Perfect Stranglers

I've always had a weak corner for music. Especially if it came in shiny packaging with lil papers stuffed inside with lyrics and bios. Audio cassettes at that time (1990s) came somewhere around Rs 60. Then suddenly it went to Rs 100, then Rs 125 then 150! That was the end of the tether for me. For the same tape I'd bought a year earlier the price was now up over 15%. Of course I respect these artists and obviously want them to get paid for their work. But what I don't want is for us to pay through our noses so that they (the artists) and the recording company can earn, earn and earn. Please make music and not money. The quality of music has degraded so much over the years. Try listening to Bon Jovi's Bounce album and you'll know. And check out today's CDs. I can print better quality covers from my home printer.

Then somewhere in '95 I heard about a technology to "rip" music and store them on a PC. Ever since MP3 has been my saviour. Right from the day I pressed that record button I have not looked back. The industry has tried so hard to prevent piracy. They gave us Digital Rights Management. Remember Celine Dion's Brand New Day? Must've taken them months if not years to develop the technology. And what for the music lover. All it took was a marker. Then Sony tried it's rootkit. Big ouch for them! Now, now don't be so self righteous to say you're opposed to piracy.

So here comes the bomb. Would I buy "real" songs, ever? Of course I would. I love to see all my albums neatly piled up, categorised. But by the way things are going guess I'll be doing it on my PC. iTunes is a very good initiative. But it's not within reach for us Indians. Microsoft and MTV's music store is expected. But let's not forget the fact the it's M$ we're dealing with here. Being beaten on from all sides, they've launched Zune.

Music is a universal phenomenon. Make it accessible, enjoyable, convenient and more importantly affordable.