June’s eMusic

Posted on September 19, 2010 by mizidy

Just one month late, and I had a bonus from eMusic to give me 40 total credits!

Purple Rain by Prince - 9 Credits

I had never listened to this entire album, and it is pretty much a classic, so now I own it. And it still holds up, in case you were curious.

Brownswood Electric by Various Artists - 15 Credits

One of the things I love about eMusic is picking up samplers. This one isn't fantastic, but with most samplers, you can pick out one or two songs. If you want one off of this, Wad by Pearson Sound is pretty good.

Rainer Maria by Rainer Maria - 6 Credits

More classic emo, and this is a classic release. If you like emo, you should have this. If you don't, well then ignore it. It is that simple.

May’s eMusic

Posted on June 14, 2010 by mizidy

Just one month late, and I had a bonus from eMusic to give me 40 total credits!

Unfun (2010 Remastered Edition) by Jawbreaker - 12 Credits

As a former emo kid, I owed it to Jawbreaker to finally get their classic album, especially with it recently remastered. Sounds like early emo, so a bit more abrasive and punk than when I got into it, and way more abrasive and punk than when it became popular. You have been warned.

Mulatu Steps Ahead by Malatu Astatke - 9 Credits

A fun Ethiopian jazz album that serenades up and down the emotional chart. While I prefer his Ethiopiques efforts, this is not too bad for 9 credits.

Subiza by Delorean - 9 Credits

While Rebekah cannot stand the opening track, this is still an impressive dance album that grows on you with each listen. Someone compared the repeat listening experience to Merriweather Post Pavillion. While different genres for sure, you do get something new out of Subiza on each listen.

Yesterday You Said Tomorrow by Christian Scott - 10 Credits

Grabbed this one as it was recommended as the top jazz album so far of the year by Amazon, and eMusic gave it a Pick. And really, can you go wrong with a jazz cover of Thom Yorke? I need a couple more listens of this to really evaluate it, but so far I like what I hear

April’s eMusic

Posted on June 14, 2010 by mizidy

Just two months late, it was a world music kind of month!

A Man and His Music by Ravi Shankar - 8 Credits

The legend Ravi Shankar at his finest. A steal at only 8 credits, you get nearly over 2 hours of amazing music.

Djelika by Toumani Diabate - 8 Credits

Just adding to the Toumani Diabate collection I have going. Once again, amazingly peaceful music that is complex but utterly listen-to-able.

Zoetosis by Telomere - 7 Credits

Some nice chill electronic music that is great for getting work done too. Mostly ambient, so no standout track really, but the album is pretty good.

Mysteries of Turkey by Talip Ozkan - 7 Credits

Adding some more world music to my collection, this time the long-necked lute from Turkey. Nice Middle-Eastern rhythms here and if you are into this sort of thing, you will enjoy it. Yeah, I know that is basically just an accurate statement, but I don't care

2 Weeks With an iPad

Posted on April 18, 2010 by mizidy

Two weeks ago I got an iPad the day it came out and I have held off writing about it because I didn't want to comment on it before I really had a chance to use it. I could go on about how fast it is, the great display, etc, but instead I would rather tell you what I like and don't like about it which is likely more useful for you if you are deciding on whether to get one or not, so let's jump in!

Reading

Reading books on the iPad is a joy, and i can honestly say that it would be tough to have me go back to the printed version of books. That being said, I much prefer the Amazon Kindle app to iBooks with the primary reason being selection. There are so few books on the iBooks store compared to the Kindle, and when you add in the fact that you cannot disable the goofy page turning animation the Kindle app hits a home run to iBooks double.

In addition to reading books, and maybe more important, browsing the web on the iPad is the best way I have ever seen to browse. Being able to position the Internet where you want, then zoom in to just the content makes it absolutely amazing. Using a desktop or laptop browser after the iPad feels like using ancient technology, that is that impressive. Oh, and I don't miss Flash one bit.

Writing

The portrait keyboard is pretty much useless. The keyboard is too big to thumb type, but too small to use all of the fingers. Landscape is a different story. While it isn't perfect, it is pretty darn good for writing, especially short notes. I am writing this entire post on the ons screen keyboard and while it isn't great, I can get it done. Drawing apps are also a blast on here, and I was able to diagram something really quick on it.

Apps

While the apps are more expensive, it makes sense to me. The iPad apps are much closer to desktop apps than the iPhone, so the price should be closer to. The Netflix and ABC apps are killer first generation apps, along with the iPhone classics like Instapaper make it a good start, but really makes me excited for what the next generation of apps will be. My only gripe is there isn't a great Google Reader app yet, that is reasonably priced and not called NetNewsWire.

Overall, I love the device. It has caused me to try not having a laptop for work since I can do so much of what work I would do at home on it now. If you haven't tried one out yet, head to an Apple store or Best Buy and give it a whirl. You might not buy one, but you will definitely be impressed

March’s eMusic

Posted on March 25, 2010 by mizidy

To encourage me to write more, I thought I would try covering what I get from eMusic with my 30 credits each month. Most of the time they will be full albums, but in the months where there are a couple extra credits, there will be some partial albums. So, without further ado, my March eMusic purchases:

Black Sands by Bonobo 12 Credits

I have been a fan of Bonobo since I was introduced to him in a promo video for Songbird. His newest album is his most complete album so far, with sweeping sounds throughout.

In the Heart of the Moon by Ali Farka Touré & Toumani Diabate 12 Credits

Grammy award winning album from the combo of Ali Farka Touré and Toumani Diabate. Just beatiful music, I picked this because I was seeing if eMusic had their new album (which they don't yet), but I didn't even have to preview this before getting it. I cannot imagine someone not enjoying this album.

Life of Leisure by Washed Out 6 Credits

eMusic recommended this based on my Air France downloads, and this is in the same vein. If you like the Cut Copy, Air France, Hot Chip sound, you will likely dig this too.