The Official Radiohead Thread

[Rainard Jalen]

Originally Posted by ProggyMan

Yesterday at 10:27...I take it you're not a fan of their later stuff Rainard?

I like the later stuff, but I think that ultimately the greater albums in music history need the songs to back them up. A combination of the sound, the artistic innovation, and the decent number of great individual standalone songs. Like The Soft Bulletin.

I'll get flamed for this but I think Hail To The Thief is more refined, channelled, and a better overall achievement than Kid A and Amnesiac. Radiohead play to their own real strengths on HttT. On the previous two records it sounds more like they're engaged in a momentous, epic battle with their own strengths.

[ProggyMan]

Originally Posted by Rainard Jalen

I like the later stuff, but I think that ultimately the greater albums in music history need the songs to back them up. A combination of the sound, the artistic innovation, and the decent number of great individual standalone songs. Like The Soft Bulletin.

I'll get flamed for this but I think Hail To The Thief is more refined, channelled, and a better overall achievement than Kid A and Amnesiac. Radiohead play to their own real strengths on HttT. On the previous two records it sounds more like they're engaged in a momentous, epic battle with their own strengths.

HTTF isn't exactly filler-free...I like it, but better than their previous two?

[Rainard Jalen]

Originally Posted by ProggyMan

HTTF isn't exactly filler-free...I like it, but better than their previous two?

Where's the filler? It might be a bit too long but I think each song counts. And better than the other two? Hell yeah. It brings the songs along, and still stays experimental and sonically audacious.

[ProggyMan]

Sail To The Moon and several others are just very predictable, maybe filler isn't the right word. I don't really see much new territory covered, it's basically a rehash of their career. Amnesiac is much stronger songwise imo.

[Rainard Jalen]

Originally Posted by ProggyMan

Sail To The Moon and several others are just very predictable, maybe filler isn't the right word. I don't really see much new territory covered, it's basically a rehash of their career. Amnesiac is much stronger songwise imo.

I love it when people say that, since Amnesiac in turn also doesn't cover much new territory that wasn't scaled in Kid A. This is unsurprising since, as people still don't seem to acknowledge (though it's fact), most the recordings for Amnesiac were done in the same sessions as Kid A in 2000 and hence most of the songs could equally have appeared on Kid A, but didn't make the cut. Anyway, an Amnesiac vs Kid A argument is totally out of context here, but I have to point out that Amnesiac contains very little unchartered territory that was not on Kid A (and why should it? see above), so why should Hail To The Thief get any more criticism than Amnesiac for not being exactly earth shatteringly innovative?

HttT might be construed as a "rehash of their career" as you put it, but it's a rehash which blends ideas together, refines them, and throws them out in the overall more important format of well-conceived, strong, polished song-writing. And it's a winner.

[ProggyMan]

Originally Posted by Rainard Jalen

I love it when people say that, since Amnesiac in turn also doesn't cover much new territory that wasn't scaled in Kid A. This is unsurprising since, as people still don't seem to acknowledge (though it's fact), most the recordings for Amnesiac were done in the same sessions as Kid A in 2000 and hence most of the songs could equally have appeared on Kid A, but didn't make the cut. Anyway, an Amnesiac vs Kid A argument is totally out of context here, but I have to point out that Amnesiac contains very little unchartered territory that was not on Kid A (and why should it? see above), so why should Hail To The Thief get any more criticism than Amnesiac for not being exactly earth shatteringly innovative?

Uh, Pulk/Pull Revolving Doors doesn't cover new material? Life In A Glass House? Amnesiac is a collection of songs that weren't written to fit in with Kid A so were put on a seperate follow-up. It sounds nothing like Kid A (A few exceptions). Can you imagine all but 2 or 3 Amnesiac songs in the context of Kid A?

[sleepy jack]

Originally Posted by ProggyMan

Uh, Pulk/Pull Revolving Doors doesn't cover new material? Life In A Glass House? Amnesiac is a collection of songs that weren't written to fit in with Kid A so were put on a seperate follow-up. It sounds nothing like Kid A (A few exceptions). Can you imagine all but 2 or 3 Amnesiac songs in the context of Kid A?

Wrong, Kid A was intended to be a double album but Thom (and the rest agreed) that they just didn't fit together as two albums.

[Rainard Jalen]

Originally Posted by ProggyMan

Life In A Glass House?

One of (and possibly the only? idk) song that was recorded later than the Kid A sessions.

Originally Posted by ProggyMan

It sounds nothing like Kid A (A few exceptions).

It plays pretty much like a more streamlined version of Kid A, probably because the songs that were ultimately deemed not to belong on Kid A turn out to be slightly simpler tracks particularly in terms of beats. Add to those cuts a few post-recording production techniques and some obvious electronica moves and you've got yourself Amnesiac.

Which is fine, I like Amnesiac and all. It's just not some standalone organic masterpiece in the vein of Kid A.

[pheurton]

Originally Posted by Rainard Jalen

I'll get flamed for this but I think Hail To The Thief is more refined, channelled, and a better overall achievement

I completely agree, even the album cover has a higher level of magnitude to it.