1997, was a great year for music. This album and other albums from bands such as U2 were released to very high praise. But no had a bigger impact on music than an album called "Ok Computer". The album is magnificent really has only two tracks that aren't 5/5 material, and is the best album I have ever listened to [Even though I haven't listened to many of the essential greatest albums of all time].
The album creates an unbelievable atmosphere. On my first review of this I really didn't get how brilliant each and every one of these tracks were. The Bends was really just a warm-up for this album as these tracks are more original with no fillers like "Sulk" on The Bends.
"Airbag", is Radiohead best opener to any of there albums. You can tell there electronic influences in the begging of the song and the end with the loop of the guitar riff that occurs. Even though it's not like anything on the album it wasn't intended to be as Thom always says in interviews. The song is an unbelievable opener and you can tell that Thom has improved his songwriting and the band have improved there overall musicianship which makes this even more unbelievable of a track. 5/5
"Paranoid Android", is probably the band's best song ever made. The beat and rhythm changes are incredible; the lyrics are absolutely crazy and "Paranoid". The chorus is only three words but it seems like it grips you in for a much longer time, and doesn't let you out until the next verse comes in with more "Roman Empire" bashing lyrics. It's always interesting to me that all Radiohead's lyrics have meaning, the songs can be about a variety of topics rather that be a "Relationship" or in this case "Roman Empire". The peak of the song in my opinion is when Thom goes into a silent and calm verse which follows his screaming of "Off with his head man", in this verse the controversial lead "Rain down, Rain down" Thom softly speaks while a nice acoustic beat accompanies him in the background with "oh" in the background. I think it is just brilliant what this song can do. 5/5
" Subterranean Homesick Alien", is a track that I have drastically changed my opinion on. The soft acoustic beat really shows off Thom's voice and songwriting ability, which rarely happens on any of Radiohead 21st century because of there devotion to electronic. The song is about Thom seeing Aliens and everyone thinking that he is "Crazy" and "Uptight", and it really could be a country/folk dirty acoustic song if Radiohead wanted to make it since it is telling a story. The song is better than most of the acoustic songs on "The Bends", and keeps up the albums incredible streak of making classic songs. 5/5
"Exit Music [For A Film]", is one of the sickest songs I’ve ever heard. The word sick alone can mean many things in this context, the song is sick in that it is one of the most creative acoustic songs I’ve ever heard, and sick in the lyrics. In the lyrics it is as if Thom is trying to save someone's life. The scary theme the album tries to create in this song is just unbelievable. The chorus is what makes this song what it is as Thom sings, "Breath keep Breathing", and the freighting about terrifying noise in the background continues. The lyrics continue to frighten you "sing us a song to keep us warm"; There is no shame in crying during this type of song. Thom ends at the end of the song with a message to the band's doubters "We hope you choke". 5/5
What Thom said the meaning of "Let Down" was really sets the meaning of the song. "I had the funniest thought of people hanging from bottles". Scary? Yes. Genius? Even More. "Let Down", is amazingly well-written and sounds a little bit like the previous track but it's not acoustic and uses a little bit more of electronics. The chorus in this song is hard to understand but it fits the instruments so perfectly, that instead of being annoying it's rather provoking. The breakdown features a little bit more of an upbeat beat with one of my favorite Radiohead lines "Hysterical And Useless" being mentioned again in this song.
"Karma Police" is probably the song I will remember most lyrically from this album. The lyrics are probably the catchiest and the most upbeat off the album, but the dark beat makes it be a perfect blend of everything the album has to offer. The chorus is very good and the end of the song lyrically sounds like "Exit Music [For A Film". Radiohead again includes meaning into there lyrics, "Her Hitler hair-do was making me feel ill". The bands lyrics even contain some of there history, "We are still on the payroll", and the song is just a perfect mix of everything the album has to offer us 5/5
"Fitter Happier" is the song the band used to sum up there feelings at the time the recorded the album. The song is an interlude that contains a robot like voice, and is pretty hard to listen to considering all the things the song is throwing at you. I think it is just a song meant to frighten the listener, and it does a hell of a job of it. 4/5
"Electioneering",is probably the most generic rock song on the album and the worst written. The surrounding lines to the song are pretty basic and there are no dramatic beat changes are emotion outside the chorus. Though the chorus is unbelievable, it doesn't do enough to make this any better than a excellent song on the Sputnik rating system. 4/5
"Climbing Up The Walls", starts out with the ringing of what sounds like Grasshoppers and then goes into a smoother beat. The lyrics progress well with the instruments in this song. It is the best comparison to "Exit Music [For A Film" I think there is on the album. The lyrics are again sick and seductive and so is the instrumental work. It is a very hard to get through song, as well as anything on the album is. The songs chorus is the best on the album, "Anywhere you turn I'll be there", is the first line of the dramatic chorus and it sets the tone for the whole song. If you respect this album and what it does instrumentally and vocally you have to respect this song. 5/5
Some songs take risks on there albums and some stay true to the album, by the tenth track you can tell if the band has taken that risk or not, even though Radiohead had already in my opinion done that on the 8th track, they chose to do it again with "No Surprises". The most meaningful and action packed lyrics are stuck into the simplest form of a soft song. The song chorus is Awesome; it is everything the album is about, the hospital theme, the scary lyrics, and the begging to try something new. The song is probably the best risk taking song on the album. It is a great overall song. 5/5
"Lucky", is the second best song on the album in my opinion, behind Paranoid Android. It's the most list enable song for new Radiohead listeners, and it still has some feeling for the fans that have been listening to them since the "Pablo Honey" days. The chorus is the most complex and again listenable of the album, the guitar riff is one of the catchiest of the album. The lyrics of course have meaning: "The head of state is calling me by name, but I don't have time for you", absolutely incredible. Thom Yorke can put the most complicated and meaningful lyrics around the simplest song. It is a great talent that he has. And it comes to its peak in this song. 5/5
"The Tourist", proves that Johnny Greenwood is going to be an excellent solo artist. Not only does he play all the strings and weird instruments to make this song even more beautiful than it already is, he was the person that wrote the song. The song is a great preview of Kid A as it uses the most electronics on the album and it has a beautiful chorus. Greenwood said " People should stop to see how beautiful the world was". People should stop and listen to how beautiful this song is. 5/5
In conclusion, this album is one of the best albums I have ever listened to. It contains the rocking sound of "The Bends", and we get an electronic preview of "Kid A". And when you combine those two classic albums together you are destined to have this, a mammoth of an album.
