iTunes: Free Tuesday
Once again, TUAW is pleased to present you with a selection of free songs and videos from around the world. Many of these iTMS items won't be free for long, so grab your copies before the week is up. And don't forget: If you want to buy these on your iPhone or iPod touch, make sure to sign into your account in iTunes before you sync.
US Items
US: Gabby Villanueva,
Each week, we find a track from an artist or a band who's on the cusp of success and bring it to you, for free, as our Canción de la Semana. For years, Gabby Villaneuva has been a popular TV personality thanks to her participation in the reality show Protagonistas de la Musica. Her charismatic energy has made her a natural for television commercials and now she's ready to parlay that momentum into a music career. This title track from her debut is a solid uptempo rock tune, with a great acoustic rhythm track and plenty of moody effects on the lead guitar. Villanueva proves her worth with a powerful, impassioned vocal turn.
US: I Nine,
Each week we find a track from an artist or a band we've been enjoying and bring it to you, for free, as our Single of the Week. The quartet known as I Nine from South Carolina first came to our attention when they were included on the soundtrack to Cameron Crowe's film Elizabethtown. Now the group's Avril-meets-Evanescence mixture of moodiness and big pop hooks is available as our Single of the Week.
US: Kelley Polar,
Our Discovery Download puts the focus on a different genre each week, offering up a free track we think is worth your attention. Producer, singer, and violist Kelley Polar made his first mark when he and some fellow performers from New York's Julliard School added live strings to the classic first album from Metro Area. This track is from his forthcoming new album, I Need You to Hold On While the Sky Is Falling (produced by Metro Area's Morgan Geist), and is more pop than dance, but maintains that crisp, driving minimalist beat (and viola accents) that have made his sound so identifiable.
US: American Idol Memorable Season 7 Audition
Free. We're Brothers Forever, Renaldo Lapuz.
US: Dirty Jobs, Dirty Jobs
Mike Rowe has tackled more than 150 of the smelliest, messiest, and most back-breaking occupations imaginable as the host of Dirty Jobs – and he's still going. With his hands-on approach, Rowe works alongside farmers of all kinds, cleaners, recyclers, and other professionals performing an honest day's work, giving viewers a deep appreciation for those folks who make civilized life possible for the rest of us.
US: The Animation Show, The Animation Show (Frepeat)
Mike Judge (Beavis & Butthead, King of The Hill) and indie-animator Don Hertzfeldt (Rejected, Everything Will Be Ok) bring you The Animation Show. A collection of the best animated short films in the world. Celebrating animation in all forms, the films gathered here represent the finest animation available, from groundbreaking new indie films like Jennifer Drummond's Feds and Chel White's Magda to the very latest in CGI wizardry: Fallen Art and The Cathedral by Tomek Baginski – to the best in stop motion and claymation: Ward 13 by Peter Cornwell and an entire episode devoted to PES and his amazing films.
International Music
Australia: The Hoosiers,
Each week we find a track from an artist or band we've been enjoying and bring it to you, for free, as our Single of the Week.
New Zealand: The Hoosiers,
Each week we find a track from an artist or band we've been enjoying and bring it to you, for free, as our Single of the Week.
Canada: Constantines,
Each week we find a track from an artist or band we've been enjoying and bring it to you, for free, as our Single of the Week. Ontario's Constantines have a solid, guitar driven angularity and punk ferociousness that can recall touches of Fugazi, but with a dense, anthemic quality that aims to reach a bit further into the morass of confusion that lies between indie and classic rock. "Hard Feelings" is the first we've heard from the band since 2005's Tournament of Hearts and it's our free Single of the Week.
Nederland: Grand Avenue,
De Deense band Grand Avenue heeft al twee albums op zijn naam staan en komt dit jaar met het nieuwe album 'The Outside'. Gedreven rockmuziek met roots in de jaren tachtig. Een mooi voorbeeld is 'You Please Me' en wij vinden dan ook dat dit een terechte 'Single van de week' is!
UK: I Was a Cub Scout,
Each week we find a track from an artist or a band we've been enjoying and bring it to you, for free, as our Single of the Week. I Was A Cub Scout is a two-piece epic synth-pop group comprising William Bowerman and Todd Marriott. With legendary producer Hugh Padgham (Police, Genesis) on board, IWACS have created their debut, I Want You to Know There Is Always Hope, and it's overflowing with sugar-sweet melodies, gurgling synths and energetic alt-rock. "Save Your Wishes" is the stirring and melancholy track that opens the album.
France: The Delano Orchestra,
Chaque semaine, nous trouvons un morceau d'un artiste ou d'un groupe que nous avons apprécié et nous vous le faisons partager.Entre folk introspectif, post-rock lancinant et pop délicate, The Delano Orchestra offre un recueil de chansons à la fois sobres et extrêmement riches osant aller jusqu'au murmure de la voix et des instruments. Une immense sincérité émane de l'ensemble qui reflète avec justesse l'orchestration luxuriante et l'ambiance éthérée, à la fois langoureuse, narcotique et précieuse. The Delano Orchestra sera sans aucun doute une des heureuses révélations de l'année 2008, avec des morceaux qui ne peuvent que séduire les amoureux de mélodies planantes, mélancoliques et oniriques.
Japan 今週のシングル: SORAIRO NEON,
ブレイク直前の新進アーティストをご紹介するこのページ。今週ご紹介するのは、東京発リリカル・ロックの新風、ソライロネオン。リズムマシンとキーボード、ギターによる浮遊感あふれるメロディーに切なくも潔い日本語の歌詞が乗る。「大人」になってしまった人や「大人」になってしまいそうな人へ...そんなメッセージと共に届けられるソライロの叙情世界は、くるりやスピッツなどが好きな人には特に共感できそう。フリーダウンロード曲"中央線"を聴いてゆったりと旅に出よう。