sadatx

Simple, where do you obtain your music from? Legally or not so legally. On the web or off. Etc.

I use iTunes and I used to use Oink, before the bastards took it down. As far as file sharing sites go, still looking for on that's similar to Oink, but haven't found it. But I'll always use iTunes.

vanblah

It depends on the kind of music I'm looking for. However, I ALWAYS use legal means.

For most stuff I use iTunes. For physical CDs I usually get them at shows to support the musicians or I use CDBaby if I hear a band that I like but don't have cash.

Doug

high_jinx

i hate alltunes. it hijacks your computer, it won't let you do simple things like transfer your songs onto a flash stick so you can put them on your other computer, and it only lets you copy songs over a few times, which sucks if you want to make mix cd's and stuff.

for years, i was using allofmp3.com and it was great. you put in 25 or 50 bucks and it would charge you 2cents a mb, which worked out to about a nickel for most songs and 1.50 to 2 bucks for most albums. but that just got shut down. right now i'm looking at rutunes.com... it breaks down and reviews all the other russian mp3 sites similar to allofmp3, and i think im gonna try the mp3sale.com one next.... either that or fiesta.

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-my phobia drowned while i was gettin down.

Shauk

http://www.beatport.com
http://www.dancerecords.com

Punk.of.Ages

I only use illegal means in order to see if I like a band I've never heard. If I do, I go out and buy the CD. How does that old outdated phrase go???....... Oh that's right, "Support the people who created the art."

Anyways, I get my CD's either directly through the artist or the record label. That way the artist get the maximum amount of the money.

Luckily for me A LOT of the bands I listen to are on Fat Wreck Chords, so I buy a lot from them online. I buy directly from the artists websites also. Anything else I get right from the show.

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"The fact is that censorship always defeats its own purpose, for it creates, in the end, the kind of society that is incapable of exercising real discretion..." - Henry Steel Commager

"Punk rock music is great music played by really bad, drunk musicians." -Fat Mike

mixedmedia

I swap cds online. Perhaps in essence it's just a step or two away from illegal downloading, but I'm poor. And music is one of my greatest pleasures in life...besides, I think there's something to be said for music belonging to everyone.

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Most people go through life dreading they'll have a traumatic experience. Freaks were born with their trauma. They've already passed their test in life. They're aristocrats. - Diane Arbus
PESSIMISM, n. A philosophy forced upon the convictions of the observer by the disheartening prevalence of the optimist with his scarecrow hope and his unsightly smile. - Ambrose Bierce

Daniel_

I buy CDs from Amazon, and my local HMV or Zavvi (previously Virgin) stores.

I've downloaded a few things from Tesco.com but since ipodding I don't as they sell in WMA, and it seems a pain to convert to AAC.

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╔═════════════════════════════════════════╗
Overhead, the Albatross hangs motionless upon the air,
And deep beneath the rolling waves,
In labyrinths of Coral Caves,
The Echo of a distant time
Comes willowing across the sand;
And everthing is Green and Submarine
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jewels

When I buy, I purchase at amazon or Target.

I sample torrents before buying sometimes, but mostly I download them 'cause I'm a single mommy and those kiddies nead their grindcore.

And I love to find and listen to new music all the time.

I use BitTorrent and will be trying scrapetorrent as a search engine; it was highly recommended. I'm open to suggestions, though ...

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We are always more anxious to be distinguished for a talent which we do not possess, than to be praised for the fifteen which we do possess.
Mark Twain

Martian

I also only use legal methods to obtain my music. Bittorrent is my favourite. Sadly, in order to take advantage of fair use exceptions I have to violate my ISP's terms of service, but so long as I don't go overboard it's a smile and wink sort of thing.

Somebody has to be the black sheep here. I have absolutely no compunctions with downloaded music that I haven't paid for. If I had a legitimate and non-restrictive method to obtain music that would ensure the artists got their fair share I'd use that instead, but as that doesn't yet exist I settle for what is currently out there.

Online distribution is a medium and media demand to be used. The Big Four don't seem to grasp that concept, but I have faith that they'll get it eventually. Large corporations tend to be very survival-oriented.

__________________
I wake up in the morning more tired than before I slept
I get through cryin' and I'm sadder than before I wept
I get through thinkin' now, and the thoughts have left my head
I get through speakin' and I can't remember, not a word that I said

- Ben Harper, Show Me A Little Shame

Bear Cub

mIRC. Anything I like enough, I go out and buy it anyways.

PonyPotato

I usually buy CDs (usually from Amazon or Target). My car doesn't have an MP3 cd player (and I'm not paying to get one, nyahhh) so I either buy albums on iTunes and make audio CDs or I buy the CD itself.

Sometimes I'll sample a song or two from an album via illegal means, but the most "illegal" way I share music is sending mp3s to friends via AIM.

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"Without passion man is a mere latent force and possibility, like the flint which awaits the shock of the iron before it can give forth its spark."
— Henri-Frédéric Amiel

telekinetic

I trade music with my friends. My external hard drive is up to 200gigs and counting, all sorted into artists and albums. To start my collection so I'd have something to trade, I torrented some discographies and ripped all my wife's albums.

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twisted no more

allaboutmusic

Amazon marketplace or secondhand music shops.

Charlatan

Local record shops and iTunes. There aren't a lot of options here.

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"My hands are on fire. Hands are on fire. Ain't got no more time for all you charlatans and liars."
- Old Man Luedecke

mixedmedia

I should mention that I also get music from eBay, from Amazon, from second-hand music shops, from garage sales, from thrift stores...I get lots and lots and lots of music from my boyfriend...from my kids...and occasionally from my mother and my dad. Very occasionally from a music store or the music dept. of a larger store, such as Best Buy (whose music selection isn't what it used to be).

and, twistedmosaic...200 gigs. Wow. Me and my paltry 56 gigs bow down to your obviously superior obsession. It's a fetish, you know.

__________________
Most people go through life dreading they'll have a traumatic experience. Freaks were born with their trauma. They've already passed their test in life. They're aristocrats. - Diane Arbus
PESSIMISM, n. A philosophy forced upon the convictions of the observer by the disheartening prevalence of the optimist with his scarecrow hope and his unsightly smile. - Ambrose Bierce

MexicanOnABike

buy cds, or torrents. i will never pay to download. it's retarded.

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- Movie Reviews - Ratings-

telekinetic

Find 3 friends with collections of similar size to yours and with minimal overlapping content, and bam, 200 gigs.

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twisted no more

allaboutmusic

As a gigging musician, I say this is a fantastic way to support the musicians you see out at gigs - very often it's the main way they make a living.

SSJTWIZTA

Soulseek all the way baby!

You can find almost anything music related. i have some rare eps and great stuff.
Soulseek

__________________
First they came for the Jews and I did not speak out because I was not a Jew.
Then they came for the communists and I did not speak out because I was not a communist.
Then they came for the trade unionists and I did not speak out because I was not a trade unionist
Then they came for me And there was no one left to speak out for me.
-Pastor Martin Niemoller

Derwood

iTunes store or Amazon mp3's. i just don't have room to store physical CD's anymore

high_jinx

it's the wild west of music nowadays. even though i work in music with several bands, i have a different perspective about selling cd's or digital songs.

i think it's counter-productive to do anything but give away your recordings until you have enough of a following to support your touring. after all, you're trying to make a name for yourself in a world busting at the seams with aspiring musicians, and the biggest goal should be obtaining fans that sing along with your songs at shows. does it really matter whether they got to be fans from listening to songs from the itunes store or limewire?

so thats where i'm at... give away the music till it sticks, and make your money on butts in seats and t-shirts. once you have a ton of fans and notoriety, THEN you can finally expect somewhat of a return on charging a bit for your labors of love from legit downloads etc... till then you're sweating the small stuff and that's shooting yourself in the foot if you have any kind of lofty aspirtations.

the other profitable animal in music now in music is liscensing, and thats another thing that comes easier once people know your songs.

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-my phobia drowned while i was gettin down.

jth

amazon.com cdbaby.com and itunes mostly

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"A real leader faces the music, even if he doesn't like the tune." - unknown quote

guy44

Methods ranked by commonality of usage, starting with the most frequent:

1. Emusic

2. Illegal downloads

3. Purchasing cds from the merch tables at concerts

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leahannaspanner

It's normally legal...mostly iTunes, from gigs, eBay, HMV, cdbaby.

smoore

I don't care too much about music. At work it's just background noise. Right now I'm listening to my "Hard Shit" station on pandora.

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smoore

jewels

That's exactly what we've heard from every small band we've seen in (or out of) town. I have no qualms about downloading to listen and sample, and we buy tickets to see the bands we enjoy and buy EPs and merch to support those bands when we can.

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We are always more anxious to be distinguished for a talent which we do not possess, than to be praised for the fifteen which we do possess.
Mark Twain

Push-Pull

I have never illegally downloaded music online. It's one of those things that I know that I'll get nailed for. I go through iTunes for single song online purchases.

Now, off-line, I have a few friends with ginormous CD collections that I swap with. If I find one I like, then I order it up through Amazon. I like having the CD and ripping it into the 'puter. That way, if I ever have some horrendous mega hard drive crash, at very least I can just re-rip it.

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"No laws, no matter how rigidly enforced, can protect a person from their own stupidity." -Me-

"Some people are like Slinkies..... They are not really good for anything, but they still bring a smile to your face when you push them down a flight of stairs." -Unknown-

DAMMIT! -Jack Bauer-

snowy

This describes how I feel about it.

As such, I mostly use torrents. I like that I am able to download huge back catalogs for free. I figure Mick Jagger is wealthy enough. I use torrents for music I would not buy a CD for; I still buy CDs for artists I think deserve the sales. When I do buy CDs, I buy them either from 1) cdbaby, 2) the independent record store downtown/another independent record store, or 3) the local Fred Meyers (only if they're on sale). I should add that I listen to a lot of music that would be hard to find easily in the United States for a decent price.

I'm still looking for a copy of Air's "Talkie Walkie" for a reasonable price.

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If I am not better, at least I am different. --Jean-Jacques Rousseau

lotsofmagnets

"get" either at record stores or emule or the like. i both d/l and buy. if i like something enough from d/ling it i will always buy it.

"find" lastfm.com the radio is great for finding new music similar to your tastes. i found a lot of icelandic and danish music (eg einóma, underbyen, efterklang) that i would have never heard before this.

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mother nature made the aeroplane, and the submarine sandwich, with the steady hands and dead eye of a remarkable sculptor.
she shed her mountain turning training wheels, for the convenience of the moving sidewalk, that delivers the magnetic monkey children through the mouth of impossible calendar clock, into the devil's manhole cauldron.
physics of a bicycle, isn't it remarkable?

echo5delta

A majority of mine were acquired through swapping among my various friends with giganto CD collections.

However, lately I've been all over mp3fiesta.com, since it's non-Russian, no crazy popups, high-bitrate MP3 format, and a dime per song - $1.00 per album.

I pretty much rounded out my Tom Waits collection the first time I went to the site. For, like, eight bucks.

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"Peace" is when nobody's shooting. A "Just Peace" is when we get what we want. - Bill Mauldin

samurai_x44

I guess I'm the only person who's gonna say I haven't bought a CD in about 6 years, never used itunes and only download music in a non legal way (not illegal either since its a gray area due to taxes on recording products in Canada). I just don't have a reason to buy something which will have less value than when I get it for free (way to go DRM). I do support musicians buy going to shows when I can afford it

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Shauk

ok i've pretty much called it off on beatport.com

they are charging 1.49 - 2.49 a track and Dancerecords.com has been kicking their ass on some releases and selling them for .89 cents or less in some cases (they give you album discounts, bought an album and it dropped the price to like .49 cents a track)

Fotzlid

I used to illegally download stuff all the time. Mostly it was back catalogues of established artists or new artists I thought I might be interested in. If I liked the new artist, I went out and bought the CD.

Now, I stick mostly with artists I know and buy the CD's at Newbury Comics. I'll buy a CD from a new artist if I've heard a couple of tracks somewhere else first but I don't go looking for new artists.

Tully Mars

I don't have a lot of options where I am so I do some swapping and some illegal downloading. Most of the time I'm downloading stuff I bought and now it's in storage. Plus I agree, Mick et el have enough of my cash already. Just the amount I spent on tix one year I figure they owe me their whole cat. Buffett owes me a few CD's just for the crappy $100 lunch and watered down margaritas I had at his Margaritaville Cafe on Cozumel recently. Last I read he was making like 2 million a week, for the love of all that is good on the this planet... puts some freaking tequila in the mixer! At $12 a pop make it good tequila too.

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I used to drink to drown my sorrows, but the damned things have learned how to swim- Frida Kahlo

Vice President Starkizzer Fan Club

Datalyss

I use MP3Sparks via allTunes. It works great for me. And what's this complaint about allTunes? I think you meant iTunes, right?

Starshine

I don't feel guilty about illegally downloading. I use Aresgalaxy....it's extremely basic but it gets me what I want.

For entire cds I use BitTorrent. Most of the time if I like a new band/artist I buy the cd also for the cover jacket so if I perchance get to meet the band they can sign it.

Plus I'm more into old vinyls and I just don't know of the technology of transferring vinyls into cds.... So why buy the same album twice just in a different form?

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I fly like paper, get high like planes

zerosk8

Back when I was a youngin' I used to do the whole illegal downloading. However, I managed to grow out of that phase when I turned about 14 and realized...holy shit...if I don't actually go out and buy albums that these bands put out, these bands will cease to exist...so ever since then I've bought all of my albums, and have maintained a very respectable collection.

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It's only after you've lost everything...that you are free to do anything

Scorps

I download the music before its released then when it comes out I go buy it.

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A.K.A. PainTrain

echo5delta

Not to toot any horn too loudly, but seriously, y'all - just take a look. If it's not worth your time, then smack me in the face.

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"Peace" is when nobody's shooting. A "Just Peace" is when we get what we want. - Bill Mauldin

SSJTWIZTA

i shall repost mine as well.

its so excellent! im constantly downloading full albums.

(and its free )

__________________
First they came for the Jews and I did not speak out because I was not a Jew.
Then they came for the communists and I did not speak out because I was not a communist.
Then they came for the trade unionists and I did not speak out because I was not a trade unionist
Then they came for me And there was no one left to speak out for me.
-Pastor Martin Niemoller