mail: daniel_fjall@hotmail.com
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pablo honey the bends ok computer kid a hail to the thief
Pablo Honey It’s easy to see why this album was a big seller. Lots of strong melancholic melodies, add some depressing lyrics and loud guitars and you’ve got yourself a winner. I mean, good melodies always sell, and the loud guitars made the album attractive to the grunge-audience which was huge around the time of Pablo Honeys release. The latest American trend combined with classic, British songwriting skills. Can’t fail, right? There are a few failures, actually. “How Do You” is probably something the band would forget about. The guitars doesn’t always work. Although, when they do, the band reaches heights very few other new acts around this time were even close to match. The big, big hit “Creep” is the perfect example and it applies everything I mentioned in the beginning. “Anyone Can Play Guitar” is a good song and the statement in the title probably is correct. However, not anyone can write a good song. It takes some sort of talent. Radiohead got the talent and it’s obvious in my favorite song here, “Thinking About You”. A slower song, relieved from all the heavy guitars. Thom Yorke sings it with his chest open, letting anyone that wants have point blank stare at his soul. Unfortunately it is overshadowed by “Creep” which most people remember this album for. There are highlights to be found, but also moments were the band along with the songs falls short. If you’re filled with despair, anger and bitterness this album is for you. But I can’t really see why anyone would pick this one over The Bends or OK Computer.
The Bends A couple of years later, richer on experiences and far more mature than on the debut, Radiohead returns, putting some substance and careful thought into each and every song here. Withdrawing from the loud, nearly college-like pop/punk on Pablo Honey, but still keeping the guitars, the group manages to achieve a much better and sophisticated result. Seemingly inspired by U2 and other similar British bands, and Tom Yorke even sounds like a less profiled Bono at times. Especially the rockers fits that description, and U2’s 2002 release, All That You Can’t Leave Behind, recalls The Bends, if not quite as freaked out in places. The experimental part of this album was clearly overstated at the time of its release, but the quality remains solid and impressive. The ballads are generally more successful than the up-tempo and always noisy, electric guitars. The single “High And Dry”, the fantastic “Fake Plastic Trees” and the dark, paranoid closing number “Street Spirit” stands as not only diamondstrong highpoints on The Bends, but still counts as major highlights in an admirable career. The sometimes chaotic rockers does drag down the album a bit, and the loud, distorted guitars aren’t always enjoyable. They all have promising moments, though, which makes them worth sitting through and spend time with. After a while they might sink in as you get used to them, but compared to the emotional and easier related to, quieter numbers, they appear a bit clumsy. However, whatever weak spots there might be on this modern classic, they are never so disturbing that you can allow yourself to ignore The Bends completely.
OK Computer OK Computer isn’t the most revolutionary album ever. It’s not the most original album ever. It may be one of the best albums ever, though. I mean, Radiohead is really an updated version of Pink Floyd. You have the steady bass lines a la Roger Waters, the fragile vocals, and the synthesizers making strange sounds. Desperate emotions. Nothing that hasn’t been done before. Radiohead showed that quality could sell even in the ninties, but weren’t the only band that made this kind of music. Flaming Lips is just one of the bands that comes to mind. Flaming Lips feel a little bit more lightweight, though. More pop. However, I don’t mind if a band recycles or borrows ideas from other acts. As long as it makes them inspired and creative it’s always a very good thing. Just have a quick look at my Oasis or Ryan Adams reviews, for instance. People have been inspired by each other since the dawn of time. The Beatles started out as rock band, noticed what happened around them, and improved. Others were also inspired and realized that if THEY can do it, so can we. Competition and idols and having role models isn’t always a bad thing. That's how barriers are pushed further away. Nothing that I said in the opening of the review can take away the beautiful melodies of “Karma Police”, “No Surprises”, and “The Tourist”. It can’t take away the careful arrangements of “Exit Music (For A Film)” and “Airbag”. It’s all done with the greatest care. However, OK Computer isn’t perfect. There are bits that sounds a bit out of place. Then again, that it’s not perfect actually makes it perfect for Radiohead. If it weren’t for the thorns and knuckled frames I’m sure their message wouldn’t be as powerful and affecting.
Kid A
The hype after OK Computer was massive and everybody wondered what Kid A would sound like. When the first reports came they spoke about a much more difficult album than OK Computer with the guitars all gone, strange sounds and freaky beats. The album had the critics and fans divided in two parts when it finally was released. A masterpiece or a pretentious flop? I find myself somewhere in the middle but definitely more comfortable with the first choice. While the total chaotic and uncontrolled horns in “The National Anthem” has me wondering if a refused song by a band with a certain love for abstract jazz ended up on the album by mistake, the absolute beauty of “How To Disappear Completely” and “Motion Picture Soundtrack” makes me raise my fist in the air in something of a victory gesture.
Critics seemed to have overlooked the fact while Kid A sounds different than anything else, the songwriting style has not changed, only the way Radiohead choose to present the songs. The guitars are mostly being replaced by organs, pianos and steady basslines. The sound experiments and loops everybody talked about are often kept very low in the mix and are never too annoying. The beats are rarely very hard or sharp, more often soft like a padding in the background. It was also stated how much the album relies more on atmosphere than the previous Radiohead releases. That’s completely wrong. Yes, Kid A is atmospheric, but a huge part of Radiohead’s greatness that started on The Bends is creating atmosphere and mood in order to generate and amplify a feeling. They have done it before, only with a different approach. Also Kid A wouldn’t have been as good if it weren’t for the actual songwriting. Remember that.
When they actually do focus on atmosphere only, Tom Yorke's vocals are buried in the mix or have been recorded with strange sound effects and the melodies are ignored. It is then, and only then, the album might seem pretentious and too experimental for its own good. When the songs doesn’t hold up. Those weaker moments are few, and why should they keep you from loving “Everything In Its Right Place” or “Optimistic”? Why should they prevent you from adoring “Motion Picture Soundtrack” and “Morning Bell”? Think about that while I enjoy this album one more time.
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