Indie label allows music critics to determine its pricing structure

December 8, 2008 11:52 a.m. by Nick Neyland

It’s tough work running an indie label, or any kind of label, in these cash-strapped times. Sales of CDs are falling dramatically, albums are constantly leaking online, and the recession is undoubtedly making people think twice before splashing out on an album. With this in mind, indie label Asthmatic Kitty has decided to unveil a dramatic new pricing structure, which is partly based on Radiohead’s model for In Rainbows.

The first album subjected to Asthmatic Kitty’s unique experiment is Ropechain by Grampall Jookabox, which will sell for a meager $5.40 during its first 54 hours of sale. The label has determined this figure by consulting Pitchfork’s review of Ropechain, which gave the album a score of 5.4, and adjusting the cost accordingly. Yes folks, we have now entered an era where critics are determining how much money you will lay out for an album.

"Pitchfork's ten point scoring system, along with their infamous one decimal point makes them the ideal choice for a dry run with this experimental pricing structure. It just makes dollars and sense," said Asthmatic Kitty A&R man Michael Kaufmann. The band has even made a video to reflect this unique pricing structure (see below). If the idea catches on, music fans will presumably start hoping their favorite albums get panned in the media. Meanwhile, critics who offer consistently high scores may face accusations of bribery from labels who are looking to make a fast buck. I would just like to clarify that I am open to all bribes and corruption, and am happy to award the new Jack Johnson album a 10.0 score if his label is willing to pay me off.

7 Responses

December 8, 2008 at 12:36 p.m.

margaritaland

Hmmm.. I don't know about this. At first glance it might sound like an interesting test, but in the long run it would fail. A lot of so called "music critics" are just sub par writers that think that the use of clever words will fool the reader into believing that the review expresses an educated opinion. Obviously not all of them are so irresponsible, but what if the hard work of a band falls into the hands of a not so good critic?

December 8, 2008 at 1:22 p.m.

EStan

It's too bad they didn't do this with Pitchfork's review of British Sea Power. They could have bankrupted Bono.

December 8, 2008 at 4:26 p.m.

christian

i dont think theyre trying to revolutionize anything. i think they are trying to be funny, and it works. i dont think its supposed to be "an interesting test." its self depracating humor. i think..

December 8, 2008 at 5:15 p.m.

margaritaland

i don't think they are trying to be funny, after all record companies are businesses not comedy troupes. that is probably a publicity stunt.

December 8, 2008 at 5:19 p.m.

brandon

What will it sell for after the first 54 hours?

December 8, 2008 at 5:43 p.m.

nick

It will be $10 after the first 54 hours. From the Asthmatic Kitty site: "Instead of selling Ropechain for our standard $10, or letting consumers pick their own price, we have let Pitchfork determine the price."

December 9, 2008 at 9:57 a.m.

encosion

That's too much responsibility for the notorious ego-centric Pitchfork reviewers IMO! Some of my favorite albums has been heavily slated by an individual PM reviewer - great for my wallet (due to my seemingly anti-PM musical taste buds) but not exactly fair... Couldn't they have used metacritic or some other sort of crowd sourced reviews? Heheh!