.08

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Finally! The wait is over! iTunes has finally updated their store with new free tracks for this week. And there are some gems!

1. Raheem DeVaughn - "Woman"

We begin with a track from Raheem DeVaughn called "Woman". For starters, is that a smooth name or what? But that's not all he's got going for him.

This particular track is Grammy-nominated. Yes, you heard me right. This track has been nominated for "Best Male R&B Vocal Performance" at the 2008 Grammys.

Raheem is a premium artist on the verge of explosion. It's rare you get a song of this quality for free. Download it immediately.


2. James Otto - "Just Got Started Lovin' You"

Next is a great country track from James Otto. I'm not terribly familiar with James Otto's music, but he has a sonorous bass voice with just a hint of sauciness to it. Plus, he's a local Fort Lewis Navy boy, so holler!!

Apparently this song is #28 on the country charts right now, so it's probably getting some radio play. It didn't blow me away, but I dug it. Check it out.


3. Pedro Capo - "Esta Noche"

Honestly, some of the best unknown tracks iTunes pulls out are the latino pop ones. This week's is from Pedro Capo. Pedro Capo is the son of Bobby Capo, who was an extremely famous Puerto Rican singer in his day.

And continuing in the tradition of latino musical sons, Pedro is hot. Not Enrique Iglesias hot, but he's got his own thing going on.

I love the excitement and tradition of this music. Pick it up this week or face paying $.99 for it next week.

Katherine Heigl's husband has shape-shifting abilities, reasonably priced album

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Josh Kelley is a fairly new artist on the scene, probably known more for his marriage to Grey's Anatomy star Katherine Heigl than for any meaningful music contributions thus far.

But things seem to be falling in place for Josh Kelley. He's got the trendy Converse sneaks, he's got his hot wife in his music video, and he's just released a pretty catchy album with mainstream appeal.

Since it's release date on 1/17, "Special Company" has been hanging out in the iTunes top 10 albums, so I decided to check it out.

The album is incredibly versatile. Josh is a veritable musical chameleon. There are some moments when I would swear I was listening to John Mayer with breathy vocals and impeccably picked guitar. Then suddenly he's straddling his guitar like a rock demi-god and wailing impossibly high notes. He shifts again, his voice light, and jazzy, trilling out warbling falsetto like no one's business. Blink, and he's channeling country harmonies and twang.

Time will tell if this tremendous versatility serves to make Josh a superstar, or simply confuses his listeners. But the diversity of the album will keep you intrigued and listening. And it's a steal at $7.99 on iTunes.


Pick up Josh Kelley's "Special Company" for $7.99.

2008-01-28

Paula Abdul + Randy Jackson = Suprisingly Not Terrible.

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When I first heard that Paula Abdul was staging a comeback, I ran to the internet to ascertain whether pigs, had in fact, sprouted wings and were spotted zooming through the skies. No such luck. The internet only confirmed the rumors. My skin began to crawl and I began sweating profusely. I could smell disaster on the horizon.


My fear was rooted in my experience last year watching the reality show "Hey, Paula!". Anybody who saw that show could only conclude that Paula Abdul was a slightly more advanced-in-age nutjob than Brittany Spears. And we all know what happened with Brittany's "comeback..."

But I should have known better. Paula's American Idol handlers would never let her do something that would cast a negative light on the show. And in fact, the first single, "Dance Like There's No Tomorrow", is out and it's...shockingly good.

Sure, it's so heavily produced (by none other than Mr. Randy Jackson), you can't really hear Paula's voice. There's auto-tuner on every note, but I suppose you could argue it's stylistic. It's catchy and danceable, and still somehow keeps some of the essence of Paula's music from the 80's.

Grab "Dance Like There's No Tomorrow" now before Paula debuts it at the Superbowl next Sunday!