The Listening Room

So funny - I was just reading some commentary about Radiohead albums being incredible despite the back half of them being a bit of a let down. Now I get to test that thought and revisit my third favorite album of theirs. Would love to do a session for this one.

15 Step is an unbelievable opener. There's so much energy coming through. The whole synthetic feel of it feels like the culmination of Kid A/Amnesiac; like they figured that sound out and they now intenteded to punch us in the face with it.

The sequencing is incredible. The explosion of Bodysnatchers into the quiet expanse of Nude heightens the intimacy of the latter. It's absolutely gorgeous.

Radiohead’s 2007 release ‘In Rainbows’ was announced in a manner that was like the splash-like effect depicted on the album cover. At that time the idea of a major band/artist self releasing their album without major label distribution and all primarily through digital downloads was virtually unprecedented for a band of Radiohead’s stature. From a headline standpoint it certainly drew attention onto the band and changed the idea of how bands should market and release their music along with how much an artist should charge for their material. And with all this hoopla came the content itself, and boy was that content absolutely amazing. ‘Kid A’ and ‘Amnesiac’ were brilliant, synth and electronic driven albums, perfectly building from the technology themes rampant on ‘OK Computer’. But part of the allure of Radiohead for me has always been Johnny Greenwood and Ed O’Brien’s distinctive approach towards guitar rock with the biggest support behind this being their breakout, buzz bin hit “Creep.” While ‘Kid A’ is oftentimes considered a worthy (and arguably) monumental successor to 1997’s ‘OK Computer,’ ‘In Rainbows’ feels like the successor to 1995’s alt-rock, guitar driven masterpiece ‘The Bends’ while still incorporating some of the ghosts in the machines they found along the way. The glitchy sounds that open the lead track “15 Step” convey this perfectly; the glitches are paired with Thom Yorke’s signature vocals, making way to Phil Selway’s almost minimalistic drum work that becomes more intricate as the song evolves, while the Greenwood’s and Ed O’Brien bring guitars and bass that create this beautiful hybrid of genres. As the song comes to a quiet close the second track feels like track 2 of ‘The Bends’ with the guitar driven “Bodysnatchers”; this is the song on ‘In Rainbows’ that brings the guitar heroics I enjoy from Jonny Greenwood and Ed O’Brien. It’s an electric 1-2 punch of songs to start off this album. Going into track 3 “Nude” the song begins a song cycle on the album that has been considered as some of their most direct “love songs”, or rather songs that broach the subject matter. This is also where ‘In Rainbows’ separates itself from the rest of the band’s catalog; songs such as “Nude” and “House of Cards” certainly are “love songs” but in a completely unconventional way- and that’s what one should expect from Radiohead. Among these “love songs” the standouts for me is “Weird Fishes/Arpeggi”; starting with an excellent Phil Selway count off that brings a drumbeat tempo that evokes an almost jazz like feel followed shortly after by the rest of the band. The song slowly builds, has this feel as if you’re swimming in the sounds as it builds into this tidal wave like peak; easily one of their best songs here and arguably their entire catalog. Meanwhile, “All I Need” is a declaration from someone who has made another person the center of their existence while realizing they aren’t equally important to them. All of this culminates with the terrific closer, “Videotape.” It begins with a simple piano and as the song goes on Yorke sings about mortality and loved ones, the band uses their ghosts in the machine one last time, with amazing effect. Around the point Phil Selway enters with the percussion the band simultaneously creates a skittering, loop-like pattern, which can sound jarring because the percussion initially seems to exist out of sync with the piano, making the rhythm sound delayed or "off-kilter". It works in a wonderful, beautiful way to close out the song and validates the hoopla around the album was completely justified. Thanks for taking the time to stop by, reading and hopefully providing some thoughts on this magnificent album. Take care, be safe and have a great week!