Saul Williams + Trent Reznor = Internet Revolution

Sure sure, everyone has been talking about Radiohead's pay-as-you-like internet experiment In Rainbows. And yeah, it's done fine for the band, giving them the type of bleeding-edge cred I think their music entirely lacks. But that's just me. Anyone objectively judging their marketing maneuver, as well as similar moves from Prince and Madonna, must admit one major point: Radiohead is massive. Huge. They could fart into Garageband and some fan would plop down mad bucks for it.

But Saul Williams is no such heavyweight in the music game, which is not to say he's not been productive. Check my past interviews with the righteous culture poet below for more on that score. By taking the museum pricing route -- free, or a $5 artist donation if you can spare it -- on his latest musical effort The Inevitable Rise and Liberation of NiggyTardust, he's put his ass on the line for his art. And yeah, I'll admit that having Nine Inch Nails' frontman Trent Reznor helming the production will go a long way to generating buzz for Williams, but the two together still don't carry the cultural clout that Radiohead does. It's bravery, in a world filled with cowards.

For those seeking background on Williams, here is a blast of Morphizm materials showing off his skills and sight. Those who are already familiar with him know that he's an electric performer. Now the whole world will get to see just how electric he can be.

"We Have To Get Beyond Our Pain": An Interview With Saul Williams
[Scott Thill, Morphizm]
"Nothing has to be done. It's a matter of being, not a matter of doing. And it's happening right now. Nothing needs to be done. Everything that's being done -- whether it's killing some people, raping some land, putting on some MTV, numbing the consciousness -- is exactly what's going to make people wake the fuck up and start doing it"... MORE @ MORPHIZM

Streetwise Shakespeare
[Scott Thill, AlterNet]
"The general point is that people determine their reality, the kind of world they want to live in. Nothing needs to be kept 'real,' as I see it. If we keep finding ways, whether by song or action, to perpetuate our fucked-up reality, then it becomes even more real. We're adding to it. We should understand that rather than keeping an oppressive reality alive, we should be trying to make it unreal. We did that with slavery – we agreed that, as reality, it was too devastating. So we made it unreal, we changed it, and nowadays we can barely imagine what it was like. I certainly myself can't imagine what it truly was like to be a slave. So if we can do it with slavery, we can do it with anything"... MORE @ ALTERNET

Open Letter to Oprah
[Saul Williams, Morphizm]
"You see, Ms. Winfrey, at it's worst, hip-hop is simply a reflection of the society that birthed it. Our love affair with gangsterism and the denigration of women is not rooted in hip-hop; rather it is rooted in the very core of our personal faith and religions. The gangsters that rule hip-hop are the same gangsters that rule our nation. 50 Cent and George Bush have the same birthday (July 6th)"... MORE @ MORPHIZM