The “pay what you want” online release of In Rainbows may have set Trent Reznor and Billy Corgan off to discover their own maverick ways, but it looks like Thom Yorke is a little tired of the brave new world. “I think it was a one-off response to a particular situation,” said Yorke. Rather than admit that he’s loving the taste of Dave Matthews’ crunchy granola over at ATO, or that financially the online release of In Rainbows wasn’t all that it could have been, he’s crediting his anomie on the lack of “significance” it would have if they did it again. It’s always about significance with you, isn’t it, Thom?
“It was one of those things where we were in the position of everyone asking us what we were going to do,” he said. “I don’t think it would have the same significance now anyway, if we chose to give something away again. It was a moment in time.”
Speaking as Radiohead was promoting its pro-social initiative with MTV against sex- and labor trafficking, Yorke said successful bands have new ways to communicate directly with fans.
“We are about that direct relationship (now) because we are big enough to establish that,” he said.
The band has a new video for “All I Need,” which was produced jointly with MTV Europe for its anti-human-trafficking MTV Exit campaign. According to Thom, it’s all “about exploiting a situation while you have the chance.” In more ways than one, dude.
Thom Yorke: Radiohead’s stunt was ‘one-off’ [Hollywood Reporter]
white kids spend their day like this… but little oppressed foreign kids spend their day like THIS! Am I right, folks?
I think I wouldn’t find their pretentiousness so annoying if their music didn’t make me wish I was earless.
I’m not sure I get why giving away something once means they need to give everything away in perpetuity? No one in the band’s camp has been less than honest about the giveaway being an experiment.
There are plenty of easy ways to take cheapshots at radiohead, do the fish in that barrel really need the extra shotgun blast?
Does this mean they suck like Pink Floyd and the Doors?
@Chris N.:
“>As Thom once sang, “Grow my hair…I wanna be Jim Morrison.” But he might have been lying.
@Chris N.:
No, it means they’re not following through on their verbal agreement with Idolator to stand-in for the word “pretentious.”
“All I Need” video < “Runaway Train” video
It must be exhausting, though, having to sort through the wheat and chaff of every single cause in the universe and vet how the band MUST react to each.
Then have to go buy strings and such.
Comment on Radiohead Already Over The Whole Free Download Thing um, In Rainbows didn’t “set Billy Corgan off” to do anything.
Smashing Pumpkins released an album for free way back in 2000, back when ipods and mp3s were still not mainstream enough for the media to make a big fuss. As a matter of fact, most outlets didn’t even acknowledge or review Machina II because it wasn’t released in a traditional album format. Go figure.
http://www.metrochicago.com/pumpkins/
-D