Music fan Thomas Mrzyglocki (left) and drummer Josh Freese lay down tracks in a Los Angeles studio.

Photo: Dave Bullock/Wired.comPaying $20,000 for a round of miniature golf might seem extravagant, but throw in the opportunity to hang out with a handful of rock stars, and you've got a truly priceless experience.

Thomas Mrzyglocki, 19, ponied up that princely sum to buy one of Josh Freese's creative, limited-edition packages built around the drummer's new record, Since 1972, which is available as a download for $7.

The deluxe packages all include copies of the record, but that's just the tip of the rock 'n' roll iceberg. Freese dreamed up wild extras like sessions in a sensory-deprivation tank, a mushroom-fueled Lamborghini ride and cool meet-ups with his rock star friends. Less-expensive bundles include lunch with Freese at P.F. Chang's or The Cheesecake Factory ($250, sold out!) and personal "thank you" phone calls from the drummer, which go for just $50.

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Drummer's Crazy Album Extras Take 'Freemium' to Weirdville

Mrzyglocki, who flew from Melbourne, Florida, to hang out in Los Angeles with Freese for a week, said he is thrilled with his unique $20,000 purchase.

"It's totally worth it," Mrzyglocki told Wired.com in a phone interview Thursday, as he prepared to go to a studio with Freese. That night, they laid down tracks for a couple of songs that the drummer is writing about Mrzyglocki — another element of the elaborate package.

Freese's experiment comes as the music industry is grappling with steep declines in traditional sales. It's one of the most off-the-wall schemes yet to test fans' taste for the type of "freemium" pricing pioneered by Radiohead and Freese's former Nine Inch Nails bandmate, Trent Reznor.

The quirky mix of star power and pure rock 'n' roll adventure has proven to be a winning combination for Freese, an in-demand session drummer who cooked up the highly creative packages to promote his solo album. Now the packages are earning the drummer real money in addition to boatloads of publicity.

Mostly the cash goes to cover past recording costs, Freese said.

"I've made a little bit of money," he said, "but I'm not out shopping for cars, you know what I mean?"

For Mrzyglocki, the $20,000 package has turned into a ticket to mingle with rock 'n' roll royalty. He's met lots of Freese's musician friends during his stay in Los Angeles, including former Guns N' Roses guitarist Slash and most of the members of Tool and A Perfect Circle. Mrzyglocki called the experience "the most fun I've had in a long, long time."

The Florida teen said he first got wind of Freese's tiered-pricing packages from Tool's website. With the country in the midst of a financial mess and his birthday fast approaching, Mrzyglocki figured his broke friends would be getting him "half-assed postcards or

T-shirts or something."

To avoid a birthday bummer, the Florida teen treated himself to the

$20,000 package, which featured a mini-golf game with Tool singer

Maynard James Keenan and Devo front man Mark Mothersbaugh. Freese plays drums in Devo and in one of Keenan's side projects, A Perfect Circle.

Mrzyglocki's friends were shocked when he told them what he'd done.

"Their jaws dropped instantly," he said.

Some tried to reason with him, saying he should buy a car with the money instead, but Mrzyglocki said he's landed something much more valuable.

"Almost anybody can buy a car," said Mrzyglocki, who's a senior in high school. "Only one person gets to buy Josh Freese's limited-edition package."

The Since 1972 stunt has been wild for Freese. He admits he felt a little like a hooker as it came time to fulfill many of the more personal aspects of the bundles. Since Mrzyglocki arrived, Freese has been going above and beyond, working out cool extras and generally clearing his week to spend time with his young fan.

"We've been joined at the hip since Sunday," said Freese, adding that he feels like Mrzyglocki's big brother at this point.

"I really do like the kid and know that it's a bizarre experience for him," Freese said.

The whole experience hasn't been totally smooth, but Freese has pulled out all the stops in his attempt to provide a meaningful week. When a scheduling conflict kept Keenan and Mothersbaugh from being in the same place at the same time for the mini-golf game, Freese came up with a solution: a pizza party at Mothersbaugh's house in the Hollywood Hills.

"That was like an added bonus," Mrzyglocki said.

For the golf outing, Mrzyglocki and Freese were joined by Keenan, Joe Escalante (who plays bass in Freese's punk rock band The Vandals), several friends and a cameraman who recorded the match for posterity.

Famous bullshitter Keenan went on a spiel about being a Putt-Putt golf champion in his younger days, Mrzyglocki said.

"He backed it up with a crazy, lucky hole-in-one on the first shot," said Mrzyglocki. "I believed him for the first hole."

In addition to the mini-golf game, Mrzyglocki also got a night aboard the *Queen Mary *(complete with a "ghost tour" of the ship), and other extras, like free tickets to shows by Keenan's band Puscifer and

The Vandals.

When it came time to fulfill the one part of the package Freese feared most — a choice between a drum lesson or a foot massage — he asked Mrzyglocki which he preferred.

"It was really awkward," Freese said. "Just asking was funny and uncomfortable."

The drummer lucked out: Mrzyglocki mentioned the sensory-deprivation tank sessions included in the $500 packages, and Freese jumped at the opportunity to provide a free upgrade.

Wheeling and dealing aside, it's been a memorable week for both Freese and Mrzyglocki. It was scheduled to end Sunday with the drummer dropping off his new friend at Los Angeles International Airport for a flight back to Florida.

Mrzyglocki will have one bonus waiting for him when he gets back.

"One of my friends told me it took a lot of balls, and that he'd give me a huge high-five when I got back," he said.

Josh Freese makes notes as he works on one of two songs he's writing in honor of Thomas Mrzyglocki, the fan who paid $20,000 for an elaborate package of rock 'n' roll adventures.

Photo: Dave Bullock/Wired.com

Josh Freese, Thomas Mrzyglocki and studio owner-engineer Tom Weir listen to a track that will probably make its way onto iTunes within the next few months.

Photo: Dave Bullock/Wired.com

Intro-verse-prechorus-chorus: Josh Freese shows off a song sheet that reveals the not-so-secret recipe for good ol' rock 'n' roll.

Photo: Dave Bullock/Wired.com

Thomas Mrzyglocki watches as Josh Freese pounds the skins in a Los Angeles studio. "I'm sure we'll be friends for a long time," Mrzyglocki said.

Photo: Dave Bullock/Wired.comSee also: