One of the newest features on this program is its ability to run a background check on the conversion, in order to save your CPU’s time and data space. The background run also serves as a system to make the process of converting run smoothly. This way you don’t need to wait for the end of the conversion to setup a post-conversion action.

The Police – Synchronicity

Depeche Mode – Black Celebration

Translator – Translator

Pet Shop Boys – Please

Comsat Angels – Seven Day Weekend

Wild Swans – Bringing Home The Ashes

At that early stage I already had an affinity for British music.  I just felt that the music coming out there was more adventurous, more subversive. And it was further strengthened when I finally rediscovered The Beatles in my own terms (and not within the paradigm of my parents and their friends).

My friend and I both love music and we had an enjoyable conversation about the new bands and artists we’ve discovered. We were having so much fun giving each other recommendations. Eventually, we began to discuss how we’ve been supporting our “hobby.” I was surprised to find out that he doesn’t buy CDs anymore. He has, instead, began to use torrents to “acquire” the music he listens to.

the issue of music downloads is a very sensitive topic that polarizes people. My take on music downloads is simple — I support it. I admit to downloading music. I just don’t have the money to buy all of the albums that I want to listen to. Besides, downloading music has one great benefit for me — it allows me to listen to an artist that I would otherwise would not have been able to because of a limited budget.

But this doesn’t mean that I download all of the music in my collection. In fact, I buy more CDs now compared to a few years ago. I still believe in supporting artists that I love and those that have come out with significant releases — and I show that support by buying their work. For me, downloads are just a way of testing the waters, so to speak. The moment I hear an album that I love I immediately put it in my must-buy list and save up so that I can buy it in the future. I think that purely downloading music is lame and a big disservice to the artists who produce amazing work.

In between feedings, nebulization schedules and cleaning Alex up, I would talk to her and soothe her with songs. There are three songs that Alex loves. The Carpenters’ Sing is a staple at home. It’s the same song that I sang to my son Zach when he was still a baby. The lyrics and melody is very simple and soothing that my children fell in love with it the moment they heard it.

The second song in my admittedly short repertoire is Black Bird by The Beatles. I’ve mentioned time and time again in this blog how big a fan I am of The Fab Four. It’s a love that I want to impart to my children and I do it by singing my favorite Beatles song to them when I try to make them sleep. I think I’m already succeeding. Zach constantly cites The Beatles as his favorite band and if you ask him his favorite Beatles song, he has a ready answer – Here Comes The Sun. I’m pretty sure Alex will fall in love with The Beatles too.

The third song I sing is one that I only began singing when Alex arrived. It’s Panda Bear from Kimya Dawson’s wonderful album Alpha-Butt. Kimya has an uncanny ability to create absolutely catchy melodies and unforgettable lyrics. There’s an almost child-like whimsy to her songs that makes them perfect for singing with your children. Panda Bear is a particular fave of mine because I do call Alex Panda Bear. It’s a happy coincidence that Kimya wrote a song about it (actually it’s a song about her daughter, whose name is Panda).

What about you guys? What’s your setlist for your children?

That’s the very reason why Tilly and The Wall entered my radar. The awesome indie pop group brings together some of the elements that I dig — catchy yet simple melodies, an awesome chorus, girl singers and an infectious rhythm. Tilly and The Wall has all of these, with one notable absence in their band — a drummer. Yes, Tilly and The Wall has decided to forego using a drummer to mark its rhythms, and instead has made a tap dancer their official percussionist. You might think that a) the band must suck, and b) it’s obviously a gimmick. The tap dancer idea may indeed be a gimmick but one listen to their songs and you’ll definitely realize that they don’t suck  — in fact, they are wonderful. Their music has a whimsy that you rarely see in music (except of course, if you love listening to twee pop where whimsy is a required ingredient) and the human rhythms of Jamie Presnall, Tilly’s tap dancer, are quite infectious.

To prove how cool they are, here’s Alligator Skin from their 2008 album, O.

Tilly_and_The_Wall – Alligator_Skin

There’s something about LPs that make music more concrete, more in-your-face. It makes me feel closer to the artists more than a cassette or a CD does. I really can’t pinpoint why LPs  make me feel more strongly about music. I guess I can name a number of factors. First, the analog source is so much warmer that it sounds organic. It doesn’t sound clinical like what you’d hear from CDs. And the pop, hiss and crackle gives it that added character that you won’t find anywhere else. The preparation that you need to do before you play a record could also be a big contributor. Records need to be loved and pampered. You have to carefully remove it from its sleeve, give it a good buff to remove any dirt and then lovingly place it on the turntable. It’s a ritual that is now but gone in the digital age. And the oversized artwork helps too. It’s a visual cue of what you will experience sonically.

I think that’s the reason why LPs, like good music, will never die.

My recession-hit pockets can only afford to buy five albums right now — Revolver, The White Album, Sgt. Pepper’s Lonely Hearts Club Band, Rubber Soul and Abbey Road. But let me tell you these are all worth the price.

The remastering of the albums are superb. The quality is top notch and there is a clarity to the new release that makes you appreciate the songs more. It also reveals new elements and details to the songs that, in most cases, makes you feel that you’re listening to the song for the first time. I won’t even try to rave about the packaging of the digipacks. The pictures are beautiful and the liner notes reveal new information and details that, for a Beatles fan like me, is just a joy to read.

My next project — The Beatles in Mono box set.

I’m on the constant lookout for fresh music. And when I mean fresh, I mean music that’s not played ad nauseum on MTV — besides I don’t consider majority of what’s played on that channel as music anyway, most of it just manufactured merchandising crap. One band I stumbled upon almost four years ago was Fujiya and Miyagi. Despite the very Japanese name and the obvious conclusion that it’s a duo, the band is actually a trio from Brighton, England (they have since added a fourth member on drums).

The band plays electronic music that immediately evokes seminal electronic outfits like Can, Neu! and Kraftwerk — a very Germanic flavor that really makes you crease your forehead because of the disparity and seeming contradictions of what the band represents — three English lads with a Japanese band name that evokes a duo who play German electronic music. It may sound strange on paper, but the initial blast of their music will bring that sudden realization — it actually works! And works well, indeed. Fujiya and Miyagi brings an almost indie rock/punk rock flavor to electronic music that is palpable. Like any good rock song, it has heft and attitude and swagger, but since it’s electronic music that’s the foundation of the songs, it is infectiously danceable — but not in a dance club kind of way. This is dance music for the mosh pit.

Fujiya and Miyagi have already released two excellent albums — 2005’s Transparent Things and 2008’s Lightbulbs. I love both of them and would recommend them both without question. One of my favorite tracks from Lightbulbs is the album opener Knickerbocker, a really catchy song with lyrics that are almost nonsensical. As the band explained,  it’s “a vibration of words that sound good.” And sound good it does.

Fujiya and Miyagi – Knickerbocker

Dio passed away on May 16 at 7:45 AM as reported in his official web site, ronniejamesdio.com. The message was posted by Dio’s wife Wendy. The message posted on the site did not say the cause of Dio’s death, but it’s been reported last year that he had been diagnosed with stomach cancer. Dio was 67.

Below is the message from Wendy as posted in the web site:

Today my heart is broken, Ronnie passed away at 7:45am 16th May. Many, many friends and family were able to say their private good-byes before he peacefully passed away. Ronnie knew how much he was loved by all. We so appreciate the love and support that you have all given us. Please give us a few days of privacy to deal with this terrible loss. Please know he loved you all and his music will live on forever.

Dio is one of the most recognizable artists in the metal scene is recognized by many as one of its legends. He has sung in many different bands – he replaced Ozzy Osbourne in Black Sabbath. He left his band Rainbow (where Ritchie Blackmore was the guitarist) to transfer to Sabbath. He was instrumental in helping revitalize the band’s career. He was also a member of Elf and eventually his own band named Dio.

Dio has also been recognized as the artist who popularized the devil’s horns gesture that is now a staple in all rock and metal concerts. Even though other artists have used the same gesture as far back as 1968, Dio’s use of the gesture was the catalyst that brought the gesture to popular consciousness.

Dio’s last album was with the band Heaven & Hell, which was a collaboration with his former Black Sabbath bandmates, Tony Iommi and Geezer Butler. The band mounted a 98-date world tour. The band released their album The Devil You Know last year. They were supposed to support Iron Maiden on July 30, 2010 in Dublin, Ireland and later in Norway but Dio’s health problems forced the cancellation of these dates.

The new album will be called / \ / \ / \ Y / \. Before you start thinking that M.I.A. has suddenly acquired Prince-like delusions, look at it closely. Those “glyphs” actually spell out her nickname MAYA. Clever, isn’t it. The stylized title actually reflects M.I.A.’s roots in visual art and graffiti. Stricty speaking, the new album is actually self-titled, only more creatively written and displayed.

Now that we know the title, the next bit of info to be revealed regarding the album is the new release date. The earlier announcement was that it will be released on June 29. But the new dat has been pushed back a couple of weeks to July 13. There’s no explanation as to why it was pushed back. But with just a two week delay, it’s something that fans can obviously live with. But if you think that is still too long a wait then you can head offer to the N.E.E.T. web site (M.I.A.’s custom imprint) and head over to the site’s blog, which streams the new single off the album entitled “XXXO”. Just to clarify, the single streaming from the N.E.E.T. blog is the “RIGINAL BLAQSTARR VERSION” of the song, and is markedly different from the single being sold on iTunes and what’s being played on the radio.