HOW TO LISTEN TO ‘AN ATOMIC BOMB’: Although the eagerly awaited new U2 album “How to Dismantle an Atomic Bomb” (Interscope) won’t be released until Nov. 23, tracks from the set have reportedly leaked online via peer-to-peer file-trading networks.
For those who don’t frequent such illicit web services but still can’t wait to hear the new record, MTV.com and VH1.com have your answer. The music channel sites will stream the entire album for free starting Nov. 16.
Listeners who tune in via either site for the stream — as well as photos, band news and a video stream of first single “Vertigo” — will also be given the option to pre-order the album and have it delivered on its street date.
PIXIES LIVE AND ON YOUR DESKTOP: Following in the footsteps of Pearl Jam, Phish and others, reunited seminal modern rock act the Pixies have made a strong effort to provide fans with the option to buy live recordings of each show on their much-heralded 2004 reunion tour.
The first spring legs of the concerts were made available as limited edition CD sets via DiscLive. The live-recording purveyor is also handling discs for the end-of-year leg of the group’s tour, starting with the Nov. 9 performance in Milwaukee.
But for those who want a more digital experience, the band is also now selling its concert recordings as downloads through Musictoday. The Pixies Digital Download Store has 17 entire shows currently available for paid download, with more to come.
HIS NAME IS DREEM: Michigan indie mainstay His Name Is Alive recently released “The Cloud Box,” a 10-CD set of previously unreleased material, in an extremely limited edition, and all 50 copies are already sold out. But to appease any fans out there who didn’t get the chance to buy the big box, one of its discs is now being offered for download via the band’s official Web site.
“Dreem Up” is a “lost” HNIA album of cover songs, according to the site, recorded in 1994-95 by band mastermind Warn Defever and vocalist Karin Oliver. The 11-song set is on sale for $10. In addition, the site’s download page is offering a free MP3 of the rare track “Livonia” for a limited time.
