NEW YORK (eMusic/ www.emusic.com) - eMusic, the world's largest independent music service, serving more than one million MP3 downloads per month, today unveiled groundbreaking enhancements to its service that set a new standard for music discovery and further distinguish eMusic from all other major digital music services.
At a time when music services have become increasingly commoditized, eMusic has created a service that celebrates the wealth of truly great independent music from the U.S. and around the world - more than 500,000 tracks - and provides unprecedented ways to navigate this beautiful and bountiful music universe. The new eMusic allows you to "Choose to Discover" through methods both innovative and time-honored.
An Award-Winning Team of Music Curators
Reflecting the passion of its community, eMusic has assembled a score of the greatest music critics across more than a dozen genres to guide subscribers through the treasures of its collection.
eMusic's roster of luminaries includes editor-in-chief Michael Azerrad, an acclaimed author and editor, former New York Times pop music critic Ann Powers (Rock/Pop), founding rock critic John Morthland (Blues), Pulitzer Prize-winning Justin Davidson (Classical) and No Depression co-editor Peter Blackstock (Country/Folk).
Through authoritative, impassioned regular columns, reviews, album picks and interactive Q&A, the curators illuminate new and exciting directions for music discovery.
eMusic also features over 100 new album reviews a month, penned by a vast team of prestigious critics, including renowned blues journalist Robert Gordon, post-punk and electronic guru Simon Reynolds, jazz scholar James Lincoln Collier and author, producer and musician Lenny Kaye.
Unrivaled Group Expertise
Word of mouth recommendations from trusted sources remain one of the most popular means of discovering great music and eMusic's new navigation tools enhance this through both low- and high-tech methods. New community features make the most of the eMusic community's deep knowledge and passion for music. New "Friends" and "Neighbors" features bring unprecedented clarity to "like-minded" recommendations by noting the key attributes of a subscriber's musical taste.
Community ratings allow subscribers to track songs on an individual basis. And eMusic's has expanded the functionality of its ever-active message boards through member ratings and reviews-with rewards for the most respected reviewers.
Universal Compatibility and Flexibility
eMusic is the only major digital music service to deliver music in the universally compatible MP3 format, the most popular and versatile digital file format. MP3s play on virtually all digital audio players - including Apple Computer's iPod; their compatibility is unparalleled and includes literally hundreds of devices, including mobile phones, home stereos, PDAs, car stereos, DVD players, televisions and even cameras.
eMusic is the only service that offers the usage flexibility that avid music fans demand-unlimited CD burning along with the ability to transfer MP3s to multiple computers and multiple devices-any of the literally hundreds of devices that play MP3s. Songs downloaded from eMusic contain no digital rights management (DRM) software that would otherwise inconvenience or limit a consumer's usage or listening behavior.
Rich Collection of Ancillary Information
eMusic has assembled a virtually unprecedented web of information allowing true music aficionados to explore artists and catalogs in new and different ways through powerful liner-note type information. This includes: similar artists, roots and influences, followers, formal connections, popular tracks, group members; and (when available) producers, engineers and other album credits. All of this information is hyperlinked to provide new ways to browse the catalog.
Enhanced Search and Browse
eMusic has created the most powerful search and browse function in any music service. Subscribers can search for specific artists, albums, labels and song titles. In addition, subscribers can browse by genre, style, region, era, most-downloaded albums, live shows and much more.
For example, a subscriber might view all titles in Alternative/Punk, then look at all ska titles, then look at just new titles added in the past two weeks, then review eMusic editors' picks. The choices are virtually endless.
Unique Content
eMusic is not for everyone. It was created for those with a curiosity to explore and a passion for music beyond the mainstream. From spoken word to one of the greatest collections of jazz ever assembled, eMusic is where classic and cutting-edge co-exist. With more than 500,000 tracks from over 1,200 of the world's best independent labels, eMusic offers more music than most people could hope to discover in a lifetime.
In addition, through eMusicLive, eMusic's exclusive network of live musicvenues, subscribers gain access to recordings from the premier music showcase clubs across the U.S. Literally, dozens of shows are posted weekly within 36 hours of the performance affording listeners a unique window into the pulse of independent music from the nation's top regional clubs.
