Why We love: Radiohead’s Amnesiac

I’m one of those people who that the sun shines out of Radiohead’s behinds. I believe there are many of us. Most music critics will tell you that OK Computer is their finest recording, and many will go on to assure you that it is the finest album ever made. Sure, the album’s a masterpiece, but I don’t think it’s even their best work, let alone one of the best albums ever made. I suppose you think I’m going to be pretentious and say Kid A is my favourite (if in doubt: that’s the weird ‘experimental’ one they did after OK Computer).

The crying bear: so much better than Pedo Bear

Kid A, close, but that’s simply not pretentious enough of me. I’m going to be uber pretentious and tell you that the best Radiohead album of all time is Amnesiac. Yes, Amnesiac, the crazy sister recording to Kid A, the one that you probably don’t own and have listened to once on Spotify before declaring that you just didn’t ‘get’ it.

So now you’ve picked your jaw from your desk and re-hinged it, I’m going to tell you why.

Amnesiac flows like a dream, and compared to Kid A, it sounds like ‘experimental Radiohead’ without being too floaty and slow [hear ‘Treefingers’ to see what I mean]. If you really want, you can look at it as having a song from the different ‘eras’ of Radiohead on it. Ie there’s the guitar driven Pablo Honey/The Bends/OK Computer music, the ‘artsy fartsy’ Kid A music and then the ‘despair at the modern world’ music of Hail to the Thief and In Rainbows. There really is nothing to dislike because although these sounds are quite different, somehow, they fit well on Amnesiac.

If you want crazy time signatures, listen to ‘Pyramid Song’ and I dare you to try and tap your foot. If you want more of Radiohead’s weird ambient music, listen to ‘Like Spinning Plates’ and try and decipher Thom’s lyrics. If you want full on jazz, just listen to ‘Life in a Glasshouse’. There really is something fun for all the family on this record! Lastly, if you were in any doubt about this record, check out the amazing re-vamped version of ‘Morning Bell’: it’s loud and almost acoustic compared with the original from Kid A. I love both dearly, but Amnesiac’s version has more bite.

Baically, if you haven’t already given it a go, try Amnesiac as your next Radiohead listening venture. BUT, if you've never listened to Radiohead before, you might want to try something more accessible, like The Bends or OK Computer.