Collective Soul signs with Target

Collective Soul is looking for its Target audience, literally.

In a sign of the times, the Georgia-bred band is the latest name act in rock to sign an exclusive deal with a major retailer. The group’s seventh album, “Afterword,” will arrive Tuesday on the CD racks of Target’s 1,502 locations in the U.S. and will be sold at no other stores for one year.

Lead singer Ed Roland said the reason is simple: The melodic rock band has sold close to 7 million albums and scored major radio hits such as “Shine” and “The World I Know,” but remains fairly anonymous to casual music fans.

“People know our songs but they don’t really know the band, and the campaign that Target has in mind can help us change that,” he said. “And they have a lot of stores.”

The band struck the deal after leaving Atlantic Records and starting its own indie record label. That sort of maverick move and the alliance with a major retailer are becoming more common as the digital age continues to roil the longtime practices and profit expectations of the music industry. Wal-Mart has similar exclusivity deals in place with Garth Brooks and the Eagles, and Starbucks and Best Buy have also struck assorted sweetheart deals with major stars.