Industrial progressive rock band Nine Inch Nails' most recent album The Slip will be available in physical formats on July 22, Billboard reported Wednesday. First reported on May 5, the album is the band's third album in a little over a year and the second since leaving music company Universal Music Group. Unlike other physical releases though, a CD version will be limited to 200,000 copies in the United States, Canada and Japan, while a later vinyl version will be unlimited. Band leader Trent Reznor also told Billboard the album "will remain free to download 'indefinitely' from the band's site."

The availability of a vinyl copy of The Slip versus that of the CD version mirrors similar sentiments that I commented about yesterday. Music company EMI packaged the vinyl version of Coldplay's Viva la Vida or Death and All His Friends with a CD version, indicating that despite vinyl's allure, the industry is aware that listeners want versions that can be transferred to portable devices.

NIN leader Trent Reznor was obviously aware of this desire from his fans, since the album will feature an unlimited release for the vinyl version. It could also indicate his own preference, which would not be surprising. Either way, when The Slip is released physically, consumers and listeners will still have the option to download the album for free if they decide to buy a physical copy, whether it's the limited CD or the unlimited vinyl. Numerous formats may seem tedious, but if the experience is part of the joy of listening to music then it is being accommodated.

The marketing and release of digital-only albums before a physical copy is available received another significant boost this week when the instrumental Nine Inch Nails album Ghosts I-IV brought in $1.6 million in revenue in its first week. Billboard reported the news, and indicated that the revenue comes from around 800,000 transactions, which includes free and paid downloads and pre-orders for the physical album to be released next month.

Unfortunately, sales figure to compare to "traditional" releases will not be made available to the band; similar in style to the road Radiohead took last fall when the band pioneered this style of release with seventh album In Rainbows.

Nine Inch Nails had eschewed the record label method of releasing albums after numerous problems arose with the band's previous album Year Zero last year. Much of the strife between band leader Trent Reznor and label Interscope Records, a part of the Universal Music Group, revolved around exorbitant prices for the album in international markets. Reznor deplored the pricing in places like Australia and China where fans were expected to pay the equivalent of $30 for the CD, which sold in the United States for around a third of that price.

The new album was released via the Nine Inch Nails website and utilized the same methods Radiohead had used back in October, albeit with higher bit-rate files. Now that two prominent bands have chosen this route to distribute their new music, perhaps this trend will catch on. Additionally, since it has been released, the album has also been added to Amazon.com, Inc. (NASDAQ: AMZN)'s MP3 Store.

Over the weekend, Trent Reznor -- the brains behind Nine Inch Nails -- released his latest creation, Ghosts I-IV, over the internet. The first nine songs of the 36-song album (nearly 150 minutes in length) are available for free, and there are a number of other options for those willing to pay for the latest from the Pretty Hate Machine artist. For $5, for example, you can download the full album, which comes with a 40-page PDF and "digital extras."

There are other purchase options as well, the highest-tier of which is a $300 "Ultra-Deluxe Limited Edition Package," which includes: high-quality downloads, two CDs, a data DVD, a Blu-ray high-definition DVD, and assorted extras. And? It's signed by Mr. Reznor himself. Available to the first 2,500 buyers only, the $300 package sold out in two days. This represents a gross of three quarters of a million dollars in just 48 hours, and that doesn't even account for the other, more affordable packages that fans have likely snatched up.

This was Reznor's second foray into the cyber-release of his music. Last November 1, he posted a collaboration album with Saul Williams for free on the Internet. Those desiring a higher-quality format could donate $5.

Beth Gaston Moon is an analyst at Schaeffer's Investment Research.

Nine Inch Nails front man Trent Reznor is taking his own dislike of the record industry and the new standard by Radiohead to the next level by releasing a collaboration album with Saul Williams for free on the internet, according to NME. The album, The Inevitable Rise and Liberation of Niggy Tardust, will be released on a special site for the album on November 1 and cost fans zilch. Billboard notes that a $5 donation for the album will be optional, but allows the consumer to get a "higher quality digital format" while either purchase will be free of Digital Rights Management technology.

The impact of this album may not be as influential or large as the Radiohead release a couple of weeks ago, but the effects are clearly starting to ripple through the music industry. Reznor states on the Nine Inch Nails website that the goal was to "improve upon [Radiohead's] idea" and "benefit the consumer," which is obvious from the obvious free choice. Reznor is also careful to mention that their situation is different from Radiohead's because "Saul Williams is not a household name" and they need fan support.

In the new era of digital music that is dawning, fan and consumer support will obviously be vital. If artists are willing to keep album prices down, then the success of this "revolution" will be insured. Unfortunately, it looks like no matter how many large acts get involved the work will be for the less known artists to make the new model work. In the end, the novelty of such moves will wear off, but if the labels can find a middle ground, the fans may embrace that method as well.

A week after English band Radiohead opened the shop for its self-released seventh album In Rainbows, Billboard reported yesterday that the band Nine Inch Nails is now celebrating status as a "free agent" as well. Since May, Trent Reznor, the band's front man, has been in a very open dispute about album pricing with Interscope Records, a division of Universal Music Group. Last month, that dispute flared up with Reznor telling fans in Australia and China to steal the album versus paying the high costs to obtain a copy.

According to Billboard, Reznor is very happy "to finally have a direct relationship with the audience as I see fit and appropriate." This is similar to the situation Radiohead has presented to fans, allowing them to set their own price to download In Rainbows. A physical "discbox" sells at a set price around $82, but that physical set comes filled with much more than the standard album. Reznor had questioned the label for charging fans in Australia and China higher prices than in the United States and other regions. The Radiohead price is one set by the band, not the label. The question of high prices still remains though.

Unfortunately, while both of these cases present fans and listeners with improved "relations" it comes from artists that have achieved success and enjoy large and faithful fan bases. What happens to new artists that emerge and find a record industry unwilling to allow them to learn from these informative examples? Will the record industry allow an artist to build a fan base while maintaining the autonomy they wish? Will they be embraced by a record industry open to new ideas, or one that finds new ways to cash in - like taking shares of touring profits, for one?

Billboard reports today that Nine Inch Nails frontman Trent Reznor has urged Australian and Chinese fans to steal his music, due to the high cost of obtaining the band's newest album in those regions. Apparently, the Year Zero album costs the equivalent of $30 in Australia. Reznor urges fans to buy internet downloads and simply share them among friends.

This is not the first report about the feelings Reznor has had about his record label, Universal Music Group, and the pricing of Year Zero in Australia, but it is the first instance of the artist urging fans to illegally obtain the album. Incidentally, Reznor is not the first artist to advocate the piracy of music. Undoubtedly, Universal is unhappy about the situation, but Billboard does not offer any counterpoint. Late last month, Universal and NBC pulled their television shows from Apple's (NASDAQ: AAPL) iTunes Store because negotiations about pricing fell through. Universal Music's negotiations with iTunes fell apart in July, without the renewal of a one-year contract and the introduction of ad hoc availability for UMG music.

The Reznor/NIN situation highlights that the perceptions that record labels can successfully dictate prices are entirely accurate. The key word is successfully there, so keep that in mind, because Reznor may be an isolated case, but you can be sure that he is not. At the same time that Universal is struggling to control prices, iTunes apparent low prices are coming under attack by new digital stores like the one from Wal-Mart (NYSE: WMT), which beats iTunes by about $.11 on single track downloads. Just imagine what might happen when the new Amazon.com (NASDAQ: AMZN) digital store becomes operational later in the year...