DVD : Radiohead - The Best Of Radiohead [2008]

Rating: - One for the serious fans.
Radiohead are a great band, and I don't think this compilation of their videos could be classed as a cash in. If you are a big fan of Radiohead, rather than someone who mainly likes their better known work, it is a good thing to have for your collection.
Their videos are some of the most creative, experimental, original and beautiful ever made. However I found myself a little disappointed with the overall standard and didn't enjoy all of the videos as much as I thought I would. Whilst the band have this reputation for very complex, arty videos - be aware that a few of the videos are basically just recorded live gigs or performance videos.
The middle of the DVD has, in my opinion, the strongest videos and songs - from the bands strongest and most acclaimed albums - The Bends and OK Computer. 'Just' is my favourite of the videos, but Karma Police, No Surprises and Street Spirit are also great in very different ways. I find the earlier songs and videos (apart from Creep of course!) quite immature and `brit poppy' and not up to the standard you would expect. Plus, as the later music becomes more abstract so do the videos. Videos such as the ones for Pyramid Song and Push Pulk/Spinning Plates are truly bizzare and I didn't find them as enjoyable as their earlier work.
It is however interesting to see videos directed by well known film makers including Michel Gondry (Knives Out), who went on to make the excellent Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind. You can also compare the UK and US versions of High and Dry (the US version is much better. Even if I'm not 100% sure I understand it!!!) I think the DVD could be improved by some extra features on the making of the videos as I'm sure some explanation and behind the scenes info would make the videos more watchable and make the DVD better value. However it is still an interesting collection of videos by a band who have experimented with every technique in the book - art house, performance, animation, CGI and more.
Oh, and if you do decide to buy it, shop around, as prices vary wildly. I bought my copy for around £12, having seen it that day on the high street for 20!

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Rating: - A Quick Cash In
I don't consider myself a cynical guy, but had to say a few words about this. Fans of Radiohead will no doubt agree that they have always put a high priority on the quality of their recordings - from recording to mixing to mastering. Why then would this collection be released in inferior sounding 'Dolby Digital' and be falsely advertised as '5.1' when it's really 'fake surround' (there's nothing but echo and ambience in the rears - a trick used to make stereo mixes sound like surround).

Other artists have released these types of video collections and have gone back to the original master tapes to create true DTS 5.1 mixes in superior sounding 96kHz. Why wouldn't Radiohead have done the same? It seems pretty obvious that this collection was made without the band's cooperation. They had no say in this and did not give the record company permission to remix their catalogue into true 5.1 surround.

Clearly the record company doesn't care much about the band's music - otherwise they would have taken the time and spent the money to present their music in a better quality format and in real surround sound. The band and its fans deserve nothing less.

But hey, if you don't really care about hearing good audio resolution or true 5.1 surround, and you just want to have the band's videos collected on a DVD - by all means buy this.

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Rating: - Stunning.
I'm sure you'll have read the irate rants from pseudo-politician fans about how their dear Radiohead have been "exploited" with the upcoming "Best of" compilations. Forget the motives behind the release - this DVD is stunning. A phenomenal compilation of Radiohead's videos, many of which were never before available on DVD. Maybe EMI being left to their own devices isn't such a bad thing - they give us this stellar collection, while Radiohead give us only a dire collection of SEVEN videos for the same price. In a nutshell, grab this DVD, it's phenomenal.

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Rating: - The CD's a cash grab, this is brilliance
EMI have, rather cynically, decided that now Radiohead have left them, they're going to release a Greatest Hits CD made up of some of the material from the 6 albums they recorded for them. Radiohead had no involvement whatsoever in the selection of the songs, the composition of the packaging, anything, and at any rate I would urge anyone interested to just buy the 6 albums for themselves - each (OK, maybe not Pablo Honey) a work of brilliance.

However, the Best of DVD is worth the money, purely because it is the first proper collection of Radiohead's music videos since "7 Television Commercials" back in the mid 1990s. Everything is in here, bar the Kid A "blips" (which wouldn't fit into a DVD format very well anyway). As well as the (typically brilliant) videos from throughout the band's career, it also includes two very rare videos, including what has to be hands down the most terrifyingly disturbing music video ever, "Pulk/Pull Revolving Doors and Like Spinning Plates". In some senses, the purchase price is worth it just to witness the fact that there's one band which has videos which can actually disturb you like that.

So yes, by all means, buy this collection, because there's not been anything like it ever. A cash grab it may be, but every cloud has a silver lining.