HMV is run by monkeys who throw turds

Aah. Things have wound down enough for me to catch a few moments of reprieve for some blogging; mostly because I have an "Academic Review Day" tomorrow, which essentially means I have the day off apart from a one-on-one with my form tutor for fifteen minutes. So yay or something.

Anyway, the big music news of the week. Radiohead have chosen to truly stick it to the man by releasing their latest album on their official website for whatever amount people want to pay. This is going to be a real blow for the music industry, that flagging behemoth of corruption and exploitation which wants nothing more than money. They're doing it without a record label, throwing more salt into the deep gash they've struck; and best of all, if you do want a hard copy, you can plonk down £40 for more swag than £100 would get you if a label controlled it.

I personally think this is fantastic news. The major labels are a bunch of greedy fuckwits who care more about the carbon-copy rap/hip-hop/pop "artist" than anybody who gives a half damn about music for real. Even Roadrunner Records are guilty of this, giving a LOT more ad money to the bands who are popular with the kiddies. It's a much needed kick up the backside for an industry who are so attached to their old business model that they reject any and all attempts to change it. Dammit, music isn't meant to be an INDUSTRY like steel or computers. It's meant to be a creative endeavour, to be something that people do because they LOVE it and make money if they're GOOD. If you're setting out to be rich from making music, then you're doing it for the wrong reasons.

I shall make sure to get this album and spread the word as much as I can, to support REAL musicians everywhere and not the whims of the industry. Trent Reznor is also amiable in his support of music for music's sake; walking into an Australian HMV, he was shocked to discover how fucking expensive his new album was compared to everything else (which was also expensive). I've run into this problem too; as a self-confessed Opeth addict, I've made it my mission to own every single album. And I've been stopped in my tracks thanks to the local Music Zone shutting up shop. All that's left on the high street now is a HMV, which (you guessed it) overprices everything. I could buy two Opeth albums for twenty quid at Music Zone; now I have to spend almost twenty on ONE album, if I wanted it. The worst thing is that HMV only stock two of their albums - the very popular ones. Oh, and one of those is the MOST expensive one; a special edition with an added DVD, for almost £40. Wonderful.

If I wanted the CD, which I do, I'd need to pay over the web and have it delivered. And I don't like doing that. I grew quite fond of my trips out to town with my old CD Walkman, buying a new CD or two for (relatively) little money, and eagerly ripping off the fernickety wrapper before popping it in for some on-the-go genius. It's a shame that I won't be able to do that in the forseeable future.

In closing: Fuck You, HMV.


Sraen Out, with bitching new headphones.