Radiohead: I don't quite get them, something wrong with me?

agree with you here

 

I like certain songs from them, Kid A is the one album I play the most completely. I have the Bends CD but never put it into my Ipod, never had the urge, haven't really listened to it in awhile. I listen to Wolf at the Door constantly these days (last song on Hail to the Thief).

The one thing I hate is now they seem to be the trendy band to like among the trendy/Hollywood crowd. I cringe when people like Jennifer Aniston and Alyssa Milano mentions the band like they do about their designer purses.

 

Don't be so hard on yourself! Music is meant to be enjoyed, not worshipped. I think you may have set yourself up to be disappointed by going about listening to them feeling obligated to like them. Give 'em another try with a clean head. If you're not really feeling them, no biggie! There are millions of bands out there you will like, but there is not one single group or solo act that is universally loved.

 

You're not alone. Some of it is out there, but then so are the people that listen to them, including me.

 

i definately think radiohead is one of the top 5 bands in the past 20 years. but i can understand why alot of people wouldnt like them - its not really accessible music - i really dont know how they were able to get as much a foothold in the "mainstream" as they have. i do think alot of it is hype and how it is perceived as being "hip" or cool to namecheck them. i think alot of people's repsonses in the thread are in relation to or a backlash against that, judging by all the tounge-in-cheek comments about how they arent "cool enough" to like radiohead.

to their credit though, if they really wanted to "sell-out" they could have done it along time ago. instead they let coldplay rip off all the accessible parts of radiohead and make a career out of rehashing fake plastic trees. they are always seeking to push their sound and evolve as a group, which is very admirable. and not to go off on a tangent, but coldplay really sucks. talk about a band that hasnt evolved! their first record was ok, but the other two are the exact same sound - bends era radiohead - they cant get beyond it.

i got into them when the bends came out - alot of their stuff reminded me of late period beatles. ok computer really was a landmark record though - the timing of when it came out at the dawn of the "internet age" or at least when it was really starting to get huge at the end of the 90's. it just seemed like a really appropriate record for the times and the coming years. thats obviously the record that made them world famous and i think to a degree alot of people who otherwise wouldnt give their music the time of day are still listening b/c of it. i know a few who dont really like the electronic stuff that they have done since then, but still listen.

i didnt like the latest record hail to the thief at first and actually thought they were beginning to fall off, but over time it has become my favorite radiohead record.

i like the pink floyd reference - if pink floyd has been weaned on punk rock and had access to electronics i think it would be right there. radiohead might be a little wierder though.

wilco is another band that reminds me of radiohead, as one who is always pushing themselves creatively and never repeating themselves, which to me is far more interesting than just doing the same thing over and over. their sound gets less accessible, but creatively it is much more interesting.

 

huh huh, im quoting myself. i think alot of people feel that radiohead is a band they have to like just because they are referenced so much. however, i dont think someones musical taste should be judged based on whether or not they like a band. to answer the thread title, no there is nothing wrong with you because you dont like radiohead. i know a few people who's musical tastes i respect, yet they hate the beatles. i really dont understand how anyone could actively dislike them, but the thing about music is that its all subjective. one mans beatles is another mans creed.

 

i think like a few already mentioned, i think OK computer and the bends are awesome, kid A and everything after that doesnt really interest me. for a while i even thought that they were just messing around to turn away their new fans who decided that they're cool now, kind of like purposely trying to make themselves too weird to be cool.

on another note, i absolutely detest 'creep'. i think its such a crap song with such crap lyrics. and i know they wrote it with something else other than low self esteem in mind, but its such a emo punk band song. i blame that song for paving the way to all of the good charlottes, simple plans 'i'm so miserable cos i'm so weird and dont fit in' ballads jamming every music media right now.

 

BEST BAND EVER (IMO)

Totally understandable if you don't like them, though. For the most part, they really are one of those bands that you either love or really can't stand. I'm a huge fan (seen them about 10 times and traveled all over to see them).

I really think that a good Radiohead litmus (sp?) test is to listen to OK Computer about 3 times (once really isn't good enough to get it). If it clicks and you start loving it, move on to The Bends, then Kid A. If you still think it is tripe, then they definitely are not your cup of tea.

 

There was an article I read somewhere that said that Radiohead makes "great mood music," and while that has somewhat of a condescending and negative ring to it, I think it's a fair assessment. Their music after The Bends is primarily focused on creating a mood via interesting arrangements of sounds and instruments. The typical things that define pop songs (traditional verse-chorus song structure, lyrical and melodic hooks) are present, but they're not pushed out front like they are in most pop songs. Instead, they're equal with (or sometimes submerged by) the other musical elements. The music may sound anarchic at times, but you can also hear that they take great care in arranging (and maximizing the impact) of their 3 guitar lineup. Most bands with 3 guitars either sound like a messy trainwreck (think the end of 'Layla') or end up having most of the members playing the same thing. Radiohead avoids both of these results.

Another thing to keep in mind is the time that their music emerged. They were initially just another Brit-pop band (maybe a bit brainier, but not much) in the mid 90s. Their first song 'Creep' screamed "we're a one-hit wonder band," and their formula seemed to be similar to (and somewhat lesser than) bands like Oasis and Blur. So the leaps and bounds they made over The Bends, OK Computer and Kid A were both unexpected and amazing. Rather than taking a lazy, traditionalist approach like their contemporaries, they embraced new technology and experimented with more complex musical arrangements. Almost nobody in rock music was doing this in the mid 90s - the charts were dominated by crappy, grunge wannabe bands like Bush and all the various 4th wave ska bands like No Doubt. After OK Computer, it was OK (no pun intended) to use keyboards and computers to make music in rock again.

Finally, Radiohead are an incredibly good live band. Unlike alot many of the bands they spawned, they are one of the few bands that pull off all the complicated instrumentation completely live. I love the Flaming Lips, but they use so many backing tracks that it almost makes them like a karaoke act.

But to answer your question, there's nothing wrong with not liking Radiohead. Although I don't buy into the claim that music is an art and therefore its quality is completely subjective, I do believe that each of us are attracted to different characteristics of music. So if you're not into the characteristics that Radiohead excel at, then you'll probably never be into Radiohead.

 

Nothing to add except that a coworker burned OK Computer for me and I thought it was the most god awful mess I'd ever heard, that was prolly in 2002 sometime, that cd sat in my car for over two years. At some point though, prolly tired of everything else in the car I put it in and fell in love with it, I have since become a fan of everything I've heard from Radiohead which includes all major releases and a bunch of remixes of their songs. It is definatley an acquired taste, now they are one of my favorite bands.

My musical interests run the gammot, Tool, Pink Floyd, Pennywise Social Distortion, Sublime, Dwight Yoakum, Willie Nelson all being some of my favorites. I generally listen to one of these artists based on my mood.

 

Agree with those that say they're really good live. I'm not a big fan of Kid A or Amnesiac, but I saw the Amnesiac tour at The Woodlands and I was blown away. Great live band.

Funny thing about Radiohead....they always put their best song on each album as the first track. I love Planet Telex, Airbag, Everything in it's Right Place, and even You from Pablo Honey. Those along with Street Spirit are my favorite Radiohead songs.

 

So the new album isn't out. But here is a video giving small samples of what we can expect on their new album. This was originally posted on Radioheads website by Nigel Godrich

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The Bends is really good

 

call me intrigued

 

If you don't like radiohead...

enjoy your creed albums.

 

well I'm a coldplay nut, but radiohead never got to me. People say Coldplay is Radiohead-lite but I don't get that. The only song from radiohead I like is Karma Police, and it's a great song.

 

that's because every single coldplay song is attempt to sound exactly like that one.

 

If you haven't been able to appreciate Radiohead's work, try listening to Thom Yorke's solo album, The Eraser. It was released in 2006. Alot of ppl who never liked Radiohead, are fans of Yorke now due to this release. Its really good. I like it better than Radiohead, in fact.