Radiohead and Atoms For Peace frontman Thom Yorke, a noted opponent of music streaming sites, is now streaming his discography on Apple Music.
Yorke famously dubbed such streaming services “the last desperate fart of a dying corpse”, in a colourful rant describing their relationship to the music industry.
But, as Stereogum now reports, Yorke’s catalogue, including both of his solo albums, Atoms For Peace’s Amok, and Radiohead’s In Rainbows are all available on the newly-launched Apple Music platform.
The move comes after Yorke very publicly removed his works from other streaming services, including Spotify, Rdio, and Deezer back in 2013. Discussing the decision, Yorke’s producer/collaborator Nigel Godrich said in at the time (via Stereogum):
“The reason is that new artists get paid fuck all with this model. It’s an equation that just doesn’t work. The music industry is being taken over by the back door and if we don’t try and make it fair for new music producers and artists then the art will suffer.”
Whether Apple’s streaming model will in fact be fairer for artists remains to be seen. While the company has agreed to compensate artists during their controversial three-month free trial period (pretty much exclusively thanks to Taylor Swift), from what we know so far, their payment model seems pretty much on par with Spotify’s.
And whatever Yorke’s motivation for backflipping and opening his legs heart to Apple, it’s good news for fans, who’ve been eagerly awaiting the opportunity to up their favourite playlist’s Yorke factor.
Watch: Atoms For Peace – Before Your Very Eyes
