Radiohead Done With Albums

Thom Yorke:

Radiohead have no plans to release another album, Thom Yorke has revealed. Long-playing records, it seems, have “just become a real drag”.

Wonderful news. The death of the 12 song album will change the landscape of modern music. It’s a practice that was a holdover from vinyl records that made it to CD’s. Since the album is simply a byproduct of physical media, it too needs to take a bow as the primary format.

One to five song releases means the artist can work unconstrained and faster. They can publish instantly. They can make more focused music. Less time in a studio with an engineer means that it costs less to make.

Coupling the Radiohead notion of less constraining music distribution and the Nine Inch Nails notion of making your core revenue on touring and specialty physical items should be the model for the future of music.

It’s time to take the industry out of the music industry.