King Of Limbs: Ingenious Ambitious. Radiohead

 Exams were closing in and it was time for implementing my new “I-am-disciplined-and-I-have-to-dig-my-text-this-time-at-least-during-the-exams” plan that I devised during the winter break (it’s not funny, even the name, yes). There had been a lot of music practice in the first month of the college and so I had already had fun and it was time to commence preparations for the first series of embarrassing tests. In some idle time, retreating back to my old habits, I logged into Facebook only to find the most interesting status update by JD. “The Day After Tomorrow, is the biggest album release since I started following music!” I remember vividly. How could I forget it? That’s where it all started. The next microsecond I was interrogating him, only to realise that he was talking about Radiohead’s 8th studio album; King of Limbs. Now that was one big piece of news, BIG (And that’s when you curse them for not making any basic I-AM-PSYCHED smiley and resort to using the archetypal CAPS-LOCK to express your emotions) Two days from now. Now that is the worst thing that can happen to a Radiohead fan, had I known it was coming out in a month I would have chilled, the extra “procrastination-nylase”enzyme secreting organ of my body would have helped me deal with the excitement but it was just two days from then and that is bad news! The restlessness, it is exactly similar to the one you have when your mother says “When you return from school, I will make you your favourite Blueberry cheese cake and that chicken steak from the Top Chef” and sees you off. The only thing you can do is not think about it, but if you have similar brain cells as I do, ones that force you to think in exactly the opposite direction and then laugh at you, you end up with a watering-mouth for the rest of the day.

The next night at 00:30, someone shared a link on the intranet, the almighty DC++, entitled “Radiohead- King Of Limbs (2011)”. I was flabbergasted; it could’ve either been leaked or the album's digital version had been pulled back one day and released. Dumbfounded I sat when I came to know that the album was up on their website for a set price but it suddenly all became clear. Radiohead were smart, that was a marketing strategy. It gave fans a sense of achievement, as people who were lucky enough to have checked their website a day earlier would be amongst the first few prestigious people devouring ‘King Of Limbs’. And there I was, devouring the successor of one of the greatest alternative-rock albums."

Alright there is a huge difference between liking and respecting a certain album. And Radiohead is one band that is respected by every person who likes them. They not only make you like their music but inspire you to contemplate the meaning. There are very few 21st century bands that leave an effect on the genre of music they play, and the first name that comes to my mind is Radiohead. Constantly drifting away from the comfort zone of the listeners, without worrying much about commercial success, they have come up with material that has been the first of its kind; fresh and stimulating. That is the first thing I would say about King Of Limbs in this casual album review of mine.

The first thing that you want to do with a Radiohead album now is compare it with their previous work and be proved wrong all the time. I did that too. I had Kid A in mind when I heard it for the first time, but yet again ‘Yorke and Co’ are way too talented. You could possibly compare it to the Amnesiac in terms of the ‘shift’ in the sound with respect to its predecessor (Kid A in this case, and the legendary In Rainbows to the recent album). King Of Limbs is very different from the guitar laden In Rainbows. Jazzier percussion/grooves, this one too has that same layered sound, but this time the texture is richer. It kind of complements In Rainbows. Or let me say it kind of picks up from where In Rainbows left suddenly evolving into something completely different.

Before going any further I would make a suggestion that might sound immature but definitely not senseless. Listen to this album on good earphones or an amazing stereo, the sound is abstract like any other album and this one is all about the electronic texture and the layers, unlike the catchy In Rainbows. The rattling drums and the bass lines won’t make sense if you don’t have good equipment to use. (I don’t really know a lot of technical terms but then I will be using texture and layering whenever I want to sound intelligent, and also because they really make sense!) Highlights of the album? Phil Selway, I always wonder how this guy comes with all those grooves and unusual time signatures. He also manages to execute them immaculately live. Second, yes, the dominant force of the band, Thom Yorke, sounds as young as ever. His falsetto still sounds the best and it brings pleasant memories of Jeff Buckley, whom Yorke states as a major influence.

‘Bloom’, the opener certainly takes off from where the last track on In Rainbows, Videotape left. I tried doing this (exams over, I have loads of free time now) I played Videotape once followed immediately by Bloom. The piano intro sets the mood, you are expecting something like Videotape and then start these staccato drums similar to 15 Step and a lot of other Radiohead songs but the rhythm is completely different, I couldn’t help relating it to the rhythm and the sound of the Indian railways. Haha, strange but it continues throughout the song with Yorke’s signature style of stretching the vowels when he sings “Open Your Mouth Wide”. The song is heady. Maybe not initially but after you listen to it multiple times.

Next in line is ‘Morning Mr. Magpie’ with a very catchy intro; I again couldn’t resist comparing and thought it would turn out like Bodysnatchers, one of my favourite tracks on In Rainbows. But it turns out to be pleasantly different. Infact it sounds like a tribal song because of the distinctly tribal beats. ‘Morning Mr. Magpie’ is all about how awesome the bass, the palm-muted guitars and Yorke’s wailing vocals blend. Superb energy, superb track.

‘Little By Little’, I think will make an awesome background track for a detective movie. I love the feel of this song. Finally Thom Yorke’s vocals stand out. Now it’s like Yorke singing and the rest of the band playing, like more of a duel. Nice jazzy track, probably will not linger in your head but yes worth it, adds to the continuity of the album and does justice to the build up leading to the band’s only single as of now ‘The Lotus Flower’ and to all the other songs that follow.

The next track is ‘Feral’ and yes I’ve had discussions with my friends, I agree Radiohead’s trying to be too ambitious with this one. I heard ‘Feral’ possibly with an intention of liking it but I think I haven’t been able to. It’s something you don’t pay attention to because everything has been so nice till now. So you let it pass thinking you will listen to it carefully later and don’t really end up hating it. Yes now that is something big Radiohead has achieved. They have garnered this understanding with the fans, which doesn’t really make the fans dislike any of their content. You always feel like listening to it again if you don’t like it, the mind doesn’t really accept any unattractive Radiohead-product because of the reputation they have, because of the fact that they have managed to grow with each album exponentially. 

Now comes the first single of the album, the catchiest song ‘The Lotus Flower’. I personally loved the album this track onwards a lot. The bass line is chic and the vocal melody is really appealing, Thom Yorke’s falsetto sounds relaxed, meditative. Definitely a sing along song but make sure you are still playing this album on your amazing stereo or high quality earphones. It sounds astounding on a good quality woofer. However what makes the song really special is the video. Radiohead continues to make sad videos of amazing songs. Yorke is all over the place, wobbling and doing his awkward dance moves. He has lost weight and hair, which is evident when he takes his hat off while doing those amusing dance moves. I wasn’t really surprised to see Thom Yorke do this after seeing most of his highly energetic movements on stage and his love for electronic dance music. But I am sure this is one of those tracks that pops up in your head when you think of King Of Limbs, I've heard it around 20 odd times and I have liked it everytime.

6th and the best track of the album is ‘Codex’. A “hauntingly beautiful” piano ballad that comprises of Thom Yorke’s echoing falsettos layered by horns and muffled beats. Listen to this song while sleeping, really peaceful. It is exactly something you require after a long tiring day, just close your eyes and notice each and everything about the song; the lyrics, beautiful amalgamation of the falsettos and the horns and most importantly the mood of the song. It somewhat reminded me of Coldplay, the signature Chris Martin piano-work. But then yes Coldplay themselves have stated Radiohead as their biggest influence ever.

‘Give Up The Ghost’ would’ve been the perfect song to end this album. Yet another haunting track. The acoustic guitar, mild percussion and the reverb soaked vocals with slight distortion sound beautiful together. If it's only you, your acoustic guitar and your terrace at night, then its 'Give Up The Ghost'.  ‘Separator’ the 8th and the last track of the album didn’t really appeal to me much, it left the album slightly incomplete according to me. There was nothing wrong about it, the guitars were more pronounced, I loved how it ended with the delay but I was expecting a hidden track or a small trippy ending music piece maybe after a 30 second silence or something. But yet again Radiohead managed to leave me bewildered with this one.

I agree it is a very short record; some 38 odd minutes, especially after the double-album In Rainbows. But still it doesn’t sound incomplete except for the ending maybe. The whole album is interconnected. Cleverly cleaved into a chaotic first half featuring probably the best percussions by Phil Selway till date and the second half is from where Thom Yorke, one of the greatest frontman ever, takes off. King Of Limbs features some of Yorke’s best work as well, the vocal melodies are really inventive and this album sounds like no other Radiohead project. On "Little By Little" they hint Yorke's solo-work Eraser and Amnesiac on others but it is still distinctly different.They also don’t manage to make an evident distinction between the two halves that seem to be there; it is a nice continuation of one into the other. You cannot hence appreciate or rather unfold all the aspects of the album if you don’t listen to it according to the track-list, one after the other. And because of the layers, you always observe something different each time you hear it, so this is definitely not something that is straightforward. I agree you have to listen to it multiple times but it is worth it. Radiohead fans will love it, but it might not be an album which you listen to and become a Radiohead fan at once.

I really think you should go and get it. Radiohead has managed to deliver the sound of the future and they deserve to be touted as the greatest alternative rock band of the world.