So I don't know if you guys enjoy albums released with 15 variations, each with their own exclusive bonus tracks depending on where you bought it and increasing in price the more "special" the edition, anywhere near as much I do. I'm going to go ahead and guess "yes", because frankly, who doesn't appreciate the implication that you're supposed to buy all 15 versions of the album in order to have any chance of actually ending up with every track?
First off, there's the endearing practice that certain artists have of releasing an album, and then releasing it again shortly thereafter with a couple more new successful songs and calling it a collector's edition. You know, since they can't be bothered to wait until their next full album release to cash in on a couple new songs currently enjoying a brief stint in the Top 40, effectively screwing over all the real fans who bought the original on day 1 and expecting them to cough up the money for a nearly identical album all over again, just to make a quick buck.
Textbook example: Jessica Simpson's original release of
In This Skin with 11 tracks, and the subsequent
In This Skin: Collector's Edition released not even 7 months later with 3 extra tracks and footage of her failed marriage from Newlyweds. What a deal! I have to wonder what would push anyone to the masochistic act of purchasing this album even once, let alone twice, but apparently that's just what they expect you to do. You know, lots of artists go multiple years between major studio album
releases, and surprisingly enough, their popularity doesn't diminish
overnight. NIN took 6 long, painful years between The Fragile and With
Teeth. If a musical artist has any established fanbase whatsoever, don't you think
they could respect their biggest fans' loyalty and stop trying to make them re-buy the
same stuff in a new palette-swapped package?
Secondly, you have cases like Chevelle's 2007 album,
Vena Sera. The standard album comes with 11 tracks... but wait! If you pick up the
Limited Collector's Edition, the album comes with two exclusive bonus tracks. Cool, so just get the collector's edition and no problem, right? Psyche, the iTunes version of Vena Sera has a
different exclusive bonus track. And of course, the iTunes exclusive is "Album Only", so it is completely impossible to get all 14 Vena Sera tracks without buying the majority of the album twice. How quaint. Did it seriously occur to no one that some of us would like to have the option to purchase an "Actually Complete With All The Freaking Songs On It Edition"?
Thirdly, let's take a look at Depeche's Mode recently released new album, Sounds Of The Universe. All I can say is that you're going to have to take out a loan to purchase the OVER 9,000 versions of this offering if you want to have any chance of ending up with every song on the album. DM kicks off the fun by announcing three different basic versions on their
website: the standard 13-track edition, a CD+DVD Deluxe Edition with three bonus tracks, and a Deluxe Box Set Edition with the three bonus tracks from the CD+DVD, plus 22 additional bonus tracks. And you can have that Deluxe Box Set for a low, low price of...
$72.49 on Amazon. Wow. OK, that's a little steep (well, a LOT steep) but at least you know which one to get if you want the most complete version of SOTU, right? I mean, it's a Deluxe Box Set. Sounds pretty boxy. And deluxe. Oops, NOT RLY. Looks like iTunes is at it again, offering three MORE exclusive tracks on their iTunes Pass edition of SOTU. Album Only? You bet your sweet arse! That means that for a truly complete version of Sounds Of The Universe, you can expect to shell out no less than $72.49 for the "Deluxe" Box Set (deluxe, my foot) + $18.99 for the iTunes Pass edition = holy crap that's a lot of money for one album, which IMHO is not even all that magnificent. I mean, it's OK, but it's no Violator... it's not even a Playing The Angel. Sad times.
Oh, and speaking of quality deficiency, did I mention that "Ghost" and "Oh Well", two of arguably the strongest tracks on the album, are not on the album? Not if you buy the peon
Affordable Edition ($9.99) known as the standard 13-track disc, and not even if you buy the pricier
CD+DVD Marginally Better Edition ($16.99). You HAVE to buy the Almost-Deluxe Box Set for $NoFreakingWay dollars to get these tracks. Eff that noise. Seriously, what is the point of a two-disc deluxe edition when they can't even bother to put some of the best tracks on that ample second disc? How? WHY? Apparently the point is to make us completists utterly insane, and/or broke (or just resort to "alternate" methods of acquiring the elusive music... yarr, ye know what I be on about. Ahem).
You know, I have no problem supporting artists who actually do the kind thing (if not the most financially lucrative thing) and release one flipping edition of their album. And I don't mean emotional support via listing the band in my Music section on MySpace, spooning the album at night, etc. I mean with real live moneys. Perfect example -- NIN's most recent release, The Slip. You can download a high quality version of the entire album from its
website. For free. No catch, no nothing. Just awesome. In appreciation of the generosity of this gesture, I opted to go buy a physical copy anyway, because that's how it should work. Don't tempt us with googleplex versions of one album, each more expensive and riddled with exclusive tracks than the last, and still somehow manage between all those editions not to put all the songs on one ever-loving disc. Even with NIN's release of
Ghosts, which made my soul cry by being offered in four different editions (aside from the free preview download), at least contained the same 36 tracks, no matter what. If you wanted to pay extra for art books, Blu-Ray HD stereo versions of the album, and other goodies, then so be it, but none of the songs were locked away in the more expensive Ultra Mega Retarded Editions, teasing you from afar and playing hard to get. Which is a darn good thing, because NIN's discography contains numbered halos, for crying outloud. This kind of trend sets off my urge to obsessively collect like gangbusters.
Anyway, I'm not sure how to conclude this over-long rantfest, so let me just close by reiterating what's really important, which is that Jessica Simpson can't sing or dress herself, Depeche Mode is a completist's nightmare, and I need dinner. Later fools.