About 4 minutes ago I received an email in my inbox that said:

The time has come! Click the personalized link below to download
THE INEVITABLE RISE AND LIBERATION OF NIGGYTARDUST!

If you decide at any point you’d like to directly support the artist for this work and feel it’s worth what we’re asking, you can always click this button. It will also allow you to re-download the record at audiophile rates if desired.

To me this is an inevitable course on the distribution of music television and film.
I havent purchased a CD either online or in a music store in 6 years.

I either have the leisure of of knowing someone at the label or get an advance copy sent,etc.
Now that I have 2 record contracts in front of me for my music efforts, I’m beginning to look on the other side of the fence. I still feel like CD’s are only good for storing data.

I really don’t want to release our album on a dying format.

I learned about the Saul Williams project online, signed up, blogged about it and it just took 2 minutes to download the 116MB zip file.
It contained 17 files which included 15 songs, the album cover in jpg and a 33 page PDF of the linear notes which includes some great artwork.

No shrink wrap, no crazy sticker or taking the risk of snapping the CD case.
No trees were killed. No plastic to put in a landfill.
No throwing anything away, its just another folder on my computer.
Yet, I had the same experience of getting new music.

Years ago I took all 800+ CD collection and digitize them which resulted in something like 40GB, roughly 22,000 songs, most of the CD;s were scratched up anyway.

I don’t think I listen to 10% at one given time. I think it nice knowing that I have it all in one place.

It surprises me to see someone with a case for CD’s and shuffling through them and putting them in a CD player on the subway. (Not as shocking as the guy who had a cassette player)

We are all undergoing a cultural shift in how we access our content, the same way we don’t listen to vinyl or 8 tracks.
Speaking of 8 tracks, I remember circa 1978, when my father drove up in the brand new electric blue Cadillac, with all white leather interior.

I ran up look inside got a wiff of the new car smell and father told me to run inside the house and get him an 8 track from on top of the stereo in the living room.

I’m don’t remember who the artist was, but I remember when I sunk into the passenger seat and handed my father the tape. He stuck it in and pressed play and a switch went off in my head that something that seem to be restricted to only being listened to in our house was being played in our car as we drove to Mc’Donalds and realized almost anything was possible.
It’s the same thing now, I’m dragging this album from one folder and dragging to my mp3 player while typing this blog, pressing play…

…this is the inevitable rise of digital distribution