Themes ebb and flow: uncertainty about his future, distrust of those around him, longing for the time when he could live comfortably under the radar. On the surface, “The Bends” is just another brick in the wall of Thom Yorke’s struggles with early success. No other Radiohead album lead track has the warmth or instantaneous pleasure of “Planet Telex” 20 years on, it still serves as the phenomenal gatekeeper to The Bends. But it wasn’t thorny or terrifying on “Planet Telex” no, this is a pop masterstroke covered in guitar licks and a swirling piano maelstrom. This is the first hint of Radiohead’s electronic experiments that would produce the eeriest tracks on Ok Computer and come to define Kid A. Jonny not only defines “Planet Telex” with his Johnny Marr-esque chops, but also with his organ and synthesizer work. Yorke, Jonny Greenwood, and Ed O’Brien’s guitars all collided together with palpable electricity Phil Selway and Colin Greenwood deliver an understated, but vital, rhythm performance that keeps the buoyant chorus afloat. Yorke nearly screams “everything is” before muttering “broken” under his breath, like a sarcastic send-off to a more optimistic lyricist.Īll of Yorke’s soaring work is propelled by the immaculate background that holds “Planet Telex” together. His smug coo in the verses playfully taunts an unseen presence (“You can force it, but it will not come”), but the chorus erupts with rapturous confusion. Instead, “Planet Telex” (along with “Bones”) is brilliant evidence that Yorke could be a bonafide rock star. It certainly has a drunken swagger to it this is where Yorke proved the sad boy persona that controlled “Creep” wouldn’t take hold on every note he sang. Even in the face of, say, “Don’t Look Back in Anger”, the swooning guitars that dominate the chorus engulfed all senses and felt large enough to swallow entire cities with plenty of room to spare.Īccording to the Radiohead mythos, the group recorded “Planet Telex” while piss drunk, with Thom Yorke delivering his coy vocals lying down on the studio floor. That gorgeous, trembling organ that opened “Planet Telex” did, indeed, seem planet sized. In the ’90s, rock bands that were reaching for radio charts amped up mammoth sized guitars and vocal lines, the sort of sound that defined U2 and Oasis’ biggest hits.
“Planet Telex” is, first and foremost, unashamedly massive. But, in the wake of “Planet Telex”, Pablo Honey became an anemic and pale forerunner of what Radiohead could do.
If any other band had made it, perhaps it would be remembered more fondly. Pablo Honey is harshly judged by the Radiohead fanbase, but by itself, it’s a completely serviceable ’90s alt-rock record. “Planet Telex” is, undoubtedly, a grand welcome party, but it was also a departure for Radiohead at the time: “Welcome to The Bends, this ain’t Pablo Honey.”
#RADIOHEAD DISCOGRAPHY MINOR KEY TV#
Hendrix’s “Foxy Lady”, Queens of the Stone Age’s “Feel Good Hit of the Summer”, and TV on the Radio’s “Halfway Home” all proclaim, “You’ve arrived!” to whatever otherworldly realm the band in question has discovered. The finest musical introductions serve as a welcome party.
0 kommentar(er)
