while i agree with you that the advantage of communication is 2.0’s great offering, i must disagree with the premise that 2.0 communication is best used by the musician’s ability to respond and adjust to fan reaction. i wonder about the success rates of musicians, no, let’s go broader, of artists developing material across any medium based on the desires and inklings of mass audiences. consider any piece of your favorite fine art, literature, film, or (yes) music and ask yourself if having instant feedback and opinion would have helped or hindered the result you have come to appreciate.

you raise important points about time-saving and time-wasting, but i would argue that the anticipation of what’s to come is an essential part of the joy of modern music. i also believe that the “feedback and feedbag” model you’re advocating would create overexposure, quickly wear out a band’s welcome, and make an attempt to democratize the creative process in an environment in which having a distinct point of view, sound, style, and a healthy dose of experimentation and growth are critical. i continue to fail to see where in your argument you consider the actual artistry of the musician.

I love the Radiohead album, but I rarely listen to more than 3-4 select song off the album which are usually mixed in to a larger playlist.

If Rahiohead released an EP every 4 months with 2-3 new songs and perhaps a remix or video attached as well, I would be paying those guys $2-3 every 4 months like clockwork. That’s far better than the one time $6 I gave them back in October that has to last them until their next album in perhaps 2009.

The main holdback I see in advising any artist to release an entire album is that if that album doesn’t connect with fans then the band has wasted 1-2 years of market time. The album sales fall, the tour falters, and fans disconnect thinking the artists best days are behind them. If instead they are releasing new material on a regular basis, they can keep a dialog going with their fans. If a certain EP doesn’t connect, they instantly know and can change direction for the next release in 3-4 months time.

Communication is obviously one of the keys to business these days and if you only artistically communicate with your fans every 1-2 years in one big spurt, then you are missing the whole advantage of web 2.0. EP’s seem like the easiest route for a more regular communication, but if your band can crank out more material then go for it.

Would Radiohead’s pay-what-you-want release have worked as well if it was a single or an EP instead of an album? I don’t think so – it would not have seemed significant enough.

In any case, does Smashing Pumpkins even have fans under the age of 24?

1. singles will sell if they are good. if there are 10 great songs on an album, they will all sell. if there are 0, none will. the same holds true for an EP or a single. if the music is good, people will want it.

2. deciding that fans don’t have the attention span for a full length album is the exact mentality that will create a society in which that is true. it would be like HBO creating commercials rather than television programming, or a playwright writing a sketch.

3. the most lauded bands on the market today are still heralded for their albums, not a great single. it is the difference between Flo Rida, who will (IMHO) not be heard of this time next year and Vampire Weekend, whose sophomore album will be highly anticipated.

ok. too much written here. it’s supposed to be a comment, not an entry. my bad.

-jG

I agree with Ryan…it’s not like you have to have it one way…i just personally feel a larger scope of work speaks louder than a catchy single or EP.

sPb

I think the point of this is not “abandonment of the album”…but rather that fans could very well end up with an increased frequency of exposure to their favorite bands (through, say, quarterly EPs) promoting longer relevancy for the bands and (perhaps) a deeper interaction with each released recording.

I actually think in edition to the EP format bands should release singles with a “B” side.

At any rate, bravo to SP