2LP – Vinyl
‘OK Computer’, Radiohead’s third album, is the bombastic follow-up to 1995’s sleeper hit ‘The Bends’, which left critics and listeners as impressed with the band’s ability as they were curious about their potential. In spite of its technological-sounding title and apocalyptic sci-fi themes, ‘OK Computer’ is firmly grounded in the rock verities. Waves of guitars rage beneath the haunting melodies and near-hysterical fits of singer Thom Yorke. This complex, intense swarm of guitars is held aloft by a solid, inventive rhythm section and an impressive array of piano and keyboard textures. ‘Paranoid Android’ is a six-minute-plus epic with alternating time signatures, wild dynamic shifts, drama and adrenaline to spare. ‘Let Down,’ with its double-tracked vocals and rhythmic throb, may give a brief glimpse back at Radiohead’s past, but at no point is ‘OK Computer’ anything but a hurtle forward.
Track Listing:
1. Airbag (4.44)
2. Paranoid Android (6.23)
3. Subterranean Homesick Alien (4.27)
4. Exit Music (For a Film) (For a Film) (4.24)
5. Let Down (4.59)
6. Karma Police (4.21)
7. Fitter Happier (1.57)
8. Electioneering (3.5)
9. Climbing Up the Walls (4.45)
10. No Surprises (3.48)
11. Lucky (4.19)
12. The Tourist (5.24)