At the blink concert I was given a Victory sample featuring Aiden. I threw it on the ground, and added to the concert trash.

Equal Vision/Doghouse sampler for Warped Tour back in 2002(?) was awesome. I discovered The All-American Rejects, As Friends Rust, Armor For Sleep, Coheed and Cambria, The Rocking Horse Winner, and a few others. It was gold. I don't really listen to any of those bands anymore, but my teenage self was rather pleased.

Do they still produce CD samplers the way they used to? I usually just see digital samplers available online. I greatly prefer a CD sampler.

If I get one in a purchased album, I always make sure to listen to it at least once.

I love them.

All I know is I miss the days when you'd leave Warped Tour at the end of the day with a bag full of samplers.

As far as listening to them, I actually did. That's how I discovered some of the bands that have been my favorite still 8 years later. I think if it doesn't automatically scream "bullshit", you should listen to it at least once while driving or background music, and you'll find someting you like.

I'm not down with digital samplers though. Those are the ones that just pile up.

Many times after a show people hand out anything from flyers to upcoming shows to sample CD's. Usually I'll at least look at the flyer or listen to the CD, but really, it feels as if the people are handing it to you are saying, "Here. I don't want it. You throw it away."

they used to have these at every hot topic checkout counter as well. i think cd samplers have gone the way of the buffalo due to the internet and its capabilities. a label can go on twitter/facebook and link the shit of their bands' myspace pages or put up a digital sampler on their own myspace/purevolume page.

back in the day i used to send a SASE to a bunch of labels and get cd samplers back, and discovered a ton of GREAT bands from them but these days, like i said, you can just throw up a few tracks on your website's server space, link from social networking sites to bands' artist pages on purevolume/myspace/ap.net and call it a day.

The Black Sampler that I got after the Paramore/This Providence/Quietdrive tour introduced me to some of my favorite bands. I love samplers and I think it's important to give each band a chance. Plus what beats free music?

Nowadays, they're pointless.

I have good memories of using them as frisbees outside a venue once... and that taxi driver chased my friend for 15 minutes. But yeah, pointless nowadays.

I don't listen to them.

I generally know the bands on the sampler already.

I have just collected them over the years.

Originally Posted by squared82

I have a few I listen to. I have one from the Militia Group a couple of years ago that I really enjoy. I really don't get new ones very often though.

I bet I'm thinking of the same one. I also loved Smartpunk's, Drive Thru's, Fearless, Equal Vision's and Ferrets. Victorys was good to listen too although most of theirs were already known bands. Damn. I miss 2002.

now a days download cards would be much smarter/mor economical


but wayyy back in the day (03 warped maybe) Tyson from AAR gave me a Doghouse sampler that had demos for "Is A Real Boy" on them, so thats cool to have and helped me get into Say Anything

I usually listen to anything I'm physically given for free. 9 times out of 10, I'm not usually sold. I may not go buy an album but, I hear a new band and have a reference point for them. In the long, long ago before high speed internet, getting these CDs (or in the long, long, long ago, cassettes) was a thrilling experience.

For me, the best find as a result of a sampler? BRAND NEW. I was leaving a Movielife show and on the way out was handed 2 CDs from a couple of street teamers. One was Gob, the other was Brand New. I popped in the Gob CD when I left the show b/c I had actually heard of them and had an hour ride ahead of me... I thought it was alright but, didn't really connect to either of the songs. After that, I threw in Brand New's sampler which had Jude Law and 70x7 on it. Initially, I liked it more than Gob but, not by much. Then when the 2 songs were up, I just didn't take the CD out. After the 3rd or 4th time around, 70x7's slow part had taken over my brain. The next day at school, I was humming Jude Law. I was hooked. Went out and got YFW about 2 weeks later (when I could FIND a copy at a Wal-Mart, of all places, 2 hours from my house while on a trip to Busch Gardens). Put it in at the parking lot and listened to YFW and The Movielife's "...Has A Gambling Problem" the rest of the drive to the park and all the way back home (~3 1/2 hours, one way).

All my bands have given out samplers at shows and I hope to continue this. It's a positive way to get your name out there and with the continually declining cost of blank media, having a band cd burning party takes no more than 15 bucks, a few sharpies, and all our band members w/ laptops hanging out. Plus, when band members actually hand out CDs, they get to meet potential fans. People generally care more if it's given to them by a band member than a street teamer.

i love free music and new bands. i wish that more labels would include a free sampler with a purchase. drive-thru records had some pretty legit ones back in the day.

I always take the cd samples. It's free so why not? I may or may not listen to them when I get home but I take them anyways. I think it's rude to take one and then just throw it on the ground.