The album that is acclaimed by many music critics to be Radiohead’s masterpiece, OK Computer manages to push rock boundaries by playing around with electronic additions, messing with time signatures and straight-forward melodies, as well as paying careful attention to crafting an album that is as much a representation of musical art and grandeur as it is accessible and pop-oriented. That was a complex sentence but it fits because Radiohead is a rather complex rock band. They don’t take the easy route with their musical expressions and simple is an adjective better left unused with the Brit-Rockers. Songs like Paranoid Android, Karma Police and Lucky are probably the most well-known for the standard music listener and certainly these are a few of the highlights. Haunting vocal deliveries, soaring/crashing melodies and layers of musical fusion provide a super ambience to the songs, allowing you to drift away at times and be readily engaged in others. Fitter Better is one of those engaging tracks, a transition piece in the album that includes a Steven Hawkins type voice relaying dos and don’ts and poetic images to the listener. A touch frightening and a touch compelling. Who dares do such things on a rock album? Radiohead. And it’s altogether wonderful.
HOME RUNS:
Airbag, Paranoid Android, Let Down, Karma Police, No Surprises, Lucky
HITS: Subterranean Homesick Alien, Electioneering, The Tourist
FOULS: Exit Music (For A Film), Climbing Up The Walls
OUTS: none.
By: Cousy
