Digital downloads over the last month -
Soundscapes:
Travis & Fripp - Bishop's Cleeve (May 22, 2009)


Robert Fripp (the above are 4 separate covers, in order):
That Which Passes (Various,1997), Variety Playhouse (Atlanta, Feb 25, 2006),
St. Peter's (Newlyn, Dec 3, 2005), Somerville Theatre (Boston, Jun 24, 2005).
All of these in FLAC from DGMLive(.com)
I now proudly own an all-legal 25.5 hour collection of Robert Fripp soundscapes, for which the total price of admission has been somewhere in the neighbourhood of $270
Thanks to the independent nature of DGM's business, however, I know that it's a sum that makes a difference to artists I care about.
***
And buying these gave me a particular pleasure:
Akvarium - Loshad' Belaya [White Horse] (2008)
Akvarium - Pushkinskaya 10 (2009)Akvarium and their leader B.G. are possibly the most ethical artist I know. I usually download Russian music off torrents etc. because it can be rather hard and ineffective for me to obtain here. However Akvarium, one of Russia's oldest and most legendary rock bands, have really outdone themselves - virtually their entire old catalogue is quietly available on a fansite with their blessing, while these two (as I discovered today) are available officially on a pay-what-you-want basis. I already had White Horse 'illegally' downloaded for about a year, and absolutely love it. When I discovered the site today, I was pretty stoked. Despite already having the first album, I happily donated for White Horse the amount I always pay for a 320kb mp3 to the artist via the site it's available on. Freaking glorious (and yep, there's your proof that 'illegal' downloading is not a bad thing).
And all that, ladies and gentlemen, comes out to a grand total of about $100 in the previous month that I should've probably saved. But fuck it, music is always

(Edit - funny, I still feel like I owe these artists a lot more, though - my Fripp & King Crimson folder counts 104 albums, while Akvarium's folder is a close-ish second at 75, obviously not all of which I am legally entitled to. I hope my recent behaviour begins to vindicate me in that regard, while not making me completely broke.)