Saul Williams wants you to have his new album. For free. Or for five dollars. Your choice.
The album, entitled The Inevitable Rise and Liberation of NiggyTardust!, is produced by Trent Reznor (Nine Inch Nails) and mixed by Alan Moulder (Smashing Pumpkins). As this is Saul’s first official release since his self-titled second album, I’ve nothing but the best of expectations. With any luck, he’ll tour this album — actually, he will have to tour — and possibly return to Atlanta.
So why offer it for free?
“The ballot or the bullet for Mohawk or the mullet is a choice between new times and dying days. And the only way to choose is to jump ship from old truths and trust dolphins as we swim through changing ways. The ways of middlemen proves to be just a passing trend. We need no priests to talk to God. No phone to call her.”*
An intercessory analogy. Nice. Of course, the proof is in the predecessor and the producer. Shortly after Radiohead made their initial announcement about In Rainbows, Trent Reznor went on record to say that his next Nine Inch Nails release would be offered in much the same way. It stands to reason that Saul Williams is simply picking up the same banner and marching forward.
What’s the difference between free and five dollars? Pick the free option and you’ll be greeted electronically on the morning of November 1 with a link to download a ZIP’d pack of mp3s encoded at 192kbps. However, if you fork over the fiver, you’re given the choice between receiving a ZIP’d pack of mp3s encoded at 320kbps, or another pack of lossless, album-quality FLAC files.
So there you have it. And even if you’ve never heard Saul’s work before, you know you’re tempted. Do it.
More convincing evidence …
- Saul Williams – “Coded Language” (Live @ University of Colorado in Boulder)
- Saul Williams – “List Of Demands” (Original Music Video)
- Saul Williams & Nine Inch Nails – “List Of Demands” (Live Voodoo Festival 2005)
- Saul Williams – “The Pledge Of Resistance (Not In Our Name)”