Top 10 Free Ways To Discover New Music Online
Bored with your music and want to discover some new bands or singers? There are two main ways you can do that online. You can use services which create music maps, allowing you to explore artists similar in genre to the artists you already listen to. Or you can use music blogs and websites that showcase independent or up-and-coming artists, whether the music is being reviewed, or posted by the musicians themselves.
Some of these websites have a community built around them, which gives fans the opportunity to interact directly with these new talents.
Here is a list of 10 free sites to discover new music.
TuneGlue
TuneGlue is straightforward and easy to use. Put in the name of a musical artist you like in the search bar and before you know it, you’ll have a whole web of musical artists that are in one way or another, similar to the band you started with.
Using TuneGlue, you start out with 6 similar artists, and can continue to explore and expand on them. In the case of some artists, you can also find added information such as a small bio and a link to their website.
Music-Map
A less flashy alternative to TuneGlue is Music-Map. While TuneGlue only initially suggests 6 similar artists, Music-Map instantly reveals all the similar artists in their database, with the most similar musicians closest to the original search term.
Music Roamer
Music Roamer adds another dimension to music map sites, by not only providing suggestions of similar artists, but also allowing you to listen to music directly on their site. The songs are powered by YouTube videos, but it should be said, in our experience, all of the tracks were live versions, and not always of very good quality. They also provide links to purchase the mp3s from Amazon.
While listening to a song on Music Roamer, you can also explore similar songs, not just similar musicians, which definitely puts it a step ahead of Music-Map and TuneGlue.
Music Roamer gives you more freedom in manipulating the appearance of your results – including resizing images and controlling how many similar artists are included in the results.
Bloson
The simplest alternative to these first three websites is Bloson. Searching for any given artist will provide you with a list of similar artists, whose music you can listen to directly on their website, again powered by YouTube videos. The videos, however, are not live and are usually of much better quality than Music Roamer’s videos.
Zune
An alternative to Bloson is the Zune website, which you can benefit from whether or not you own a Zune.
This website is worth a mention because not only can you look up similar musicians, you have the added bonus of finding out which bands they were influenced by, as well as those they have influenced.
Other websites that you can use to discover similar music include Musicovery, TasteKid, Last.fm, Pandora and FineTune. A tip to getting a better user experience with FineTune is to use their Wii-player.
One Track Mind
Discovering new artists isn’t just about finding bands that are similar to musicians you already listen to. Blogs like One Track Mind have made it easy for musicians to share their music through a single platform, by submitting them to the site for review.
Music on One Track Mind is divided into four main genres: Indie, Electronic, Soul and Hip-Hop. Not only can you listen to posted songs, the song comes with a blog post about the artist, and you can also download the mp3 for free, and rate the song. The ratings are reflected in three criteria: originality, repeat listen potential and overall verdict.
The Hype Machine
Another music blog to keep bookmarked, which also includes mainstream music, is The Hype Machine.
The Hype Machine scours music blogs for the best in music reviews and blog posts that contain mp3 files to stream or download.
Music can be browsed by popularity, both based on interaction on their website or on Twitter, by listening to a constant stream of eclectic music, or by listening to a customizable station based on your taste, amongst other ways.
TheSixtyOne
Social music sites are another way to discover new music. TheSixtyOne is a great place to start if you’re looking for new talent. The site has under gone a recent and major revamp, which for previous users, could take some getting used to.
Luckily if you don’t want to do that – you can always access the old site design by going here.
Besides a total redesign with no remnants from the old site’s design, the categories have changed as well. Rather than dividing their music into genres, popular songs, and moods, it’s now categorized only by mood with mellow, party, trippy and funny on the list.
TheSixtyOne differs from One Track Mind in that artists and labels can post their own music to the site, albeit with limited uploads dependent on achieving certain ‘milestones.’
Listeners can add songs to their favourites, and the more popular a song is, the more likely it is to end up on the front page, or in the case of the new site, in the queue. The site is entirely community driven, with the users deciding what is popular and what isn’t, and in the process, earning ‘reputation points.’
While listening to songs, you can ‘heart’ them, share them and in some cases download them. TheSixtyOne also suggests similar songs to listen to.
Once you have been active enough on the site, you can listen to a station, based on your taste in music.
OurStage
If you’re more interested in the music and less interested in the community experience, a good alternative to TheSixtyOne is OurStage.
Simply choose one of their 42 stations, and listen to uninterrupted music from brand new singers and songwriters. You can also have a say in which songs end up on the OurStage charts, by taking part in the ‘judging’ process. After listening to two songs from the same genre, you can choose the song you liked more, and as they put it, save the world from mediocre music.
PureVolume
PureVolume is yet another interesting alternative to OurStage and TheSixtyOne. It features both signed and unsigned bands, in over 50 genres. You can browse music by popularity or by featured artists. All songs are available to stream, while some are available for download as well. Each band has an individual page where they can post band information, their songs, and users can comment or add songs and singers to their favourites. Bands can sign up for free and start promoting their music, but there is also a pro account for musicians with additional features, including the opportunity to be included in the featured artists.
PureVolume also has social media integration, where you can share the music you find on Twitter and Facebook.
How do you discover new music online? Let us know in the comments.
Image credit: Sofamonkez
(By) Nancy lives in Cairo, works at a publishing house, is half poet, half geek, and suffers from a heavy dose of techno-joy. You can find her on Twitter at diptychal
I’m shocked to see that Last.Fm is not getting a mention :O
(Comments wont nest below this level)Actually I did mention Last.fm in passing as it’s already so well known.
Cool cool, but everyone seemed to completely leave out Pandora. It’s somewhat well known but I’ve been using it for a long time to discover and listen to tons of new artists. The only down side is that you already have to have a basic idea of what you want before you start discovering new musicians; however, Pandora is also a great alternative method for just listening to music in general.
and 8tracks.com !
(Comments wont nest below this level)Suprisingly, wikipedia is a pretty good way for me, just type in someone you like and go from there. Users usually descibe their influences, or for a particular album you find out the producer and see what else he has done.
(Comments wont nest below this level)That’s one I wouldn’t have thought of! Thanks for the tip David.
Aime Street – http://amiestreet.com/
(Comments wont nest below this level)Stereogum – http://stereogum.com/
@MeLikeGoodMusic on twitter – http://twitter.com/MeLikeGoodMusic
YES! I love Stereomood, I’m on it right now
Pandora?
(Comments wont nest below this level)I agree. Pandora is excellent.
I use soundcloud to find music, it’s brilliant.
(Comments wont nest below this level)I use awsm.fm to discover new music + images
(Comments wont nest below this level)I like to use http://www.dldisco.com to find all discography of any artist, because sometimes the old records of artists that are unknown are the real gems…
(Comments wont nest below this level)How cool is that? Thanks for the tip, great website
I have been enjoying the Emerging Artist view at http://wearehunted.com to find new stuff. Limited to top 99 songs but still lots of fresh songs.
(Comments wont nest below this level)HA! I haven’t used Purevolume since 2004!
(Comments wont nest below this level)Yeah, what about Pandora? That’s what I use. Or maybe it’s already well-known.
(Comments wont nest below this level)what about http://www.pandora.com ???? Everyone here loves that!
(Comments wont nest below this level)Except, now Pandora is making you pay once you’ve heard a certain amount of songs a month or something like that. It’s stupid now.
Amanda, you’re not quite right. Pandora now plays short, low-key (as in NOT YELLING at you) commercials at fairly long intervals if you don’t opt for the “premium” service.
As Heinlein said, T.A.N.S.T.A.A.F.L. “There Ain’t No Such Thing As A Free Lunch.”
(Yeah, I read a book once. It was printed on paper and everything.)
actually amanda is right, if you listen to more than 30 hours of songs per month then you have to pay to continue listening.
that or wait till the month ends.
Oh noes! Not 30 HOURS!! that is way too little!
Also, Pandora won’t work outside the US now. On the site they say they’re trying to get all the rights etc. but nothing so far for us Europeans…
Nice article Nancy!
(Comments wont nest below this level)I’ve discover some new great sites.
My prefer goes to AllMusic.com.
I’ve had no need for anything other than pandora since it was made available. I tried some of the others… but pandora searches FOR YOU. Also, becuase of pandora, I’ve bought more music in the last 2 years or so than I had in at least 5 years prior.
(Comments wont nest below this level)PEACE
ISAAC
musicovery.com
Probably where tuneglue and musicmap got there idea from
(Comments wont nest below this level)Ummm pandora.com anyone??? hellerrrr
(Comments wont nest below this level)8tracks is a great site. Ive found awesome mixes on there.
(Comments wont nest below this level)My favorite from the list is One-Track-Mind. ( http://one-track-mind.com/ )
(Comments wont nest below this level)Always a good selection as well as a good read.
Isn’t Pandora still US only?
(Comments wont nest below this level)Yep – you can’t use Pandora outside of the US, and Last.fm is only free in the US and a couple of European countries
Last.fm > Pandora
(Comments wont nest below this level)http://www.grooveshark.com > last.fm > Pandora
Completely agree. I was surprised not to see anyone else mention this.
I think spotify is actually quite good. You need to apply but it is a totally free music player and all artists have many related artists that can also be listened to for free.
(Comments wont nest below this level)Yeah I like Spotify, when I want to look for something entirely new I type in a random word like ´Black`or ´Lake´or ´Rain´and see what it gives me. This technique gives me a good cross range of a lot of styles of music and I have discovered stuff I really like in places I would not have thought to look.
The above is on top of the ´normal´way to use the site too
I use a forumn type site called Blip.fm. You are able to listen to anything create a library and listen to other people’s libraries and comment on them.
(Comments wont nest below this level)gnoosic.com is a good one too
(Comments wont nest below this level)So glad to see One Track Mind on your list! It’s a really underrated site and a great way to support artists AND get free music.
They provide a nice editorial angle that the others don’t really.
(Comments wont nest below this level)IMHO, the algorithm on Pandora seems pretty weak – especially if you have eclectic tastes like I do. And you might notice that two of the sites recommended above are based on the Last.fm API.
(Comments wont nest below this level)Tony, I share your frustration with Pandora on that count. I have seven different “stations” for different types of music. It’s sometimes annoying to have to remember to move a song to another station instead of just clicking “like it.” They were very nice about helping me get it straightened out though, and they say they are working on refining their code to offer an “advanced” option so users can specify WHAT you like about a song.
Eclectic tastes are hard to program for, and it’s always tempting to just ignore statistical outliers in favor of pleasing the majority.
no doubt !!!
(Comments wont nest below this level)When thesixtyone killed the community in their revamp, many users moved to http://uvumi.com, which has a similar focus on new artists. It’s still very much in development, but is growing fast.
(Comments wont nest below this level)In their defense, you can still access the old site at http://old.thesixtyone.com/
http://www.allmusic.com is great for learning more by band, genre, or song…if I hear of a band that’s new to me, learning about them here will help me decide if i care to know more (and why).
(Comments wont nest below this level)Take Thesixtyone off of that list, and add http://www.uvumi.com
T61 went to hell.
(Comments wont nest below this level)The site still has its merits because of the quality of music on it and at the end of the day that’s what this about – finding good music. And you can still access their old design here http://old.thesixtyone.com/
What, no Grooveshark? They’re like Pandora, only better: No commercial interruptions, you can pick what music you want to start with, and there’s a radio function where it can suggest music to you for listening.
(Comments wont nest below this level)i’m glad to see purevolume on here. i used to use it all the time as a kid
(Comments wont nest below this level)i used to like http://musicovery.com but now they want your money
(Comments wont nest below this level)This may sound weird, but I have actually discovered a lot of music through listening to stations on Live365.com. If you can find a station whose owner has basically similar tastes to you, it can be a cool way to broaden your horizons by hearing stuff you normally wouldn’t associate with the bands you like.
(Comments wont nest below this level)Last.fm is what I use. Their suggestions really match what type of music you listen to.
(Comments wont nest below this level)Lala.com lets you listen to related artists, just choose an artist and click ‘Mix it up’.
(Comments wont nest below this level)If it hasn’t been mentioned yet, I’ve found some interesting artists at http://www.reverbnation.com
(Comments wont nest below this level)What about pandora?
(Comments wont nest below this level)It would be Kings of Leon selected as the artist after they released those two ‘amazing’ singles.
(Comments wont nest below this level)FFS the first two albums were the best by Kol.
Last.fm isn’t free for many of us, so it i have stopped using it though I really did enjoy it before
(Comments wont nest below this level)Slacker Radio is just like Pandora but with a seemingly larger library. It also allows you to sync the stations to your blackberry/Iphone. Best part is you can cache the stations on your blackberry so you can listen to them when you have no service (great for subway rides).
(Comments wont nest below this level)Just go to http://www.quoteunquoterecords.com
(Comments wont nest below this level)blip.fm rocks totally addictive
(Comments wont nest below this level)If you left off the top ways to discover new music, i.e. Pandora and LastFM, then you need to change the name of your post, because this is *not* the top ten ways.
(Comments wont nest below this level)They are mentioned in passing because they are not entirely free or accessible. Last.fm only works in 3 countries for free – all other countries have to pay a subscription fee, and Pandora only works in the US and has a limit on how much you can listen to per month for free.
Coda.fm is really good too
(Comments wont nest below this level)A new site for free music ….
(Comments wont nest below this level)Maybe MySpace is also too well known to mention, but I have discovered a lot of wonderful artists I would never have heard of elsewhere because they are unsigned. The music pages are a showcase for artists of all genres and levels of experience and “success.” Look up an artist you like. You can listen to the music they have posted. Go to their “friends” list and find other artists who like them enough to want to be associated with them. Follow those links, etc.
(Comments wont nest below this level)OK, I’m impressed. TuneGlue has an impressive databse, including artists Pandora does not have, and genres as diverse as Scandinavian ProgMetal and Native-American flute based ensembles.
(Comments wont nest below this level)Spotify!
(Comments wont nest below this level)gnod.net is pretty cool
(Comments wont nest below this level)We used to use grooveshark but some people that I work with got viruses from using it (at least that’s what they said anyways). Do we have to worry about getting any malware with these sites?
(Comments wont nest below this level)musicovery.com
(Comments wont nest below this level)Ooh, ooh! Also, try http://www.gnoosic.com
(Comments wont nest below this level)I don’t know if it’s popular enough to be already known though. /:
But you can also find books and movies ^-^
You guys should really check out http://listen.grooveshark.com/ too. Has tons of music on there, can create play lists and add favorites as well.
(Comments wont nest below this level)Hey, great list and very useful, but one small nitpick – you completely misrepresented how “music map” works. It doesn’t present artists similar to the one you type in, it suggests artists which are commmonly liked by the people who liked what you typed in. So if you type in Band A and Band B is close to it, it means that lots of people who like Band A also like Band B – not that Bands A and B are necessarily similar musically. Likewise, all the other bands it throws up are arranged based on whether people liked them both in relation to each other as well as in relation to the band you typed in, which makes it a pretty cool little gadget IMO!
(Comments wont nest below this level)MusicRoamer has been updated since this post! Please check it out http://www.musicroamer.com
(Comments wont nest below this level)I agree with last.fm and pandora, and used them in the past….but you have to check out Slacker.com. They even have apps for the iphone, blackberry, and windows mobile. I use it exclusively in my car. Has better sound quality than all the others, plus has a lot better setup. If you haven’t tried it yet, give it a whirl.
(Comments wont nest below this level)Why no Pandora? I figured Pandora would be the first one mentioned.
(Comments wont nest below this level)I use last.fm so much that I do the paid subscription thing.
(Comments wont nest below this level)The basic features are free, streaming radio you pay a small subscription fee for.
Well i guess
http://www.grooveshark.com
and
http://www.tastekid.com should also get a mention brilliant sites in their own right…
(Comments wont nest below this level)thank you so much for putting one track mind on here! what a great site. thanks!
(Comments wont nest below this level)Jango, the online radio thingy. Pretty good.
http://www.jango.com/
(Comments wont nest below this level)8TRACKS.COM WOOT WOOT
(Comments wont nest below this level)Extraordinary work, loved the info given here. Thanks!
(Comments wont nest below this level)I’ll second MySpace – for early previews of new releases by major Artists, and also for hosting a large universe of Independent Artists’ music.
I’m surprised that no one mentioned Lala…especially since their sharing option allows the embedding of quite a few songs into Facebook (a la YouTube) and Twitter (for Power Twitter users).
(Comments wont nest below this level)Also, I just discovered Soundzit today…it advertises itself as “an audio version of YouTube” – NO registration, embeddable players, and purchase links to iTunes and Amazon. Very promising…I already embedded 7 tracks into my Facebook “MyStuff” tab via Gigya.
stumbled across a nice electro/house blog called ilictronix.com savage rare remixes and a nice blend of new talent and dance hierarchy. really has got me into people i had never heard of before. completely free and you can download most of the sample tracks from the artist in question and they often discuss influences and people they’ve influenced!
http://www.ilictronix.com
(Comments wont nest below this level)http://www.noisetrade.com is the greatest website of all time.
(Comments wont nest below this level)You should add in http://aurgasm.us/ and http://www.daytrotter.com/ =)
(Comments wont nest below this level)I use http://www.sharethemusic.com. You can check there related artists, inspirations and followers – http://www.sharethemusic.com/Black_Eyed_Peas/related.
To listen to music you have to register and download software, but I think it’s worth it.
(Comments wont nest below this level)go to Sputnik music reviews.
Find a album that you LOVE–
Find OTHER USERS that love the same album
and explore their other top picks!
//(I have found so many amazing bands since im into
(Comments wont nest below this level)alot of screamo/experimental/indie/progressive that are virtually impossible to find elsewhere!)
wow its like you just opened up a labyrinth of possibilities, thanks you T_T
(Comments wont nest below this level)I thought I was up to date by being part of Pandora. Things change so fast. I love all these ideas for finding new artists.
(Comments wont nest below this level)In my limited experience with modeled music suggestions, the models are missing a great deal. I love Sting, The Mighty Mighty Bosstones, Josh Ritter, and the Dresden Dolls. But when I hear suggestions from any of these channels, I like about 30-40% of the suggested tunes and artists. We have a long way to go.
(Comments wont nest below this level)i agree …we need deeper filters
Grooveshark.
(Comments wont nest below this level)Thanks. I was looking for some cool ways to find new music.
(Comments wont nest below this level)bbb
(Comments wont nest below this level)Hey nice blog and nice post, I like it. Keep it up!
(Comments wont nest below this level)I use a newer site — http://www.fivetracks.com/ Same basic concept of music discovery, but with categories instead
(Comments wont nest below this level)last.fm pandora.com
(Comments wont nest below this level)I’ve been using a site called Rank ‘em for music discovery. It uses fan input to rank the “best” songs of different artists (so I can put in my own two cents as well as learn something new).
(Comments wont nest below this level)http://www.gorankem.com
What about Pandora? That one is Great! except you kinda know what you want and its just generally good for listening to music.
(Comments wont nest below this level)PANDORA SUCKS THAT’S WHY. It stores more cookies than anything else on your computer and it only takes a few days to go through the 30 free hours each month.
playlist.com make your own lists and listen to them as much as you want. all free
(Comments wont nest below this level)what about Musicovery?? Great way to sample artist from any genre or time period,…plus you get to pick your mood. http://musicovery.com/index.php?ct=us
(Comments wont nest below this level)There is something to be said about http://aurgasm.us/ as a music blog. I like that it has video and audio links on site, but also that it covers writers as well as performers
(Comments wont nest below this level)Best Ever thing… that's NOT on here Pandora!!!!!!
(Comments wont nest below this level)last.fm has a great setup and its automatically logs the songs you listen to (via itunes or ipod) and will give you recommendations based on your recent plays. It also hosts web radio stations
(Comments wont nest below this level)I like using Genius on iTunes, but I'm excited to try some of these other sites!
(Comments wont nest below this level)Very nice! I use HypeMachine all the time, but a few of the others look pretty cool and I'll have to check them out.
(Comments wont nest below this level)how about grooveshark. It is by far the best one i have ever found.
(Comments wont nest below this level)yep, it's pretty cool.
Aibek
Aibek
(Comments wont nest below this level)Pandora is mind blowing! Cant believe I havent seen it before
Anthony Pittarelli
(Comments wont nest below this level)What about Grooveshark??? it's pretty damn awesome too!
(Comments wont nest below this level)I love Grooveshark. Granted, I mostly use it to listen to music I already know, but it also has an internet radio feature to help discover new artists.
(Comments wont nest below this level)Stereogum is also a great site. Lots of free mp3s.
(Comments wont nest below this level)