MPFree: Birdmonster, Albert Hammond Jr., Common Market, Ariel Pink's Haunted Graffiti, Cory Chisel & The Wandering Sons

Christopher Porter's inbox is inundated with MP3s, and the sheer amount can be overwhelming — and disheartening, at least when you listen to a half-dozen terrible songs in a row. But Porter held his nose and opened his ears and picked five recent (and legal) MP3s for your downloading pleasure. PC users: right click on the song title and "save as" to download; Mac folks: click and hold on the song title, then "save as."

BAND: Birdmonster
SONG/ALBUM: "Born to Be Your Man" | "From the Mountain to the Sea"
SOUNDS LIKE: Left Coast indie pop
D.C. BOUND: Not yet; maybe after the album drops in September
GET MORE: Web site | MySpace | Wiki

BAND: Albert Hammond Jr.
SONG/ALBUM: "GfC" | "¿Cómo Te Llama?"
SOUNDS LIKE: Why not read all about Al in our CD review?
D.C. BOUND: No en este momento
GET MORE: Web site | MySpace | Wiki

BAND: Common Market
SONG/ALBUM: "Tobacco Road" | "Tobacco Road"
SOUNDS LIKE: Backpack hip-hop with a nice soul-piano loop
D.C. BOUND: Nope, dude seems to be stuck on the mean streets of Seattle right now
GET MORE: Web site | MySpace | P.R. page

BAND: Ariel Pink's Haunted Graffiti
SONG/ALBUM: "L'estat (According to the Widows)" | "Odddittysodomies Vol. 1"
SOUNDS LIKE: A hazed-out ghost track teleported from an otherworldly 1960s psych-pop band
D.C. BOUND: Aug. 2 at Sonar in Baltimore
GET MORE: Web site | MySpace | Wiki

BAND: Cory Chisel & The Wandering Sons
SONG/ALBUM: "Home in the Woods" | "Cabin Ghosts"
SOUNDS LIKE: Cat Stevens after he's ingested some Iron & Wine
D.C. BOUND: He is on tour right now; just not coming here
GET MORE: Web site | MySpace | Videos

Photo credits: Birdmonster courtesy Cornerstone Promotion, Albert Hammond Jr. by Valerie Jodoin-Keaton, Common Market by Tone, Ariel Pink courtesy Force Field PR and Cory Chisel courtesy Sneak Attack Media