Radiohead

Yesterday, Radiohead launched yet another experiment in populist pop. To mark the release of “Reckoner”—In Rainbows’ best moment—the British quintet made each of the song’s constituent parts, its “stems,” available for download on iTunes and Garageband. Now anyone with a computer, a little creativity, and $.99, can create their own “Reckoner.” “Sample, cut, take the sounds, whatever. Play it in a club. Or your room… Have fun,” the band wrote on their blog, Dead Air Space.

The idea, then, is for users to upload their finished remixes here, where the masses can vote for their favorite “Reckoner.” You don’t win anything for first or second prize—except for the undying respect for your peers, of course.  read more »

Maybe you’re thinking of checking out All Points West this weekend, the inaugural East Coast version of the Coachella Music Festival that starts today and runs through Sunday in a giant, grassy park on the Hudson River waterfront. Sounds pretty good, right? Summer’s drawing to a close, so what could be better than some outdoor revelry and music under the sun to make the most of what’s left of it? And my, what a lineup of super hip indie bands! Radiohead, Cat Power, Grizzly Bear, The Go! Team, Animal Collective, Chromeo, Metric, Girl Talk, CSS, The Roots. It’s like a year’s worth of show reviews on Brooklyn Vegan all crammed into one.  read more »

There’s nothing like a good feud between two massively iconic rock artists to keep the fanboys sweating. And that’s just what happened last week when an unlikely Internet controversy erupted between Prince and Radiohead. See, Prince did a rendition of Radiohead’s 1993 break-through hit, “Creep” at this year’s Coachella Music Festival in late April. And at first, the guys in Radiohead thought that was pretty awesome. Thom Yorke reportedly got a text message about it, and found it so “hilarious” that he had to see/hear the cover for himself.  read more »

Some exciting music news from the Brits today: A new multi-format Radiohead best-of compilation (aptly titled, The Best Of) is due out June 2 in the U.K. on the band's former label, Parliphone/EMI, Pitchfork reports. What hits will the disc include? "Paranoid Android," "Fake Plastic Trees" and (bringing it back to '93!) "Creep," all made the cut, as well as the rarity and super-fan favorite "True Love Waits." Radiohead, who are headlining the first two nights of the All Points West festival in Jersey City this August, did not sanction the release. Meanwhile, Morrissey today won an apology in court from the British music mag Word over phrasing in a March 2008 article that "could have been construed to suggest that Mr. Morrissey was a racist, held racist opinions or that (as the child of migrant parents) he was a hypocrite," Reuters reports. The 48-year-old crooner, who has a similar case going against the tabloidy NME, said he was "delighted" with today's decision. His lawyer added: "Ultimately, my client would rather spend his time in concert than in court." Indeed, the Moz (sorry, calling him "Mr. Morrissey" just sounds too awkward), is expected to tour later this year in support of his forthcoming new studio album in the fall.

It’s confirmed: Radiohead will headline the first two nights of the inaugural All Points West Music & Arts Festival, which takes place Aug. 8-10 at Liberty State Park in Jersey City, N.J, Pitchfork reports. The three-day festival is being produced by AEG Live/Goldenvoice, promoters of California’s popular Coachella Valley Music and Arts Festival, the idea being to bring an event of Coachella’s magnitude to the east coast. Radiohead are no strangers to Liberty State Park – they played a concert there in August 2001, with the Twin Towers still looming in the background. The question is, can New Yorkers hop that PATH train across the river?

Okay, Radiohead aren't that big-headed. They're not releasing the greatest hits album, their record label, EMI, is, according to Pitchfork. They note: "Now you may be thinking: wait a minute, isn't every Radiohead album since The Bends pretty much a greatest hits collection unto itself? Indeed, but don't blame the band for this one."  read more »

Here's the new video for Radiohead's "Nude," the third track off In Rainbows. Nobody got naked. (Although, that's probably a good thing since the band has that British pale-skinned thing down pat. We might have to put on some shades to see any of them shirtless.) Thom Yorke looks like he needed an extra cup of coffee on the day of the shoot, but at least his hair looks extra shiny and bouncy in these painfully slow-mo shots.

Radiohead's In Rainbows will hit music store shelves today, but will anyone actually buy it three months after it was originally available online at the price of the downloader's choosing? Even lead singer Thom Yorke swiped it for free! At least it has pretty packaging.

The New York Times reports:  read more »

Gearing up for the release of In Rainbows actually being in stores on Jan. 1, Radiohead has released this video advertisement for their do-it-yourself-like packaging. How handy!

It’s taken the Wu-Tang Clan six years to release their new album, 8 Diagrams, but the last couple of months—for fans and members, alike—must have felt like they took the longest to pass. In October, the Clan had tongues wagging when they announced that their first single would sample the Beatles’ “While My Guitar Gently Weeps.” Apparently, this would have been a first. But, as it turns out—after a call from their lawyers, no doubt—they retracted their initial statement, calling the song an “interpolation,” not a sample. Still groundbreaking, but … Then Ghostface Killah, a Wu-Tang member, decided that he was going to release his new album on the same day as Diagrams. Despite rumored tensions, RZA, ever the chess master, decided to retreat, ensuring that everyone can make “mad cream.” All will be forgotten, however, if the album sells, which all indicators suggest that it will. Lap up that cream, fellas.

As if that weren’t enough for Wu-Tang fans, Raekwon and Ghostface Killah contributed to Cincinnati hip-hop producer cum rapper Hi-Tek’s new album, Hi-Teknology 3: Underground. These guys are the musical equivalent of Philip Seymour Hoffman. Learn to say no!  read more »

So everyone is still buzzing about Radiohead offering their new album In Rainbows online for free. (Lead singer Thom Yorke told the BBC that even he paid nothing. Uh, duh!) But it's time to forget about price points. The band's first video—for the kinetic track, "Jigsaw Falling Into Place"—finds Thom Yorke and co. focusing their energies on, of all things, the helmet cam. Enjoy!

Pitchfork tells us that ATO Records Group will handle the North American (physical) release of Radiohead's latest album, In Rainbows. "(Yes, this means Radiohead are officially on Dave Matthews' record label, now.)" It's due out January 1 in the states, one day after the UK release on XL.

Nerd-rockers Weezer will also put out an album on January 1. The band that—let's admit it—peaked (at least in our hearts, if not on the Billboard charts) in the 90's with their Blue Album and Pinkerton, will release Album 6, according to thier Web Site.

Weezer's bassist Scott Shriner wrote:

Album 6 is getting ready for mixing and I have never been so excited about a project in my life. Weezer fans truly have something to look forward to. The entire band has accomplished some of its most challenging goals as a group and as individuals. It's all coming together on this album.

To sum it up, at the beginning of the recording each member asked himself "what do you want out of this session?" The answer lies ahead.

Whatever bassist dude, we still miss Matt Sharp. Just sayin'.

Radiohead's In Rainbow's experiment has Wall Street in a tizzy. Two analysts downgraded Warner Music Group last week, leading to a sharp drop in the company's stock price.

CNET reports:

One of the analysts, Richard Greenfield of Pali Research, penned a gloomy report about why he thinks the sector is headed for even greater losses.

"No matter how many people the RIAA sues, no matter how many times music executives point to the growth of digital music, we believe an increasing majority of worldwide consumers simply view recorded music as free," Greenfield wrote.

Proof of this was provided last month by Radiohead fans. The British supergroup offered the digital version of In Rainbows, the band's latest album, for whatever fans wanted to pay. According to research firm ComScore, which conducted a study of the groundbreaking promotion, 62 percent of those who downloaded the album paid nothing.

To Greenfield, what's more disturbing is that Radiohead and a growing number of top acts perceive the Internet as an attractive alternative to record labels. Nine Inch Nails front man Trent Reznor has indicated that he plans to distribute his music online. Madonna announced last month that she was leaving Warner Music for Live Nation, a music promotion company.

"The paradigm in the music business has shifted," Madonna said in a statement announcing the switch. "For the first time in my career, the way that my music can reach my fans is unlimited."

Like Greenfield, Merrill Lynch analyst Jessica Cohen downgraded Warner Music's stock from "neutral" to "sell." Both also reduced next year's earnings estimates for the company.

Following the reports, Warner Music's stock hit a 52-week low ($8.78) on Friday. The company's shares, which were trading above $27 a year ago, closed Tuesday at $9.50.