Death electro band Goteki have announced that they have released their entire back catalogue (excluding current Rebco Records album 'Santa Muerte') for free via the band's official website.
Dominion caught up with Goteki mastermind Ross Tregenza to find out why he decided on such a bold step and to get his thoughts on the free music model in general.

Dominion: What led to the decision to release your back catalogue for free?

Ross Tregenza: "It's been a long time coming, and certainly feels like the right decision. I've been reading a lot of articles and case studies and it's clearly a strong new option for bands. I remember reading an interview with Rob Zombie when I was a teenager where he said 'anybody that starts a band to make money is a f**king idiot', and he's right. I do it for the pleasure of doing it so I have no qualms about giving stuff away.
"Also, more than 50% of our fanbase is made up of Americans, Russians and Japanese and people find it hard get our CDs outside of the UK. Add to that the fact our first few albums are out of print, and you have fans that simply don't have access to our music, so this is a chance to give people who want to listen to our music the chance to do it!"

Dominion: Is this an indication that some or all of Goteki's future releases will be free?

Ross Tregenza: "We haven't completely decided about the full albums as we want to make sure they get the most attention, but certainly all remix albums, concept EPs, singles etc will all be free from now on.
"The other part of our new plan is to make all physical product as awesome and desirable as possible, so with each album we'll release limited edition CDs with a load of extras, art books, box sets, anything cool we can think of."

Dominion: What is your opinion on the free music model's impact on the music industry?

Ross Tregenza: "I think if a lot of bands took it up, it'd be another great move towards equality for underground acts. Obviously, the music industry is a very intricate system and I don't think it'd be a huge impact on it generally. Niche bands like Goteki with a very focused fanbase are never gonna make them a lot of money anyway. If Rihanna decides to give her music away for free, that might be more of a problem!"

Dominion: Could it be a more effective business model for underground bands?

Ross Tregenza: "I certainly think so. You have to think about what makes up a band's audience. About 80% of a fanbase will be very casual - maybe having a bit of the music, and coming to a couple gigs, and then 20% hardcore who will buy everything and follow the band anywhere. The free music model works well for both of these. Casual fans can download all the music without any financial outset, then you can release cool box sets etc for hardcore fans who want a really nice product. This way everyone's happy, but you've got the music to hugely wider audience."

Dominion: Do you think that releasing music for free is something more bands in the goth/industrial scene will embrace?

Ross Tregenza: "I don't see why not. Stockists and distribution channels have always been a problem for goth/industrial artists so this completely negates the need for them. Bands need to learn the main battle is getting your music on to peoples laptops and iPods, if you're music's any good then it'll sell itself at that point. If people still don't like your tunes then you have bigger problems."

Dominion: What is next in the pipline for Goteki?

Ross Tregenza: "We're working on a few last releases to tie in with our 'Santa Muerte' album. Primarily a remix album called 'Disco Muerte' which is about half done - we already have some awesome crazy mixes by big names from the industrial & electro scenes (Ultraviolence and Beaumont being my two favourites so far), and I also have a crazy extreme remix concept album called 'Dead City Radio' with bizarre mixes - stuff like extreme time stretched sections of songs, orchestral versions that kinda thing. Both of those releases will be free too. Then it's time to start thinking of the next album! I have a concept and a few demos, and I've settled on a name, but that's for me to know and you to find out!"

Dominion: Anything you'd like to add?

Ross Tregenza: "Thanks to Dominion for taking an interest in our scary decision. If people want to get hold of our back catalogue, just visit goteki.co.uk and get downloading. Help us out by sharing it with everyone you know. Let's jail break music!"

Goteki's free albums include 'Fight The Saucer Men', 'O/S', 'Revolution', 'The Summer Of Santa Muerte' and 'Stolen Thunder 1' as well as the Jetstream Lovers album 'Voodoo Nature'. All of which can be downloaded directly from the band's website HERE.