CC00009: Radiohead
Submitted by lbangs on Tue, 02/20/2001 - 10:24
Tags:
- OK Computer (10)
- The Bends (8.5)
- Pablo Honey (7)
Author Comments:
This is the ninth in a continuing series I call Critical Consensus. I am averaging the opinions of several excellent music critics to produce a list of each artist's albums. The albums will each have a rating between 1 and 10. The albums will be listed in a recommended purchasing order, so new fans will have an idea of where the best place to start buying an artist's work is. These are not my opinions, although, since I have chosen the critics used (and I'm using many), my taste will perhaps seep through a bit.
Terribly nerdy, I know, but maybe this will help people only now beginning to dabble into certain artists' bodies of work.
Why put The Bends over a point below OK Computer? They are both wonderful albums, but I consider The Bends to be a cut above; it's wonderfully moving and the lyrics wail with alienation and disconnect. It's almost *too* good: listening to it almost always makes me moody, so it's not an album for all occasions.
I believe any album earning an 8 or higher can easily be considered a 'great' album in the eyes of critics. When critiquing The Bends, almost every critic placed it somewhat below OK Computer. The most commonly given reason for this is originality. Where critics heard many echoes of REM, Floyd, and U2 on Bends, OK Computer seemed to strike them as a thoroughly original album with a sound completely Radiohead's own. I pretty much agree with the critics here; there is certainly a break between Bends and Computer where Radiohead sounded less like their grunge and post-grunge contemporaries and more like a band that refused to fit comfortably into any current musical styles. Of course, this doesn't necessarily make Computer a better album, but it does possibly gives it a slight stylistic edge and the advantage that can accompany a fresh sound.
The second most common reason was consistency. While certain songs on Bends were usually singled out as wonderful (Fake Plastic Trees in particular), critics largely found every song on Computer to be a classic, and they largely felt that the album felt a bit more cohesive than Bends. One critic mentioned that Computer felt like a great album, where Bends felt like a collection of great songs. At the moment, I'm not exactly sure how I personally feel about these comments.
If I were ranking these albums myself, I'm not exactly sure how Computer and Bends would come out in relationship to each other, but for the critics, Computer came out quite a bit higher than Bends, and my list of the critical consensus reflects that reality.
Thanks for the comment. I'll have to consider my own personal views on the two albums and reply again, or, perhaps, create a separate Radiohead list with my own opinions.
Shalom, y'all!
L. Bangs
I also consider The Bends to be above OK Computer.
So has Kid A been out long enough to determine the consensus? I'd give it an 8 1/2 or a 9 at this point now that both the hype and the backlash have subsided...
Johnny Waco
Since most of my sources only update annually (if that often), Kid A is still a bit too new. I suspect your rating of 8 1/2 or 9 is close to what the consensus rating would be. I personally would probably ride with an 8.
Hopefully, after a few more of my sources update, I can run through and update all of these CC lists.
Shalom, y'all!
L. Bangs