Very, VERY, important Radiohead news.

[nathan a]

Yeah! I have seen that before Max and it is totally accurate. Pretty cool, really. Go brains go.

 

[kboman]

Yeah! I have seen that before Max and it is totally accurate. Pretty cool, really. Go brains go.

Brains are great (and so is Radiohead!).

I gave OK Computer a complete listen the other week, and In Rainbows is way better. More balanced/human/warm, if not necessarily all that optimistic. OKC is so damn bleak! If it were only in the actual songs I could live with it, but it's in the production as well! The sound has not stood the test if time in my option.

 

[callaway]

Brains are great (and so is Radiohead!).

I gave OK Computer a complete listen the other week, and In Rainbows is way better. More balanced/human/warm, if not necessarily all that optimistic. OKC is so damn bleak! If it were only in the actual songs I could live with it, but it's in the production as well! The sound has not stood the test if time in my option.

But that's the point of the album... everything about it reinforces the point. Great songs on the album, and great sounds as well. Put it in perspective of the time it came out and you will quickly recognize why it was such a groundbreaking album. I think "Paranoid Android" is one of the most brilliant songs ever written. Having said all that, In Rainbows is an incredible album as well. If anyone has any predisposition against who they think Radiohead is, you'd do yourself an injustice to not give the album a listen.

Anyone still reading this thread should check out the band Elbow.

 

[neuftone]

I dug up OK Computer again, and just starting "Airbag", I have to still think this is Radiohead at its best.  The perfect balance, still melodic, harmonically rich (unlike their more electronic albums), but not just a collection of pop-rock tunes like their first two albums.  To me this is the one Radiohead album that does stand the test of time, their peak as a creative force.  Of course I realize while it may be the zenith for me it is the nadir for others, so your mileage may vary.

Of course, being 16 when it came out and just developing as a musician obviously colours my judgment!  But it reminds me of Steely Dan's "Aja"...a bit of a break with their past albums, a new sound, and generally either loved or hated.  Steely Dan's Gaucho went further in that direction (as Kid A and Amnesiac did) but the newness of the sound was no longer there. 

The angular, almost discordant guitar breaks on Paranoid Android (high-five for the Adams reference), that was great stuff!  Its a disservice to compare this to Bohemian Rhapsody or prog (both of which I love), as Radiohead doesn't sound anything like modern progressive, but a lot of their musical approaches are similar in theory to the prog movements of the 70s.

 

[callaway]

I dug up OK Computer again, and just starting "Airbag", I have to still think this is Radiohead at its best.  The perfect balance, still melodic, harmonically rich (unlike their more electronic albums), but not just a collection of pop-rock tunes like their first two albums.  To me this is the one Radiohead album that does stand the test of time, their peak as a creative force.  Of course I realize while it may be the zenith for me it is the nadir for others, so your mileage may vary.

Of course, being 16 when it came out and just developing as a musician obviously colours my judgment!  But it reminds me of Steely Dan's "Aja"...a bit of a break with their past albums, a new sound, and generally either loved or hated.  Steely Dan's Gaucho went further in that direction (as Kid A and Amnesiac did) but the newness of the sound was no longer there. 

The angular, almost discordant guitar breaks on Paranoid Android (high-five for the Adams reference), that was great stuff!  Its a disservice to compare this to Bohemian Rhapsody or prog (both of which I love), as Radiohead doesn't sound anything like modern progressive, but a lot of their musical approaches are similar in theory to the prog movements of the 70s.

Good thoughts. I will say though that I think Hail to the Thief was another major step, where they melded their electronic experimentation with their earlier guitar-driven style and created a beautiful album.

What do you think of In Rainbows though? Yet another peak, I think. (But hopefully it's just the foothills.)

 

[neuftone]

In Rainbows brought me back from utter skepticism...to me Hail to the Thief and Pablo Honey vie for their weakest albums.  But as the French say, chacun et son gout, which apparently means "to each his own ointment".  Funny people, the French.

 

[callaway]

In Rainbows brought me back from utter skepticism...to me Hail to the Thief and Pablo Honey vie for their weakest albums.  But as the French say, chacun et son gout, which apparently means "to each his own ointment".  Funny people, the French.

I agree with you on Pablo Honey. It's amazing to hear someone finally not mention Kid A or Amensiac as their worst albums though... I for one think they are quite good as well. (You just have to be willing to get outside of your comfort zone.)