Top Five Free, Legal Downloads of the Summer: Radiohead, Kanye West and More

Sure, there are plenty of ways to get free downloads on the internet. But there aren't a lot of ways that involve quality music that is free of charge and legal. Thankfully, once in a while, big name artists will leak a track with the intent of having their fans enjoy the track without paying for it.
Whether it's to promote a new album or just thank fans for support, artists do like giving away freebies on occasion. However, it can be hard to keep up with legitimate free downloads, so I'm going to help you out and point out the top 5 free downloads of this summer. These hot tracks will keep you going all fall.

1. Radiohead - Live in Praha DVD: Yes, you read that correctly. This is an entire DVD, not just a song. Radiohead is known for giving back and giving the fans the option of paying for music, and now the band is leading the charge in free DVD distribution as well, surely horrifying record label executives everywhere. And Radiohead got fans involved on this one, with the footage coming from 50 fans armed with camcorders at a concert in Prague. Thankfully, professional audio was added after the edit, and now you can reap the benefits, free!

More information and a download link can be found here. Other Radiohead downloads are here.

2. Heavy Young Heathens - Make Room For Youth EP: Not quite a DVD, but an EP isn't bad! Breakout artist Heavy Young Heathens made a splash with this giveaway, which features chart-topping hits (on the FMQB Specialty Radio chart, anyway) and the popular "Jackie Come Lately," which was recently released in video form. This fuzz-rock band has a retro vibe but doesn't sound at all tired.

More information and a download link can be found here. Other Heavy Young Heathens downloads are here.

3. Kanye West - G.O.O.D. Ass Mixtape: A few days before the release of this collection, Kanye West noted that he would no longer be calling his new album Good Ass Job - I guess he wanted to save the title for this collection of 30 tracks, including live songs, new songs and skits from Kanye, Kid Cudi, Big Sean and more.

More information and a download link can be found here. Other Kanye West downloads are here.

4. Sufjan Stevens - "I Walked": It's been five years since Sufjan Stevens has put out a full-length of original material, so he treated fans to "I Walked" as a free download before the release of The Age of Adz on October 12. The track has a bit of a Kid A-era Radiohead feel to it, but it's nice to see Sufjan stepping outside the box.

More information and a download link can be found here. Other Sufjan Stevens downloads are here.

5. Kanye West - "Monster" (ft. Nicki Minaj, Jay-Z, Bon Iver, Rick Ross): Talk about an all-star cast, and this isn't even a feature film. The appropriately titled "Monster" feels like a huge hit, thanks in part to a substantial contribution from Nicki Minaj, who shows qutie a range of styles on the track. Like most things with Kanye's name on it, this is destined to be a hit.

More information and a download link can be found here. Other Kanye West downloads are here.