eh, somebody might take him up on it since you can't quite download a foot massage. a volvo seems an unlikely target of internet piracy as well.

thats kinda awesome! if i liked his music, i would totally spend money to have him write a song about me (and i would get to perform with him!!). if britney offered this, i would hand over my savings account.

Oh!! I wonder if I got the $20,000 package, if I could play the cow bell?

Then I could have all the cowbell I want!!!!

I kind of like these ideas - hell $250 for lunch isn't a bad deal if you find the company interesting at all.

I remember reading something similar another artist did, if I am not mistaken, there was a tier where you got to sing on a song. I can see this making him some money.

Interesting... CNN had a story about Jill Sobule doing something similar. The music industry is certainly getting interesting.

[www.cnn.com]

I mean if the guy's THAT good (he might be) it might be worth the money. The $50 tier actually sounds like a pretty good value. I mean I've never purchased any creative work for $50 that included a 5 minute phone conversation with the artist himself.

If this was Jimmy Page's or Robert Plant's solo album you would see a me sized hole in the door as I sped to the bank to take out a loan for $20k

Seems to be working. Now all these people reading Consumerist are being exposed to his music via the free single.

Okay, I would LOVE to play minigolf with Devo.
This has gone past the point of sickening pleas for money/consumer whoreism and directly to awesome because it's just so frigging weird. It makes me wish I was a bigger fan of his. His solo stuff is like Aphex Twin Lite.

Interesting video clip. The most curious thing is where the lightning hits the girl resting in the water. hmmm.

@Radi0logy:
I don't know about that, but I'd certainly pay $250 to have lunch with either of them. Somehow I think lunch with Jimmy or Robert would fetch significantly higher than that, though.

@I_have_something_to_say:
If you're a fan of the music, certainly. I can see him selling a lot of the $50 & $250 packages.

HOLY SHIT MINI GOLF WITH JOSH, DEVO, AND MJK.... Man if only I had the money to drop on that alone I would be SOOOO there.

Christ I'd pay 1000 bucks just to be a fly on the wall for a meeting of the musical minds that interesting.

...and for a $50 pledge you get this lovely PBS coffee mug.

@crazyasianman: "A volvo seems an unlikely target of internet piracy" is this weeks best out-of-context quote.

@h3llc4t: +1 for mentioning Aphex Twin.

Salvador Dali did ads for Nestle candy bars. I think the surrealism of him doing that was intended to be art.

At a certain point, is your means of being a consumer whoreism art in itself?

That is friggin' great! I'm not a fan but if the Foo Fighters or Weezer did something like this, I'd start saving my pennies..

I think we may have just seen a glimpse of the future..

Josh just won the internets...for the next few years. I was almost in tears after reading all the packages.

This is awesome on many levels.

Do I sense a business opportunity? Create a digital/online system that schedules everything up, accepts payments, and keeps everyone's numbers confidential (maybe as simple as using a phone bridge?)-- match up B, C, even D-list actors, politicians, and musicians (probably through agents, if they still have one) with their fans for 5 minute chats. Maybe even have a bidding system for certain big names, hook it up with charities so some (or all, after cost) of the proceeds go to a charity if the celeb wants it to do so...

c'mon people, I want ideas out of the box here... help me out...

@savvy9999: I got ahead of myself-- this is all strictly about the unabated *genius* of selling/buying 5 minute chats with your idol.

Now THIS is how you run a music company/band. Instead of trying to sue people for downloading music, how about offering things along with the music that can't be pirated?

@I_have_something_to_say: I wonder if it's at any Cheesecake factory or if it has to be one close to wherever he lives.

@RStui: You would still need more cowbell. It always needs more cowbell.

omg! i wish i wasnt so broke hahaha im gonna get the 50$ package and talk about the weirdest shit with him and remix it hahaha

@ARP: Dali also designed the labels for Chupa Chups lollipops.

I don't know how much of that was "statement" so much as an artist needing to pay the bills. I know plenty of artists today who are incredibly clever & talented, and still have to do neuterific corporate work to get by. The lines they can feed people as excuses just don't sound as snappy and fresh as they did a few decades earlier.

Can you imagine if this caught on with the managers of "Teen Idol" Pop stars? o.o "Mommy I have to have the $45,000 package where I get to stay with Hannah Montana in the Princess Suite at the Castle in the Magic Kingdom, pleeaaaase."

Can we get Rush to do this? I'm up for a bike ride with Geddy and Neil. Sadly, Alex looks like he doesn't ride much.

@AshleyKeen: You mean Di$ney? I am sure the Gougeineers now have this idea in their heads.

That is awesome. Even if nobody takes him up on the more odd packages, this will increase awareness of his album. A lot. I wish I was wealthy enough for one of those middle packages.

But I am going to check out the $7 album.

I like how the $75k package involves illegal substances (shrooms).

@Saboth: You mean, like live performances?

This could be isolated weirdness, or the point at which we will look back later and see the beginnings of the "new" music industry. I think it's very cool what he's doing.

@I__have_something_to_say: I found the $250 package the most interesting, too, and if it were someone I really liked, I would pay in a heartbeat. Music heroes that you can not only meet, to have lunch with- That is pure 100% awesome.

I love an artist with a sense of humor.

@joshthephenom: And the thing she learned is that people WILL buy those expensive packages. Well, at least someone will. : )

It's unfortunate that an ostensibly indie musician thinks the best place to go for lunch is chain restaurants. That's a deal killer right there, even if he had managed to pick decent chain restaurants rather than those.

Why am I looking at my bank account and knowing that I could recover the emergency fund in a few months and still be able to play mini golf with them? Why am I thinking it's rational to get a 5 song EP about my life, which really doesn't have anything interesting in it?

A Volvo station wagon? Depending on the year and the make, I could totally go for that.

Wow, he's going to let up to 10 drunk people cut his hair? he's a braver man than I.

@MrEvil: He's definitely a great musician to see play live (saw him with NIN), and he's been a session drummer for pretty much every decent band out there. Haven't listened to much of his solo work, but it doesn't sound like a bad value at all.

@snazz: But Britney doesn't write her own songs.

This is a great idea, but as someone already pointed out, it's not completely original. In fact, one of my favourite folk artists just did something similar with his latest album, with a bit of a twist: instead of selling extravagant packages after completing the album, Richard Shindell sold pre-order packages to actually finance the album, with the promise that as soon as he had made enough money to cover his expenses, he would get right to work. I don't remember offhand what the packages were, but I know they included neat things like his recipe for risotto, t-shirts, one of his favourite guitars, recording a track with him, and I think I recall that the $30,000 package was "I will paint your entire house."

I think doing what Shindell did is a great way to let fans feel like they helped to make the album possible. I think doing what Freese is doing is a great way to maximize profits after the fact.

@Hank Scorpio: In a somewhat related note, I had a scare yesterday because I heard Led Zeppelin or Robert Plant 4 times in the same drive to work. I assumed he'd died and all the stations were having tributes.

Considering he just got done with NIN's Lights in The Sky Tour over America Summer/Fall and Over South America I'd say Trent had a little to do with this (Went to three shows my self amazing stuff). This covers the Giving Fans Something They Want = Success formula that Trent has fought so hard for. Unfortunately I do not have $75k or I would be chilling with Josh and Danny.

@Jim Topoleski: Amen! Me too. I love A Perfect Circle, NIN, etc. If I had the money I'd SO be there! Thow in MJK and I'd die of a heart attack right then and there.

OMG, artists being creative! I want to give this guy $50 just for the privilege of reading his site. ;) I bet he does well, and I hope other artists catch the drift -- it's a great way to please fans, and make good money where you can while still being good to the fans who don't have that kind of cash.

This is hilarious and fantastic. I love when artists do things like this. This way more creative than just trying to stop kids from downloading music. You can't download signed drumsticks or a personal phone call. People will fork over the money for stuff like that. Plus it's fun to hear about interesting and creative deals like this.

@StutiCebriones: I wouldn't exactly call the guy indy - not after playing with Devo, NIN and APC

When you cut his hair, will he allow you to keep it so you can say "I've got Josh Freese's hair, yes I do..."