Music : In Rainbows

Rating: - Retrogressive, but still very listenable
Throughout their career Radiohead have proven that they can:

1) Write very captivating songs in a specific mood;
2) Challenge convention and deftly experiment to great effect.

For example, the PH and The Bends slots nicely into category (1), OK Computer between the two, KID A and Amnesiac firmly in (2), HTTF between the two but leaning towards (2), and In Rainbows -

Between the two once more, but with an inclination towards category (1) - the 'song'. With this angle, the band produced a nice album, one I have listened to many times (ALL Radiohead albums have an excellent shelf life, and I really do mean the word 'captivating'). But (here it is) - what a wasted opportunity! The songs are surely store more intriguing value than their finished counterparts. If you don't follow my meaning, then here are some examples:


WEIRD FISHES/ARPEGGI: The orchestral version is astonishing. The lyrics are far better suited to this frame than a regular band set-up; especially the building bass throb that feels as though the listener is descending deeper into some watery abyss.

BODYSNATCHERS: Quite a good riff, but the energy should be far more contained in a snappier song. No more than 2:00. This way, the bridge is all the more riveting too - consider the KOKO acoustic version.

FAUST ARP: A lovely interlude, but little else. The excellent Morning Mr. Magpie (on TMGLMOAT DVD) would have been a better choice, a more vibrant choice before the mellow Reckoner.

15 STEP: It's too clean. More electronic drone would be nice, and certainly a sharper transition of the intro to that wonderfully dreamy guitar riff. The vocal reverb is effective and could have been used in the coda to replace that "cka-cka-ca-ca" chant.


So - not one song on the album, I would argue, has been realised to its fullest extent. It is still a cherishable album, and one I will probably be listening to in 20 years' time, but when you have the extraordinary quality and intangible mood of an album such as KID A - written by the same hands - I can't help but feel a little frustrated at the chance of a masterpiece lost in this way of performing In Rainbows.

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Rating: - Utterly essential return to form
Easily their best since OK Computer, this melds the 'old' Radiohead power with the new, technologically-aware approach debuted on Kid A. They push the boundaries, but for the first time since OK Computer, Yorke & Co pull back from the boundary, remembering that the song is the key thing!

For me,the highlights are "Reckoner", in which Yorke's falsetto overlays an almost 60s sounding sweep of beauty, and "House of Cards", a bitter, amoral plea to a married lover (IMHO)

Wonderful stuff. I even like "15 steps"!

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Rating: - easily the best since ok computer, ignore the attention seeking one star reviews
I'll be the first to admit at being sceptical about radioheads departure into experimental territory, leaving behind the masterpieces of bends\ok. The first listen of kid A was a shock to the system but now it's one of my favourites, but things have really clicked, on in rainbows, it's a more stripped down and directsounding album with some truely amazing moments, and works much better as a whole than the previous album. It's rare to find a band that have the ability to constantly evolve and find new musical territory. "All i need" could of come straight of the soundtrack for requiem to a dream, theres that sense of disspair with a glint at the end of the tunnel. In short get yourself a good hi-fi, turn the lights out and let in-rainbows take you on a mind trip, you won't regret it. in-rainbows is a future classic.

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Rating: - Like whistling in your trousers
This album is one hundred per cent 'rudge'. I got so totally twisted when listening to it for what must have been the first time, that I almost soiled my armour. All the tracks here knock into each other and continue to do so long after you have gone to bed. Each time I hear track 4 and track 7 I feel like I have been lightly dusted and left out for the dustman. Crazy! And that's not all.

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Rating: - Radiohead's ''Revolver''
Ten years after releasing probably the greatest album of the 90s, Radiohead released probably the greatest album of the 00s. In all seriousness, these guys are the closest we've come to a second Beatles. This is now my favourite album by them, and possibly by anyone.
If you are yet to own a Radiohead album, make it this one. If you haven't liked their previous efforts, give them one last chance. In Rainbows is the band's most accessible collection of songs so far, packed with delicious melodies. Not that they've ever been as impenetrable and pretentious as some people have suggested - their songs rarely exceed five minutes and usually have an identifiable chorus (Kid A and Amnesiac excepted).
Standout tracks? Weird Fishes and Videotape are the two I like most, but this is one of those albums where every track has little moments that you love. Don't listen to the hype - just buy it and you won't be disappointed.