Music and film buffs are now able to access content relevant to their taste via a new website backed by musician Peter Gabriel.

The Filter, backed by the former lead singer of Genesis, makes sure that people get daily recommendations on the music they like without having to search for it.

The site's users are asked to register and give a brief outline of the music and films they like. They are then encouraged to set up a profile and rate different genres and artists in music and film.

Using this information The Filter gives members a daily home page of personalised music, film and web video recommendations. A social-networking element also lets people follow recommendations from friends. In common with sites such as Facebook and Myspace, people can also write on their friend’s walls to talk about different music and events.

Gabriel told Computeractive that the site was different to others as it helped people find the music they wanted without having to trawl the internet.

“We are drowning in choice and we need good tools to help us make smart decisions,” he said. “Old ways of buying music, such as CDs and vinyl, are dead but there are enormous opportunities in the digital music world.”

The Filter currently has five million songs and 333,000 films on its database. People can listen to 30 seconds of a track or film. Although there is no age restriction for the site, Filter said that music and films that have adult-style content carry warnings.

If people wish to download the track they are directed to Amazon, where prices start from 79p for a single track.

Gabriel also hopes The Filter will help young and emerging artists as it will act as a 'curator' site. He said that the internet, and sites such as The Filter, are a "huge force for democratising music", allowing people everywhere to access any artist's output.