New Tracks, No Cost

In the past few weeks, a few of my favorite artists have released new music via the interwebs, all at no cost. Score!

Little has been heard from Pete Yorn in the past couple of years, since the release of Nightcrawler, but there's a ton of material on deck coming out this year. PY recorded a few songs down in Salem, OR with Frank Black of The Pixies for an EP to be released later this year, in addition to a full-length album's worth of tracks he recorded with Mike Mogis in Omaha, also out later this year. You can download a track from each at the Fuel/Friends blog here.

Speaking of artists that have been MIA, it looks as if Howie Day is finally putting a new album out this year, his first since 2003's Stop All The World Now. Of course, there's been concerning bits and pieces about his world that have come to light over the past few years: the disturbance on an airplane, trapping two girls on his tour bus, dating Britney Spears. That, and the quality of his music had certainly suffered, as evidenced by the album Live From... Ever since "Collide" became a huge hit, Howie seems to have gone downhill. But he may be ready to come roaring back, if the song he released this past weekend is any indication. If you sign up for Howie's mailing list, you can get a free download of "Counting On Me," a track that I am digging on so far. Sign up here.

If you sign up for Hyundai's email list here, you can get a free download of the new Smashing Pupkins track "FOL" (this follows their last single "G.L.O.W." leading me to believe the Pumpkins are just naming their new songs after their leftover Scrabble letters or random words found in their Alpha Bits cereal). Billy Corgan stated late last year that the Pumpkins would no longer release full albums and would instead release singles through different venues, "FOL" debuting on a Hyundai commercial during the Superbowl, "G.L.O.W." on Guitar Hero: World Tour, and the previous "Superchrist" through a guitar magazine compilation album. It will be interesting to see where Billy and Co. decide to take this new philosophy on releasing music (kudos to them for embracing new avenues, I think we will soon find that the album concept will be dead and gone in a few short years).

Finally, a band that I used to love, but have kinda moved past, Dashboard Confessional, released a new song for download via MySpace. In any case, if you were a fan at some point or even mildly curious, you can pick up the new track at www.myspace.com/dashboardconfessional.

Happy President's Day, all. Hope most of you are enjoying a day off.