After The King of Limbs was announced a week before its release, I was certain there would be some ridiculous purchasing/marketing gimmick employed to boost sales in some way.
Hype is Radiohead’s best friend. The band put out their last record, In Rainbows, independently and let fans pay whatever they wanted for the digital version, be it £20.00 or 1¢ or free. This technique managed to generate a huge amount of revenue. I thought that this time, perhaps they would pay their audience to listen to this album. Maybe the only way to access the album would be to purchase a Radiohead VHS and special edition VCR? My hopes were high.
In the end, though, the release was pretty standard, although it did drop a day early and fans could buy what Radiohead calls a ‘newspaper’ vinyl composed of two clear ten–inch records, artwork, newspaper and a special edition standard poodle.
I’m just going to say it: The King of Limbs sounds like a Radiohead album. There are glittery soundscapes a’plenty and the music is full of lush production. Thom Yorke’s voice floats somewhere slightly above the instrumentation at all times. The album makes you feel something, triggering a certain emotional state within the actively listening individual actively listening that only a Radiohead album can provide. And most importantly of all, it’s good – the record is very fluid.
The duration, however, is short, only thirty-eight minutes with no song over six, and it feels as if the band is going through the motions rather than creating something truly unique within their catalogue. As a Radiohead fan, I like it, but I can’t help feeling that this is only because it’s new and happens to be a Radiohead album. This group has been constantly recreating themselves throughout their career, pushing the boundaries of their sound and the music industry. Each new release is met with extreme anticipation of some new chapter in their music. We eat it and love it. The King of Limbs is no different.
There are a few standout tracks, but the record is so concise that it is worth listening to the whole way through every time you are in the mood for it (though the second side is much prettier).
“Bloom” is a fantastic opener; it’s very eastern and mystical mixed with some break-beats and some haunted crooning. “Lotus Flower” is a fine falsetto-tinged single with an even better music video accompanying it (the song might also be a reference to recent Radiohead cohort, Flying Lotus). For my money, though, the last two tracks are the high points. “Give Up the Ghost” and “Separator” are two beautifully slow songs that tie together the whole experience and remind fans why Radiohead is so crucial to the music scene today.
“Ghost” pulsates with trance-inducing vocals, pristine guitars and a single bass drum kick. “Separator” is beautiful in its simplicity; it feels a bit more vintage than the rest of the album. Once the track approaches its abrupt ending you feel the soft blow of the experience pass you by and it is almost funny. “That’s all? Cool.”
Now that The King of Limbs has been bestowed upon us, how does this new effort compare to the rest of Radiohead’s illustrious catalog? Serious Radiohead fans get in the habit of making lists and comparing their albums. I’ll put it somewhere between Hail To The Thief and Amnesiac (whatever that means).
Honestly, though, it’s worth repeated listens and is great compared to a lot of the music being put out today. It’s a Radiohead album; it doesn’t have the ability to be bad. It’s just not groundbreaking. •
