NIN - The Slip

Do these bands actually have it right? A new way to distribute their music? After downloading, for free, an album of mp3’s from Nine Inch Nails yesterday, I realized something… Is this the future of music sales? Free? What is free anyway? No we are NOT going to talk about Pennywise, they stole Greg Gaffin and Bad Religion… When Radiohead released it’s album, In Rainbows October 07, I immediately went to their website and actually paid for their album. Being a huge Radiohead fan and owning all their studio albums, I thought paying what I wanted for an album was perfect. It empowered me to “vote” (monetarily) on their music with cash and not just buy it, sit down and shut up. But what about smaller bands? Bands that don’t have an international following, bands that haven’t changed the music landscape by simply being?

Nine Inch Nails is an enigma though. Trent Reznor has always stayed away from anything resembling main stream, he bought the house Sharon Tate was murdered in for Gods sake… But I digress. Let’s go back to Pretty Hate Machine. 1989 was a great year for music, The Cure, Red Hot Chili Peppers, the Cult. All music associated with my youth. Pretty Hate Machine was released late in the year and wasn’t really heard for months afterwards. That doesn’t take away from the music on that album. Several years after the release of that album, the people in San Diego were treated to Nine Inch Nails last stop on Lollapalloza 2, the destroyed all their instruments and were replaced by Jesus and the Mary Chain. the rest of the country missed out on a great live band, a different live band.

Fast forward almost 20 years and the same guy, Reznor, releases “The Slip”. So far so great… I really like it, it’s got that “bang on what you can in a garbage dump” sounds to it. The same as every record put out by NIN. Keep in mind, that’s not a bad thing, it is what it is.

Back to the point, are we in a better place, musically, because groups like Radiohead and NIN can release their stuff for free? That’s really to be determined…

Until then, Check out a song from NIN and Radiohead below…

Radiohead - Bodysnatchers

Nine Inch Nails - Discipline