Radiohead - Kid A (2000)

In the aftermath of their global success, OK Computer (1997), Radiohead faced the dillemma which would see the breaking of many a once-great band. Adored by the critics for a record which captivated and amazed in the same entity, how could they possible top arguably the finest rock record of the 90's? The answer? They wern't going to try.

There are two ways that you can look at 2000's Kid A. You can judge it by the guitar driven melodies of The Bends or the prog-rock excellence of OK Computer. Or you can judge it for what it really is, a record which stands out on its own in a genre of its own. There was a great deal of anticipation for just what the band would produce to follow up their previous successes, and nobody expected Yorke and Greenwood to come up with this. Tired of their guitar routes, the entire band learned new instruments and studied intensive electronica. They had no aspirations to try and top OK Computer, even if the fans would have eaten up such a record. The Oxford outfit new that if they churned out OKC II, they'd be putting themselves in the firing line to be shot down by the media. Staying one step ahead was the name of the game.

In the build-up to the release of Kid A, something incredibly unfortunate happened. The new material was leaked on to the Internet. Thousands of copies of the new songs were downloaded to a distinctly mixed reception. Critics slated the record and proclaimed with sharpened knives that the band had disappeared up their own backsides. When the album was released, they were forced to take back their words. Without a single outlet of television or radio promotion, Kid A shot to the top of the charts worldwide and became an almost cult-like success. Fans were split over their loyalties. Some longed for more OK Computer, others bowed to the courageous leap in to new genres. Radiohead took a huge gamble at the risk of alienating a large part of their fanbase. Did it pay off? That would depend on your outlook.

It has to be said that listening to Kid A is bloody hard. For the first twenty listens at least. You'll be scratching your head at the opening track thinking to yourself, no, everything certainly isn't in its right place. But there lies the beauty of Radiohead. They know what you're thinking when you switch on their record. While many will point to OK Computer as their favorite record of the Radiohead collection, it will perhaps be Kid A that the band are remembered most famously for.

Track Listing

Everything In Its Right Place - ( Yesterday i woke up sucking a lemon / Everything in its right place ) - 8.5/10

The album starts with an airy piece where Yorke's voice ascends in to a persistant plea of everything being in its right place. The inspiration comes from the OK Computer tour and Thom has subsequently described the line of "Yesterday i woke up sucking a lemon" being the way he looked every morning given the shattering nature of the tour. The opening sounds like spaceship communication from Close Encounters, an indescribable sound that intrigues and captivates in good measure. It's an interesting opening in many ways. Having listened to all of the Radiohead albums to date, they possess the uncanny knack of producing a strong opening track which sets the perfect tone for the rest of the record. Kid A is no exception and it soon becomes apparent that the band have taken an entirely different path with their music. By the time the organ-like blasts fade away, you can almost hear thousands of casual 'Head fans who'd been expecting more OKC, stunned in to silence. This isn't OK Computer. Far from it.

Kid A - ( We've got heads on sticks / And you've got ventriloquists ) - 7/10

Named after the first human clone, which Yorke believes is out there somewhere, Kid A is a prime example of the new sound that Radiohead have conjured. When listened to absent-mindedly, it's virtually impossible to penetrate and accept as anything other than, well, random noise. Use some headphones and pay attention, the pieces will begin to cobble together in to an interesting little song. Think of "Fitter Happier", then imagine it disected in to its core elements and meddled with by Jonny's goody machine. You have Kid A. No matter how hard you try, this is never going to hit you in the face as a standout track. Its interesting that they should decide to name the album after this, i see it as one of the weaker songs on the record personally.

The National Anthem - ( Everyone around here / Everyone is so near / Just holding on) - 9.5/10

A rip-roaring bassline which kicks the track to life and resonates in to hypnotic quality, Yorke played the bass himself during the recording. Colin takes over the mantle live as you'd expect, and The National Anthem has since become a strong fan favorite. Yorke screams the lyrics with the gust of a frontman who's been driven out of control by his band's success. The song is simple and complex at the same time, as are so many of Radiohead's pinnacle tracks. Incidently, if you listen carefully, you can hear a clip of the genuine national anthem at the end of the song. over the top, Thom screams to "Turn it off" and the song finally cuts out. A fantastic song and one of the finest on the album.

Jonny: "It started with Thom saying this track should turn into a Charlie Mingus track by the end. Thom has these ideas quite often, sometimes they are best ignored and sometimes they are genius and he's completely right. We pretty much just got a brass section into the room, and I scored out the rough tune. Thom and I stood in front of them conducting - I say conducting it wasn't Simon Rattle it was more jumping up and down when we wanted it to be louder and faster and calming them down at certain points, I'm sure it looked ridiculous. But it sounded pretty good on tape, I think."

Ed: "Eight 'jazzers' came down for the day and blew their stuff all over 'Everyone - The National Anthem'. They were fantastic. Thom and Jonny conducted. What a day."

How To Disappear Completely And Never Be Found - ( I'm not here / This isn't happening ) - 10/10

Phenomenal, inspirational...words could never do justice to the incredible sound which Radiohead produce in this career defining track. HTDC is a semi-flashback to the band's older style. It has elements of Karma Police and Let Down from OKC, boiled down in to a magnificent six minute piece which raises the hairs on the back of your neck. Of all the songs on Kid A, this was the one which clicked first for me. It floats along with a scary opening that's capable of unnerving the listener before taking them on an epic ride "down the liffey" as Thom explains. It's almost impossible to express in written words the magnitude of the sound that's been created here. As the song reaches its hypnotic climax, Yorke's wailing cries merge perfectly with the strings and you wonder how any band could construct such a masterpiece. Incredible song. If you're unsure about buying the full album, or if it's right for you, download this one song.

Thom: "That song is about the whole period of time that OK Computer was happening. We did the Glastonbury Festival and this thing in Ireland. Something snapped in me. I just said, 'That's it. I can't take it anymore.' And more than a year later, we were still on the road. I hadn't had time to address things. The lyrics came from something Michael Stipe said to me. I rang him and said, 'I cannot cope with this.' And he said, 'Pull the shutters down and keep saying, 'I'm not here, this is not happening.' ' "

Treefingers - 5/10

There's not much you can say about this piece. It serves as a divider between the two halves of the albums and it has no lyrics at all. Not so much a song as it is a transition between other material.

Optimistic - ( You can try the best you can / The best you can is good enough ) - 7.5/10

Through early listens, Optimistic was deemed the only song on the album which could potentially succeed as a single. It showcases a heavier guitar sound, yet it's still a long way off from the era of The Bends. The lyrics are catchy if time is invested in them. It's the sort of song that you could be humming for a few days after hearing, despite not having a huge natural affinity to the track in its own right. The song was broadcast over American radio stations, who were desperate for something "radio friendly" to plug the new album with. A solid song that'll grow on you, but not a standout track.

In Limbo - ( You're living in a fantasy world / With the most beautiful woman in the world ) - 8.5/10

Strong track. Yorke preaches over a disturbed haze of background noise and distorted arpeggios, before losing control completely and dissolving in to an abyss of crazy sound. You get the feeling of being lost at sea as the song floats along airily. It sounds just as good, if not better, when played live. Some of Radiohead's songs are naturally geared towards a rougher live perfoamance, although you can't fault the wonderful studio work that's been piled in to this track. One of my personal favorites.

Idioteque - ( We're not scaremongering / This is really happening ) - 10/10

Sharing the mantle of "Most Memorable Song" with How To Disappear Completely, Idioteque is a dance song. Beats and all. In early reviews, the general consensus was negative. Radiohead were taking the p***. Whatever way you look at it, this one song refuses to be ignored and will probably signal your preference towards the rest of the album. It's one of those songs which either cements Radiohead's position in your head as the ultimate geniuses of their time - or confirms your belief that they're no more than pranksters with an antagonistic agenda. I'm opting for a work of genius. The lyrics are strung together as images from Yorke's head. They don't pretend to convey a story. Thom chose the words specifically for the way that they merged with the beats and samples, creating a captivating final product. Idioteque is very much a live favorite, famous for bringing out some of Yorke's treacherous dancing as he loses control to the escalating sound. You can't miss it on the album. Whether the joke is on us or not, Radiohead have ventured in to a whole new genre and outdone other artists who make a living from it. Somewhere, you have to feel, Mr. Yorke and Mr. Greenwood are laughing until their heads come off.

Morning Bell - ( Sleepy Jack the fire drill / Cut the kids in half ) - 9/10

This song would also appear on the follow-up album (Amnesiac) in a much altered form. Yorke gave the description in an interview of the original version (and much of Kid A) representing the chaos of being in a burning wood, while Amnesiac shows the perspective of watching the wood burning from afar. It's an interesting explanation and it's evident in Morning Bell. The song focuses around the keyboard and some typically fine drumming. There are plenty of effects thrown in from the studio and Yorke retains a stupendously high pitched tone throughout. Similarly to Idioteque, the lyrics were chosen based on how they fit in with the rest of the sound. Great song and one that could get caught in your head, for all the wrong reasons. The chant to "cut the kids in half" remains particularly memorable.

Motion Picture Soundtrack - ( It's not like the movies / They fed us all little white lies ) - 9.5/10

An astoundingly beautiful track which was originally slated to appear on OK Computer. It's original form saw an extra verse (Beautiful angel / Cut apart at birth / Limbless and helpless / I can't even reckognise you ), but the later studio version was disected apart and built from scratch with resounding organs. The opening sounds like something from a funeral. It really does. Not going to do Radiohead's image of manic depressives any good, but it certainly catches the eye in it's style. Believe it or not, this song was actually written before Creep. I'm really pleased to see a studio version although i do miss the final verse which had the ability of stealing your heart in it's beauty. A two minute gap of silence cuts through the middle before a brief instrumental closes the record.

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You can't expect to listen to an album of this meticulous quality in one go and appreciate the work that's been injected in to it. It's a notorious "grower" and it deserves to be treated as one. Don't listen to it as background music. Don't switch it on expecting ten more treacks from the Ok Computer/Bends era. You'll be severely disappointed. Radiohead have tapped in to several genres and moulded an album which resonates the most unlikely of sounds. There will always be the criticism that the band departed from everything that made them great when they veered so incredulously in to the realms of electronica. In the aftermath of Computer, a backlash was inevitable. Radiohead did what other bands rarely have the guts or know-how to do. They moulded and transformed themselves in to a different band with the knowledge that they could never beat their previous record for what it was based upon. Whether you like them or loath them, they deserve tremendous credit for attempting and pulling off such a daring feat. Kid A will be remembered for a long time to come.