Free Music Friday: My Holiday, By Mindy Smith

Around the same time I discovered Rosie Thomas’s Christmas album (see last week’s post), I also found Mindy Smith’s “My Holiday,” which is equally sublime. You can listen to samples below to confirm and validate that this album is worthy of giving away.

You want it? Leave a comment (here or on Facebook if you’re a “friend”) and you’ll increase your chances of winning 100%. Guaranteed. (Winner to be decided Sunday…)

Find a fireplace, pour yourself some hot chocolate (or a glass of wine), grab a good book and make this your soundtrack to holiday bliss.

- Kevin

Song Picks: I Know The Reason, Follow the Shepard Home, My Holiday

Official Site for My Holiday

Amazon (Currently only $5 for the MP3 album!)

Spotify

 

Free Music Friday: A Very Rosie Christmas

 

I stumbled across this album a few years ago and fell in love with Rosie’s soft voice and catchy songwriting. So now I’m buying you a digital copy of A Very Rosie Christmas for FREE! (Provided you leave a comment here or on Facebook… and are the lucky winner randomly picked on Sunday).

Listen to “Christmas Don’t Be Late” or “Christmastime is Here” to get an idea of what’s in store.

Her MySpace page has the best audio links, so far…

Free Music Friday: Near The Parenthesis – Japanese For Beginners.

Okay, instead of trying to describe this music, I’m ripping off the description that’s on the label’s website. It’ll do a much better job of letting you know what Near the Parenthesis is about, and why you wanna get it.

Japanese for Beginners‘ is Near The Parenthesis’ 4th album via the n5MD imprint and 5th overall. Not far behind on the contemplative artfulness of 2010′s “Music For the Forest Concourse” this new album finds Tim Arndt adding more texturally experimental treatments to his signature mix of melodic IDM and Modern Classical. Arndt was intent on creating a decidedly more “electronic” backdrop for the record, which includes what may be some of the most creative drum programing of his career. Building on this new platform, Japanese for Beginners continues Arndt’s bias and skill in constructing haunting piano motifs and, as always, brings the pieces together seamlessly. The songs on “Japanese For Beginners” are as hopeful, as dreamy, and as thoughtfully crafted as you want them to be. With this album as with any of Arndt’s releases, it is up to the listener to dive in to the details or simply let it play as the soundtrack to your day.”

Personally? This is one of my favorite albums ever. It’s a great worship album to me, when I want to calm down and focus on God, but I don’t feel like getting overwhelmed with predictable melodies and saccharin lyrics that most Christian worship music consists of. Near the Parenthesis? Allows me to be myself when I approach God, without distractions.

I’m not a fan of ambient music, or stark piano for that matter. But this album is the epitome of tranquil and serene. So click here to listen to some samples and see for yourself why you should leave a comment & try to score this thing for free.

Got Spotify? You can listen to the entire album here. For FREE.

Free Music Friday: Natalie Walker

A few years ago I heard a rendition of “Dust in the Wind” by a group called Daughter Darling. The lead singer was Natalie Walker, who’s since broken out on her own with a handful of successful solo projects. If you’ll click on the link (above), you’ll hear how her voice is vivid and somewhat mesmerizing. Her latest album, “Spark,” is equally as enjoyable (although I only download a handful of the choice songs.)

So today I’m offering the lucky winner a total of 5 songs from Natalie:

Dust in the Wind

Quicksand (Thievery Corportation Remix)

Galapagos

Uptight

Mars

You can find samples for each one at Natalie’s Amazon page (or elsewhere on the web). And all you gotta do to enter is leave a comment. Ta-dahhh!! That’s easy. I’ll pick a winner on Sunday & get ‘em to you ASAP.

Free Music Friday: Vedera – Stages

As usual, I don’t know how I ran across Vedera. Probably music mining over on Amazon or something… I dunno.

But I DO know I was thoroughly impressed with their debut album, “The Weight of an Empty Room.” So when their follow-up album, “Stages,” came out, I knew I would enjoy it. Granted, they rewrote some of their key hooks and melodies from their previous album into new songs on this one, but you know what? It works. (Part of the joy of being an indie artist… you’re free to do crazy stuff like that if you want to.)

If you’re a fan female-fronted bands ala Sixpence None The Richer, The Sundays or The Cranberries, you’ll probably love the infectious pop rock stuff that Vedera has to offer. :) Just leave a comment with your contact info below and I’ll pick a winner on Sunday for the Amazon MP3 album.

Vedera – Stages (On MyPlay.com)

Vedera – MySpace

 

Free Music Friday: Hammock – Kenotic

Way back in 2005 I discovered what Post-Rock Music entailed. I had been looking for some kind of instrumental music, akin to Pink Floyd’s 90′s stuff, and as I was searching on CD Baby I ran across a then-unheard of group called Hammock. Their debut album, “Kenotic,” only confirmed my suspicions: I was in love with instrumental post-rock.

As I’m beginning to write on my blog more often, I’m going to try to institute Free Music Fridays. This is where I’ll post about a favorite band of mine, and then offer to buy the album for one lucky winner the next day. All YOU have to do is leave a comment below (and provide a cryptic e-mail address, ala “bunky at bunkyboo dot com” or something). Then I’ll slap all the names into some randomizer app on my iPhone and voila! Instant winner! :)

In the meantime, enjoy the album below… to see if it’s your kinda tunes.

- Kevin

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