RadioBallet Listens Through Discographies [DISCONTINUED]

[RadioBallet]

Kid A (October 2000)

Label: Parlophone (UK) // Capitol (US)
Produced by Nigel Godrich

Becoming bored, to say the least, of rock music, Radiohead found new horizons on their follow-up to OK Computer, Kid A. Songs were hardly written with guitars, lyrics and melody were taken off the spotlight, giving way to rhythm and detail. This creates a more sonically diverse album than OK Computer as well as one that takes more risks.

I think what I love most about this album is its range of style. You can swing from an intense and claustrophobic song to a light, breathtaking and ethereal ballad, this being the case on The National Anthem followed by How to Disappear Completely, the latter taking a spot among my favorite pieces of music in general. Idioteque is another highlight, an icy, noisy and glitchy track. Though the album has a couple of weaker moments and I can't say much for a clear direction in it, this is a very enticing album from start to finish.

Rating: 92/100


Amnesiac (June 2001)

Label: Parlophone (UK) // Capitol (US)
Produced by Nigel Godrich

Recorded in the same sessions as Kid A, Amnesiac was never meant to be seen as an appendage or B-sides collection to its more beloved sibling. A couple listens will make it clear that they move on separate lanes. I will say however that Amnesiac is, in my opinion, the weaker of the two. The general disregard for it is understandable as well as it doesn’t really call much attention to itself. It’s moodier, slower, a little dark and more challenging than Kid A. I will also admit that most songs on Kid A are of a heavier caliber, Pyramid Song aside. Despite this, Amnesiac’s repertoire still has some noteworthy tracks though they are all on the first half. After that point the album becomes harder to digest, with more experimental tracks that really don’t engage well and can easily cause the loss of the listener’s attention. Despite that drop, Amnesiac’s solid first half carries through to a good listen.

Rating: 75/100

[RadioBallet]

Hail to the Thief (June 2003)

Label: Parlophone (UK) // Capitol (US)
Produced by Nigel Godrich

After their left-field venture into experimentation with electronics, Radiohead sought to return to rock without scrapping their newfound studio abilities. I had a hard time nailing an opinion on this album. I had to listen to it many times even to have a concrete idea on what I could write about it. I believe this difficulty came from one interesting quality of the album: the enjoyment one gets out of Hail to the Thief is greatly dependent on the amount of attention one gives to detail throughout its duration. Picture it this way, I find that I can have OK Computer playing in the background and The Bends for sure, but could I really do the same with this one? Hail to the Thief is very underwhelming if one is not fully alert to the huge amount of detail scattered in it.

Radiohead did a wonderful job in the studio with this one and most tracks are exemplary of their compositional style, but they can have a hard time making an engaging long-play listen. At times I wish it was a little more cohesive too. The lyrics seem to have migrated from the more passive and spectating standpoint of OK Computer into a more active, politically-driven commentary. A Wolf at the Door for me is a cut above the rest of the tracks and closes the album beautifully. In the end, Hail to the Thief is an exceptional album if you take the time to pick out its many little gems, though it's not in the same ball park as the more acclaimed Radiohead releases to that date.

Rating: 84/100

[RadioBallet]

In Rainbows (June 2007)

Label: XL Recordings
Produced by Nigel Godrich

Radiohead went on hiatus after Hail to the Thief and began working on its follow-up in 2005. Two years later the band would end the hiatus releasing In Rainbows.

Though they sought to merge rock with their electronic prowess on Hail to the Thief, I think In Rainbows is the project in which they really achieved that. I'm not sure how they did it, but Radiohead's seamless blend of traditional instrumentation and electronics on In Rainbows makes for one of the most sonically unique albums I've ever heard. It is organic. It's as if the music had a life of its own. Each track is crucial to the album as a whole and diversity is plentiful without disrupting cohesiveness even once. I think what I like most about the album's sound, however, is how intimate it sounds. At times it's as if the band is playing in front of you, a private show of sorts. Dealing with themes of death, love, and betrayal in its lyrics, this intimacy manages to bring these large themes to the listener's grasp through feeling. Take Nude, perhaps my favorite track on the album alongside Reckoner. It lifts you off the ground and has you levitate (or perhaps free fall?). The feeling of being exposed and vulnerable is palpable on the track. Videotape, All I Need, Jigsaw Falling Into Place, they all take you exactly where they want to without any difficulty.

In Rainbows is special among the many albums I hold highly. It is, to me, a perfect illustration of what the band had in its head at the time, a perfect painting of the feelings and themes it wants to deal with. It has it all figured out. It precisely fulfills its measure as art, a form of expression for the artist to communicate. It's flawless and beautiful. On top of it all I'm always taken back to that foggy fall morning as I waited for the bus to school as I listened to this some years ago. The cool air, the warm glow of street lighting blending into the mist around it and being the only one outside that early really did something that made this click. I've sort of been inseparable from it since then. It's a miracle how In Rainbows continues to grow on me after this long and I won't be surprised if it continues to do so for years to come.

Rating: 100/100

[RadioBallet]

The King of Limbs (February 2011)

Label: XL Recordings
Produced by Nigel Godrich

Seeking to navigate new waters once more, Radiohead’s follow-up to In Rainbows is mostly made up of loops and samples of the band’s playing. The idea of it is for rhythm to be the driving force of the album. The result is a sound that is very hypnotic, with elaborate, detailed percussion, sprawling bass lines and almost psychedelically-tinged guitar work. Yorke’s voice is used very much like another instrument on many of the tracks, similar to what was done in Kid A. The King of Limbs is not very ambitious and I don’t think it was meant to be as emotional, meaningful and dense as the band’s previous work. From this scope it is clear to me that this album really does fulfill its own purpose. No songs in the track listing strike me as masterpieces and none really stand out over the rest. They’re all solid, but no more. If anything, this proves that Radiohead’s creativity remains undamped almost 20 years and 8 records into their career. I also have a soft spot for this one as it was the first Radiohead material I ever heard and it helped me expand the very limited musical horizons I had back then.

Rating: 80/100

[RadioBallet]

A Moon Shaped Pool (May 2016)

Label: XL Recordings
Produced by Nigel Godrich

Radiohead returns to their more conventional way of recording for their 9th studio album. A Moon Shaped Pool is easily the band’s most moody release. It’s very mellow, subtle, intensely sad and even fragile. In many ways the music could be said to represent Thom Yorke’s emotional state after a difficult split from his partner of 25 years. The lyrics are also very descriptive of love and regret. This gives the album a solid identity among the band’s discography though it does make it easy for the album to become somewhat underwhelming at times. Nevertheless this is a strong release and it fits in well within the band's repertoire, being perhaps their best-textured release to date.

Rating: 85/100