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Where to get music in a downloadable format (other than iTunes)?
So currently I get most of my music from soundtracks ripped from games and from Bandicamp. However, quite a few artists that go through traditional publishers are not on Bandicamp.
Now, while I could go through the hassle of installing iTunes on Linux through WINE, I dont want to because:
- WINE can be a hassle, especially if the app does some strange things.
- Id rather not support apple in any way if I can
So, are there any major platforms that allow downloading .mp3 or better yet, .flac files, especially for artists going through bigger publishers?
It's a little bit of a mess, honestly. There's not a great one-stop shop, as different vendors have different catalogs and availability (especially depending on what country you're in). Here are the ones I'm familiar with:
Some bands also sell digital downloads direct from their website, so it's worth checking there to see if that's on offer.
I'll second Qobuz. I like to buy lossless music, not out of some misguided belief that it sounds better, but because I like having a lossless source from which to make lossy copies to meet different needs. They seem to have just about everything, and usually for a better price than the Tidal store.
Fixed. Thanks, Bauke!
How has nobody mentioned Bandcamp? It's probably the best way to get music because you pay for it, can choose your format (WAV, FLAC, MP3 at various bitrates, OGG, AAC and ALAC (I assume Apple Lossless), all DRM-free. I'd put it at the top of your list of sites to buy music from. It's not all hipster music.
If an artist I want to buy music from isn't on Bandcamp it's probably because they're on a huge label and I can just cop a CD, which is basically the ultimate in lossless digital anyway.
While I agree that Bandcamp is great, and it's where I get most of my music these days too... the reason it probably wasn't mentioned by anyone is because OP mentioned it already in the self-text.
Yup, I missed it.
Second this, Bandcamp is amazing.
It really is. I remember when it was this small independent platform that only independent artists, and maybe forward-thinking labels used, but I like that almost everything I could want is there. I actually need to buy a bunch of music so I can support the artists and download it anyway (I'm something of a Spotify addict), and like 90% of what I listen to is there.
I've recently had reason to start tending to my offline music library again, and Bandcamp has been my go to for purchasing albums. So far I've only had to purchase one Kae Tempest album that I couldn't get on there.
Amazon Music is probably your best bet, since I'm not sure how Google Play does MP3 downloads now that it is no longer Google Play.
They are a crapshoot for quality though. Some releases (admittedly most of the popular ones) sound great, and some of them are so compressed they sound like sandstorms.
In the past I have messaged artists and labels directly when I cannot find their music to purchase. I prefer to get FLAC, and I don't have an Apple Music account. I recently bought an album through Juno Download although they charge a variable extra amount for FLAC which I think is pretty shitty (unlike Bandcamp where you buy the album and can d/l in whatever format you want).
For rare groove and out-of-print stuff, SoulSeek is a great P2P option, but this does not financially support the artists.
Deezer lets you download albums in FLAC format if you get premium.
Interesting. Is this just for caching purposes or do you get to keep the files?
You get to keep the files. The only thing that keeps me from leaving spotify and using Deezer 100% is that the latter doesn't have the possibility to listen to music on other devices, like you do with spotify connect.