Radiohead - In Rainbows

2007, Self-Released, TBD Records, XL Recordings

Alright, so the dust has finally cleared from the hype surrounding In Rainbows, Radiohead’s groundbreaking new album.

Although it was more than excellent that the innovative release method used by the (at the time unsigned) band dealt the first of (hopefully) many blows to the (hopefully) dying record industry, the unorthodox method pretty much overshadowed In Rainbows‘ actual music, and will probably do the same for future generations. If you’re reading this site, chances are you’re already aware of what exactly Radiohead did differently with the release of this album, so we’ll focus on the music.

The first track, “15 Step”, is a fast album opener with some great guitar picking and an excellent piece of drum work. “Bodysnatchers” has received a lot of comparison to early Radiohead because of the distortion used on the song, and that’s not untrue, but it doesn’t exactly fit right into The Bends. Personally, I think it would fit right in line with most of their previous album, Hail to the Thief. The next track, “Nude” has reportedly been around since OK Computer, and it sounds a little bit like a very stripped-down cross between “Climbing Up The Walls” and “The Tourist”.

“Weird Fishes/Arpeggi” belongs in some list of great songs somewhere. Once again, we’re back to the unbeatable combination of great tapping drums part and picking, atmospheric guitar part for most of the song. Where exactly the song change from “Weird Fishes” to “Arpeggi” or whether they are actually intended to isn’t clear, and it doesn’t really matter. “All I Need” is a very low-key number that begins slow but gets loud at the end, simultaneously cooling the album off from “Weird Fishes/Arpeggi” and keeping the pace. It’s followed by another low, almost acoustic number that is entirely necessary, “Faust Arp”. It’s short though, and followed by two masterpieces: “Reckoner” and “House of Cards”.

Fans recognize the track title “Reckoner” from live shows far predating the album, but see almost no similarities between the album track and the live song. Contrary to popular online belief (which is exactly half as potent as real life belief), it is the same song, it’s just that it has a completely different arrangement (distorted guitars are replaced with low-key piano, some shaken bells, strings, and looped backing vocals), different lyrics, and the refrain “RECKONER! BOP BOP BOP!” from the live version has been cut out. Maybe it isn’t the same song at all, actually… Let’s move on.

“House of Cards” is a beautiful song to me. The strummed electric guitar drives the song, the quiet, introspective yet accusatory vocals about a wife-swapping party (”Throw your keys in the bowl/Kiss your husband goodnight” if you don’t believe me) are beautifully echoed throughout the track, and once again the drums are wonderful.

“Jigsaw Falling Into Place” is a good, loud, fast number to make up for two quiet tracks in a row. Like basically the rest of the album, it’s very drum driven, and features probably the fewest extra instruments of any song on the album, other then the closing track, “Videotape”, which is a beautifully haunting piano song with very little extra instrumentation. It’s a gorgeous song, and finishes out a gorgeous album.

So, final comments: the album is a little short. It clocks in at forty-two and a half minutes, which is not long enough considering we’ve been waiting for this album for more then four years. Still, it’s forty-two solid minutes of excellent music, with nothing to skip. The band did some great things with the songs they had, and all the choices made to distant them from their live counterparts are nice, though I wish that “Down is the New Up” would have made it onto the record; I can’t wait to hear the studio recording of it, shortly after December 3rd, when the discboxes are shipped out. The bottom line is that this is a Radiohead record. It doesn’t sound exactly like anything else they’ve done, but chances are good that if you liked anything from their past, you’ll like this, and if you didn’t, you won’t.