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MusicBrainz

The open music encyclopedia much of the industry quietly relies on, editable by anybody and free of any label's marketing department.

Opens in a new tab. We do not control this site and it may have changed since we catalogued it.

How to get the most from it

MusicBrainz sits in Music Discovery under Wander, filed as coffee break.

  • Set aside five to fifteen minutes and give it your proper attention.
  • It works on a phone or a desktop, so open it on whatever is nearest.
  • It works with the sound off, so it is fine on a train or in a quiet office.
  • No account needed — you can start without signing up.
  • Go in expecting something brainy and useful.

About this category: Genre maps, obscurity engines, decade browsers and the sites that surface songs no algorithm would risk putting in front of you.

Good for

  • Filling a coffee break properly
  • Giving your brain a workout
  • Getting something practical done
  • A quiet break at your desk
  • Killing time on your phone
  • Trying it with zero commitment

MusicBrainz: quick answers

Is MusicBrainz free?

Yes. MusicBrainz is free to use and needs no account.

Do I need an account to use MusicBrainz?

No. You can use MusicBrainz without signing up for anything.

Does MusicBrainz work on a phone?

Yes. MusicBrainz works on phones as well as desktop browsers.

Is MusicBrainz safe for work?

Yes, we file it as safe for work. It also works muted.

How long does MusicBrainz take?

We file it as "Coffee break": Five to fifteen minutes of proper attention.

More in Music Discovery

All 13 in Music Discovery
  • The obsessive's music database, where every release is rated, charted and argued over by people with extremely firm opinions.

  • Aggregates everything the music blogs posted today into one stream, which is how people found new records before playlists took over.

    • 10 min
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  • Which record a sample came from, who covered whom and where that drum break originally lived, with the two tracks played side by side.

  • Professional reviews, genre family trees and similar-artist chains inherited from the print era, which is how you get from one band to fifty.

Same mood: brainy

All brainy sites
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    • 10 min
    • Sound on
  • Hundreds of calibrated soundscapes with ten-slider equalisers, built by an audio engineer who takes tinnitus relief seriously.

    • 10 min
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  • A twenty-level escape game from 2001 that defined the whole genre several years before the genre had a name for itself.

    • 1 hr+
    • Desktop
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