A city long renowned for its local music scene, in the latest MUSICat collection launch Portland’s Multnomah County Library came out of the gate strong with their Library Music Project. The largest MUSICat collection launch to date, the site went live with 124 albums available for streaming and download. Classic artists like Nu Shooz appear alongside newcomers like AMULETS, covering the range of genres one would expect from such an ambitious collection.
The launch was eagerly anticipated by press from The Willamette Week and KUOW leading up to the first round of submissions in February. With the launch of the site, that excitement has shifted to the musicians. Since the official launch announcement on Friday, June 8, Twitter has been abuzz with bands sharing their albums included in the collection. “We're honored to be placed among such an awesome collection of musicians.” wrote Big Sky Music Therapy. Library patrons seemed excited as well, with “Michael Rpdx” remarking: “Streaming local music from my awesome library - @MultCoLib There is great goodness in the world.”
Look forward to more from the Library Music Project, and Salt Lake City’s Hear Utah Music collection in the coming weeks, as the Rabble team shares some of our favorite selections!