My iTunes experience I mentioned below got me thinking, are there any other weirdly priced album where buying the individual tracks at 79p a pop is cheaper than the paying for the whole album in one go. Obviously this means starting by looking at albums with just one track on. I can actually only think of one that fits the bill off the top of my head - Tain by The Decemberists - 1 track of prog folk rock in a similar vain to Suppers Ready by Genesis. I great album which I already own, but I looked for it anyway. iTunes doesn't stock it, though they do have their 5 songs EP at a reasonable price.
So, onto albums with just a couple of tracks; the most likely candidates are going to be Post Rock artists such as Godspeed You! Black Emperor. No Godspeed, in fact very little in the way of Post Rock whatsoever, which is not really surprising as the genre is mainly catered for by independent Canadian labels which aren't exactly iTunes standard fare. I did spot that they have the brilliant 5 track album "The Earth Is Not A Cold Dead Place" by "Explosions in the Sky". Interesting one this, you can buy 4 of the tracks for 79p, but to get all 5 you have to buy the album for £7.99.
/mode Jeremy Clarkson ON
So, the Fiat Coupe. Some think the Chris Bangle/Pininfarina styling is ugly. Others balk at the high running costs. But if you actually own one, the chances are you think it's the best car....
in the world. [Cue shots of wheel spinning around a test track]. When you are behind the wheel, you don't so much feel like you are driving the car, you actually feel like you're restraining it. The car has no respect for you, to be honest it thinks you're a bit of a pussy. It's kind of like a petulant teenager that thinks it knows best and that you're just holding it back. The car is Anakin Skywalker and you are Obi Wan, trying to prevent it from straying to the darkside. And stray it does, for if you don't keep an eye on what it's up to, before you know it you will be doing the kind of speeds that will get you banned from driving in practically every country......
in the world. [Cue more screeching of tires and shots of the car sliding round corners].
/mode Jeremy Clarkson OFF
OK, I'll stop the Clarkson impression now, and just say that I'm very happy with my new car. It's great fun to drive. Was a bit upset to get home and find two inches of snow though. Not ideal weather conditions for testing it out, as was demonstrated by the car in front of me that hit a patch of snow and did a full 360 spin.