I'd draw the line between NIN and radiohead... :p

Radiohead are not talentless nobodies.

And if Radiohead are still sell outs even after abandoning the whole damn record industry. Then holy sh*t, theres nothing that ain't selling out. But I already made that point.

That aside sonically Radiohead went from a typical 90s alternative rock band to something different altogether that wasn't guaranteed to sell well at all. Creep is still their biggest hit anyway so I'd say from a chart point of view they haven't really gotten any bigger. I mean Nude has been their biggest hit since the 90s and it wouldn't have been if it wasn't for that remix technicality thing.

Yes, but like was proven, there are degrees of "selling out" - the highest degree being totally selling your soul and handing over creative control itself to the record company.

What would be an example of a band totally selling out?

I think it's probably a hypothetical extreme. Usually people in that position were there from day one as soon as they got a record contract. Bands like Linkin Park for example are surely entirely under the control of their record company - a completely quintessential manufactured commercial act.

But, I think that, for example, bands like Tool and Coldplay are at least significantly under the creative guidance of their record company. That is in the sense that there is a certain sort of record that they, by virtue of being tied to the contract, are expected therefore to make. As an extreme example, if Coldplay wanted to completely go off track and make their next album some crazy avant-jazz/Russian folk hybrid experiment, there's no way they'd be allowed. The degree of "sell-out" such bands attain requires that they are necessarily quite conformist. They're told what to do, and they willingly do it.

On the subject of your second paragraph Neil Young was sued by David Geffen for making Trans because it was uncharacteristic of Neil Young and purposefully lacked any commercial appeal

I'm not sure I quite agree with you there. Not every band is Radiohead, but even if Coldplay did suddenly get the urge to make a crazy-electro-jazz record, I don't see how a record company could prevent that. Aren't they simply under a contract as far as how many records they need to produce (in a certain period of time)? I'm pretty sure their contract doesn't have any clauses about what those records need to sound like. What could the record company do to pressure them to make a record they want the band to make, threaten firing them? They've already made millions of dollars...:\

This is why I wanted clear examples of bands selling out. Some, for instance, might say that Rilo Kiley sold out with Under the blacklight, I'd say they made a record they wanted to make instead of what people expected them to make (obviously, given the backlash that came from certain die-hard fans). So is an indie band selling out simply by signing with a major company?

Confuzzling it is...

Ok, the first part of my post is now effectively refuted...wow.

Rilo Kiley fans who get pissed over them moving to Warner are idiotic. Ever since day one Rilo Kiley have been moving from bigger label to bigger label. Besides More Adventurous was on a major label, that Brute/Beaute thing was a facade.