Overrated, but I Don't Care

Disclaimer: Those looking for a brief description of the album will find what their looking for in the "Review Body" section. The section titled "Track Reviews" is meant only for those who want to read detailed descriptions of the songs, and they do not constitute the essence of this review. Lastly and most importantly, this review is probably not written by the point of view of a Radiohead fan.)

Overall Score: 5/5
Best song: “Subterranean Homesick Alien”
Worst song: “Fitter Happier”

Review Body:

I had an OK computer in 1997. Unlike the previous computer we had from 1993, this new one was able to support the greatest video game in the history of mankind: Civilization II. I was finally able to quench my thirst for oppressing other people-types and going onto achieve virtual world domination! Oh, how many hours out of my life have I wasted in front of that computer! But that's not what you clicked on this review to read, is it? You want to read what I think about the other OK Computer from 1997, the widely loved rock album from the most famous band of the '90s.

Unlike most of the albums I review for this site, I've actually owned it for more than six years, buying it back in the summer of 2002. I played it once shortly after I bought it, and I never listened to it again. Not that I thought it was bad or anything, but I had my favorite, freshly purchased David Bowie, early Genesis, and Kinks records on heavy rotation, and, frankly, Radiohead is much less exciting than those guys. I mean, where is the rock 'n' roll energy? Even Genesis had more rock 'n' roll energy than Radiohead, and I thought they were as neutered as it gets! Even after giving a good number of serious listens in preparation for this review, I haven't significantly changed my mind about OK Computer. So there you go; this is my sincere confession: I am not a huge fan of this, and I probably will never be.

But I still like it, and I'll spend the rest of this review telling you why. (That's what I should have been doing in the first place. You can skip reading the first two paragraphs, if you want to.) How can anyone not like an album with a song like “Subterranean Homesick Alien” on it where they completely nail everything? The whole point of that song is the atmosphere, and this is engaging right from those memorable opening cosmic guitar lines. If it's impossible for you to be able to soak up these soundscapes, then there's no way in hell you're going to get anything out of OK Computer. That said, these songs do a significant boost from the power of Thom Yorke's pretty vocals. They can be a little whiny sometimes, but those vocals pretty much save the day in many cases. “Exit Music (For a Film),” for example, doesn't have extremely compelling instrumentals; it's Mr. Yorke's vocals that make it so engaging. He sounds positively anguished!

“No Suprises” is another one of those undisputed highlights of OK Computer that *gets me* right from the beginning. The jangly instrumentation and atmosphere is like a more colorful version of early R.E.M. Yorke is singing to the heavens, and the nursery-rhyme quality of the melody is nice. Speaking of the melodies, I think that's one department that most of the critics have gotten wrong about these saviors of '90s-rock. Most of these melodies are extremely simple and not very compelling at all. Don't you think “Let Down” would have been a better song if the vocal melody weren't so dreary and toneless? How about “Lucky,” whose melody is strictly average? Hm. I don't know why I'm saying this. You probably like those songs.

The most important thing these guys have done exceedingly well are their emotions. I mean, the array of emotions they spew in the course of “Paranoid Android” is utterly staggering. It starts out sounding something like a cosmic version of a bossa nova, but some loud and ugly guitars take over in the middle, playing some of the most extremely threatening guitar passages that I reckon I've ever heard! Yeesh! And, it's hard for me to sit through a song like “Climbing Up the Walls” without pretending that I'm feeling the same thing Yorke was when he was bellowing those lyrics. Not many other bands do such a thing so expertly. I previously stated that OK Computer doesn't have rock 'n' roll energy. That applies to 11 out of these 12 tracks. The odd duck is “Electioneering,” an extremely spirited riff-rocker. In keeping with the overall tone of the album, it still sounds weirdly futuristic and tortured; don't think they've turned in a Huey Lewis and the News rip-off, or anything!

Well, OK Computer was certainly affecting enough for me to give it a 5-rating although it may have actually deserved a strong 4.75. (I'm such a pushover!) I don't like this as much as other people, and I think that's for one very simple reason: I like a good tune! But as I mentioned plenty of times in this review, Radiohead strove to create an album that was much more than just a collection of good tunes, and I would need to have a lobotomy before I deny that they did it well. I'm not always thrilled with ultra-serious records that try to make me feel emotionally anguished—there are a lot of emotions that I like experiencing, and anguish ain't one of them—but Radiohead actually gave me a good taste of what my life would be like if I wanted to experience such emotions. I guess that means OK Computer is good art.

Track Reviews:

Airbag A
The big triumph here is in the arrangements, treating these songs as though they were scientists. Of course, it's an array of guitars, synthesizers and drums, but they combine to create a beautiful new atmosphere. I don't even know what went into producing some of these sounds, and not even too sure how to describe them—or even the use of describing them. The point is, they create an atmosphere that's weird, complex, and not so dreary that it numbs my mind. Real talent there. Now, the melody on the other hand is average, but somehow I don't mind so much here. What the guitars are playing ends up capturing more of my attention than the melody.

Paranoid Android A
Beautiful! This is six minutes long, and we get emotions ranging from pleasant to tortured to depressed. The beginning of it sounds like a bossa nova. Such a light and snappy beat, and an exotic rhythm. I love the beginning, and Yorke's vocals show some color, convincingly delivering a nice old angst-ridden performance. Some freaking cool tortured, distorted guitars take over in the middle and at the very end—I guess the android was having its paranoia episode there. There's a nice, tranquil almost acoustic ballad in the middle. Yeesh! There's impressively a lot to this track!

Subterranean Homesick Alien A+
Ah yes. If this was the only reason OK Computer has such a high reputation, then that's OK with me. This is beautiful music right from outer space! The instrumentation is wonderful, particularly that cosmic electric guitar that we hear opening the track and noodling around throughout. The other instrumentation is also thick and lovely, and Yorke even manages some real anguished passion in that performance of his. The melody is OK, too. OK!

Exit Music (For a Film) A
Well, that's it. I'm convinced OK Computer is a great album, because this song is so great. It's an extremely low-key and dreary ballad. I don't know how many of these miserable sorts of songs I've sat through before, but Radiohead managed to create one that actually captures my attention and prompts me to actually enjoy it. Usually, these things bore the crap out of me. We have to thank this Nigel Godrich fellow for helping create these sounds, some of which includes early '70s sounding synthesizers, which help keep the flow going. That really buzzy synthesizer coming in was just the right touch to keep it gritty. They weirdly decide to close it with Yorke singing basically a cappella. It's very lonely!

Let Down B
I'm not quite to the point of being such a Radiohead that I'll love every single track here to death! But I still like it. I think in this case, the dreariness starts to take over. The instrumentation is hypnotic and overall fairly samey. That's not always a bad thing, but I do start to get slightly bored with this five-minute song. The melody is strikingly simple, but it seems to really soar at some pivotal moments.

Karma Police A-
This is good! I don't know how much flack I'm gonna get for not giving all these songs A+s, but... whatever. That's part of the excitement of reviewing, I guess. They did a very nice job with this one, of course. I like a few of the turns it takes a number of times, particularly in the verses section. It's not a terribly interesting composition this time; I miss some of their complex, clever instrumental touches in the previous songs. This song has a good melody, but not too memorable by itself.

Fitter Happier B
I remember from my OK computer of the late '80s was messing about with a voice synthesizer program on our family's Commodore 128. (I was about six or seven, but I thought that voice synthesizer program was so cool! I type something and the computer says it!) They typed a poem in one of these programs and let the computer spew it out for a two-minute song. Of course, they provide some spade-age sound effects and lonely piano in the background. It gives it the extra dimension, you see!

Electioneering A
This is more rockin' and more chaotic. It's almost weird to hear them do a song like this after sitting through the first half of the album, but it still manages to give off that futuristic vibe that is the theme for the whole album! It's also nice to know that they could play a bit of riff-rock if they're pressed hard enough, and this here is a good riff. The melody is nice, and I like their chord progressions. More importantly, this song has ENERGY, and I'm not just saying that 'cos it's loud!

Climbing Up the Walls A+
It's funny how they're able to do this. The track starts out quietly with a pretty neat, fuzzy bass synth that I like hearing at first. (Of course, there's a lot of beepy effects, too, but they're just glitter.) And then it starts to grow a little tedious, especially since Yorke's squeaky voice melody never progresses beyond a few repeated lines. But, before, I grow too tired of it, they bring in a deep string section. Yorke's vocals begin to overdub itself a lot, and the instruments and sound effects just keep coming. The vocals grow more passionate and tortured by the end until it all erupts, and the very brief aftermath is an extremely creepy atmosphere. Quite a captivating song!

No Surprises A+
Yikes, there's one thing undoubtedly true about Radiohead: They could start a really ravaging fire sometimes. This particular song is reminiscent of a nursery rhyme with a simple though charming melody and hypnotically jangly instruments. It's immediately easy for me to get caught up in this.

Lucky A-
This is good! But great? Hm. What's prompting me to give this a A- where I gave the previous song an A+ is the simple fact that it doesn't capture me nearly as quickly. The instrumentation continues to be atmospheric, but not quite so infectious this time. The guitars start to get a little dreary and dull. The melody is the typical sort of melody in this album: Not too memorable at all. The singing, though, starts to get me in the final half! I can't deny that.

The Tourist A
Well, they did it again! The main difference between this and every single other dreary ballad on the planet is this one actually gets off its lazy behind and does something. It starts very calmly and prettily, but if it sustained that mode for more than two minutes, it would have grown tedious. But these guys try to split open the heavens. By the end, Mr. Yorke is singing passionately with his pretty voice, and it's hard to not to also feel whatever anguished emotion that he was. Quite a song!

Concluding Remarks:

OK Computer is one of those sacred albums that I don't completely *get*, I guess. I don't know exactly why this is singled out so much as one of the greatest albums of all time. But it *is* quite an ordeal, I can't deny it that.