Last evening, experimental rockers Radiohead performed in a small nightclub on Brick Lane. They were originally going to play at the Rough Trade East record shop. However, due to safety fears, this was moved to the 93 Feet East club. The band announced the free gig on Wednesday morning and offered fans a limited run of 200 tickets. I did not attend, even though Brick Lane is only a ten-minute walk from Stepney, where I live. I do like Radiohead but I would not queue all day for any band, except maybe Nelson Galaxy or Enormous.
Radiohead left EMI in 2003 after releasing ‘Hail to the Thief’. A fortuitous move considering the recent upheaval at the record label. They originally released their latest album ‘In Rainbows’ over the internet. I bought a copy. How much did I pay? 0.00 pence, that’s what. This does seem a bit mean but I wanted to see if I could get away with it. Pip paid the same but then he is a mean fellow. (However, Radiohead did release a hard copy of their album, on sale for a tidy £40).
Even if you do not like the band, you have to admire their methods. Radiohead are trying to modernise an archaic music industry via guerrilla gigging and internet distribution. It is the musicians themselves who deserve to make money from their hard work and not a corporate profit dominated record label. There are now some great new record labels springing up which believe in this philosophy, such as Big Arena Records.
I can remember seeing Radiohead years ago when I was attending Middlesex University (I was doing a BA in drinking and sleeping). They performed in the tiny Trent Park bar. Busby was with me at the time and he was rather worse for wear, having imbibed a whole bottle of Thunderbird. He began heckling Thom Yorke. Rather bizarrely Busby adopted a cockney accent and began shouting the same thing over and over again; “You’re just a miserable little man, with a wonky eye.” You could see Yorke becoming agitated. Losing his temper he told the audience that Busby was a “stupid t**t” and should shut his “f***ing mouth”.
Busby reacted by falling over before throwing up over my new trainers.
4 Comments
I don’t believe any music should be given away free. It is cavalier and gives the wrong impression, ie that even the writers and musicians themselves place little or no value on the work.
Again , i do not wish to appear cynical, but answer, please, in not less than 1000 words: Would Radiohead have got as much publicity for the release of their new album if they hadn’t employed such morally questionable marketing techniques?
I totally agree with you Napoleon. It is wrong to give music away for free but Radiohead could afford to do it. Very few people paid nothing for the album - it averaged around £10 a person, goes to show that most of their listeners do place a high value on their work. Be as cynical as you like Nap but I do believe the exercise proved a major point about the music industry. Chew on.
Isn’t Busby a small yellow bird?
I’d never have thought he would have such a foul mouth.
(Fowl mouth. D’ya geddit?? Ok. I’ll stop now.)
I do hope Busby isn’t a small bird - I’d look totally bonkers drinking with small birds. I prefer tall ones (see what I did there?)
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[…] Brick Head Brick Head January 17, 2008 – 10:29 pm Last evening, experimental rockers Radiohead performed in a small nightclub on Brick Lane. They were originally going to play at the Rough Trade East record shop. However, due to safety fears, this was moved to the 93 Feet East club. The band announced the free gig on Wednesday morning and offered fans a limited run of 200 tickets. I did not attend, even though Brick Lane is only a ten-minute walk from Stepney, where I live. I do like Radiohead but I woul […]