Pay what you want and download (Radiohead)

Lyrs · Post by **Lyrs** » Sat Oct 20, 2007 10:04 pm

The idea seems to be a success. If I remember correctly, the In Rainbows averaged $5 per album with over 1.2 million albums sold on opening day. This doesn't take into account the merchandise packs.

I've read articles declaring the album also made a large splash in the pirate communities with an equivalent number of albums being downloading. A few articles have pointed towards twice as many pirated albums as albums sold.

Regardless, $6 million dollars is quite amazing.

deathdrone · Post by **deathdrone** » Thu Oct 25, 2007 8:58 am

Trent Reznor of N.I.N dropped his label, and is doing something similar. He says that he plans to sell full albums worth of mp3's in the future for four dollars at any bit-rate the person wishes. Oh, and that actual cd's will be available as well, and people will have the option to buy those too. For what price? I am not sure yet.

bobbias · Post by **bobbias** » Sun Nov 25, 2007 9:36 pm

Trent has teamed up with Saul Williams and released a CD of Saul's. Anyone who likes hip-hop or the gritty NIN-esque sound of Saul should definitely check it out: http://niggytardust.com/saulwilliams/downloadinfo

You will first be asked to enter your e-mail address.

If you choose to pay for the record, your download will be available in the following formats:

* 192Kbps MP3
* 320Kbps MP3
* FLAC lossless audio

If you choose not to pay for the record, you will receive it in 192Kbps MP3 format.

All versions include a PDF with artwork and lyrics

All files are 100% DRM free, and can be played on any device. MP3s are encoded with LAME v3.97 and love.

TaranT · Post by **TaranT** » Sun Dec 30, 2007 4:21 am

David Byrne (ex-Talking Heads) interviews Thom Yorke (Radiohead)
re: the "experiment" and the music biz in general.

Byrne: What about bands that are just getting started?
Yorke: Well, first and foremost, you don't sign a huge record contract that strips you of all your digital rights, so that when you do sell something on iTunes you get absolutely zero. That would be the first priority. If you're an emerging artist, it must be frightening at the moment. Then again, I don't see a downside at all to big record companies not having access to new artists, because they have no idea what to do with them now anyway.

Org Profile · Post by **Otohiko** » Sun Dec 30, 2007 3:06 pm

TaranT wrote:David Byrne (ex-Talking Heads) interviews Thom Yorke (Radiohead)
re: the "experiment" and the music biz in general.

Byrne: What about bands that are just getting started?
Yorke: Well, first and foremost, you don't sign a huge record contract that strips you of all your digital rights, so that when you do sell something on iTunes you get absolutely zero. That would be the first priority. If you're an emerging artist, it must be frightening at the moment. Then again, I don't see a downside at all to big record companies not having access to new artists, because they have no idea what to do with them now anyway.

Byrne wrote a really good article generally on Wired recently as well...

http://www.wired.com/entertainment/musi ... ntPage=all#

As for Yorke and this Radiohead experiment, I'm actually getting slightly negative - not because it's a bad thing, but because discussion of alternative music distribution has gotten too focused on this model as some sort of holy grail.

As my father, a professional musician who himself distributes largely online has pointed out, that response by Yorke actually does dick to address the real problem for "new artists" or small artists. The assumption that an artist who doesn't have the pop value of Radiohead can survive in their niche using Radiohead's distribution model is pretty ridiculous. Being off a major label doesn't solve the problem of distribution, in some ways it exacerbates it.

The fact is that Radiohead can afford to risk not making much money on sales of the album. Because there will always be huge demand for them to perform live, and they can always make it up if they fail on one or other project. Smaller musicians don't have that luxury and that friendly a market.

The experiment is a success for promoting Radiohead and probably for general strategies for first-tier artists. But I'm starting to think it may actually hurt smaller, more niche artists in the long run if it continues to be the focus of the whole alternative distribution discussion.

Reevothemusefan · Post by **Reevothemusefan** » Sun Dec 30, 2007 5:53 pm

Radiohead, lol

There awesome and yes i indeed have In Rainbows and one of my albums of 2007

Falconone · Post by **Falconone** » Sun Dec 30, 2007 5:56 pm

In Flames - Oridinary Story
I love this song, for me it is the best of this great band.

TaranT · Post by **TaranT** » Sun Dec 30, 2007 11:19 pm

Otohiko wrote:The experiment is a success for promoting Radiohead and probably for general strategies for first-tier artists. But I'm starting to think it may actually hurt smaller, more niche artists in the long run if it continues to be the focus of the whole alternative distribution discussion.

The current issue of Technology Review (MIT's house mag) has another Radiohead article that ends on a more positive note: The Tipping Jar.

At this point it's difficult to say how things will turn out. The mega-dollar, platinum-plated "rock star" phenomenon may turn out to be an historical aberration, just a transient by-product of Baby Boomer demographics.

Kalium · Post by **Kalium** » Mon Dec 31, 2007 12:38 am

In retrospect, I would be a lot more impressed if this whole thing hadn't turned out to be a publicity stunt for the physical CD.

Emong · Post by **Emong** » Mon Dec 31, 2007 7:47 am

Kalium wrote:In retrospect, I would be a lot more impressed if this whole thing hadn't turned out to be a publicity stunt for the physical CD.

Well, I gotta second that though I think it wasn't all about a publicity stunt. They were rather testing waters or something.