More about: Radiohead
'A new dawn, a new day - proof that for Radiohead, the horizon is never-ending'
"If you think this is over, then you're wrong," pined Thom Yorke on The King Of Limbs' aching closer, 'Separator' - adding further fuel to the fire of the once rampant rumours that a sequel or sister to the album would imminently follow, but that was not what the record was supposed to be.
While to some fans, TKoL felt somewhat 'thin' and 'incomplete' in comparison to the monolithic and game-changing predecessor, In Rainbows, The King Of Limbs was precisely intended to show a band in a more 'transitory' state - a bridge to what's to come, the roots for the future.
Collaborator Stanley Donwood told Pitchfork that the difference in ethos in the records was shown through the artwork - with TKoL having a more temporary feel, consisting of newspaper and transparent vinyl.
"[In Rainbows] was very much a definitive statement, and that isn't where the band are at the moment," he said at the time. "When a newspaper comes out, that doesn't mean news stops, what you have is just a snapshot of how things were at the moment that newspaper was printed. And similarly, this album shows where Radiohead are at the moment the record was released. The music is a continuing thing. And we wanted to make the album representative of that."
Precisely that, 'Separator' wasn't a full stop, but a comma - and the music that followed did not come in 'object' form, but as a beautiful, continuous stream. The surprise emerging tracks of 'Supercollider', 'The Daily Mail' and 'Staircase' added more flesh to the very skeletal King Of Limbs, and bloomed around its bare roots, adding space to its claustrophobia - leaving fans hungry for of this 'substance'.
Then output from Camp Radiohead fell quiet, and just as he excorcised more of his mechanical demons from his closet on solo debut The Eraser following Hail To The Thief leading to In Rainbows having more an 'organic' feel, many fans hoped for the same as he dropped AMOK with Atoms For Peace and the twisted IDM of Tomorrow's Modern Boxes.
The optimism was fulfilled when images of the band working with a string section were revealed, before the first fruits of this labour were tasted when the band surprised the world with their alternative Bond theme - the contrarily opulent 'Spectre'. It decadently dripped with everything that Radiohead did best - but with a surprisingly newfound depth.
We would then be left on tenterhooks for a few more months, but with more than enough to chew on. Donwood would tease that the record would be 'a work of art', while we speculated what it could mean that the band's new company was named 'A Dawn Chorus LLP'. Then, dawn broke this week with the aural sunshine of new track, 'Burn The Witch'.
With the skittering rhythms of The King Of Limbs, but laden with strings and the full-bodied feeling that was so beloved on In Rainbows, 'Burn The Witch' picks up where 'Spectre' left off in delivering something so utterly complete - an elegiac, swelling and cinematic gem.
It remains menacingly playful while dripping with dread, warning of the 'low-flying panic attack' that comes from groupthink propaganda from on high - bedded atop a soundtrack that's sumptuous but dark all at once.
It's great of course that they've produced their most rounded piece of work since In Rainbows, but what makes it all the more essential is that for a band who have written and destroyed the rulebook so many times, they can still find new avenues for adventure. A band who continue to defy genre have found a new sound, a new lease of life, a new dawn and a new day. This alone is proof that for Radiohead, the horizon is never-ending.
The band's upcoming headline tour dates are below, with tickets available here.
MAY 20 AMSTERDAM, HEINEKEN MUSIC HALL
MAY 21 AMSTERDAM, HEINEKEN MUSIC HALL
MAY 23 PARIS, LE ZENITH
MAY 24 PARIS, LE ZENITH
MAY 26 LONDON, ROUNDHOUSE
MAY 27 LONDON, ROUNDHOUSE
MAY 28 LONDON, ROUNDHOUSE
JULY 26 NEW YORK, MADISON SQUARE GARDEN
JULY 27 NEW YORK, MADISON SQUARE GARDEN
AUGUST 4 LOS ANGELES SHRINE AUDITORIUM
AUGUST 8 LOS ANGELES SHRINE AUDITORIUM
OCTOBER 3 MEXICO CITY PALACIO DE LOS DEPORTES
OCTOBER 4 MEXICO CITY PALACIO DE LOS DEPORTES
Meanwhile, the band will also be playing the following festivals:
JUNE 3 PRIMAVERA SOUND, BARCELONA, SPAIN - tickets available here
JUNE 17 SECRET SOLSTICE, REYJKAVIK, ICELAND - tickets available here
JULY 2 OPENAIR ST GALLEN, SWITZERLAND - tickets available here
JULY 8 NOS ALIVE FESTIVAL, LISBON, PORTUGAL - tickets available here
JULY 29-31 OSHEAGA MUSIC AND ARTS FESTIVAL, MONTREAL, CANADA - tickets available here
AUGUST 20 -21 SUMMERSONIC FESTIVAL, OSAKA, JAPAN - tickets available here
SEP 11 LOLLAPALOOZA FESTIVAL, BERLIN, GERMANY - tickets available here
It's considered an occupational hazard ranking the Radiohead albums. This is because, as well as dedicated, Radiohead fans are fervently aggressive. Though, we think this is a good thing, it's that passion that fuels the debates that make it so much fun to be a lover of music and, more specifically, Radiohead. So, with a plea of mercy, here are the Radiohead albums ranked from worst to best.
8) Pablo Honey: People give a lot of stick to Radiohead's 1993 debut album and while it's not deserving of the flack it gets, when pitted against the higher ranks, it pales in comparison. Adolescent and explorative, Pablo Honey represents a worldwide band-to-be finding their feet - not bad going since 'Creep' is still cited as an era defining single. And while, for many it's considered classic, when you examine the mass transformation Radiohead underwent from that point, the record seems to just simmer as conventional.
7) Amnesiac: Speaking of 'Pyramid Song', Thom Yorke said: "It's the best thing we've committed to tape, ever". An arguable statement that derives from an arguable album. Radiohead's 2001 record was recorded during the same sessions as Kid A and released a year later and, because of that fact, it's pegged as more of a B side collection. The industrial starkness, bar 'Morning Bell', sets it apart from Kid A but fails to achieve the same depth and therefore reverence as it's predecessor.
6) The King of Limbs: The Radiohead album for the weirdos. King of Limbs untethered Radiohead from their alternative-rock crown of thorns and dived into the abstract and endlessly expansive experimentation. The album is a marvel of production and technical achievement but trades tactility for distance and intellectualism. King of Limbs is undoubtedly a fantastic sonic expedition but feels spiritless at times like shadows negotiating the dark, there's a definite presence, you just can't pin it down.
5) Hail to the Thief: An album that thrives in the face of imbalance and mania. Everyone hears different things for that reason. For some, Hail will always be a 'guitar record' because of tracks like 'There There', whereas others appreciate the more subtle electronic compositions like 'Sit Down. Stand Up'. We think it showcases Radiohead's musical diversity across the board as well Yorke dipping into thematics of love and politics - another word for the two-week recorded album would be schizophrenic.
4) Kid A: This is where the leaderboard, if it wasn't already, becomes treacherous. Moving forward, the albums become considered masterpieces. Kid A is, without a doubt, a masterpiece. Built from the ashes of an exhausted Yorke after touring OK Computer relentlessly, Kid A pushed Radiohead into uncharted territory, turning their hand to electronic and classically inspired pieces. The crystalline peaks on the album's cover capture the essence, it's cold, distant and has an infinite staying power - the sounds of Kid A will continue to echo as long as rock music prevails.
3) OK Computer: The only way to discuss OK Computer honestly is to cast your mind back to the first time you heard, the first time 'Airbag' inflated your ears with it's dissonant majesty. At this point, OK has been taken apart, put back together and ranked so vigorously, the essence of the record has become faded for some. Take a day to remind yourself of the overwhelming amount of legacy this record has created, it's literally prophetic. Between the whirring sonics, inexplicable aesthetic and generation defining songwriting, OK Computer will always be Radiohead's centrepiece.
2) The Bends: An all-encompassing rock record from the band that "can't just do rock records". The Bends symbolises Radiohead reaching a creative peak in one range of mountains that they set to and continue to conquer. It feels organic and visceral throughout and never compromises sensitivity for the outlandish. Radiohead dug deep only two records in and transformed into a personality band; a band that reflected their characters in their musicianship - a singular facet that enabled them to dare to have the career we admire to this day.
1) In Rainbows: Creativity is an never-ending concept, it's what makes the existence of it so abstract. In Rainbows is creativity in singularity form. Radiohead have always transcended convention but In Rainbows trifled with sounds of celestial proportions. It rolls up the emotional spectrum and distributes it out one track at a time. We spoke before of Radiohead 'the personality band' and we truly believe In Rainbows is the topography of their souls. It's complex and insatiable but emotionally resonant, an otherworldly record created for the ears of this world - that's the Radiohead way.
More about: Radiohead
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