Happy First Birthday to the @LinerNotes Blog! And YOU get a present!

Hey! It's been one year since I carved out this little corner of the Internet to blog about all-things music and I thought it might be fun to share a few bits of trivia with you about what you've been reading here! And if that doesn't entice you enough to come in, how about a legitimate, free download of a track from an as-yet-to-be-released disc of bluesy roots rock?

The @LinerNotes blog was born out of a desire to share thoughts about music in greater detail than can be done in only 140 characters. On October 24th, 2010, I posted my personal Mission Statement to my intended readers, about what this blog would be about. You can go back and read the original post if you so desire, but it is easily mixed down to the following:

"I don't give negative reviews. There is enough negativity on the Internet to last an untold number of lifetimes and I for one am not here to add to it."

Maintaining this blog's voice as an outlet for a positivity in an overtly negative realm holds true to this day. There is so much amazing music from incredibly talented musicians out there (The New Mastersounds, Gorgeous Got a Gun, the DIY aesthetics of chiptune performers) and hopefully you've found a new artist to enjoy from coming here!

By The Numbers

What have you, the awesome people who've spent time here reading my musings on music been most interested in over the past year?

Top 3 Most Read Articles:
1. Review of Daft Punk's Tron Legacy Soundtrack
2. Deep Purple @ the Greek Theater, Los Angeles Concert Review
3. Thunderdikk - Magnum Love Album Review

Daft Punk's movie-eclipsing soundtrack to Tron Legacy is far and away the most read thing I've written here. It has been very quiet from the Daft Punk camp since its release. Hopefully they are either creating new material or are secretly working on another soundtrack. A bit of thanks is in order to The Highway Star for linking to my review of Deep Purple's recent Los Angeles concert. And from the Bands You Need To Hear Department, it is especially cool to see just how many people have read the slightly-NSFW review of Thunderdikk's Magnum Love album. They are still the most fun you can have while standing up.

While readers in the US are the dominant audience here, the UK is not far behind with German and Canadian readers usually just a few pageviews apart (right now, the count is only 2!). I get a kick out of knowing music fans from around the world have found their way here, especially when I see the occasional view from Bolivia or Indonesia. It's almost like finding a station from a far off land on a world band radio, but in reverse. Ok, got a bit geeky there, and here's more geekery! The overwhelming majority of you visit via Firefox. 4% of page views over the past year were done via an iPhone and I see a good amount of traffic sent here via Yandex.ru, Russia's most popular website and search engine.

I sincerely want to thank each and every person who has taken the time to listen, learn and read on. I hope that I've been able to put some new artist names in front of you and their sounds in your ears. Speaking of which, I've got a free download for you! Please check out "Burn Down," the title track of the new EP from Poor Boy's Soul.

Poor Boy's Soul - "Burn Down" Free MP3 Download

Poor Boy's Soul is actually a one-man band, consisting of Trevor Jones, who is getting neck deep in the Mississippi Delta on this track. Having heard the entire disc I can definitely say that if you enjoy the stomp and twang Poor Boy's Soul does on this track, then you should check out the full release of Burn Down when it drops on November 15th.

Free download and photograph provided courtesy of xo publicity. Two horns way up for sharing it with us!

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