Who’s afraid of CUIT? A Columbia student’s guide to getting free music without the risk

Downloading music illegally is, to many of us, one of those small crimes—like jaywalking or stealthily drinking 40s out of paper bags on the subway— that we commit without too much guilt or fear of retribution. Unfortunately, Columbia University Information Technology takes a slightly stricter stance on illegal downloads. A pirated album or two could cost you your Columbia e-mail address, and ultimately access to the network altogether. But if you can’t afford, or just can’t stand, to pay for your tunes, there are all kinds of creative ways to find free music on campus, criminal activity excluded.

Become a DJ

If you love to create mixes for friends, consider yourself to be a bit of a music snob, or just fantasize about talking in a mysterious DJ voice, you will fit right in at one of the two radio stations on campus. Both stations—Columbia’s FM station, WKCR, and Barnard’s online station, WBAR—are filled with CDs and records, which are all available to DJs and soon-to-be DJs, completely free of charge. Because music companies flood the stations with their newest records, you can often get your hands on a band’s new album before it appears in stores. WKCR’s collection runs the gamut from obscure bluegrass to experimental jazz to dance music from around the world. WBAR’s shelves are filled with indie rock, hip-hop, demos from artists most people won’t know about for months.

Do a blog search

The blog scene is heavily populated by music nerds with little more to do than write about and post their favorite new songs and albums. This means lots and lots of free MP3s are available online legally—or, at least, kind of legally. Though there is significant debate over whether MP3 blogs are really breaking the rules or not, record companies pay them little attention, and CUIT generally follows suit. Many artists gained their fame thanks to music blogs and support their existence wholeheartedly, allowing morally rigorous music fans to rest easy. You can do a simple Google blog search for your favorite band followed by “MP3” or “download,” or you can turn to sites like The Hype Machine or ELBO.WS, which scour MP3 blogs, to do the free-music hunting for you.

Join the newspaper

At the risk of making a shameless plug for the Spec, we will let you in on a little secret—our office is filled with free CDs, available to anyone willing to write about them. From the good (a Wu-Tang Clan greatest hits album) to the flat out ridiculous (Pizza & Ice Cream, a self-produced CD from a New Jersey burn-out), if an artist wants Columbia students to know about his music, he sends it to the Spectator. Come to a meeting, get a free CD, and live out your Almost Famous, music-reviewing dreams.

Ask a friend

You can judge a person by the music he or she listens to. Maybe you shouldn’t, but we all know you can. That said, complementing someone’s iTunes library is one of the highest forms of flattery, and a totally uncreepy way to make a friend. If you opt to share your library with others on your network, people in the library or on your hall can listen to your music, and admire your excellent taste. Last year, someone was so enamored of a hallmate’s iTunes library that she publicly posted a note of gratitude in a dorm elevator. Asking an in-the-know new acquaintance to burn you a CD is another way to express your admiration, in a slightly less explicit way. So, while we are not advocating that you befriend someone because he has the new Beastie Boys album you want, we are not exactly disapproving either.

Tags: Arts & Entertainment, Rebecca Pattiz