Trent Reznor: Musician, and admitted music pirate
By Sean P. Aune
As musicians flock to leave their record labels, there has been no more out-spoken critic of the industry then Nine Inch Nails frontman, Trent Reznor. Now, not is he critical of them, he has admitted to illegal downloading himself.
When OiNK, a popular BitTorrent tracker site, was shut down last week, many fans of the service were saddened. The surprising part was that one of those saddened folks was Trent Reznor of the popular band, Nine Inch Nails.
While being interviewed by The Vulture, Mr. Reznor was asked what he thought about OiNK being shut down. "I’ll admit I had an account there and frequented it quite often." He also went on to say, "I’m not saying that I think OiNK is morally correct, but I do know that it existed because it filled a void of what people want."
Mr. Reznor is never one to shy away from controversy and caused quite a stir in October when he announced he was leaving their label. But to admit to out-and-out piracy is a new step in the direction for musicians in the increasingly bloody war that is shaping up between performers and the record labels. When asked how long he felt it would be before the record labels went out of business, he did not paint a rosy picture for them, saying "…that infrastructure is broken at the moment. How long before [record companies] are irrelevant? Who knows? They seem to be doing everything they can to make sure that happens as quickly as possible."
All of this interview was conducted as Mr. Reznor was helping to promote the next album of Saul Williams, which he produced. During the production process they had discussed giving the album away for free, and once Radiohead did it with In Rainbows, they decided they will too. The album, The Inevitable Rise And Libertation Of Niggy Tardust, will be available via the web next week for free, or a $5 donation.
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