Nine Inch Nails frontman Trent Reznor is hopping mad over the selling price of his latest album in Australia. The Australian division of Universal Music has set the price of Year Zero at $34.99 AU ($32.27 CDN).

Reznor went to great lengths to turn Year Zero into an album that would sell. Secret messages were hidden in the music and the liner notes, and he even created an online alternate reality game based on the album's post-apocalyptic themes.

Of course, none of that matters if the CD costs more than people are willing to pay for it. On his official blog, Reznor writes, "Shame on you, [Universal]... No wonder people steal music."

According to Reznor, music executives at Universal told him that the reason for the high price was that "true fans" of NIN would be willing to pay anything for its music, while the music (or "music") of performers like Avril Lavigne needs a discounted price as an incentive for people to buy it. "I guess as a reward for being a 'true fan' you get ripped off," Reznor fumes.

And as punishment for being an Avril fan, you have to listen to her album.

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