PeeP on PoP- Radiohead

Radiohead- The King of Limbs (Ticker Tape Ltd- 2011)

~by Gabe McBride

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I have to admit that I have been putting off reviewing The King of Limbs for a few different reasons. I sometimes feel like I’ve missed the boat on Radiohead; I appreciate the idea of the band more than I really listen to them, and, more importantly, I just don’t really know what to think about The King of Limbs in particular, because sometimes it plays in the background without me really noticing it, and at other times I catch a blip or a beat or a discreet shift in tone, and I take notice. I would estimate I’ve listened to The King of Limbs at least a dozen times, and haven’t been able to form a strong opinion about it. 

While I have been ambivalent over the years about Radiohead, there is no doubting how powerful and innovative the band’s work has been. I liked OK Computer, and unabashedly love Kid A, but I think The King of Limbs compares most favorably with Amnesiac’s sense of isolation and detachment, which seem to be Thom Yorke and company’s overriding emotional state. For some reason, I allow Radiohead, despite my ambivalence, to be a little more overly-serious, and somewhat humorless, traits that completely turn me off to other bands (I’m looking at you, Arcade Fire), because their songs seem to be coming from a point of intellectualized adult thinking about emotions, and not some sort of convoluted, overly romanticized adolescent view on emotional life. So, what I’m saying is, inside all the icy synths, glitchy beats, and, yes, even in Thom Yorke’s mournful wailing, there’s some soul, even though it takes a while to find it. 

For Fans of: Pink Floyd, Massive Attack