Radiohead goes straight to the people

There's a bold new shot across the digital bow from Radiohead today.

One of the major holdouts from the iTunes revolution, they quietly crafted an answer in the form of a surprise new album due out later this month.

Seeing as they're not signed to a record label these days, they've decided to skip the middle man, and sell direct to their fans on their website. So, in addition to the super deluxe version that includes LPs and CD's, there's a stripped down version going out the mp3 route.

There's a fan-friendly catch: You decide how much the mp3s are worth to you. The cost, as they insist, is up to you.

This version of the free lunch obviously depends on loyal fans who will still pay big bucks to see them tour around and buy the inevitable overpriced t-shirts. It's still as close to free as you desire (as long as you're willing to give them a bunch of ways to reach you).