Download Free Music on NoiseTrade

I'm starting to add some of my back catalogue to my NoiseTrade page. First up, is my 2006 release, Never Shed No Tears ( you can also pick up my 2011 internet-only release Living Room Session). All downloads are FREE! However, I do encourage you to leave a tip. 100 % of proceeds go to Joe's MILL ( Joe Chithalen Musical Instrument Lending Library), which is an amazing community organization in Kingston, Ontario.

I also plan to scour the archives for outtakes, and live bootlegs, etc., to add to NoiseTrade in the future, so stay tuned!

Nothing Fills The Soul Like A Sad Song

A few years back, I set up one microphone in the living room to track some demos. Listening back to them, I thought, 'Man, this is all these songs need. I want people to hear them just like this.' So, after tweaking the sound a little bit, I released them for free download on Bandcamp.

Living Room Session is a bit of a forgotten album for me because it was never a physical release, and perhaps also because it is available for free, I have never made a cent off of it. But listening to it today for the first time in almost two years, I find it illustrates an important aspect of who I am as an artist. The singer/songwriter. Alone at the microphone. Very sombre pieces which tend to be the closest to this broken-down heart. Nothing fills the soul like a sad song.




The Less You Seem To Know - A song about a young man feeling lost and without direction, feeling squeezed out on the margins of society.

Par For The Course - I wrote this one for my late Grandma Jean Pownall. I was thankful that I got to play it for her before she died.

A God I Can Call My Own - My Agnostic Gospel Song.

Bleed That Pig - A song that sends the not-so-subtle message, ' Quit F***ing with the planet Earth!'.

Lonesome Highway - Someone gave me trouble once for saying I didn't know what this song is about. They said, " You shouldn't say that on stage. It's unprofessional (insert whiny voice here)". I still don't know what it's about, but I know what it feels like - sadness, heartache, and a hint of tragedy...with a smattering of hope sprinkled in to balance it out.

Never Been Seen - My attempt at explaining Life. Also, Saddest song in the world contest winner - Dryden 2008

lyrics

Song #22 Week #22 - 2012 Song A Week Challenge

June! I keep waiting for this thing to fall off the rails, but the last couple of weeks have been pretty good, and have provided some songs that will be automatically added to my live repertoire. This week's song is one of my favourites of the challenge so far.

It's a pretty little ditty about life, love, and the universe,called "Everything Intertwined".

Hope you like it.

Cheers,
Tom





nothing really ever blows my mind anymore
i've been crippled by decisions
and the slamming of doors
I've been beaten to a pulp
come crawlin back for more
nothing really ever blows my mind anymore

nothing really seems to get you out of my head
i've been drinking a week straight
and laying here in bed
i'm beginning to believe that i've been somehow misled
nothing really seems to get you out of my head

i don't know what i would do
if you said you'd be mine
it seems that i can only bide my time

you and I were made of stars
stars were meant to shine
the thought of that sends shivers down my spine

everyone and everything is intertwined

No one that we lose ever really goes away
they only change their form and linger on within the grey
Preserved in memory as we face another day
No one that we lose ever really goes away



credits
from 2012 Song​-​A​-​Week Challenge (June), track released 04 June 2012
words and music by Tom Savage

Song #21 Week #21 - 2012 Song A Week Challenge

This week's song is called "Hungover Heartbroken", and you could probably guess by the title that it's a country song.Well, It's actually written in a Texas Americana style ala Robert Earl Keen (who is an insanely good songwriter who you should all check out if you haven't already).

I even pulled out the mando for this one. It only had 7 stings on it, but what the hell, I make the rules around here. I don't think you can notice.

Hope you enjoy, and as always if you like it, share it or leave a comment.

Cheers,
Tom












I woke up
felt like I got hit by a truck
i should've known better
and when I've had enough
guess this ol' boy will never learn

got on my knees
bowed down before the porcelain god
tried to shake out my disease
then i took some pepto for the burn

hungover heartbroken and now i'm comin down


I was at the bar
didn't expect to see you there
you always said you didn't care
for the company I would keep

My blood ran cold
and that whiskey was staring at me
it ain't time travel but it's more or less free
Or it frees me up so I can feel real cheap


hungover heartbroken and now i'm comin down

hungover heartbroken
the jury has spoken
sentenced to life without parole
to make a mess of this body i'm in

You pulled yourself up
You found your way
I was born in the gutter
And it's where I'm gonna stay

Nobody could ever steer ship around
hungover heartbroken and now i'm comin down


Hair of the dog
Let myself slip into a fog
One of the regulars sits beside me
And proceeds to talk off my ear

By noon I'm numb
By 9 I'll be deaf and dumb
Then I won't have the strength to send you
another thought my dear

hungover heartbroken and now i'm comin down


hungover heartbroken
the jury has spoken
sentenced to life without parole
to make a mess of this body i'm in

You pulled yourself up
You found your way
I was born in the gutter
And it's where I'm gonna stay

Nobody could ever steer ship around
hungover heartbroken and now i'm comin down


from 2012 Song​-​A​-​Week Challenge (May), track released 28 May 2012
words & music by Tom Savage

Week #4 Song #4 - 2012 Song A Week Challenge

Since this challenge started, we've been joking around, saying "Only 51 more to go. Only 50 more to go...", and that gave me the idea for this song, "49 More To Go". Actually, there was only 48 more to go when I finished writing this, but it took a week for the one line to turn into a song for me.


This tune is done in a Bluegrass style. Or an old folk song style I guess. I overdubbed banjo and lead guitar on it as well.

Hope you enjoy it, and as always, please leave a comment here on the blog, or on Facebook or Twitter, to let me know what you think.

Cheers,
Tom





these last 3 weeks been hard as hell
49 more to go x2

You say you got problems I'm sure you do
But i've got enough of my own

these last 3 weeks been hard as hell
49 more to go



Got no money to pay the rent
11 more months to go x2

don't even have enough collateral
to get myself a pay day loan

Got no money to pay the rent
11 more months to go




the preacher says i should pray to god
he's the only who gives a damn x2

well he didn't say that exactly
but that's how interpreted the man

the preacher says i should pray to god
he's the only who gives a damn




but i think i'll just go rob a bank
seems like the smartest thing to do x2

Get myself a bag of cash
maybe take a caribbean cruise

but i think i'll just go rob a bank
seems like the smartest thing to do



60/40 split if you drive the car
to make our get away x2

And if you got a buddy's place where we can stay
maybe lay low for a few days

60/40 split if you drive the car
to make our get away



Turned out I didn't have the nerve
to go through with it after all x2

Life can be hard , it can be real tough
But I'm in it for the long haul

Turned out I didn't have the nerve
to go through with it after all




these last 3 weeks been hard as hell
49 more to go x2

You say you got problems I'm sure you do
But i've got enough of my own

these last 3 weeks been hard as hell
49 more to go






credits
from 2012 Song​-​A​-​Week Challenge (January), track released 30 January 2012
Music & Lyrics by Tom Savage

Free Music for fans = new fans For Musicians

I've been going by this philosophy for the past couple of years, primarily through the TST Reverbnation site, and it has worked. Of course, the best way to gain new fans, is to get in the van, criss-cross the country, and play yer butt off every night, but right now now I'm speaking of internet marketing. Over the past two years, the TST "online" fanbase has grown by approx. 3000 people, largely due to the offering of free music. An "online' fan is different than a fan who comes to your show ( although there is obviously some crossover), in that they tend to be more of a casual fan. This isn't always the case, but until someone buys your music, or buys a ticket to your show, they are not a "true" fan.

That being said, online fans play an important role in any band's marketing strategy. They "like" your facebook page, they follow you on twitter, they share your music with their friends and followers. This means free advertising for you. So, really you aren't giving music away for free. It's more of a barter system.

There are a couple of sites I've come across recently that give away free music in exchange for email addresses or sharing links:

NoiseTrade - This site offers free albums in exchange for email addresses. There is also a tip system where the listener can pay the artist what they think the music is worth. I've just put up my acoustic EP - Living Room Session. I see this site as having great potential for posting live concerts, studio outtakes, and extra content. I'm kind of against giving away an album for free, and then turning around, and trying to sell it to someone at a live show. I say all free or all pay. But that's just me.




Viinyl - This site offers singles in exchange for email address or for a "like" or tweet ( depending on how the artist sets it up). I've set up our page so you can download "The One" for free in exchange for a like or tweet. Cool design to this site, though they do need to add some sort of search or genre listing.

More Free Downloads!

Just added some more free mp3 downloads on our ReverbNation page!

You can now download "Beneath The Rocks" from Never Shed No Tears (2006), and a live version of Barstool Conversations. Sign up as a fan on our ReverbNation page to get more free downloads!

There is no limit to the number of songs that can be posted on ReverbNation, so we'll be putting up lots of live tracks, demos, and album outtakes up there for download in the future, so stay tuned.

Actually, subscribe to this blog, or the google group, to keep informed on any news.

Cheers,
Tom

FREE MP3 DOWNLOAD!

You can now download our single "The One," for free from our ReverbNation page - http://www.reverbnation.com/tomsavagetrio

Add it to your MP3 playlist on your computer or ipod. Share it with your friends and help promote the band!

If you like what you hear, and need more, you can buy a high bit rate version of the whole album at http://www.kerfmusic.com/190tomsavagetrio

You can also sign up as a fan on ReverbNation and get more free downloads.

Keep Rockin',
Tom Savage