Radiohead Radios Ahead

A veritable cornucopia of treasures.

Still the best band in the world according to many, the British mega-stars Radiohead are once again pushing the envelope by releasing their latest album In Rainbows as an online download. How much is it going to cost you? Name your price. That's right, I had to hear that twice myself but the fact of the matter is that you may download the entire recording and pay whatever you choose - from a penny to a pound. I'll outline the rest of the deal in a moment, but I must say this certainly seems like an awfully generous gesture from a band who has maintained their integrity and never bent to public or critical pressure. Adam listened to one track which he described as sounding like something off of Hail to the Thief.

Having completed their contract with Capitol they have chosen not to sign with another label, at least for now, and sell the record themselves online. If you're a have and hold sort of bloke you'll be pleased to note that you can also order a diskbox set that comes with an array of goodies to both have and hold. This consists of the new album on CD and on a 2 X 12 inch heavyweight vinyl records. A second enhanced CD that contains extra songs along with plenty of photographs and artwork. Included in this will be liner notes that will have a complete lyric booklet. The whole shebang is encased in a hardback book and slipcase.

This may well prove to be the first step on a road that many artists will eventually follow and trust Radiohead to pioneer the way.

The group recorded with new producer Mark 'Spike' Stent (who has worked with Keane, Madonna and Oasis in the past) and in a world exclusive interview, Yorke said that despite rumours that the follow-up to 'Hail To The Thief' will have a political feel, in fact the opposite is true.

He said: "It's about that anonymous fear thing, sitting in traffic, thinking, "I'm sure I'm supposed to be doing something else." Interestingly enough it's similar to OK Computer in a way. It's much more terrifying. But 'OK Computer' was terrifying too -some of the lyrics were." Writing recently on his diary at Radiohead.com, Yorke had previously said that the band are "finally getting somewhere", and are optimistic about getting the songs right for the tour. "Listening back to things we are doing and looking through the lyrics today and stuff it feels like we are finally getting somewhere", he explained. "There are lots of songs. Too many to get together straight away. So we will be furiously rehearsing and writing as we go.

"I think we've always worked best when we aren't bothered about making mistakes. There's a lot of baggage about the old way of doing things that is hard to get over... all the 'album' crap. Just this level of pressure that is ridiculous. We're just going to do what feels right at the time. Quite into the idea of singles at the moment (that don't get on the radio). No grand design... wherever we are at. Some of the random stuff we have at the moment could be the most exciting."