Announced out of the blue and out since yesterday is the brand new Nine Inch Nails release "Ghosts I-IV". "Ghosts I - IV" is a 36 track instrumental collection with almost two hours of new music composed and recorded over an intense ten week period in fall 2007. And as expected, Nine Inch Nails decided to take advantage of the current climate by presenting the release under various formats, including a free 9-track DRM-free, high-quality download or yet a deluxe $300 package. The free 9-track version has been uploaded by the band itself on various torrent sites, because they believe BitTorrent is a revolutionary digital distribution method. They add: "We believe in finding ways to utilize new technologies instead of fighting them. We encourage you to share the music of 'Ghosts I' with your friends, post it on your website, play it on your podcast, use it for video projects, etc."
With Nine Inch Nails having cut all ties with their previous label Interscope, Trent Reznor and co are clearly trying out various ways to monetize their newest release "Ghosts I-IV" and with success so it seems as the "Ghosts I-IV" website is barely accessible now, which is actually also the main downside of this kind of distribution. Good to see however is that NIN are presenting way more possibilities than Radiohead did for the release of "In Rainbows" and - more important - with much better sound quality plus a fix price of just $5 for 36 songs as downloads. Given this Nine Inch Nails might succeed where Radiohead failed and that is delivering a business model that actually gives the music back its value or where a Sainsbury looses from a Harrods...
At the moment of writing this article the band's special website for the release was still accessible but all downloads failed to complete. But this aside, the way this new release is presented to the world is nothing less than an example of how things could be handled for major bands and why not, labels.
"Ghosts I-IV" is available in multiple digital and physical formats:
- $5 Download: All 36 tracks in a variety of digital formats including a 40 page PDF.
- $0 Download: The first 9 tracks from the Ghosts I-IV collection available as high-quality, DRM-free MP3s, including the complete PDF.
- $10 2XCD set: Two audio CDs in a six panel digipak package with a 16 page booklet, to be shipped April 8 + immediate full download in a variety of digital formats..
- $70 Deluxe Edition Package: Hardcover fabric slipcase containing: 2 audio CDs, 1 data DVD with all 36 tracks in multi-track format, and a Blu-ray disc with Ghosts I-IV in high-definition 96/24 stereo and accompanying slide show. To be shipped May 1, 2008 + immediate download in a variety of digital formats.
- $300 Ultra-Deluxe Limited Edition Package: Includes everything in the Deluxe Edition Package, along with an exclusive four-LP 180 gram vinyl set in a fabric slipcase, and two exclusive limited edition Giclee prints in a luxurious package. Limited to 2500 pieces, numbered and signed by Trent Reznor. To be shipped May 1, 2008 + immediate download in a variety of digital formats.
Reznor is apparently quite pleased with the result: "I've been considering and wanting to make this kind of record for years, but by its very nature it wouldn't have made sense until this point. This collection of music is the result of working from a very visual perspective - dressing imagined locations and scenarios with sound and texture; a soundtrack for daydreams. I'm very pleased with the result and the ability to present it directly to you without interference. I hope you enjoy the first four volumes of Ghosts."
You can also purchase the download from Amazon's MP3 store right now. The 2xCD and a $39 4x vinyl edition (on 130 gram vinyl in a double gatefold package) will be available at retail in North America (April 8), Australia (April 5), the UK (April 8), Japan (April 5), and most European territories (April 8). More volumes of Ghosts are likely to appear in the future. Reznor also announces an exciting partnership and experience regarding this release, several names have been dropped so far but none could be confirmed, hence why this article went online today and not yesterday for those wondering.
Place to be: http://ghosts.nin.com/ .
Source: Side Line Magazine
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