Push Button Paradise

So, I got on the beta list for Pandora. Overall, it's a pretty nifty service. As an initial test, I told it to feed me songs like Queen's Bohemian Rhapsody. It came back with mostly other Queen music, but a few other interesting things that I mostly like and wouldn't have run in to otherwise.

Another test, finding things that sound like the Black Crowes, with a few minor tweaks, had even better results.

The main disadvantage seems to be that you need to be in front of a computer to listen. No "to go" music, at least that I could find.

What about the Yahoo! Music Engine? Well, I really can't say, seeing that it's Windows only. Also, it doesn't work with my iPod, which is admittedly Apple's doing, but still a bummer for consumers. All the recommended music players seem to be in the 3-500 USD range. I want something really small, really cheap, and really light--to take with on a bike ride or carry in my pocket without too many worries. Form-factor-wise, what I really want is an iPod Shuffle, which is listed as totally unsupported.

It comes down to this: there isn't a single big music service I can live with. The DRM in iTunes is intolerable--the only songs I've "bought" there were freebies won under a bottlecap. Of those, one was immediately lost (and the iTunes music store stubborly refuses to allow redownloads. C'mon, with all that DRM in there, a redownload grants NO additional rights. Now you're just doing this to annoy me.) I've bought maybe 2 cds in the last 5 years. Everything I listen to dates back prior to that.

I think what it might take to break the deadlock here is more DRM protesters (go Cory!). Either I'm once again in a very weird minority, or else the current systems aren't sustainable.

-m

posted at: 23:28 | under: 2005-09 | 1 comment(s)