When British rock band Radiohead announced Live from a Moon Shaped Pool, a special international event to celebrate the physical release of their ninth studio album, fans were excited.
It helped that little information regarding the event was shared beforehand (even, apparently, with the record stores that were involved, who seem only to have received an e-mail asking if they wanted to be involved in a launch party). As such, it was shrouded in as much mystery as the album itself: in the days and weeks leading up to the release of A Moon Shaped Pool, Radiohead did not take part in interviews or any other kind of publicity junket, and actually removed all content from their website and social media profiles, replacing it with blank images.
This wasn’t the first time the band had departed from industry norms either. In 2007, they released In Rainbows as a download, allowing listeners to pay whatever they thought the album was worth, even if it that meant they downloaded it for free. It was the first time a major act had implemented the pay-what-you-want model, and it worked. Not only was it considered “the most important releases in the recent history of the music business” by Time, it actually directly led to increased physical album sales, with In Rainbows being the best-selling vinyl record of 2008.
Both albums were met with acclaim upon release, proving that the band – now 30 years old – still had great tunes to go along with its clever ideas.
I walked into my local record store at midday, just as the event was about to start. Initially, I was surprised by just how few people were in attendance for the beginning, which would apparently feature two hours of live tracks from the band’s recent shows at Roundhouse in London, personally selected by lead guitarist Jonny Greenwood.
After some confusion, the show kicked off a few minutes late. There was no intro, no special message to those who had come out for the launch, but the uniqueness of the event made it seem like that didn’t matter to everyone in attendance.
Except for me. I’d let the enigmatic nature of the launch get to me, and I expected so much more, even if it was some footage of the band, or a few posters on the wall.
Eventually, I got into the spirit of the event, and found myself really enjoying the songs. I am a Radiohead fan, but it was my first time listening to the new album, and being in a room with other fans at the time really allowed me to enjoy it more.
In the first interview since A Moon Shaped Pool‘s release, Greenwood talked about “happy time” the band was having getting to perform together, and that really comes through in the performance.
Sure, Live from a Moon Shaped Pool wasn’t everything I hoped it would be, but it is still a fantastic way to both celebrate the band and entice fans into record stores that they might otherwise only visit once a year for Record Store Day.
I personally left with a copy of A Moon Shaped Pool and an album from an entirely different band, so it’s fair to say the event left everyone a winner.
Live from a Moon Shaped Pool launch parties are currently being held all around the world. To find out which stores in your city/country are participating, visit the official event site.