The Flaming Lips: At War With The Mystics

Unique philosophical rockers The Flaming lips.

Sansa Clip with Rhapsody DNA

I've been testing the recently released Sansa Clip player and so far I'm very pleased with the results.

This is one of the smallest players you will ever see, yet somehow it squeezes in a very nice user interface with an electric blue on black screen. On the back of the player is a built in removable clip which makes this player perfect for the gym.

You navigate the Sansa Clip using a circular click pad which I found to be very quick and responsive. A home button located above the click pad takes you back to the menu screen. There is also a power-hold button on the left and a set of dedicated volume control buttons on the right of the player. The sound is very good and the player is packed with options including a voice recorder and and FM radio receiver.

It also comes with built in support for the DNA. For those of you who subscribe to Rhapsody to Go, this is a great feature. You can download any track from Rhapsody on to you player and listen to it on the go. Just make sure you plug in your player to Rhapsody each month or else your tracks will expire. I've been downloading a feature called Rhapsody channels. This allows you to pick a favorite genre of music and have hours worth or music automatically updated and refreshed on your player every time you plug it in. Basically, its like taking a radio station to go. If you like a track, you can click on it to automatically add it to your library.

If you are looking for a small portable player that's great for the gym, you won't find a more full featured player than the Sansa Clip.

Alan Jackson's Small Town Southern Man

Alan Jackson's new single is now available for downloading on . Jackson show's why he's still one of Nashville's best.

History of red hot chili peppers

If you are looking for a history of red hot chili peppers, before they became pop sensations, check out this compilation on . What Hits!? is a compilation of their early years including the classic "Under a Bridge."

Collective soul mp3 mp3

Collective Soul is ready to release its new album which includes the great mp3 single Hollywood. Preview the song on the website, then head over to
to catch up on the rest of Collective Soul's mp3 catalog.

The White Stripes - Icky Thump

The White Stripes are back with a new studio album, "Icky Thump", a exclusive. Although still not on par with the classic, "Elephant", its still a great listen.

Ryan Adams - Easy Tiger

Ryan Adams is back to his old ways (kind of) on Easy Tiger. I've given it a couple of listens and although its probably his best album since Rock N Roll, its still a bit subpar. However, I may be judging it too quickly. If you are a member you can check it out now for free..........try Tears of Gold.

John Mayer - The Village Sessions

This is a nice 6-song acoustic set featuring songs from Mayer's latest album, "Continuum." Check out "Waiting on the World to Change" with Ben Harper. Available now for free to subscribers.

New Smashing Pumpkins Single on Rhapsody - Tarantula

Its been a long time since we've heard anything good from the Smashing Pumpkins. Will this be their return to greatness? Check out the new hard-rocking single Tarantula from the Pumpkins on .

3 Legal Ways to Get Music on Your MP3 Player

It is common knowledge that free digital music can be obtained through peer-to-peer sharing networks like Kazaa and Limewire. However, downloading copyrighted material is illegal and although punishment is rare, it does occur. Furthermore, the quality of these tracks can be questionable and using peer-to-peer networks opens your computer up to dangerous viruses.

For those of you who want to avoid these types of files, there are 3 great options available to you.

• Rip your own CD collection into digital format
• Purchase protected music files from a digital music store like Itunes (some are now unprotected).
• Rent music on a subscription basis from Rhapsody, Napster, or Yahoo Music Unlimited.
  

If you have a large CD collection, you can save yourself a lot of money by ripping your own CD's to your hard drive. Although this can be time consuming, it offers the highest possible audio quality and is generally considered legal (as long as you don't decide to share these files with millions of people). If you rip your music in mp3 format, it should be compatible with any mp3 player, including the iPod.

Digital music stores like Itunes offer millions of tracks for download, however, there are restrictions placed on these tracks for most artists (EMI recently removed digital rights management, DRM, from their music files). You are limited to the number of times you can burn songs to a CD and the number of computers you can use to listen to these songs. However, for most people, this is not a concern. Also, Itunes audio quality measured in bit rate is less than what you can achieve when ripping your own CD's. Finally, protected Itunes songs only transfer to an iPod, so if you have a different mp3 player, you will need to find a compatible music download service.

Subscription music services allow you to download millions of tracks for a monthly fee. When you stop paying the monthly fee, the tracks expire and will no longer play. The advantage of this service is that you can listen to anything you want without having to buy every CD. Prices range from $10-$15 a month. With a subscription to-go service, you can transfer any song to a compatible mp3 player and take it with you to the gym or on trips. If you like to listen to a lot of new music, then this may be the most cost-effective option.

Itunes Unleashes DRM-free Version of Itunes

As promised, Itunes has released its DRM-free music store courtesy of EMI music. The songs are 256kbps AAC music files and cost $1.29 per track. You can upgrade most of your current eligible tracks for $0.30 per track.

No Beatles songs yet, but you can download tracks from big-name artists like Coldplay, Norah Jones, Joss Stone and REM. This is the first major music label to offer legitimate paid downloads online. Look for other online music stores to follow suit in the near future.

New Wilco Single - "What Light"

The new Wilco single is now available for streaming and download on The full album is due out later this spring. Enjoy!

A Big Summer for New Music in 2007

Rolling Stone magazine has released its spring music preview and it includes some big names. Here are some of the highlights of what looks to be a great season for new music.

Arctic Monkeys
Favourite Worst Nightmare
Out April 24th

Tori Amos
American Doll Posse
Out May 1st

Dinosaur Jr.
Beyond
Out May 1st

Björk
Volta
Out May 8th

Wilco
Sky Blue Sky
Out May 15th

Maroon 5
It Won't Be Soon Before Long
Out May 22nd

Velvet Revolver
Libertad
Out May 29th

Linkin Park
Minutes to Midnight
Out May 15th

Rihanna
title tba
Out June 5th

Rooney
Calling the World
Out June 19th

M.I.A.
Kala
Out June 26th

Ryan Adams
Easy Tiger
Out June

Chris Cornell
Carry On
Out June

The White Stripes
Icky Thump
Out June

Will.i.am
Songs About Girls
Out Summer

Travis
The Boy With No Name
Out May 8th

Would You Subscribe to Itunes?

There have been rumors circulating about an Itunes subscription music model that could be available by the end of the year. For those of you who have never tried the subscription model, its a great way to check out tons of new music without having to purchase every single track. For the price of around 1 CD a month, you can stream, download, and transfer to a compatible digital audio player as many songs as you like. The only thing you can't do is burn songs to a CD. As long as you keep paying the monthly fee, you can keep listening to the songs for as long as you want. As soon as you cancel the service, the songs expire and can no longer be played. Currently, the subscription based model is only available on services like Rhapsody, Napster, Zune, and Yahoo Music Unlimited.

An Itunes subscription service would be a serious threat to these other services who currently have found a niche that Itunes hasn't pursued. It will be curious to see if all of these services would be able to survive a direct attack from Itunes.

Bright Eyes New Album Cassadaga Available on Rhapsody for the First Time

Finally a Bright Eyes album is available on Rhapsody, ending the Itunes exclusive with the prolific artist. Expect the same quality of music that Bright Eyes has been producing for years.

Will You Still Steal Music?

EMI announced a deal this week with Apple (soon followed by Microsoft) that will remove DRM restrictions from songs purchased from Itunes. This means that you will be able to make as many copies as you like of the songs you purchase and burn them to any CD or compatible mp3 player.

The songs will cost slightly more than a standard Itunes purchase but they will also be higher quality. Other music companies have not yet said whether or not they will follow EMI's lead, but some expect them to.

Does removing DRM make you more likely to purchase from Itunes? Or is the ease of downloading music online for free too tempting to discontinue?

Personally, I prefer the subscription based model from companies like Rhapsody. For a reasonable monthly fee, you can download, listen to, and transfer any song to your compatible mp3 player. Its completely legal and you still have all the music you need.

Top 5 Mp3 Players under $100

Mp3 Players have come a long way in both price, size, and features. Here are the top 5 mp3 players that can be found for under $100.

1. Creative Zen V Plus 2GB - Color Screen for Photos and Video, Voice Recording, FM, Plays Subscription music.
   
2. Sansa E-250R 2GB - Same Features as the Creative Zen V Plus plus room for extra memory and optimized for Rhapsody.
3. iPod Shuffle 1GB - Low on storage and features, but very cool and built in clip
4. Samsung YP-T9 - Packed with features and great sound.
5. Sony NW-E005
   

Sansa Connect - Next Gen Digital Audio Player

Sansa is ready to release its new Connect MP3 player with built in wifi capabilities. This device is optimized to be used directly with
It has the ability to access the entire Yahoo Music Unlimited library in any area with wifi access as well as launchcast radio channels.

It is a 4GB player with room for expansion, but the wifi streaming capabilities make storage less of an issue. It also streams internet radio stations and is plays for sure compatible.

With its wifi capabilities, the Sansa Connect truly kicks off the next generation of MP3 players. It also raises the profile and value of

Modest Mouse - We Were Dead Before the Ship Even Sank

The Smiths' guitarist Johnny Marr joins the band for this new album from Modest Mouse on Rhapsody.

Arcade Fire - Neon Bible

Check out the hot new album from Arcade Fire on Rhapsody.