Review Summary: The mood-making is great, but what about melody-making? Doesn't take time to think.
This is the outtake album, ladies and gentlemen. Every great band has one and it was only a matter of time until Radiohead churned out one. This is essentially a companion piece to
Kid A, as many of the songs tread similar water in terms of atmosphere, arrangement techniques and songwriting style, but at the same time holds the distinction of being the group's most jazz-oriented record. The thing is; this record wasn't needed.
Structurally, the album is modeled after its predecessor; tunes with electronic drums followed by ambient excursions followed by more traditional songs. For instance, the opener sounds like an update of
Everything In It's Right Place, while
Knives Out is a more melancholic version of
In Limbo. And, hey, there is also an alternate take/reworking of
Morning Bell, just in case you thought this album had nothing to do with
Kid A! This is, in fact, the album's curse and gift; when the clones work, they
do work. The first two aforementioned tracks are minor Radiohead classics, but the third doesn't seem to add anything substantial to the original version apart from some soft acoustic guitars. Also,
Pulk-Pull Revolving Doors strikes me as too similar to
Kid A and, while I never favored neither, I would still opt for the latter, as it flows better during the album. Finally, while the closing numbers in both albums have nothing in common in terms of mood, they certainly are of the same caliber quality-wise; pleasant, but underwhelming endings to records that could have done much, much better.
Enough about
Kid A, however. The jazz influence that is prominent throughout is worth the listen without a doubt; the band is excellent at capturing the abstract, esoteric nature of jazz music and it is nowhere more brilliant than on
Pyramid Song and
Knives Out. The sudden fills and rolls on the former create a hauntingly unsettling experience, while the latter employs an uncommon rhythm section to boost the cascading guitar figure that dominates the song. Elsewhere, the results might not be as captivating, but they sure as hell suck the listener into their depressing and dark aura. As said earlier, only the closing
Life In A Glass House lets me down and that's because the whole arrangement is too traditionally jazz and doesn't bear the identity of Radiohead, but it is a carefully executed arrangement nonetheless.
But, let's address the elephant in the room. The songwriting here is not impressive. Fans of the group will scorn at this remark and claim that everything is great here, but I just don't buy that. As opposed to earlier releases, the majority of melodies here are too slow, languid and sketchily structured to hold my interest for very long. Case in point,
Dollars & Cents that not only borrows the rhythm section of
Knives Out, but also drags on forever based on some dull vocal modulations and a lack of distinct instrumental lines. It doesn't go anywhere and that's that. The same recipe is used in
Like Spinning Plates, minus the jazz drums, while
Hunting Bears is a pointless, boring and utterly unnecessary filler piece. Two minutes of an average guitar theme? I'll pass, thank you very much.
This leaves five tracks that manage to standout, most of which have been discussed earlier; mind you, they are not some kind tour-de-force in terms of songwriting. They have good, even if not truly inspired melodies as well as memorable riffs and instrument lines, but the most important aspect is that they do not bore. For instance,
You And Whose Army? is made special thanks to the endlessly repeated “how long?” line by Yorke that surprisingly doesn’t becomes tedious, while the riff
I Might Be Wrong is bound to stick in your head for days, even if the vocal melody is the weakest out of the “highlights” of the album.
To summarize, this is a mood piece and mood pieces are quite often an acquired taste. If you adore the mood presented here, you will love the album, but seeing as I’m not that much in love with it, I can’t help but feel that the majority of these songs are simply not good enough to stand alone on their feet. Taken in context, this is one grand, although not mesmerizing, dark soundscape to enter when feeling depressed. From any other point of view, this is an album that could have been avoided and the best cuts from here should have made it as bonus tracks for
Kid A.
I couldn’t help but close with a reference to that album. So much for promises.
Highlights:
- Packt Like Sardines In A Crushd Tin Box
- Pyramid Song
- You And Whose Army?
- I Might Be Wrong
- Knives Out
