Ambient/Electronica Artist Now Streaming And Selling Music Via Sonific

Ambient and Electronica artist and podcaster Mark Rushton was selected to be a Sonific beta-tester because his CDs are currently available through CDBaby and pay-downloads can be purchased via iTunes.

Visitors to the 'Sonified' sites like music.markrushton.com and markrushton.blogspot.com are able to listen to, but not download, music from Rushton's album releases that are available through CDBaby and iTunes through an attractive and stylish player that's embedded in a web page.

Once a listener clicks through the picture of the album cover or the section called "Find Out More About This Song", they are presented with a "Sonific Gateway" that gives information about the album and the ability to buy it or find out more information at CDBaby or iTunes.

"All I have to do is send along a few lines of code to get my music embedded on somebody else's web site or blog," says Rushton. "It's an excellent marketing tool for independent musicians."

One of the first two tracks available of Mark Rushton's music include "Anoka-Hennepin" from his latest album Hum And Drift. It's a slice of ambient-ish instrumental downtempo just over three minutes long. The other track is a slightly-funky piece of instrumental synth-pop, "Theme From Lincoln Highway", from The Driver's Companion, an album released in 2004.

Rushton uses a variety of sites to promote his music. He sells CDs through CDBaby, CafePress, BuyIowaArt.com, Amazon.com, and through mail-order. Downloads of his albums can be purchased from over 50 different online retailers, such as iTunes, Rhapsody, Connect, eMusic, and Napster. Albums and individual tracks are promoted through his podcasts, which have received nearly 100,000 downloads in the past year and a half. Free MP3s are made available on his web site, markrushton.com. Rushton also utilizes MySpace, Lastfm.com, AcidPlanet.com, Download.com, and Soundclick.com for additional promotion. His music is also used in the background and segues for the short story and literary fiction podcast at Boundoff.com. Rushton also occasionally performs at live events throughout Eastern Iowa.