Radiohead – In Rainbows
By George Moraitis
| Label: | XL Recordings – XLLP 324 |
|---|---|
| Format: | Vinyl, LP, Album, Stereo, Reissue, 180g |
| Country: | Europe |
| Released: | Original 2007, Reissue 2016 |
| Genre: | Rock, Electronic |
| Style: | Alternative Rock, Prog Rock, Art Rock, Indie Rock, Experimental |
OK, let me just be up front with you. I am a Radiohead fan and my friends stopped mentioning them in conversation many years ago because apparently I gave them ‘Radiohead fatigue’. So I promise that I will not say too much and bore you. Apart from ‘Hail to the Thief’, I have really enjoyed every Radiohead album immensely, but in different ways. Often, there’s a bit of a journey that you go through with this music. They are constantly innovating, experimenting, changing direction and surprising you. A new record is released and it’s a completely different experience than the last one. You need some time to get into it, to adjust and understand their groove. Then you have that ‘penny drop’ moment where you realise that actually, this new record is incredible, genius, my new favourite. Then they go and release a new one with a completely different sound which brings you back to….’what?’ And the cycle begins again.
Surprisingly, In Rainbows revealed itself to be a very different kind of Radiohead record. The band embraced their capacity for uncomplicated beauty and delivered ten tracks immersed in reverb, strings, melody, fabric and atmosphere. It feels like they were liberated from their self-imposed pressure to innovate, relaxed and created a very human album.
“Reckoner” is an example of the band’s softer frame of mind. Yorke’s lonely, protracted falsetto backed by frosty, clanging percussion and Johnny Greenwood’s meandering guitar line, onto which the band pile a chorus of backing harmonies, pianos, and lingering strings. Over the course of several listens, it reveals itself to be among the most beautiful songs the band has ever recorded. And that’s the nature of this album. With each new play, it affects you in a slightly different way, like great art, slowly infusing itself into the deeper folds of your being. Love it!