Hail to the Thief - Radiohead

Over the course of their career Radiohead have constantly experimented with the type of music that they make, expanding the musical spectrum of what a rock band can explore, from the conventional anthemic rock of The Bends to the synthesised, electronic beats of Kid A. The band’s sixth studio album released almost three years after the Kid A/Amnesiac sessions seems to be the bridge between these two styles.



Listening to Hail to the Thief there is evidence of styles from every era of the band’s history. Backdrifts and The Gloaming both incorporate the digital tools and atmospheric sounds prominent on the previous two albums; however the song Myxomatosis with Jonny Greenwood’s fuzzy, stomping guitar riff shows a return to more conventional guitar work found on earlier albums. The ondes martenot also continues to make its way into the bands music, present on Where I End and You Begin and We suck Young Blood.

The band clearly have many facets to their music and their musical blend is shown off in two of the most impressive songs on the album; opener, 2 + 2 = 5 and There there. The former kick starts the album with some intricate Greenwood guitar work over a light drum beat before progressing to a loud rock climax, while the latter sees each band member working on their own harmonies and interacting with each others by way of synths, drums, guitars and Yorke’s falsetto.

This may all sound very exciting however it does mean the album lacks any clear focus and continuity. Radiohead used to vary their style from album to album, however here they do it from song to song, and subsequently the album suffers. Unlike previous albums, Hail to the Thief doesn’t demand to be listened to – there’s no masterpiece, no talking point and no ‘wow’ factor. Although all the songs are immaculately produced and full of intricacies in both rhythm and melody, making for enjoyable listening, there is very little reason to go back and listen to the album again and therefore can only really be recommended for die-hard fans. However there are some highlights provided by I Will, Yorke’s haunting response to air raids in The Gulf which killed Iraqi civilians, is truly powerful and the serene Sail to the Moon.

Hail to the Thief seems destined to be the halfway mark in Radiohead’s career. The combination of the band’s styles found on the album while not providing as many moments of brilliance as in the past, nevertheless promises that they will continue to push the limits and experiment and make beautiful music, with an amazing album closer, in true Radiohead style, A Wolf at the Door.


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Amnesiac - Radiohead

During the recording stage of Kid A, Radiohead produced well over 30 songs and rather than releasing a double album, which none of the band members were in favour of, they released their fifth studio album just sixth months after the release of their fourth.

Amnesiac is therefore very much a continuation of what the band did on Kid A; the album is for the most part dominated by electronically produced music and ambient sounds, as Kid A was. Jazz influences are also evident, most obviously in the album closer Life in a Glass House which Thom Yorke (on piano) recorded with British trumpeter Humphrey Lyttelton, along with a clarinet and trombone, producing a funereal, New Orleans jazz-style number.

As with Kid A the band continued to experiment with the way they made their music and what they used to do so. Songs such as Packt like Sardines in a Crushd Tin Box and Pulk/Pull Revolving Doors are made up of different electronic textures and sounds and Yorke’s lyrics are cryptic and mysterious. Challenging songs have become a facet of a Radiohead album and Amnesiac is no exception, however there are more radio friendly tracks.

I Might Be Wrong despite its electronic feel revolves around a jazzy guitar riff written by Jonny Greenwood and is one of, if not the most impressive tracks on the album. Knives Out is also a more guitar dominated track, sharing a similar chord progression to arguably the band’s most well-known song, Paranoid Android.

Despite these brief glimpses back to the band’s old style, there can be no doubt that both Amnesiac and Kid A are more about experimenting and trying new things. Songs such as Dollars & Cents, which are dominated by a string arrangement written by Greenwood and a simple bass melody and little else, would never have been found on their 90s LPs. The same can be said of the ominous, bluesy guitar instrumental Hunting Bears which follows. The epitome of Radiohead’s invention though, comes with the penultimate track Like Spinning Plates, a song which is built up over a reversed electronic version of an unreleased track, and also sees one of Yorke’s most hypnotic vocal performances.

Amnesiac is a hard album to sum up. While not as musically accomplished as Kid A, in each track there is something to treasure, whether it be the wailing ondes martenot on Pyramid Song or the Release Me refrain of the new version of the Kid A track, Morning Bell. It is clear that both albums were part of the same project and it seems that the material on Kid A is the best of what was produced from this period – the stuff they had to produce to follow up OK Computer, while the material on Amnesiac is rawer, more organic– the stuff that they simply, produced.

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