Tech: Top 5 Music sites for finding new music (legally)

1. The Hype Machine- This site allows you to find what sort of music is being shot through the blogosphere. The Hypemachine displays lists of mp3's and which blogs are posting them. This makes it possible for you to not only find great music, but other blogs with similar tastes. It also has a radio with a comment board, and cool "spy" feature that allows you to see what other people from different parts of the world are listening to. Who knew Australians listened to so much Passion Pit?

2. Lastfm- Lasf.fm recommends music, lets bands have pages myspace style, and judges them

based on user "shouts". If you like the bands you can add them to your library after you join. Its pretty good. It even has video, radio,and an events section of the website.

3. Imeem/Grooveshark/Lala- As far as I can tell the basic function of these sites are all the same. They allow you to legally build playlists and stream Mp3s from their libraries. One may have an edge on the others, but for finding new music I think they are all roughly the same.

Imeem- This site lets you build playlists of Mp3's uploaded by other users. (Unlike-scratch that) Like Grooveshark it has a discover feature that recommends new music to you. For all of you lucky iphone owners it is now a free app on the iphone app store.

Grooveshark- Grooveshark is a music listening site similar to Imeem that allows you to build playlists and listen to music on your profile from anywhere. This site is very handy and nicely designed.

Lala- Another good music streaming site. Sign up, and listen to its vast library of free music. It functions similarly to Imeem and Grooveshark.

4. Pandora- Yet another music-streaming site. This one allows you to build "radio stations" that stream songs recommended by users based on bands you choose.

ex)If I chose "The Hold Steady" as a radio station It might spit out songs by the "The Hold Steady", or other similar bands like "Lifter Puller". It also has a handy Iphone app.

5.Skreemr- It is Just a search engine. Skreemr finds Mp3's based on their tags floating through the world wide web. It is a nice simple way to dig up an Mp3 or two by a band you have heard of but never listened to.

6. Songbird- Ok, I lied. This is a top 6 six, but that just doesn't have the same ring does it? Technically Songbird isn't a website, but I had to put it on here anyway. Songbird is an open-source music player that users can customize to their liking. You modify it to function like Itunes or pump it out with all sorts of add-ons. You can add a music searching app with Skreemr, streaming with Lastfm, lyric grabing apps, or even integrated music stores from Amazon and 7digital. It even has a browser to surf the web built in. I like the logo too.

others places

HypeTape- This site calls itself "The illegitimate child of the Hype Machine and Muxtape". It lets you make playlists based on other people's Mp3s floating around the web. It is kind of cool, but not quite useful enough to make the top 5 (err... top 6) list.

Muxtape- Formerly Muxtape was a site where you could upload Mp3's to make stream-able playlists. It is now under renovation. The site looks like it could become much more than that when it is done.

Myspace- old news...

Soundsmakesense....kidding..kidding...