Trent Reznor introduces his latest album, The Slip, with a note that reads, "Thank you for your continued and loyal support over the years – this one's on me."
He means it. The album is available for free in what could be the perfect array of digital formats: MP3, lossless (FLAC or Apple) or 24-bit, 96-kHz WAV files that sound better than the CD would have, if Reznor had bothered to release one yet. Vinyl and CD versions will go on sale in July, according to the Nine Inch Nails site.
You can stream all of The Slip starting Monday on iLike or download it for free with a valid e-mail address.
The album is more song-oriented than the instrumental abstraction of the band's recently released Ghosts I-IV, with full vocal tracks and the sort of dark, grimy loops that helped Reznor make his name.
Not only is The Slip available for free, but it was releasedunder the Creative Commons "attribution noncommercial share-alike"
license. A note on the NIN site says: "We encourage you to remix it, share it with your friends, post it on your blog, play it on your podcast, give it to strangers, etc."
The MP3 version of the album is available as a direct download from a server, while the larger files (lossless andhigh-resolution) are available as torrent downloads. All versions comewith a printable PDF with the album cover, the track listing and artworkfor each track. The liner notes list the release dateas January 2008, but aside from "Discipline" and "Echoplex" (.mp3) none of thesongs have been previously released.
The Slip is worth a listen. On my second way through,
it's sounding better and better, especially thesinister dub aesthetic of "The Four of Us Are Dying."
Reznor's direct-to-fans approach extends to his upcoming tour. Tickets will be available through the NIN website in the 72 hours leading up to the show (updated). Each ticketwill have the name of the buyer printed on it, so they will not availablethrough scalpers.
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