Radiohead
The King of Limbs

Release Date: 2011 | Tracklist

Radiohead has been one of the most influential and critically acclaimed band for almost 20 years. Every album they have made brings something new to the table. Wether its the pop rock of the bends to the sonic landscape that is OK Computer they have always been moving music forward. I feel that this album does lean back to what they have known but also exploring some new territory. Through its textures and loops you can feel a mix of there last three records before it. The band always tries something new but they fell a little short from the darring music that I fell in love with.
I can also hear bits of Thom Yorke's solo album "The Eraser" in the "King of Limbs" so I dont know if the band is coming together fully as a whole rather then Thom pulling the strings.

The album in many ways is dense and layered with loop upon loop. Making it a very catchy and groovy sort of atmosphere. Mixed with echo and distortion effects with Thoms vocals makes it haunting yet beautiful at the same time. They tracks are also very dense for multiple listens and you can always pick out something in each track. Which I have always liked about Radiohead is that the songs never get old after repeated listens. This means its well produced and very complicated musically. To make textures to provoke such imagery is genius. Sonically I think this record is at the same level as Kid A was. Only that it has hints of "In Rainbows". Which is the perfect combination of sexy and haunting.

Some key tracks I would say are "Lotus Flower". Phils percussion is superb and has improved from past efforts. Thom's falsetto is nothing short of beautiful and has never sang that high. They hit there stride and keep it going with "Codex". I feel like this is a perfection of "Sail to the moon" which I thought fell short. It grabs you and takes you in while you close your eyes and the rest of the world passes you by. The best transition from the birds chirping into "Give up the Ghost". You feel like your floating and then the acoustic guitar comes in with Thoms layered vocals. Paints a perfect picture of imagery which makes me feel that this album is almost complete. Although it falls short with the closing track "Separator" because I feel like it ends awkwardly. It leaves me in sort of an empty feeling so this is why the album as a whole falls short. I feel for an eight track album there is just to much filler and I know Radiohead can do better then this. Let us pray that this is not the end of this album. There is speculation for another side of this to complete a close but no cigar album.

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3.5 great

Rank: #0 for 2011