It is best to consume "Greendale", Neil Young's newest work, by treating it as a hybrid between a printed work and a book-on-tape -- to read it as one reads a novel. Mr. Young really has done something new, rendering into this combination of print and audio a novel that is surprisingly sophisticated and satisfyingly complete. ... the fusion of news and entertainment media has completely eaten up everything we used to think of as concrete reality. With the multidimensional twists that bind his music to his narrative, he's stitched the novel into a whole new set of clothes. I thought, "Cool!" when I read the title of this article, because I recall having discussions along these lines back in college. Kudos to Neil Young for being innovative. It will be interesting to see how the idea is received by other artists. In another year, will you overhear one teenager asking another, "have you heard the new Hilary Duff novel?" Perhaps the term "duet" will take on a new meaning. Consider the collaborations corporate chiefs could concoct: Marilyn Manson and Steven King; William Gibson and the Future Sound of London; Liz Phair and Candace Bushnell; Leonard Cohen and Elmore Leonard; Rudy Rucker and DJ Shadow. And if you could go back in time, or bridge eras, creating a "duet" without one or both artists: Louis L'Amour and Gene Autry; Yo-Yo Ma and Miyamoto Musashi. It's the new turntablism. Have You Heard the New Neil Young Novel? | 
