I’ve been completely consumed by the soundtrack for the movie The Fountain (by Darren Aranofsky) these past few days. I just can’t stop listening to it. It’s the most beautiful, emotional, epic and awe-inspiring piece of music I’ve ever heard, it just goes straight to your heart.

Clint Mansell has worked with The Kronos Quartet again, just like he did on the soundtrack for Requiem for a Dream, but also enlisted the help of post-rock band Mogwai. Together they’ve created what is, in my opinion, the best soundtrack I have ever heard. I’ve yet to actually see the movie, but this soundtrack is so fantastic on its own that I don’t think it even matters.

This soundtrack, this work of art… It really is a journey. Just sit back, relax and surrender yourself to the absolutely breathtaking experience that is The Fountain.

It seems this new EMI/Apple DRM-free thing we heard about yesterday was a little premature. It’s come to light that, among other things, the DRM-free songs will get a quality-raise to 256kbps (finally) but also a price-raise of 30 cents per song. Seriously. 128kbps hasn’t even been “decent” for years now, so higher quality really shouldn’t have to cost more. Actually, I’d only be really happy if songs came in either ~320kbps VBR or lossless formats like FLAC. Why should I pay close to the same price as a CD for songs in lower quality, and why should DRM-free be a privilege I should have to pay more for?

While this truly is a step in the right direction, I realize there’s quite a long way left to go. The Big Four need to realize that DRM doesn’t “enable” anything, it only disables. At least for customers, and those are the ones that matter. Right?

Anyway, Engadget has a fairly long article discussing this deal in full detail.

It’s true! After years of debating, arguing and hoping, the anti-DRM camp has won a major victory. Slashdot reports that Steve Jobs is announcing the introduction of completely DRM-free songs on the iTunes Music Store, courtesy of EMI. This truly is a giant leap towards turning music back to what it once was.

Now, make sure you send them the message that this is the right way to go. Start buying those DRM-free songs and let The Big Four know that DRM has no place in the music business. Make your voice heard with your credit card as a megaphone.