RADIOHEAD MAKES BIG SPLASH WITH POOL; SPOTIFY LEFT OUT AGAIN

Radiohead's A Moon Shaped Pool became available Sunday via XL Recordings at 11am PDT on iTunes, Amazon and Radiohead.com/deadairspace (which offers several configurations of the album). In a break from the band’s previous stance, it's also streaming on Apple Music and Tidal, but not on Spotify, which has been singled out by Thom Yorke for what he's alleged is underpayment to artists.

Spotify is, however, streaming "Burn the Witch" and "Daydreaming," the two pre-released tracks from the new album.

Spotify, the clear-cut leader in streaming subscribers with a reported 30m worldwide, is under pressure from Apple Music, which has amassed 13m subs in less than a year. Spotify has thus far refused to put any albums behind its paywall, which has created windowing and exclusive opportunities for its competitors. With Beyoncé, Drake and now Radiohead holding back their latest albums, wonderers are wondering whether Spotify is feeling the pressure.

According to insiders, the decision to release Pool on Sunday wasn’t made until Friday, when the principals determined the reaction to “Burn the Witch” and “Daydreaming” was so strong that they wanted to seize the moment. The physical version will arrive as soon as it can be manufactured—probably mid-June. The band and the label wanted to take care of terrestrial retail, which has been extremely good to Radiohead over the years.