OK Computer

Because of it being both the 22nd anniversary of the release of this brilliant album, and it being Father’s Day (and this is an album that my dad loves), I decided I’d do redo my review in detail.

Right from the start of my first listen to this album I knew it would be something special. Airbag has probably some of the best drumming I’ve ever heard, and Thom’s voice so amazing on this (as it is on the rest of the album, but especially here). Even though it’s not even in my top 3 on this album, it’s definitely a top 10 Radiohead song, and my 2nd favourite Radiohead album opener. This is followed by the massive Paranoid Android, where the band puts a text-to-speech vocals in the background of the chorus, which works extremely well in context of the album, as it revolves around the theme of technology, as suggested by the title of the album. This song seems to go through multiple acts, each one being even more grand and brilliant than the last, even when it slows down, with the overlaid background vocals from Thom, and masterful guitar-playing highlighting this. Subterranean Homesick Alien, while being a melancholy song overall, gets constantly louder and climaxes in the chorus, with brilliant lyrics to go along with this throughout the song. I consider Exit Music to be the saddest song on this record, starting with just an acoustic guitar and a more intimate form of Thom’s voice, and eventually introduce these amazing backing choir, that seems simultaneously synthetic and organic, which is really what the band was going for and succeeded with in this whole album. Let Down, while being my least favourite track because it is, to me, the least unique song on the album, is still great, with downright depressing lyrics, paired with a slightly soothing guitar melody to contrast with it. Then comes the song that was instantly my favourite of the album, as well as my favourite Radiohead song overall, Karma Police. I just love everything about it, Thom’s vocals, the guitars, the piano, especially the great lyrics, and even that weird scratching noise that gets put in at the end. Fitter Happier is a song solely composed of the text-to-speech vocals used on Paranoid Android, with some piano and strange ambient noises, with the lyrics describing an ideal world, but simultaneously one that, like the voice, lacks humanity, and works in context of the album perfectly, with the overall themes of the record. Electioneering is the closest Radiohead comes to their previous album, The Bends, but they differ it from that record enough that it still feels at home on OK Computer, with politically charged lyrics and insane guitar riffs. The most “experimental” song on this record has to be Climbing Up The Walls, with an effect on Thom’s voice that adds to the eeriness that the instruments provide. No Surprises is an incredibly pretty song with incredibly dark lyrics about Thom not wanting the alarms to go off when there’s smoke so he can suffocate in peace. Despite these morbid lyrics, it manages to be the most beautiful song on the album, with incredibly sweet instrumentation. I don’t have much to say about Lucky except that it continues the incredibly high quality of songs on the album, and has some great guitar riffs. The Tourist is a song I thought to be slightly boring at first, but I’ve came to love it, especially now that I know the context behind the lyrics, and that chorus is just incredibly magnificent, with the instrumentation almost being as pretty as No Surprises, and that guitar riff towards the end is so goddamn blissful, and I can never get enough of it. It’s needless to say, after this whole review that this album is a perfect 100, and in my eyes, it is one of the best albums of all time. Radiohead went from Pablo Honey to this in just 4 years, which I find absolutely stunning, as it’s probably the biggest improvement like this that’s been made in music history, at least to my knowledge. I’m proud to have OK Computer currently standing at the place my 2nd favourite album of all time, and it’s certainly a happy birthday that I’m wishing it.

Favourite Tracks: Karma Police, Paranoid Android, No Surprises

Least Favourite Track: Let Down