I guess it's asking too much to expect people to comment on what this means from an iTunes, AAPL or technology standpoint instead of an "I don't like this kind of music" rant.
Music has little to do with it. This is about marketing deals, MBAs, exclusive agreements, some weird narrative about "anti-marketing" because it's a "quiet release", commercial licensing, and all the rest of it. This is the music equivalent of The Hobbit. The question of whether it's a good album is almost irrelevant next to the need to recoup investment.