DancetracksDigital is Tops in Brazilian Dance Music.

DancetracksDigital.com is one of my favorite music download websites because it features a section specifically devoted to contemporary Brazilian music. 

Given the central theme of my blog, its obvious to see why I feel that way. This is a great place to begin a search for electro samba in its many forms. Of all the music download websites I've ever searched, dancetracksdigital makes it a breeze to find the music I love. Brazilian music isn't the site's only strength, they're actually geared to all forms of dance music. 

Dance, club and house music labels seem to have the most creative CD artwork and DancetracksDigital makes good use of it. I like the fact that they include artist and label bios. Given that so much music is now available primarily online, I miss having linear notes that are bundled with jewel cases. That may be some what "old school" but it makes for a deeper appreciation of the artist and his/her work. However, I've noticed in the past year or so, booklets are available in iTunes with an entire CD purchase. 

DancetracksDigital, like mp3sparks.com offers performance quality encoding, usually at 320 kbps, some older tracks are at 256 kbps. Tracks are compatible with all media players and come without digital rights management (DRM) encoding. The per track pricing is bit steep at $1.89, but I imagine audiophiles and music lovers won't mind paying for quality.

Mp3sparks.com, by contrast, offers a range of bitrates and prices are adjusted accordingly. One makes out much better though by purchasing entire CDs from dancetracksdigital; here pricing is well in line with other leading online music sites, like iTunes, at around $9.99. You can sample 60 seconds of any track by placing it on your playlist with its built-in music player. The site boast almost 2,000 labels and 15,000 artists to choose from. There's a news section, which is essentially a blog,  but it has some very interesting music related events like a building in Detroit that went up in flames that housed a legendary vinyl record shop or the worlds largest record collection that was up for sale. DJ competitions, artist profiles and youTube videos are also available in the news section. 

If you're looking for purchasing suggestions, dancetracksdigital's charts are kind of limited compared to other sites, most noteworthy, mp3sparks. They seem to be based solely on their popularity within the site, as opposed to industry or world-wide activity. Although of limited use for the average music download person, DancetracksDigital offers DJs live ready tracks that can be used in performance. 

Conclusion: 

I've had nothing but a good experience using this site to augment my mp3 iPod and iTunes collection. Unlike some other sites, boxmp3.com comes to mind, I've never encountered any download or encoding errors. The site is very reliable and updated frequently. There are other sites with better pricing options but the selection more than makes up for it. I'm especially excited with dancetracksDigital because I've been able to find several remixes of contemporary Brazilian artists and label samplers that prior to discovering the site, I could only find in the now vanishing brick and mortar mega stores, like Virigin records or Towers records. Does anyone remember them ?

3 Nu Bossa Brasileiras Found on Mp3aim.com

This week’s artist search focuses on three top selling contemporary Brazilian artists, Rosalia de Souza, Sabrina Malheiros and Bebel Gilberto.

(want to know how mp3aim.com rates ?, see previous post)

Sabrina Malheiros CDs were filed under the Lo-Fi & Latin genres.

The daughter of Alex Malheiros of the Brazilian jazz group, Azymuth, Sabrina seems to have the vocal skills singers like Bebel Gilberto are still searching for. Her rhythms borrow from Nu Jazz no doubt given her father’s influence, but there’s shadings of hip-hop, R&B and electronica to give it that new feel. Which shows she's not content with living just off the family name. Her debut CD, Equilibria, is outstanding, favorite tracks are Love Sorte, Capoeira Vai, Saudade Rio, but the list can go on. For clubbers and house music thrill seekers the follow-up remix CD, Vibrasons (Vibrations) is simply a tour deforce. The list of remixers on this project includes some impressive new comers, Beatnix and highly respected craftsmen, Spiritual South, Kenny Dope and Nicola Conte. I really like this project. Mp3aim.com has a good selection of Sabrina’s CDs and remix singles.




Rosalia de Souza CDs were filed under the House, Samba & Lo-Fi genres.

The Modern and Different Girl
With strong songwriting skills and a top notch producer, Nicola Conte, Rosalia has made a very strong showing among the crowded field of female singers from Brasil. But judging from the rapid response to remix her debut CD, Garota Moderna (Modern Girl) and its success, it seems this attention and praise are well earned. mp3aim.com has the debut and follow up CD, Brasil Precisa Balancar, plus several of the remix singles. Unfortunately is their missing Garota Diferente (Different Girl), the real treat where the remix masters go to work on the well received debut. Notable tracks: The Rio de Janeiro remixes are excellent house standouts.




Bebel Gilberto CDs were filed under the House, Dance, Latin, Jazz, Samba, Beat & Other genres

Bebel’s Momento CD was named one of Amazon’s Best of 2007. Her first release Tanto Tempo, produced by the late DJ Suba, redefined the bossa nova sound with electronica to bring us Nu Bossa. Bebel was one of the first singers to make a big splash, although I attribute her success to the musical visionary Suba and his DJ and production skills. One need only listen to his monumental CD, Sao Paulo Confessions to see he was the creative force behind the Bebel phenomena. I’m sure many will take issue with that proposition but with the amount of success and Bebel product that has flooded the market, I would have a difficult time persuading others to my way of thinking. On mp3aim, you’ll find plenty of CDs, remixes and imports to satisfy your Bebel cravings. I enjoyed the debut CD because it was something new. The Tanto Tempo Remix CD reinvented these nice pop/electronica tunes, the standouts being Agangu (Latin Project Remix) and the hot August Day (Da Lata Remix). But was this success a fluke ? Perhaps song and production arrangements, on subsequent releases allowed the weakness in vocal clarity to dampen a strong debut.