In advance of Saturday’s online release of their new album “King of Limbs,” Staff Writer Dulani Wallace examines Radiohead’s music distribution model and the impact it’s had on the music industry.
Back in 2009, Radiohead scored a place in Time Magazine’s “100 Most Influential People” issue. In the music community, it was big deal because they weren’t recognized in the “Artists and Entertainers” category. They were instead featured in the “Builders and Titans” section of the magazine. How they landed that section was result of a plan that required some music biz experience, ten-gigabit Ethernet links, and a little marketing savvy.
Thom Yorke and the boys had already completed their six-album sprint with EMI. They had become jaded by the way record companies, largely controlled by shareholders, handed profits. Hence the simple math: you take away the record label from the distribution process and the band gets more return.
“In Rainbows,” the seventh studio album released by the London-based band, was initially available as a digital download in October 2007. Then, on New Years Day the album was released in the US as a discbox set with a bonus album, stickers, lyrics, and tripped-out artwork. Fans could pay whatever they desired from the “Rainbows” website and many pre-ordered the box set because they were chomping at the bit for more.
Radiohead became a case study among music journalists and business writers. They set the music industry on its ear. Radiohead owned this venture in-and-out as they licensed their songs to labels in the US, UK, and Japan. Musicians such as Trent Reznor and Saul Williams followed suit on the digital download model.
Could any musician or band have achieved this ingenious enterprise? Yeah, we could sit back and think of an artist we like doing this. But the true secrets to Radiohead’s giant leap were a) they were an already established band, and b) they make great music.
On the other end of the spectrum, look at the impact Radiohead has had on record stores. The band sold 1.2 million albums on the first day of online sales. A grand total of 3 million units, online and in-store, were reportedly sold at the top of the fourth quarter, 2008. By that time, Tower Records had fallen like Rome. This measure of success capsized other music chains; in order to survive, some of the indie stores were transformed into music downloading websites.
A new outing for the alt-rockers is coming this weekend. “The King of Limbs” will be available for pre-sale in Mp3 and WAV on February 19th. More rabid fans are sure to get a kick out of the musical buffet referred to as the Newspaper Album, also available for purchase from the site.
Radiohead may have changed the way larger music corporations handle their operations and commerce. They may have even set up a threshold for indie labels to gain some footing. But one true thing is that when Thom, Jonny, Colin, Ed and Phil bring harmony to the stage, it’s both a platinum experience for the ears and now a greater sense of ownership for the artists.
