BRADWICKLUND.COM

02-24-12

Friday Favorites 008: Spotify

Over the last few months I’ve dedicated several Friday Favorites to my favorite music, but it’s how I consume that music that is probably an even bigger deal to me. I’ve been a premium member of Spotify since its U.S. launch on July 14th, 2011 and it has been the best $9.99 I spend every single month.

As a premium member, you get unlimited, ad-free access every month on any computer with the application installed and on your mobile devices. I rarely store music on my iPhone now and I just end up streaming it from Spotify. What’s even better is that as a premium member I can store playlists on my iPhone for offline use if I want to. You also get international streaming while you travel abroad and 320 kbps audio quality.

In high school and college I would easily spend $10 a week on new music and now in an age where music piracy is prevalent and the current record distribution model is clearly broken, it takes a reinvention of the way we consume music to move forward and Spotify is a clear example of that. If you haven’t already checked it out, what are you waiting for? They even offer a 30-day free trial of Spotify premium if you want try it with all the bells and whistles and hand claps.

Oh, and they recently added apps as well, which expands its potential in all directions. If you love music, then you might not realize it, but you already love Spotify.

02-17-12

Friday Favorites 007: Chairlift

I’ve never been the kind of person that likes a band just because the singer is hot. I have to be taken by the music. But when the singer is just as gorgeous as the music is then it creates something irresistible. This week’s favorite is the band, Chairlift, based out of Brooklyn, New York, and the lead singer, Caroline Polacheck, is as beautiful as she is talented. Their new album, Something, has been on repeat in my apartment since it first came out. If you haven’t heard it yet, please listen to it and if you’re just as taken with it as I am maybe we could go check them out at the Magic Stick in Detroit on March 29th together.

In the meantime, here is Ghost Tonight, my personal favorite song from the new record.

And as an added bonus, here is Chairlift covering another one of my favorites on Australian radio.

02-11-12

Friday Favorites 006: Flipboard

I’ve been hooked on Flipboard since it first came out for the iPad. My use has only increased since they have come out with a just-as-good-if-not-better iPhone version. When I first downloaded it, it took me a minute to figure out how to make it useful for me, but then I started importing all of my RSS feeds from Google Reader from their folder groupings, importing Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram, and now I only have to go to once place to read, literally, hundreds of web pages every day. It takes an app like this to keep up with the pace of the world today and not get overwhelmed.

02-04-12

Friday Favorites 005: 49th Parallel Coffee Roasters

If you know me well, then you know I love coffee more than just about anything. Right now, my favorite coffee roaster is 49th Parallel Coffee Roasters, based out of Burnaby, British Columbia, Canada. They embody the kind of passion and care that is necessary to bring exquisite coffee to your cup. Not only do they understand and respect every step of the coffee supply chain, but they go through each one with extreme attention to every detail. If you’re not familiar with what it really takes to bring coffee from the earth to your cup, I recommend you read 49th Parallel’s section on Coffee Essentials.

At home, I am enjoying 49th’s Kenyan Karatina and I have also been hooked on their Guatemalan San Juan, served at the local Comet Coffee. If you’ve never had truly amazing coffee, this is it. Come over and I’ll brew you a cup!