Money, (woo woo!)

What to begin with? Well, there's always the popular topic of Radiohead, who after releasing In Rainbows to the world have been in the public eye more than the government, which I guess for them must be some small victory, but I think at this point the majority of people have grown fed up with the bombardement, so I'm going to avoid that metaphorical elephant.

Instead, I'm going to take a look at another musical giant, Pink Floyd, a band that have been in my ears for a very long time. Having a father who's Pink Floyd collection consists of every studio album and every bootleg, every live show and released single, often multiple times over, there's a certain inevitability that I have a great deal of respect for these now aging rockers (that and no decent christmas presents for years because the old man spends all his money on rare Japanese versions of the 'Dark Side of the Moon'). However, having been disbanded so long, I can't help but laugh when I found out yet another box is about to be released by publisher EMI. As if the overelaborate opulence of 'Shine On' wasn't quite extravagant enough (or perhaps didn't rake in enough money) or the re-release of the first album 'Piper at the Gates of Dawn' to coincide with the much publicised death of original vocalist Syd Barret didn't sell quite well enough, the cash cow is being raped once again for evey last penny out of its worn, tired udders. So, for around a mere £149.99 you too can be the owner of every Pink Floyd album. Probably again.

Oh, you also get an awesome couple of posters. That's totally worth the money. They're collectable!

It baffles me. It really does. Here we are, just about near the end of 2007, where the music industry is fighting a war against music piracy and rapidly declining record sales and here, the big wigs at EMI, such as Guy Hands (who was absolutely lambasted by Thom Yorke in this months interview with the Observer Music Monthly) have decided the best way to combat these problems is to re-release the same old shit, with a different packet for a quick buck.

Time will tell when the recording industries wake up and smell the ashes of a failing market tactic. Downloads are (unfortunately) getting more and more popular among casual music listeners and piracy will never be stopped. It's been no secret that Radiohead's recent experiment has proven that there is another way of thinking within the industry. Next year is sure to be the year we see massive changes in how the business works. I look forward to seeing it crumble.