Why don’t music co.s provide free music?

I know nothing about the technology involved in digital music. But what I know is that we are easily able to download pirated songs for free from various websites. These songs are then played on the computers and easily transferred to mobile phones, iPods etc.
Now the first thing that you notice when you open a site like apunkabollywood dot com for a 'pirated' music download is the number of advertisements flashing all around - supposedly their primary source of revenue.
So if they can do it, why not the record labels themselves? Open a website, put up ads on it and let the users download the songs for free. (Presently, the websites have the songs and they are available at a very low price of Rs 10. But still I have to pay that Rs 10 which takes considerable time.  )

Apart from the ad revenues, you can gather a lot of data on what people are searching, consuming, their preferences, patterns, trends. They can be segmented geographically, demographically and so on. All this can also go as an input while creating music.  And the information can even be sold off to other interested marketers from different fields.

This can also be used in other dealings by the music labels. You instantly get an accurate update on what songs are popular and differential pricing can be used to benefit more from licensing to radio and TV channels, to mobile companies for caller tunes, to concerts where it can be sung by artists etc.   Every marketer wants to pull customers . And here are people from a variety of backgrounds who will automatically get pulled for the sake of free music.

The point is that the labels are crying that piracy is killing their revenues. So why not change the  revenue source which they are blocking.  Those who want it for free are already getting it for free and giving nothing in return to the music company. By this,  at least gets some data, some information. And today, information is not cheap.  Google has become a behemoth simply by gathering data and using the information.

Speaking of Google, it is taking music to another level itself - to the Cloud. Buy music online and Store it on an online library. Then listen it anywhere on any device. The basic requirement - a very fast internet connectivity, which India lacks. But who knows, with 3G round the corner, we make take a long jump!!

Metallica ROCKS!!!!

I had been introduced to rock music by Tanny in college. To build the interest it was recommended to me to carefully listen to the instruments – Guitar and the Drums. I did and started enjoying the genre of music which I thought (and many people still think) to be just ‘shor-sharaba’ or unnecessary noise.

Rock was kept in the genre list just to listen at times of a particular mood. You know when you feel a bit disturbed, strangely empty inside.

But then Amit introduced me to “Nothing Else Matters” by Metallica and since then Metallica has replaced all the songs on my playlist. The highlight has been the shift of focus from the instruments to the lyrics. What I found is that the lyrics for these songs are simply terrific – a particular theme in every song with thoughtful words put together with so much energy and everything directly coming from their souls.

A brief preview of my playlist for the past month and somethings about each song (Most are the relatively soft songs of the band)

Nothing else Matters
This is addictive – Literally. You Listen it once and you want to listen it again. And then again..and again.. Its 6 different varieties were the only songs in queue at office and at home. So it was nearly 12 – 14 hours of Nothing else matters for around 1 – 2 weeks. This is supposedly the only ‘love song’ of Metallica written at time when James Hetfield got married. One of My All time Favorite songs. Your life is incomplete, if you haven’t heard this.

Wherever I Roam
Lolly introduced me to this song in his car. And the first few seconds are enough to love this song. It starts off with an electronic sitar and the riff [riff: continued pattern of a rhythm] moves on to an electronic guitar. Listen this song just for the music.

One
A soldier’s story – who in a war has lost everything – his limbs, face, eyes and his will to live. The song expresses feelings of that poor guy on the bed. Metallica won their first grammy for this song and it is worth it! Towards the end Kirk Hammett plays the “machine gun” on his guitar which is awesome.

Fade to Black
The song that made Metallica famous. The lyrics are supposedly from the point of view of a person who is going to commit suicide. A trivia from wiki: This song was written after almost all of their equipment, including a very rare amplifier, given to singer/rhythm guitarist James Hetfield by his mother just before she died, was stolen in Boston, MA,

Enter Sandman
This is the story of a child who has trouble sleeping and Hetfield urges the child to sleep and not be afraid of the nightmares that come. Its tough not to continue mumbling the words “Exit Light.. Enter Night.. we are off to Never Never Land”

Mama Said
This is a relatively soft song, written supposedly for his mother by James Hetfield.

The Unforgiven
For this I would like to copy a comment from a site. The person says it all.

“This is a song that changes lifes. In this song you have someone who doesn't challenge his parents. So he becomes what they want him to be. By the time he gets the courage to face them. Hes already an old man and his whole life is gone. Anyone who really listens to this song. When I say listen I mean LISTEN. Blast this song as loud as possible. Think about what you wanna do. Not what people expect you to do or what makes the best money. What do you want to do with your life. I plan on getting some of the songs lyrics tattoed. This song is just insane I have heard it so many times. Its all about free will.”

Interpretations..

“Har Taraf har Jagah – beshumar aadmi” – those are the opening lines of a fantastic ghazal by Jagjit Singh and Lata Mangeshkar in the album Sajda.
I first heard it courtesy Amit and then a month ago my cousin gifted the CD to me and ever since I have been hooked, specially to this ghazal.
Here I would try to express my interpretations of the beautiful words woven into the poetry.
The ghazal goes..

Har taraf har jagah Beshumaar aadmi
Phir bhi Tanhayion ka Shikar aadmi
Subah se shaam tak bojh dhota hua
Apni hi lash par khud mazaar aadmi
Har taraf bhaagte duadte raaste
Har taraf aadmi ka shikaaar aaadmi
Roz jeeta hua.. roz marta hua
Har naye din , naya intezaar aadmi
Zindagi ka muqadar safar dar saafar
Akhri saaans tak bekraaar aadmi



1. Har taraf har jagah Beshumaar aadmi
Phir bhi Tanhayion ka Shikar aadmi

There is so much to do in life today that we have become lonely. Lonely in the sense that despite so many people around, we are unable to meet our self. Unless a person meets his self, he is no better than no one around. A person’s self, his conscious is the best and ever lasting companion. But in today’s life, with this conscious being continuously absent, we are all lonely.
In everyday life, we don’t listen to our conscious – that what we are doing is right or wrong, we don’t care – And that we do by killing our self. Also as we kill this self, all our inner dreams and ambitions are killed along.
The lines capturing all this and much more in just simple 12 words make it out of the world.

2. Subah se shaam tak bojh dhota hua
Apni hi lash par khud mazaar aadmi

The first line is self explanatory. We get up in the morning, reach office, work all day, all the time thinking that the other person's(that other person may be a friend, boss, teammate - anyone)
is better than your own and with that feeling, you do your job and at end of the day go home a unsatisfied person just to get up the next morning to follow the same routine. Hence you are a dead person and day by day you are constructing a mazzar or a tombstone on top of you - all the while burying yourself deep inside.

3. Har taraf bhaagte duadte raaste
Har taraf aadmi ka shikaaar aaadmi

The life is a long unending marathon with pulls and pressures from all directions. These pulls and pressures are exerted just by other people. 'Aadmi ka shikar aadmi' is a poet's way of defining peer pressure. The largest most factor affecting the peace of mind in today's life.

4. Roz jeeta hua.. roz marta hua
Har naye din , naya intezaar aadmi

An extension of above lines. Every morning a person gets up to 'live' the day. And everyday he dies - either by killing his soul or by killing his Soch (thinking)
And then he waits - waits for a better life or other person's job or earning what his friend his earning. Is this possible after he has killed himself??

5. Zindagi ka muqadar safar dar saafar
Akhri saaans tak bekraaar aadmi

Didn't really understand the first line but the secnd line says 'Akhri saans tak bekrrar aadmi' . till the last breath a person is ambitious. This can be taken in a positive sense - that its good to be ambitious. After 1 achievment - move on to the next challenge.
On the contrary, considering overall feel of the ghazal, it can be said that a person is never satisfied. He always wants more. Never being satisfied is one of the traits of a human being.

Music...

Music has been a part of my life for long now. From the early days in class 11th when I used to hear radio every morning 8.00 AM and record songs to a old battered cassette over and over again. To the college days when the computer came into my life and its around 15 GB was filled with songs . To present day where there is a stack of CD’s piled up with songs under variety of Old Songs.. bit old.. bit new.. new .. latest.. under headings like Hindi – film, Albums, Punjabi, English Rock, Soft rock, English Soft, Ghazals etc etc…
It used to be a selected Movie Songs 8 years ago.. then as friends came into lives.. with their own interests and choices – it kept on redefining my tastes and adding to the kind of music I heard.
Today with several genres under my interest list..its a matter of mood. I have the flexibility to change the music in accordance with the mood and be familiar to the song I am hearing and basically like it.
Some persons which were important musically in my life:

Rompy: At Mysore I was known as the source for all songs that any one wanted. But the source had to be fed too. Well, Rompy is usually the first person I look to for any demands made to me by others or even by my self. The reason is pretty simple. I guess he is the person in this world with who my music taste matches the most – from Ghazals to Rock - everything. So any day, if he pings or tells “abbey!! Vo gaana sunaaaaa!!!!”, I without hesitation ask him to send the song. And I can’t find many instances where I did not like the song.

One song which, on hearing, reminds of rompy– Dil de diya hai from Masti – I really don’t know why!!!! May be we heard it a lot of times in his car.

Amit: the Mohd rafi fan. I guess he would be the second person with whom my music interest matches. I got a first real taste of mohd rafi after coming in touch with him. But the genre of music common to us is limited to slow hindi/English or ghazals. He is more into Udit narayan/kumar sanu fan club.. Never heard him hear rock music.

One song which, on hearing, reminds of Amit: Jagjit Singh – har taraf har jagah beshumar aadmi..I guess because he introduced me to this ultimatteee ghazal....

Punnu: Quite similar to Amit… he has been a fan of nadeem Shravan types music. Don’t know much about now.. but in college it used to be the case.. he is also not much into rock or English.. I have memories of hearing Movie Songs on his compu most of the times. Punjabi songs is an addition which were not there in amit’s list of genres.

One song which, on hearing, reminds of Punnu: Tum Dil ki Dhadkan mein – Dhadkan..
Again don’t know why.. but he was very fond of this song..

Vishesh: I would be ever grateful to him for sending me 3 Nusrat Fateh ali Khan Ghazals/Kawaali – some of the best I have ever heard. Also the interest in Punjabi music – which was rare in Mysore was regenerated by Vishesh. He also has a wide variety of genres in his list some of which are quite different from mine – Rap for example. I tried enjoying that.. but cudn’t. Meaningful lyrics are important to me which rap doesn’t provide. Infact, it is amazing Vishesh can hear rap(not much of a lyricists delight) and also Nusrat with its excellent lyrics.

One song which, on hearing, reminds of Vishesh: Whenever I hear Nusrat Sa’ab’s Ho jave je pyaar.. te sona bhul jaanda or infact Bindrakhiya’s Tera Yaaar bolda…

Tanny and Train: They introduced Rock music to me. I always thought of rock as unnecessary high volume non sense… which actually made no sense.. but train and tanny asked me to try and concentrate on the music instruments.. the guitar, the drums… - then it will sound wonderful.. and indeed does if you carefully listen to the excellent guitar play..

One song which, on hearing, reminds of Tanny/Train : Niravana – Come as You are.

Lolly: Last but not the least.. lolly – the biggest source feeding the Hard disk with new songs in the early years of my Computer Life and thus forming a basis of my music interests today… He was least into Hindi Movie songs. But you could find a whole lot of Punjabi and English songs on his machine. In fact most of the Collection presently on my Hard Disk is by his virtue. (Of course except the Hindi ones). The last gift from him was the super hit number from Jal – Aadat si ho gayi hai.. Which among the other songs of Jal was part of life for around 4 months.. non stop.

One song which, on hearing, reminds of Lolly: Nachange saari raaat - stereonation– I guess it was one of the first song heard on his compu.. and heard it many times.