Radiohead frontman Thom Yorke has released a surprise solo album on the internet, selling it directly to fans through file-sharing technology BitTorrent.
"I am trying something new, don't know how it will go. but here it is :)" Yorke wrote on Twitter, including a link to the webpage.
It is Yorke's first solo album since 2006.
BitTorrent, a peer-to-peer mechanism for sending large amounts of data over the internet, has long been associated with the pirating of films and music.
"If it works well it could be an effective way of handing some control of internet commerce back to people who are creating the work," said Yorke and his producer Nigel Godrich in a statement.
"Enabling those people who make either music, video or any other kind of digital content to sell it themselves. Bypassing the self elected gate-keepers."
Four tracks can be downloaded free, while an eight-track album, Tomorrow's Modern Boxes, costs $US6 ($A6.49). Fans can also purchase a vinyl version for STG30 ($A54.76) through a separate website.
The artist has pioneered new sales techniques in the past, releasing 2007 Radiohead album In Rainbows online, inviting fans to pay what they wanted or to download it free.
The launch comes two weeks after rock band U2 released their Songs of Innocence album free to over 500 million Apple iTunes users during the launch event of the new iPhone 6.
