Radiohead: The Hypocritic Heroes

Radiohead are the champions of the indie rock music movement. They are heroes of their day. The group was applauded when they made their album "In Rainbows" available on user determined pay system. Users could pay any price they wanted. They could even download the entire album for free. The album was released independently and was meant to spit directly in the faces of the major record labels.

The independent artists and fans cheered at the decision of course. A case of amnesia had led all to forget that without the "evil" record labels, Radiohead would not exist at all. Without the floods of promotional dollars spent on Radiohead, they would still be in the basement or the garage. To make the hypocrisy even more entertaining, singer Thom Yorke has talked at length about the guilt he has when flying. You see, Thom doesn't like to tour or travel by plane because by doing so he is polluting the environment. What is that you say? Thom travelled thousands upon thousands of miles by plane while making tons of money in the early days of his career? Why didn't Thom's conscience kick in while he was building his fan base during the first 10+ years of his career? I suppose that when Thom needed the money, it was okay to pollute the environment. But, now it's a bad thing. Very bad.

To insult the very thing that made you what you are is hypocrisy at its worst. If Thom and Radiohead want to talk about the evils of the industry or environmental issues, please do so. But, how arrogant it is to discuss these issues without first coming out of your own glass house. Giving away an album for free and not using airplanes may be a solution for Thom Yorke and his mates, but how will these decisions and opinions help the lives of the average indie musician or environmentalist? They simply won't. An indie band can't even "give" their records away for free because if no one knows you exist, the record isn't even worth "free." The music is invisible. It has negative value. And sorry Thom, we can't all stay at home and spend our money. Some of us can't get paid if we don't travel. But, don't worry if your solutions and opinions are pointless and not thought through. You're still a hero. Just not mine.