Review Summary: TyHoEuREj IusS A TtRneeUTdH OtoUT TloHEoRkE
EVOLUTION
"It is not the strongest of the species that survive, nor the most intelligent, but the one most responsive to change."
~Charles Darwin
To evolve one's musical product is always met with the highest of skepticism. The concept tends to divide fans into two fronts. The first are supporters who view the change as a necessary component to the maturation of the musical group. The second are dissenters who view artistic changes as pretentious and mainstream changes as greedy. It is because of these reasons that
Kid A maintains such a divisive opinion to this very day.
At its core,
Kid A is largely reliant on genres such as Electronica, Ambient, and Post-Rock. Common Electronica tracks include
Everything In Its Right Place, a four-minute track utilizing electronic organs and repeated sampling of Thom Yorke's voice. Despite being quite repetitive, the song never fails to entrance the ears in its almost hypnotic buildup as Yorke's vocals become louder and the production more cluttered.
Kid A has a much more varied anatomy; where it contains a plethora of organs, synthesizers, and a beautiful percussion sequence. Like in
Everything In Its Right Place,
Kid A samples certain vocals, but then proceeds to modify them greatly, creating a sound that barely resembles its original host.
How To Disappear Completely is by far the biggest example of what
Kid A was designed to achieve. It is primarily a Post-Rock record that relies on Radiohead's old technique, but completely butchers the concept halfway through its out-of-rhythm electronic pieces that create a disjointed mess of brilliance.
Idioteque can be called somewhat of a parody of the "club music" of the age this album was released. It features an ambient rhythm that repeats but also contains multiple ideas including Yorke's vocals and a synthesizer mesh that layers the outgoing percussion.
Motion Picture Soundtrack is the big oddity of the entire record. While many tracks largely compliment one another, creating a consistent album,
Motion Picture Soundtrack is very different. It is a heavily orchestrated track that was recorded with a pedal organ and designed to imitate the majesty and magic of old 1950's Disney movies.
A friend of mine once described Radiohead's
OK Computer as a painting that could be looked at for years and admired. If what he said is true, then
Kid A is a mosaic. It is the concept of imagery created from the broken pieces of what can be called coherent design. Despite the pieces being largely schizophrenic in nature, it is only when the pieces are put together, we see the true picture.
