By Griffith Fuller
By Griffith Fuller
There’s not a single dull track on the album. And that’s a rarity for most music artist today.
Radiohead’s seventh studio album, “In Rainbows” is possibly their strongest record since “OK Computer.”
The album became controversial due to the band’s option to release it through its Web site, inrainbows.com, allowing fans to pay whatever they pleased for the record.
I purchased “In Rainbows” for two pounds (equivalent to approximately $4 dollars).
Surprisingly, according to timesonline.co.uk, a third of fans who downloaded the album paid nothing for it.
Four dollars wasn’t nearly enough to show my appreciation for the purchased record.
If “In Rainbows” was boring and mediocre, then the downloading community wouldn’t deserve to be scrutinized so much.
However, the downloading community should hang its head in shame.
“In Rainbows” is one of the most refreshing albums to come out in the past seven years; Radiohead fans are already calling it a classic.
Would you pay $0 for “Sergeant Pepper and the Lonely Hearts Club Band” if you felt that was the worth of the product?
On average, most fans paid four pounds for the album, while some fans on okayplayer.com stated that they downloaded the album for free and plan to get the box set or released CD version in a few months.
Some have called the downloading option a publicity stunt. I beg to differ, it’s more like a early gift to fans while the band find time now to search for a label to bring the record to the masses.
Radiohead stated in one interview that it wanted the album to be available to the masses, and not limited to the internet community.
Despite all of the controversy surrounding its method of release, “In Rainbows” is a ridiculously addictive work of art. The songs are incredibly human, reaching into humble corners of the consciousness and delicately conjuring emotions.
“15 Steps” kicks off the 10 track album with a sound reminiscent of “OK Computer.” The band returns to the art of rocking out in “Bodysnatchers,” bringing about a type of rebelliousness not heard since their 1993 debut “Pablo Honey.”
Other songs like “Nude” and “All I Need” are chill, yet moody. Singer Thom Yorke’s voice comes across as sensual and soulful. The songs pull the listener into their world suddenly making everything around them seem brighter and more meaningful.
“Reckoner” is a beautifully soulful tune that modestly flirts with the blues; imagine Radiohead doing up-tempo gospel.
The album closes with “Videotape,” a piano-driven ballad with chattering drums in the background.
Some people consider Radiohead’s method of defying a conventional CD release revolutionary, but I think the revolution is in the music.
And if bills weren’t due that week, I would have paid a lot more than four dollars. “In Rainbows” is more than music, it’s a mindset that can’t be marketed easily.