Record Store Day: Blur single released as a download

Record Store Day was another massive success on its own terms yesterday, although how far bringing in the sort of people who should be shopping in record stores is a victory is up for debate. There's a bit of a feel that RSD is starting to skew towards the collector and the obscurantist (or at least the hipster) which makes it feel one part 'preaching to the converted' to one part 'giving the impression that record shops really are all like that one in High Fidelity and if you're not interested in short-run 7" vinyl releases or having scorn thrown on your tastes by a bloke behind the counter in a No Sell t-shirt you probably should steer clear'.

One of the few events which might have tempted people less comfortable in record shops over the threshold, the exclusive limited Blur single, has now been slightly undermined by Blur putting the track up for free online the next day:

Blur’s manager Chris Morrison has said it is important that the song was made available to fans legally. "To avoid fans having to illegally obtain an inferior copy of this track from pirate sites – we have made it freely available through the band’s website".

Fair enough, it's a nice move for the fans. But - given they would have been able to get it for free anyway, albeit without the band's blessing - isn't this effectively saying "see? there was no need to schlep down to the shop and buy the thing, as it's been released, with our blessing, digitally, almost simultaneously. Who but a chump would go and buy plastic circles?"