○○○○○AFTER what could be viewed as either a massive success or a massive failure first time round, tangible copies of the incredible The Inevitable Rise And Liberation Of Niggy Tardust hit the shelves next monday.
Spoken word rapper Saul Williams 'did a Radiohead' with this album, produced by Nine Inch Nails' Trent Reznor, and gave listeners the option of either paying for the album or downloading it for free.
A whopping 154,449 people downloaded the album, a huge number compared to the 30,000-odd sales of his previous eponymous album.
Unfortunately only 28,322 decided to pay for it.
However I am baffled as to why - because this album is his magnum opus, a creative explosion with more unexpected twists than a pole dancer with no bones.
Williams' firebrand style is paired up with Reznor's prolific creativity - the man has already put out four EPs this year in addition to this work, with a new album out in a week's time to boot - and no avenue is left unexplored.
From the off, the more traditional Saul Williams of Black History Month flows into Convict Colony, which could sit unnoticed on a Nine Inch Nail's album.
Then follows Public Enemy homage Tr(n)igger and a cover of U2's Sunday Bloody Sunday.
It's a lot to take in, especially with the challenging combination of William's aggressive flow and Reznor's bludgeoning backing, but it's worth every penny.
I think it was more of a success than a failure.
ReplyDeleteIn terms of promotion it might have been, but would his bank manager agree?
ReplyDeleteIf there's someone handing out free olives or something at the supermarket I'll always take one, but I don't necessarily go to the olives section and pay for them.