Radiohead embraces the digital age - Part 2

The Internet had already witnessed much of the gestation of “In Rainbows,” as Radiohead tested songs in public, knowing they would be bootlegged immediately. “The first time we ever did ‘All I Need,’ boom! It was up on YouTube,” Mr. Yorke said. “I think it’s fantastic. The instant you finish something, you’re really excited about it, you’re really proud of it, you hope someone’s heard it, and then, by God, they have. It’s O.K. because it’s on a phone or a video recorder. It’s a bogus recording, but the spirit of the song is there, and that’s good. At that stage that’s all you need to worry about.”

Wrote the New York Times about Radiohead embracing the digital age

How did it all happen? Radiohead answer in an interview in OMM

In April the band also had a meeting with their managers, Chris Hufford and Bryce Edge, who had a suggestion: as the band were without a record deal, why not release the album themselves, via the internet? Cue much discussion, endless meetings. Then, another idea: how about letting people decide how much they paid for it? If anyone could 'get away with' such a seemingly reckless plan...

And how has it gone – the download thing?

Incidentally, among OMM's respondents - and bearing in mind these questions came via fansites, so the results should be weighed accordingly - half bought the box set. Ten per cent refused to say if or how much they paid. Of the remaining 40 per cent, just under a quarter paid nothing. Of the 75 per cent who did pay, the average price was £5.65. If we include those who didn't pay, the average price per download was £4.33.

Has Music gone Kaboooooomb?

The CD market will halve in 5 years

In Rainbows

Comments

[Steven Mandzik]

personally I love Radiohead and I respect them so much for doing this. They are still making money, will still make money in the future, and frankly shouldn't really need to worry about whether they make 10 or 30 million (they are artists right).

But what about new, up-and-coming, and semi-pro artists. Basically, all of those folks on a shoe-string budget, no name recognition, or one week away from a "real" job, will this work for them?

Maybe, maybe not. Remember Radiohead initially did have a record deal and you had to pay the store price for their stuff.

There may be no answer at this point, but I would recommend any band follow this business model. After all becoming huge is all about establishing a fan base, and what better way to do it than to give it away? (is it better to make a lot of money off of a few people, or little to no money off millions...)

[Alan moore]

DEar Steven,

Thank you for your considered comments... it certainly is an important point you make. Also it would have been interesting for Thom Yorke to discuss how he saw the music business developing for young talent rather then thumbing his nose at EMI for example.

But what about the Artic Monkeys. I admit great great songs. But they got to No.1 in the UK charts unsigned. Or the artists Cassidy in the states whose track I'm a Hustla' became a massive hit because people were forwarding the ringtone and the track to each other.

Myspace and the network effect, plus sharing and giving away songs helped them significantly.

Does it have to be one or the other? No - its about studying closely what works and why and then trying to do that on your own terms.

Things like Pitchfork media have a role to play here too and also we see that bands want to manage their basket of rights in a very different way. Physical distribution no longer is the key to success as it once was.

Thanks for posting

Alan Moore