So many people were tweeting about the Grammys last night that I put aside my better judgment and tuned in. The show was awful. But I saw a great joke online about how the anti-piracy speech was happening as hundreds or thousands of people were downloading the Best New Artist’s album via BitTorrent as he spoke. Indeed, the speech followed the award, and that joke was probably spot-on in the moment.
Why post this under the title of the new Radiohead album? Well, they get it: they’re not only still making a physical product that’s worth purchasing, but they’re also releasing the work in a way that fundamentally understands why people who would pay for music also pirate music. Those people want the immediate thrill of the work.
And we’ll get it on Saturday. Can’t wait.
