Dave:

Artist have been successful by giving away their music at first. Some groups have asked listeners to pay whatever they thought it was worth. The realities of the music business today is that, as an unknown, you need to create an audience first for your work by making it available free. If you can build that audience over time some will be willing to pay for your next effort. The Internet, itunes, etc have changed the dynamics. It's a new world.

Joe