Sunday, December 09, 2007

Radiohead: Pay If You Please

There is a pretty good case to be made that Radiohead is the reigning "Greatest Band in the World." For people who share that belief, this feature on Thom Yorke and company in today's New York Times is welcome. I want to run into them at The Rose and Crown, which is apparently their preferred pub in Oxford. (I suppose I'm now fit for mockery from "real fans" who probably knew that little bit of trivia even though I've been an ardent Radiohead fan for a decade or so now.)


Radiohead currently is the talk of the music biz because of their bold approach to their newest album, In Rainbows, which is available on a pay what you want basis by download here. Because of the reticence of the guys in the band and the innovative nature of their endeavor we may never know exactly how successful this approach has been for them financially, but I think it shows how fans truly are willing to pay a fair price for music they love. It is in its way remarkable to think that a large number of people who could have gotten In Rainbows for free anted up the lucre. I paid 5 pounds for it, which comes out to right about what one might expect to pay for a reasonably priced (which is to say significantly overpriced) cd.

3 comments:

Name: Matthew Guenette said...

You were lucky to get it for 5. It's a mandatory 40 pounds now at Radiohead's website...How should we read this latest development?

GoodLiberal said...

Of course, their genius stems from the fact that Johnny Greenwood was at Peterhouse, Cambridge as a student.

dcat said...

Matt --
The download period is now over (which I did not realize). The 40 quid offer is for an uberbox set that comes with a slew of googaws. They will release the album in traditional cd form at the New Year. I'm not certain that tells us much -- they gave people a chance to name their own price for a download of an album that will be one of the three best this year in a lot of minds. I have no problem with an expiry on the offer if the cd will be available in stores. And given the upgrade in sound quality, plus liner notes and the like, I'll probably buy it in that format as well.

GoodLib --
No doubt Jonny Greenwood is vital to the band. Keep up that Cambridge pride!

dcat