Everything That Happens Will Happen Today
We saw this first with Radiohead’s
“In Rainbows”, a pay what you want model
that was overwhelmingly successful in terms of
conversion (despite the fact that Radiohead
refuses to give data on sales, know that this
first experiment was very successful). Radiohead
was followed up by NiN with a truly original offering,
which saw Reznor & Co. offer their fans a
variety of bunled offerings - everything from 9
free tracks to digital ownership ($5), to digital
+ physical ($10), to value add offers including
blu ray discs and signed LPs, costing upwards of
$250 for the most expensive offer. The effort by
NiN was hugely successful and embraced by a music
industry hungry for a new method of music delivery
and discovery beyond the colluded offer of
traditional radio and the impersonal presentation
of traditional physical retail. Check out some
great google maps screenshots
here that
demonstrate the global potential brought on by
self-distribution and disintermediation.
As for the Eno/Byrne collaboration released this past Monday on Topspin’s platform - I would say I am pleased with the outcome, though not floored. “My Life in the Bush of Ghosts”, their 20 year old previous collaboration is the far more challenging and diverse of the two albums, infused as it is more by Byrne’s 80’s-infected instatiable pop rhythm than Eno’s more reserved and electronically (over)-produced soundscapes and sonic curiosities. That said, the album is hugely important as a defining mark towards artists owning their relationships with fans, instead of handing off their rights to corporate behemoths. To be sure, songs like “Life is Long”, and “Strange Overtones” represent Byrne and Eno at their very best. For those interested, the digital album costs $8.99. The CD and the digital album together go for $11.99. For the deluxe package, including a film about the album, it’s $69.99.
Nine Inch Nails Album Is Free Online
For the second time, Nine
Inch Nails has released an album off of its
website. The newest album,
titled "The Slip", is entirely free. Says
Reznor on the site, "thank you for your
continued and loyal support over the years -
this one's on me." This represents the first time an artist has
distributed an entire album without providing
fans any opportunity to pay for it. The
development is particularly exciting for me as
I have been working directly with the
technology team in developing a spin-off
closely related to "Ghost I-IV" and "The Slip".
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I also think NiN embracing "free" is a very wise move, given the particular climate of the music industry. Earlier today, a friend expressed curiosity at the new release: "What is the business model?" I would call the business model community relationships 2.0, one in which the model is fundamentally based on built and fostered trust between artist and tribe following. Reznor already proved that he can cater better to his fan base than any major record label could do in the old model, by allowing fans to pay anywhere from nothing to $300 based on their individual loyalty, audiophile status, and economic flexibility. Given that he raked in over $1.7 million on Ghosts, it seems like the perfect strategy to reward fans for sustaining his model. We are quickly shedding the mentality of music as a one-for-one commodity, into one where music begins to gain value precisely because it is free.
The Slip is being released with a Creative Commons license. Stay tuned for my review of the album...
