I have 16 downloads to go on my eMusic free trial. I honestly can't think of a single album or albums that I want to use them on.
I keep going back and forth on Belle & Sebastian - The Life Pursuit, but when I listen to it, I have a feeling it's going to be disposable.
It seems like every album I can think of that I want, they don't have.

Any recommendations?

they have the new m.ward & mountain goats

they have that girl talk "night ripper" & espers ii.

pitchfork reviewed my brightest diamond well.

coup, mr lif, j dilla

the new minus 5 & neko case & josh rouse

These were bought/downloaded by me, for me and some where kindly given.

2006 Releases:

1.The Strokes - First Impressions of Earth
2.Some Girls - Heaven's Pregnant Teens
3.Mudhoney - Under a Billion Suns
4.Cat Power - The Greatest
5.Jenny Lewis w/ The Watson Twins - Rabbit Fur Coat
6.Centro-Matic - Fort Recovery
7.Super Numeri - The Welcome Table
8.Destroyer - Destroyers Rubies
9.I Am The Resurrection: A Tribute to John Fahey
10.Neko Case - Fox Confessor Brings the Flood
11.Liars - Drums Not Dead
12.Band of Horses - Everything All of The Time
13.The Flaming Lips - At War with the Mystics
14.Gnarls Barkley - St. Elswhere
15.Boards of Canada - Trans Canada Highway EP
16.Soul Jazz Tropicalia Compilation
17.Grandaddy - Just Like The Fambly Cat
18.Six Organs of Admittance - Sun Awakens
19.Ed Harcourt - The Beautiful Lie
20.The Twilight Singers - Powder Burns
21.M. Ward - Post War
22.Hot Chip - The Warning
23.Thom Yorke - The Eraser
24.Boris - Pink
25.MSTRKRFT - The Look
26.Girl Talk - Night Ripper
27.Sonic Youth - Rather Ripped
28.Comets on Fire - Avatar
29.Midlake - Trials of Van Occupanther
30.Oneida - Happy New Year
31.Ladyhawk - s/t
32.The Sadies - In Concert Vol. 1
33.Boris - Pink
34.Slayer - Christ Illusion
35.The Black Angels - Passover
36.Drive By Truckers - A Blessing And A Curse


Pre-2006 Releases:
1.Townes Van Zandt - The Late Great Townes Van Zandt
2.Why? - Elephant Eyelash
3.The Selmanaires - Here Come the Selmanaires
4.Cat Power - Dear Sir
5.Cat Power - Myra Lee
6.Cat Power - What Would the Community Think
7.Cat Power - Moon Pix
8.Cat Power - The Covers Record
9.Silver Jews - American Water
10.Orthrelm -OV
11.Congotronics 2 - Buzz n' Rumble
12.Trojan Dub Box Set
13.Neil Young - Zuma
14.Animal Collective - Danse Manatee
15.George Harrison - All Things Must Pass
16.Love - Forever Changes
17.Beatles - Abbey Road
18.Beatles - Magical Mystery Tour
19.Pink Floyd - Obscured By Clouds
20,Pink Floyd - The Piper at the Gates of Dawn
21.Beck - Mutations
22.David Bowie -Low
23.Holy Fuck - s/t
24.JAMC - Psychocandy
25.John Fahey -Blind Joe Death Vol. 1
26.Joy Division - Closer
27.Mission of Burma - The Horrible Truth About Burma
28.My Bloody Valentine - Isn't Anything
29.R.E.M. - Murmur
30.R.E.M. - Reckoning
31.Silver Jews - Bright Flight
32.Sonic Youth - Goo
33.Sonic Youth - Murray St.
34.The Flaming Lips - In A Priest Driven Ambulance
35.Yo La Tengo - I Can Hear The Heart Beating As One
36.Serena Maneesh - s/t
37.Animal Collective - Here Comes The Indian
38.My Morning Jacket - At Dawn

Shrimp Boat
Hop On Pop
Martin Newell
Brinsley Schwarz
MOTO

I would go to specialized section of a genre you like, and pick out something and dl it. I do it all the time, and sometimes find really great stuff I had no idea was out there.

Mark McAdam - Cavalcade

There's a 20-min single track Fennesz collab thing on eMusic that pretty much everyone should download there.

It's an ambient/avant sort of thing but nothing too abrasive or droney IIRC. I need to listen to it more.

Yeah, I tried that, but their recs sucked. Overall, I'm actually kind of disappointed by eMusic.
I'm hoping to to find an overlooked gem. I was also hoping to find that Mew record, but no cigar.

get the Youth Group album.

Sometimes I go to the jazz or world section when I have a few downloads left, you can get some great albert ayler, art blakey, coltrane, eric dolphy, etc. many of whish are three of four track albums. Also, Fela Kuti and SUn Ra have some 3 and 4 track albums on there.

With that said, it appears as though you dont have the new Josh Ritter? Mortal sin there...if not that, then get Peter Adams' Spiral Eyes.

Why are you disappointed? What were you expecting that you didn't find?

If you are hoping for a specific new album and get disappointed that they don't have it, then you're probably looking at it the wrong way.

But there are lots of great world music items

the ethiopique series
lenine - lenine
kekele - rumba congo
Celso Fonseca - natural
Nacao Zumbi - Futura
Fernanda Porto - Giramundo
Marcos Valle - The Essential Marcos Valle Volume 2
Raulhinzo-Impacto 8 - International Hot
Emilio Santiago - S/T
Jacques Brel - Infiniment
The Danque! (Afrobeat compilation)
Salif Keita & Kante Manfila - The Lost Album
Orchestra Baobab - Bamba
Ojos de Brujo - Bari


Reggae

lots of Augustus Pablo
the Blood & Fire Label (most of which is good to great)
Culture - Two Sevens Clash
Hugh Mundell - Africa Must Be Free by 1983
Jacob Miller - Who Say Jah No Dread

Soul/funk

Kool and the Gang - S/T
Spike's Choice - The Desco 45 Collection

Punk

The Scientists "Blood Red River"
The Scientists "Human Jukebox"
The Gun Club "Miami"
The Gun Club "Sympathy for Las Vegas"
Radio Birdman "Zeno Beach"


Other

Lots of the Fall
Lots of the Wedding Present
Robert Wyatt - Rock Bottom
tons of delta blues
Lots of The Long Ryders
Lots of Lee Hazlewood (including Cowboy in Sweden and Requiem for an Almost Lady)


and too much jazz to try to mention

I never have problems finding good stuff

Yes, get Spiritual Unity.

also Robert Wyatt - Rock Bottom is a great suggestion. I got that from eMusic, too.

I went with this:

VIC CHESNUTT - Ghetto Bells
Vic Chesnutt + Van Dyke Parks + Bill Frisell.




and this minus "Alfie"

ROBERT WYATT - Rock Bottom

A good song to start off with from that disc is "The Blues are Still Blue." That one grew on me the fastest.

Other tracks that are kind of big for me right now:

"Head Home" Midlake

"Yes and No" Venus Hum (if you like electronic music)

"Everybody Gets One for Free" Cracker

"Hide Another Mistake" The 88

Lloyd Cole & The Commotions: Rattlesnakes

Best advice you'll get all day.

That is good advice.

FYI - I've used the afforementioned 16 downloads, but I like the recommendations so far.

My favorite eMusic grabs are:

Bob Mould - Body of Song
The Rakes [EP]
Neko Case
Fluke - Puppy
Heartless Bastards
High Dials
Jim Gaffigan (Comedy)
Raconteurs
Spoon EP's
The Stills [EP]
Wildhearts
Weakerthans
Ambulance Ltd.

Half of the stuff you ninnies posted here isn't even on eMusic.

I just blew my last 5 downloads on the Youth Group disc after searching to no avail for some of the stuff posted above that.

Word to ya' mutha!

RIYL?

I just got the Josh Rouse to finish off my month and threw Mountain Goats in my que.

The Format, M Ward, The Pipettes, Tapes 'N Tapes, The Drams, are all new ones that I've downloaded in the past two months. I can't imagine being disappointed with eMusic. About the only think I haven't been able to find on there are major label releases and Sub Pop stuff.

emusic doesn't have it so I'm not sure why Billz was recommending it in this thread..I'm pretty sure its a better album than any you own though.

riyl 80's literate jangly english/scottish pop (can't really think of a band that you would probably know well to compare them to)

Ouch.