In Rainbows

So Radiohead released an album almost 2 years ago called In Rainbows - I wrote this review the day it came out and I never published it. But here it is now. I'm releasing it because I like it and I want other people to read it. It was released over the internet, and they didn't charge anything for it unless you wanted to pay for it. This is completely unprecedented and, as such, I have to review it. I have only been a Radiohead fan for about 3 years, a combination of Ben and Cam has made me a huge fan of their music. So I was very eager to hear this new record. I guess I'll go track by track and talk about how each one goes.

1.) 15 Step
_15 Step starts with a jagged, extremely electronic beat that brings to mind Yorke's solo project, The Eraser. Then the bass comes in, along with a nifty little guitar part and the track comes to life as a Radiohead song. Despite the beat, the song is very mellow; Thom's voice has a lot to do with this mellowness, but it is definitely not a huge guitar-driven rock song nor is it a sonic explosion of electronica. It is somewhere in the middle with lots of layers of sound, the bands' penchant for sampling and programming has not gone away. It's still jagged and electronic, but very very melodic at the same time. "How come I end up where I started?"

2.) Bodysnatchers
_Possibly the hardest rocking song on the whole album, it starts with a ridiculously distorted guitar part reminiscent of "The National Anthem" or "I might be wrong". Also has a more classic uptempo rock beat. Very bleak lyrics: "Has the light gone out for you? The lights gone out for me." Which, surprisingly, makes it stand out on this album. Overall the lyrics and the music are, almost, positive and upbeat. (I know that does not sound like the Radiohead we all have known for so long, but I swear it is there.) Ends with a jam like on Paranoid Android...lots of distortion and yelling and Johnny doing something on his guitar.

3.) Nude
_Also know as "Big Ideas" this track has been floating around in the live Radiohead catalogue for quite a while. Extremely mellow. After the distortion overload of 'Bodysnatchers' this slows things down and gives Thom's voice a chance to really shine. Very melodic, lots of Thom overlaying vocals and a fantastic end. A very very pretty and haunting and mysterious track.

4.) Weird Fishes/Arpeggi
_A very up tempo drum track (reminiscent of almost anything Clint Mansell did for Pi) starts off this track. But it is still mellow somehow. It's understated, it's hiding beneath a blanket, just like Johnny's guitar arpeggio that is constant throughout the song. Also like most of the tracks on 'In Rainbows' it is hard to discern any real song structure. There is no obvious chorus/verse/chorus on any of these tracks. The songs are very organic and really the album flows as well as any album I've ever listened to. One could almost refer to the album as the song 'In Rainbows' and the tracks are just different parts of the whole.

5.)All I Need
_I think that this is almost a love song. Again it is very mellow with a heavy bottom-end and Thom almost whispering the lyrics. It's like downbeat electronica almost, think Massive Attack. It's almost stunning really to hear a song like this coming from Radiohead. The lyric: "You are all I need" sounds so strange coming out of Thom Yorke. When the piano comes in and the cymbals kick in the track becomes transcendent and I can't think logically anymore. Great song.

6.) Faust ARP
_What? This is a very strange track. It's Thom singing with an acoustic guitar with symphonics happening behind him. No beat, no electronics, just Thom singing very strange lyrics to a very strange guitar part. Nothing about either is pretty, but somehow the song as a whole is. I don't know how they did this, but they did.

7.) Reckoner
_Probably the coolest percussion I've ever heard. It pops out at you like Airbag does on OK Computer. But then the understated guitar part starts in, then Thom starts singing in a beautiful falsetto and you realize that this is not the same band that made that album. But at the same time it is. This is the paradoxical nature of all Radiohead music, they don't write pop songs, but are popular, they don't write to get critical acclaim, but they get it. They just want you to listen to what they do. They have massive talent, but force it through very tight holes and direct it in such a way that you have to listen to certain songs 5 or 6 times until you get it. This is a great track by the way. Again the beat pops out but it is still so mellow and understated.

8.) House of Cards
_Part of what makes the album so organic is the bands new obsession with Thom's voice as a melodic instrument. The guitar is very warm and the beat simple, the vocal track right where it should be and this track is like the smoothest whiskey you've ever had. It goes down so easily (unlike almost every other Radiohead song ever) that it's shocking.

9.) Jigsaw Falling into Place
_Feels like 2+2=5 with its constant hi-hat and tricky arpeggio. Then Thom's voice is there, once again dictating the melody, and his voice stays on for the whole track, always behind. It never reaches a peak and crashes like 2+2=5 does, but rather maintains a level of energy and tension throughout. "You've got a light you can feel it on your back"

10.) Videotape
_Videotape is the most beautiful song I've ever heard. I cannot and will not attempt to put into words how this song makes me feel. It's like falling in love on a perfect fall day while the sun shines down and her eyes are like the center of the universe, constantly pulling you closer. The most amazing thing about this song is how they let it carry itself. It would have been so easy to make this an anthem on par with Paranoid Android or even Everything in its Right Place. But they didn't and I'm so glad. Radiohead's best lyrics ever. Better than True Love Waits. Better than anything.

The only bad thing about the album is that it's only ten songs. They done good. 10/11.

Please go to www.inrainbows.com if you're interested in downloading this.

_Todd

I'm glad this was released today, because today was kinda crappy and I was kinda mad and pissed off the whole day.