Your guide to discovering new beats that put you ahead of the game making personal playlists.

In today’s music industry, there’s a lot to keep up with, and as much as we love them, Pandora, Spotify and your personal iTunes on shuffle just can’t do it all. That said, we pulled together a list of 25 of our favorite music sites, our go-to sources for finding new tunes, streaming our favorite mixes and above all, staying ahead on our playlists. Just keep in mind that if you’re tempted to spend half your day perusing new music, don’t blame it on us.

A New Band A Day

The name says it all. Whether you like the bands or not is up to you, but fortunately there’s a new one every single day so you’re bound to discover something.

All Scandinavian

If you know anything about the music world, you’ll know that there’s a lot of creativity coming out of Scandinavia right now. Miike Snow, Lykke Li, Sigur Rós – they all have Nordic roots. All Scandinavian is the place to keep up with the big names as well as all of the smaller ones that you would otherwise only catch at festivals like Roskilde.

Aquarium Drunkard

Based in Los Angeles, Aquarium Drunkard is an eclectic mix that “bridges the gap between contemporary indie with vintage garage, psych, folk, country, New Orleans funk, r&b, soul and everything that falls in between.” That means it’s diverse, different and certainly worth your time.

La Blogothèque

A beautiful combination of music and videos, this French website has an appealing layout and the kind of content that will make you stick around for hours. Certainly not your average music blog, this site feels more like a high end lifestyle magazine.

The Chuckness

Chuck, The Chuckness’ namesake, knows his stuff when it comes to good, upbeat music, and this site should certainly make it onto your list of sites to check regularly. Chuck and his team also started featuring a bi-weekly mixtape called The Fortnight, mixed by a guy out of Boston named DJ Rob. It’s worth checking out and keeping an eye out for.

DML.fm

If you need workout mixes and danceable tracks, look no further. Don’t have time to sort through all the posts? For a quick fix there’s a list of top 10 tracks on the main page, which, thanks to a music-savvy readership, is always full of good music. The site offers plenty of the featured tracks for download, which means that even without internet access at your next party, you can still work your DJ skills.

The Fader

The Fader is actually an entire lifestyle magazine, but they have their finger on the pulse of the music scene and do a good job of pulling together everything from hip-hop to Caribbean.

Fighting Musical Ignorance

Electronic, indie, hip hop and dance, it’s all here. These guys know their party remixes, and if you’re in need of a good mashup should be your #1 source. They also know a thing or two about making playlists, and make them available for download, which is perfect for when you need a rocking set but are too tired to pull something together yourself.

Find New Jams

The concept for Find New Jams is simple: press play and listen. The site sticks to party, hip-hop, mashups and rock, and the platform allows you to vote on your favorite songs. Don’t expect commentary, this site is simply a “click and listen” kind of place, but it’s known for having some of the freshest tracks available, particularly when it comes to the sort of music that deserves to be blasted on loud speakers.

I Guess I am Floating

If The Phoenix called this site an “…uber-hip indie blawg.” you know if has to be good. I Guess I Am Floating always has the kind of music that you can listen to no matter what mood you’re in.

The Kollection

Intended for a younger crowd, this site is actually run by a bunch of savvy and music-loving college students, but you would never know it. It’s a professional operation that looks slick and has a good mix of music from various genres, from indie to dubstep. The commentary is smart and we keep an eye on it on a daily basis.

Hype Machine

Need a new morning routine? Brew your coffee and go immediately to Hype Machine. Hype Machine is one of the premiere music sites out there, more like a consortium of good music blogs and all of the tracks that they feature. The Popular list changes on a daily basis and one minute you can find yourself listening to Brazilian samba and the next a folky blues tune. You can bookmark your favorites and the songs continue playing while you navigate the site. And did we mention the Hype Machine Top 8 playlists that are released every Monday? If you can only commit to an hour a week of getting caught up on the latest and greatest in music, start here.

HypeTrak

Daily updated news and features makes this a go-to blog of music lovers of all kinds. One day Wiz Khalifa, the next, a Feist remix. The site also has an entire section devoted to music videos.

Indie Shuffle

Indie Shuffle is a huge collection of independent music of all genres. The San Francisco-based site’s music player is very user friendly, and every track that is posted has recommended similar artists, making it easy to know what you’re going to get and also encouraging you to discover new gems. Can’t decide where to hit play? Just hit the shuffle button and you’ll end up with a random track from Indie Shuffle’s extensive library. A must for anyone that’s trying to break out of their usual music tastes.

The Music Ninja

The Music Ninja’s About page says it all. “With one simple goal, to only feature the best music we come across, we have swiftly infiltrated the ears and minds of Ke$ha fans and permanently set them on the path to better, more fulfilling music.” So no auto-tune and no overly poppy bass lines. Your ears will thank you.

NPR Music

And you thought they only did Talk of the Nation and Fresh Air. NPR is very on top of their game when it comes to music. Song of the Day is a good way to kick off your morning, and because they’re a larger media brand, they also have a wide variety of album previews that you can listen to.

Pitchfork

You can barely call yourself a music lover if Pitchfork isn’t on your reading list. Album reviews, new tracks and even music festivals, this site has it all. They also have music lists that go as far back as the 1960s, in the event you’re looking to beef up your music knowledge.

Remix86

Dance. Party. That’s all there is to it when it comes to Remix86. Now you know, go forth and enjoy yourself.

SoundCloud

Soundcloud is the darling of artists and producers as it allows you to easily upload your music. But even if you’re not a musician, you should be using Soundcloud. Follow artists and producers, share your own stuff, keep track of all of your favorites and see what others have been listening to.

Stereogum

A well-respected industry blog, Stereogum was at the forefront of the music blog world from the beginning. That means that you can expect bigger releases alongside unknown artists just making it onto the scene. It’s also an excellent source for music news as well as Stereogum’s famous lists, with everything from The 20 Best Indie Madonna Covers to Bon Iver’s 5 Favorite Hip-Hop Lyrics.

Sunset in the Rearview

What would you be listening to on a roadtrip, driving cross country and appreciating the sunset reflecting in your rearview mirror as you head east? Probably something that would be featured on Sunset in the Rearview. It’s all indie rock and hip hop, and the main draw of this site is all of its daily features like Womp Wednesday and Friday at Five.

This Song is Sick

If you’re looking for a “this song is incredible!” reaction from your friends, here is where you will find it. It’s a lot of electro, but there’s a also a good chill section to offset the dance party selection.

We All Want Someone to Shout For

“Genres don’t exist here. Only good music does.” New York-based, We All Want Someone to Shout For sticks to its mantra, which means you get a diverse grab bag that you’re sure to love. Much of the featured content is available for download.

We Are Hunted

Take Pandora, add a little more Euro beats, indie rock and fresh DJs from the dance floor, a curated list of the day’s 99 most popular songs based on blogs and social media activity and you get a taste of what We Are Hunted has to offer. Type in the name of your favorite group or musician and the site immediately pulls up a grid of related artists, 75% of which you probably have never heard of. You can make your own playlists and embed them on blogs and share them on social networks, that way you can prove to your friends that you really are up on what’s new on the music scene.

8tracks

Where would we be without 8tracks? Think back to the days when you spent hours making mixtapes. Well, now there’s a website and an app for that. We’re even doing it. You can search for playlists based on artist or genre and you can stream them on your computer or your phone. Crowd-sourced internet radio that’s always full of good surprises.

Image: lamda_X

The post An A to Z List of Where to Go When iTunes Doesn’t Cut It appeared first on EcoSalon.

Welcome to cub web publishing 101, the course for literary teens who go one further than Facebook to flex their writing muscles via blogs devoted to pop culture, fashion and eco activism. Green teen blogging is the new black. But just like the sport of crew, it takes time away from homework. You have to want to get your strokes from more than a bunch of A’s on a card. Meet a few of the new breed.

While most high school freshman call it a day after trudging through the mixed cauldron of Macbeth, ancient Rome and conjugating Spanish verbs, It’s Getting Hot in Here contributor Shadia Fayne Wood blogs about climate justice. At fifteen, she joined the World Summit on Sustainable Development – joining efforts to create the Official Youth Energy Policy Statement. She now helps coordinate a global youth journalism network, Project Survival Media and while keeping a personalblog and pursuing a freelance photography sideline.

At Teens Turning Green, founded in Marin County, CA., concerned teens from around the globe blog to further the goal of  eliminating toxic chemicals from individual lives. Part of the joy is using the art of writing to effect change.

Its co-founder, Erin Schrode, got her start as a “sustainability prodigy” at the website and it led to awards, testimony before lawmakers and paid writing gigs by the time she was sixteen. Now, at nineteen, she is a guest blogger on Dr. Greene and other sites, and has a healthy TTG cosmetic line promoted by Whole Foods.

“They become experts and have something to share, and that is why they are blogging and articulating their perspectives,” says Judi Shill, Shrode’s mom and co-founder of the site. Shill finds blogging isn’t always an entree into journalism but is a sign of the times of how teens today communicate. Still, she admits some of the writing is “extraordinary” – and you can tell who is taking it further.

Taking it further might require the kind of chutzpah displayed by freelance teen reporter, Daniel Wetter, a member of the Scholastic Press Corps who often reports on eco issues. The upstart also has a passion for sports and covered the winter Olympics at fourteen, despite not having proper credentials. That’s the makings of a network sports writer – no shrinking violet in the locker room! “Every day has a new story to cover which is why I love journalism,” he says, and proves it by seeking out stories in his Sacramento community and working for his school paper, The Growler.

And then, in a league of her own, is fashion force Tavi Gevinson. The 14-year-old haute couture devotee, who also covers second hand shopping, has been writing the consumption blog, Style Rookie, since she was eleven. Next stop, a collaboration with Sassy creator Jane Pratt to produce a new teen publication for what Gevinson calls “wallflowery teenage girls.” A profile on the suburban Chicagoan in The New Yorker, points out bloggers have only recently become important in the world of fashion (our own Amy DuFault has the green niche covered), and that Tavi at fourteen is already an old pro who adeptly navigates her away around the backstage of shows, as well as on the web.

“In seventh grade, I’d come home from school and take an outfit picture, post it, write a little bit about it, and write a little bit about the day,” Tavi told the magazine. “Now, I want to write more article-y things.”

Gevinson is able to crossover from silly to serious because luminaries such as Karl Lagerfeld believe the idiosyncratic, four-foot-ten chronicler has something to say, her fresh eye not “ruined by zillions of bad collections.”

Fresh perspective is nurtured at enrichment workshops for kid writers, such as ones held at 826 Valencia, founded by author Dave Eggers and educator, Ninive Calegari. Stanford University’s EPGY (Education Program for Gifted Youth) urges creative wordsmiths to leap into fountains on the Stanford campus and leave anonymous poems on random  bikes.   Lekha School of Writing in San Jose, CA., circumvents the red tape of publishing houses with an adjunct service of publishing works completed by its best students. Some make it into bookstores before the kid has a driver’s license.

Meanwhile, savvy school teachers also play a vital role in prompting talented writers to journey beyond the classroom to reach a wider audience, even if it means a letter to the editor of a local newspaper.

“If students write for an audience of one teacher, they often don’t feel motivated,” says Paul Totah, educator and Director of Communications at Saint Ignatius college Preparatory in San Francisco. “Real world publishing is the best way to inspire good writing.”

Totah, like many of the most insightful instructors, is a former writer who has been in the trenches.

“Whenever I applied for a job as a writer, no one cared what college I went to or what grades or SAT scores I received,” shares Totah. “They looked at my writing portfolio and hired me because of the quality of the writing. Students know they are judged by how well they write anything, from emails to memos to sticky notes, and that concise, powerful prose will serve them in whatever they pursue.”

Edgy and current prose also serves them when selling “article-y things”, catching the eyes of avid Tweeters. But beware of early burn out. It’s a tempting, yet tangled, word wide web we weave, a seemingly endless one at that. The advantage of publishing early comes with a requisite of restraint. Otherwise, prodigies like the Tavi Gevinsons of the world could slide dangerously into child star Lindsay Lohan territory, and risk being washed up before experience and wisdom takes their art to new heights.

Images: Extra Ketchup;  It’s Getting Hot in Here; The Style Rookie; Erin Schrode; Lekha Publishing

The post Published Before 15 appeared first on EcoSalon.

I know your inbox is full and so is mine. Just when I think I can’t possibly read one more newsletter or look at one more food website, someone launches a new one that I can’t resist.

For the information overloaded among us, here’s a curated list of our top food site picks. Some are green, some are highly interactive, some aggregate the best from the web, some are fun, and others are just plain smart.

1. Food News Journal has quickly become my daily go-to source for all types of news in the food world. From politics and policy, to chef gossip, to its “best of blogs” section, it’s invaluable for any food writer or non-professional foodie.

2. Foodspotting features user generated photos and tips and lets you share foods you’ve found and loved and also search by location for foods others have posted. For example, I live in Oakland, and I’m craving Ramen. I search for Ramen in Oakland and can look through a list of Ramen photos in my area complete with menu names and restaurant addresses.

3. Punk Domestics curates blog posts from around the web on the topics of preserving, canning, pickling, jamming, and other DIY arts. Users can post their own content, lending to the spirit of sharing and community that the site fosters.

4. Tasting Table is like the Daily Candy of food. A daily regionalized email of top dining, drinking, and food shopping finds.

5. Tutti Foodie is made up of passionate food lovers with an environmental bent. The site features recipes, ingredients, books, and blogs focusing on the good, the unusual, and the green.

6. The Nibble is the place to go if you want to know what the best gourmet food products are of the thousands on the shelves. Get reviews of olive oils, vinegars, snack foods and more in the form of a monthly magazine, weekly tip, or daily nibble.

7. Foodzie is a place to discover and buy all types of foods from small producers, and includes everything from meats to condiments to coffee. The site makes it easy for users to find local foods through a geographic search function.

8. Cooking Up a Story offers mini-documentaries online about the people behind sustainable food production. You can find interviews with farmers, food artisans, and experts on sustainability. The stories are inspiring and provide a window into the lives of people working hard to change our food system one seed at a time.

9. Project Foodie lets you search for recipes from magazines, cooking shows, newspapers, and cookbooks. The site also provides cookbook, recipe and product reviews.

10. Food 52 lets users submit their own recipes in various categories or using certain ingredients and then users vote for the best ones. It’s a great community of proficient home cooks and a wonderful way to find fantastic and inventive recipes by home cooks. The site is super content rich with video and answers to reader’s queries. The site’s Tournament of Cookbooks is always exciting.

This is the latest installment in Vanessa Barrington’s weekly column, The Green Plate, on the environmental, social, and political issues related to what and how we eat.

Image: wicekenden

The post 10 Creative, Fun, Food Websites and Newsletters appeared first on EcoSalon.

As many of you know, here at EcoSalon, we often emphasize the point that sustainable travel is not just about carbon offsets and packing lighter. Sustainable travel is about conscious travel, and thinking about your next adventure with a holistic approach; everything from where you go and who you stay with, to what tour operators you use and how you get around town. Ultimately, sustainable travel is also about making sure that as travelers we’re doing our best to ensure that the places we want to explore stick around for other people to enjoy them as well, and that means traveling in a manner that’s environmentally, humanly and culturally conscious.

There are a lot of great resources out there on sustainable travel and eco tourism to help guide you in your quest to be a more conscious traveler, with everything from general travel guides to specific listings of sustainable destinations. We’ve rounded up our favorite top 10.

1. Sustainable Travel International – This is the eco traveler’s go-to resource for all things related to sustainable travel. They run an excellent and informative blog that keeps you up to speed on the latest developments in the eco tourism world, and their Eco Directory lets you search travel and tourism providers that have been vetted for their commitment to sustainable practices.

2. Matador – The world’s largest independent magazine, Matador offers a wealth of information to those looking to travel off the beaten path. The articles here are succinct, savvy and are all focused on travel that benefits both the traveler and the local communities. Check out Matador Change which boasts a variety of green travel tips as well as voluntourism organization profiles.

3. Intelligent Travel – National Geographic’s Intelligent Travel blog isn’t specifically green focused, but with the traditional National Geographic attitude it features articles, profiles and tips that all fall under the category of conscious travel, with travel dispatches everywhere from New York City’s High Line to ancient rainforests in Australia.

4. Why Go EcoTourism – Part of the Bootsnall consortium of travel blogs, Why Go EcoTourism is a great place to start your eco travel research. You can easily navigate through various modes of accommodation, including eco lodges and farm stays, and get tips on other eco travel resources like books and guides.

5. Green Traveller – A UK-based site, Green Traveller offers advice on everything from cargo ship travel to staying in treehouses. It’s a well-respected site that’s been mentioned by other travel media like Conde Nast and Rough Guides.

6. Go Green Travel Green – Co-founded by travel savvy ladies Kimberly and Elizabeth Sanberg, Go Green Travel Green features the latest and greatest in green travel gear and tips. They’ve also got a great section on Green Travel 101 for those still a little unsure on the Who, What, Where and Why of it all.

7. HelpEx – If you’re looking to add a stay at an organic farm, or do some volunteer work on your next trip, HelpEx provides a great community of farms, B&Bs, and even sailboats that invites volunteer helpers to stay with them short-term in exchange for food and accommodation. An excellent way to experience a new place if you’re a fan of slow travel and truly taking part in a local community.

8. The Guardian Green Travel – The Guardian’s section committed to green travel offers a wealth of advice, and includes features on up and coming destinations along with highlighting those spots you just thought couldn’t get any more interesting.

9. Seat 61 – If taking the train enters into any of your travel plans, make sure to consult Seat 61. In the online travel community, this is the one and only site to go to when it comes to researching train travel in other countries. The site covers in detail train travel in almost every country that trains exist, including links to train travel companies, tourism boards and tips on buying tickets.

10. Traveling Greener – Traveling Greener is a blog inspired by green travel news and trends, so it’s jam packed with the latest and greatest in green travel information. Check out Traveling Greener’s Twitter feed too which always has links to interesting articles and tidbits.

Image: Gianni D

The post 10 of the Best Travel and Tourism Sites appeared first on EcoSalon.

Poring over a glossy catalog while relaxing in the tub is luxurious, but all those mailers contribute to a glut of decomposing paper in landfills and deforestation for the sake of advertising the newest line of summer sundresses. Let’s make a pact to lessen or eliminate the amount of store catalogs we get in the mail, shall we? Catalog Choice is a free, easy-to-use website that will help get us started on the right foot.

Catalog Choice has over 1,700 companies in its database, all willing to stop sending you catalogs just for the asking. Just pop over to the site and enter the name of a retail company. If it’s listed in the database, you’ll get the company’s customer service phone number, links to its website and privacy policy, and an option to opt out of receiving future catalogs. For many companies it’s an all or nothing deal, but others will keep you on a seasonal or occasional “mail to” list if you like.

If you’re like me, it’s hard to give up the catalog habit cold turkey – everything just looks so slick and pretty! Fortunately, Catalog Choice has your back. In an agreement with many big retailers, you can flip through a digital copy of catalogs from Crate & Barrel, National Geographic Gift Store, and more, right online. Registered users can even bookmark catalogs for return visits, make wish lists, and share links right from the site.

So, let’s get ready to cut back on the dead tree versions of our favorite catalogs and free our mailboxes from being stuffed to the brim. Go!

Image: Vee Dub

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