Nine Inch Nails Follows Radiohead Example

Brian Viglione is the drummer of Boston-based "Brechtian punk cabaret" band The Dresden Dolls. Now he is also Trent Reznor's latest addition to his Nine Inch Nails moniker, at least for the upcoming instrumental album "Ghosts I-IV."

Taking a cue from Radiohead, Reznor is distributing the album on his own and on multiple formats. Nine tracks can be downloaded for free from the band's website, www.nin.com. The full album can be downloaded for $5, also from this site or Amazon's mp3 marketplace. This purchase also includes a 40-page accompaniment in PDF file format. This is all following the expiration of Reznor's contract with Interscope Records.

On April 8, the album will be available in stores with fancy-shmancy packaging for $10. Other more limited editions are available for more dough. Reznor made the songs available on Bit Torrent sites before putting it on sale, showing he accepts the inevitability of illegal file-sharing and can work around it.

This move is the beginning of a trend where artists will be able to support themselves financially without the support of record companies.