Michael Gaither

Want some free music – including a couple of my tunes – in exchange for helping me with a little field experiment? Read on.

Music has always been about the medium*. Wax cylinders gave way to records, 8-tracks, and cassettes. Eventually these newfangled high-tech things call CDs replaced everything. And it doesn’t stop. These days more and more people just download their music to an iPod or MP3 player and skip the delivery mechanism all together. (I still do a little of both.) Curious thing for a performing songwriter is: What do you sell to these people at your shows? And for the audience member: What if you like what you hear and want to take something home with you but really don’t want to deal with another CD?

Dropcards might be the new intermediary. They can be a small and simple as a business card or as fancy and souvenier-ish as a plastic laminated tchotchke made with a cord attached so you can wear it lanyard-like. The cards come with a web site address and a unique code. You go to the site, enter the code, and download a bunch of music. Pretty simple.

Imuzic.com just released their 2011 Singer/Songwriter complation. This year it’s only available on a dropcard, and two of my songs were included: “High and Lonesome” from “Spotted Mule…” and “I Miss My Town” from “Dogspeed”. I also have a small pile of cards. Want one? I’d be happy to send you one. All I ask is you let me know what you think of the process. (“Was it easy?” “Was it kinda cool?” “Would you honestly rather pick up one of these cards rather than lug another CD home?”)

Email for details. And thanks a bunch.

* Editor’s note: Yup, I lifted that “medium” reference in the first paragraph from Marshall McCluhan. My bachelor’s degree is in Broadcasting. Which means that I don’t work in Broadcasting, I learned about McCluhan like seven times, and I totally know how to correctly wrap video and audio cables.