2008 Woodie Awards
SectionsRadiohead releases independent album 'In Rainbows' for download
Heather Jarvis
Issue date: 11/16/07 Section: Features
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Radiohead
"In Rainbows"
I will by no means call myself a Radiohead expert, and I can't say I have a Thom Yorke shrine in my basement/album case like some of the hardcore fans do, but I do remember those high school days when "Kid A" would enhance an already foggy brain state. This UK band has played everywhere and taken it to the extreme. And their new album has all of the different elements of their previous efforts coming to a head with their newest release, "In Rainbows."
After deciding not to re-sign with record label EMI, the band released "In Rainbows" independently of the company, making it available for download Oct. 10. One of the brilliant things about the new album is that they offer it to the public on an optional pay download, cutting out the middle-man of labels and packaging. Yes, that means it is semi-garage sale style; you pay them whatever you want to. It's a landmark step made by Radiohead in the day of digital technology and downloading. Instead of clutching their music to their chest like a whiny baby with a pacifier, only to part with it for enough cash, these savvy music makers are jumping right into the flow of the future.
A discbox is also available for purchase that consists of the new album on CD and on vinyl, a second CD with more new songs, along with digital photographs and artwork. According to Guardian Unlimited Music, until last week, fans typing "Radiohead" into the Google search engine would be met with a paid-for ad from EMI headlining the new album, yet only leading them to a Web site where EMI's subsidiary, Parlophone, is selling a seven-disc box set of the previous albums Radiohead recorded while still under the label. Fans have accused EMI of releasing the box set at the same time in December and for the same price as the new discbox to compete with the band's independent release. But such is the mark of the downward spiral of record labels that can't bear to make less than millions and stick their feet in the future.
"In Rainbows"
I will by no means call myself a Radiohead expert, and I can't say I have a Thom Yorke shrine in my basement/album case like some of the hardcore fans do, but I do remember those high school days when "Kid A" would enhance an already foggy brain state. This UK band has played everywhere and taken it to the extreme. And their new album has all of the different elements of their previous efforts coming to a head with their newest release, "In Rainbows."
After deciding not to re-sign with record label EMI, the band released "In Rainbows" independently of the company, making it available for download Oct. 10. One of the brilliant things about the new album is that they offer it to the public on an optional pay download, cutting out the middle-man of labels and packaging. Yes, that means it is semi-garage sale style; you pay them whatever you want to. It's a landmark step made by Radiohead in the day of digital technology and downloading. Instead of clutching their music to their chest like a whiny baby with a pacifier, only to part with it for enough cash, these savvy music makers are jumping right into the flow of the future.
A discbox is also available for purchase that consists of the new album on CD and on vinyl, a second CD with more new songs, along with digital photographs and artwork. According to Guardian Unlimited Music, until last week, fans typing "Radiohead" into the Google search engine would be met with a paid-for ad from EMI headlining the new album, yet only leading them to a Web site where EMI's subsidiary, Parlophone, is selling a seven-disc box set of the previous albums Radiohead recorded while still under the label. Fans have accused EMI of releasing the box set at the same time in December and for the same price as the new discbox to compete with the band's independent release. But such is the mark of the downward spiral of record labels that can't bear to make less than millions and stick their feet in the future.
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K Sweet
Kevin Sweet
posted 11/16/07 @ 12:44 PM CST
"Instead of clutching their music to their chest like a whiny baby with a pacifier, only to part with it for enough cash, these savvy music makers are jumping right into the flow of the future. (Continued…)
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