I really like Bandcamp as a music source and have mentioned it before. The primary thing I like about Bandcamp is that by site policy ALL samples are full tracks. Add to this that most artists present the entire album for sampling and you get what I like. You can listen to most or all of an album to decide if you really like it before you buy it. Several other niceties of Bandcamp are that album prices are often lower than most sources, Bandcamp takes a smaller cut than many (the artist gets more) and downloads are available in many formats including flac, alac and various MP3 rates, should you desire that. Bandcamp also has lists of current popular downlads, artists and various other categories.
The downside to Bandcamp is that the good stuff is buried amongst TONS of crap and browsing the site is not the easiest task. To ameliorate this, I am starting this thread… if you know of, or find an artist or album that you like and would like to share, please post it in this thread. I want to support Bandcamp and their format and need help finding the gems worth buying amongst all the mediocre garage recordings that dominate the site.
There are also artists and small labels who are hosted through Bandcamp, but do not use the Bandcamp name in their URL. One of these is Anzic records (http://anzicstore.com/music) which has good jazz albums by artists such Anat Cohen, whom I think I have mentioned in other threads. More good people to support.
The band’s leader and lead guitarist is Grahame Lesh, son of Phil Lesh, the bass player for the Grateful Dead. I’d describe the band as more country than anything else. Some very catchy tunes.
One of my earlier Bandcamp finds is Groovelily. I already knew the group and had two of their CDs, purchased directly from them at concerts. I first heard them on the singer / songwriter stage at the Richardson Wildflower Festival (quite a few years ago now) (http://www.wildflowerfestival.com/#) and they grabbed everyone’s attention. They are a high energy folk / folk rock group that is hard to describe. One thing that really impressed me was when they played a house concert some months later. I was afraid that they would blow out the room, but they did not. They kept their high energy, but kept it and the sound levels well within the bounds of the room. Same music, same performance, still a blast to listen to, but properly placed in Tom and Linda’s good sized living room. (http://www.wylieconcerts.com)
Several years ago they basically quit touring and changed their direction a bit. They now write and perform musical plays. Their musical style is still much the same, but the format is different. Still a great group.
Zoe Keating: My wife and I saw her as an opening act for The California Guitar Trio. She plays a cello and uses a computer to dynamically record and mix with herself as she builds up a more complicated performance. She has tools like foot pedals to select among the previous things she’s played to bring older “takes” in and out of the mix. You may also have heard her playing incidental music in Elementary, Manhattan, The Returned and a host of shorts and other things. http://music.zoekeating.com/music
Speaking of The California Guitar Trio, they have a presence on Bandcamp as well. They are great, tight, they play multiple genres - not your average guitar trio. They have a lot of albums, but apparently not that many at Bandcamp. https://californiaguitartrio.bandcamp.com/music
David Elias - a guy and his guitar - on the folk side with interesting lyrics. An early DSD adopter I met thru Gus Skinas. https://davidelias.bandcamp.com
I like a duo from Canada called Tennyson. https://tennyson.bandcamp.com. It’s young, neuvo electronic music with jazz elements. I swear I can picture Lyle Mays for a brief moment during the opening track of their latest album. Worth a listen!