Spotify service a fantastic tool for music fans

But with a free version of Spotify available for download and a lot of recent media attention, I decided to go for it. Afterwards just a few clicks, approximately 15 million tracks were right away at my disposal - anything from Bach and Beethoven to the Beastie Boys and Beach House - and all I have to put up with are a few 30-second ads every so often.

A big plus, on top of the seemingly infinite amount of music, is the convenience and cleanliness. Earlier Spotify, to hear a few songs from a new artist, I would rely on YouTube searches. It's nice to hear any song by an artist without having to sift through shaky, scrambled iPhone concert clips or those weird lyrical videos that net millions of hits.

Unmatched, perhaps, until Apple in the long run releases their similar service, which could at the time do to Spotify what iPods did to the Microsoft Zune.