I've discovered so much great music thanks to cdbaby so I thought it would be nice if we had a cdbaby.com thread. I'll start with 3 CD's that I bought a couple of weeks ago.
Seth Horan-Notwithstanding 
"Notwithstanding" is the second fully produced release from bassist, singer, songwriter Seth Horan.
Coming from a colorful major label background (he did time in MCA rap/metal band Darwin's Waiting Room and RCA pop supergroup Vertical Horizon), Horan has gained serious notoriety over the past two years since his debut release, "...this is the session."
He performs in a variety of settings; as a soloist, accompanying his voice with only his five-string bass guitar, and more recently with a band, but still showcasing the funky, two-handed style that his fans have come to identify him by.
"Notwithstanding" strikes a perfect balance between solo performances and more produced songs. Songs like "Eventually", "the song of Thanks", and "Keep To Myself" are powerfully spare in their arrangements, showcasing not only Horan's exquisite bass technique, but his increasingly powerful vocals, which have become hauntingly soulful since his first release.
On the opposite end of the spectrum, "Become What You Resist" and "Beautiful" are masterpieces of band production, no doubt due to the co-production skills of Horan's former Vertical Horizon bandmate, Ed Toth, whose drumming throughout the record is top notch, and a welcome departure from the straight-ahead rock of his band's recent offerings.
Fans of Horan's most popular song to date, "Tarot" (from his debut release), will no doubt feel at home with the album's opening cut, "Something Pretty", which strikes a familiar balance in groove and instrumentation without being derivative.
With the release of "Notwithstanding", Horan has grown tenfold as an artist, and has more clearly defined his sound and his vision in a way bound to attract more attention. The result is one of the best independent releases to cross this reviewer's desk in over a year. Highly recommended
http://cdbaby.com/cd/horan2 John Lester-Big Dreams and the Bottom Line 
San Francisco singer-songwriter-bassist John Lester has released the long-awaited studio CD: "Big Dreams and the Bottom Line".
Guest musicians on the new CD include:
Scott Underwood - drums (Train)
Celso Alberti - drums (Airto, Flora Purim)
Paulo Baldi - percussion (Otmar Leibert, Deadweight)
Jean-Michel Hure - acoustic guitar
David Juriansz- acoustic guitar
"An extraordinarily talented double bass player with a richly evocative vocal and lyrics to match - a compelling performer if every there was one."
-The Troubadour, London UK
"It's a real treat to hear such a fresh take on the singer-songwriter concept."
- Michael Manring, solo bassist (and with Michael Hedges, John Gorka, Patty Larkin, etc. etc. etc.)
"His bass/vocal approach is intriguing and innovative but never gets in the way of the song itself. Genre-defying music."
-Gretchen Peters - Nashville hit songwriter
"A rare combination of soul, poetry, conviction, and talent."
-Steve Pasero - jazz guitarist, recording artist
"I was, and still am, absolutely knocked out by his bass and voice presentation."
-Linda Tillery- Bobby McFerrin's Voicestra
"...a voice like a 2am top shelf scotch"
-Dan, Venue Owner, Portland Oregon
"Breathtaking! Sting meets Mose Allison and way beyond! Thank you!"
-Jamie at Strings, Emeryville, California.
http://cdbaby.com/cd/johnlester2
...and last but defnitely not least
Steve Lawson-Grace and Grattitude 
t's been a busy two years for Steve Lawson since the release of his last all-solo album, Not Dancing For Chicken at the tail-end of 2002. From touring the nation's concert halls opening for 80s pop-funk legends Level 42, to a sold out tour with American solo bass maestro Michael Manring, things just keep getting busier for the UK's leading solo bassist. Having become the only solo electric bassist ever to play a set at London's Royal Albert Hall, Steve has gone on to receive rave reviews around the world, rapidly increasing amounts of radio airplay, and an ever expanding tour diary taking him to The States, Italy, France and round the UK in 2003/2004.
Grace And Gratitude is the culmination of two years of musical journeying - the combined influence of all Steve's collaborators over the last 24 months have taken his solo playing and composing to a new level. From the ambient expanse of his last Pillow Mountain Release with Theo Travis, to the gentle nylon acoustic guitar sound of Steve's touring partner, Muriel Anderson, Steve's musical encounters have broadened his sound, adding new colours to his palette and taking what he called the 'soundtrack to the inside of my head' to new places.
From the opening title track, it's clear that this is a very special recording, the theme of which Steve explains
on the CD's sleeve notes -
" this is the first time i've explored a thematic approach to an album - looking at different aspects of grace, gratitude and respect. respect for one's self, for each other, for creation. the track title 'you can't throw it away (there's no such thing as away)' comes from a talk by dr ulrich loening on ecology and was in reference to our approach to refuse - we're always throwing things away, and he said there is no 'away' - it's all part of our ecosystem. anyway, that along with a some other features of the theme struck a chord with me, so i struck some chords... some of them whilst actively thinking about the title, others just in search of the music."
Expanding his technical arsenal whilst sticking to the rule of 'all live, no additional overdubs' has allowed Lawson to move forward whilst still retaining a continuity with his back catalogue. Tracks such as the haunting 'Despite My Worst Intentions' employ gurgling reversed bass samples, and weird filtered delay sounds to create a sonic world for Lawson's probing melodic improvisation to explore. And the two giant
soundscapes on the CD, 'The Journey Of A Thousand Miles' and the already-mentioned, 'You Can't Throw
It Away' owe as much to Sigur Ros and Mogwai as they do to Steve's more usual ambient reference points
such as Fripp and Eno.
As Steve himself says, 'I think I had the right idea from the start - live looping and processing does seem to be a format in which I function particularly well, and each subsequent album or change in setup has just allowed me to refine that initial concept to the point where I now feel pretty much in control of the electronics side of things and able to play as close to the sound in my head as I've ever got.'
Listening to Grace And Gratitude, it'd be tough to disagree.
August sees Steve touring in support of the CD's release, including 7 nights on the Edinburgh Festival Fringe.
'The richness of this music makes for a rewarding listening experience on all levels and I think Steve's
approach represents a real step forward for the art of solo bass. Highly Recommended' - Michael Manring
http://cdbaby.com/cd/slawson5
So go ahead and support some independant music ( rock,jazz,funk,ambient,Blues,Metal,Latin whatever...)
