Saul Williams has just announced that his new record, The Inevitable Rise And Liberation Of Niggy Tardust will be released much like Radiohead’s was: for free or cheap in digital format within a week of the announcement, with a CD in stores later. Three improvements: There’s no $80 deluxe version, and downloaders get cover art and a choice of multiple high-quality formats including lossless.

Two incidents so close together– sounds like a trend! But somehow it drives home how UNrevolutionary the whole thing is when considered as a means of distribution. Selling early access to *specific* albums, when someone thinks it’ll work out in the long run, is a glorified fan club system; the fact that it involves listeners potentially getting “something for nothing” notwithstanding, none of the money-making parties have to discard any outdated paradigms in order to sign on. It’s just one more promotional option.

That’s not to say there’s no good in it. Fan clubs could use a little glory. Fans are also the only people who’ll care about the element of surprise that digital publication apparently allows. A week is just long enough for anyone else to get fidgety or forget what they signed up for.

Edited to add: This was written a week ago and not posted because of a bug– the record actually comes out tomorrow.