The Shape of Pop to Come #6
Well, Radiohead is back. After getting the music world’s attention not by tweeting up a storm promoting a new album, but rather by erasing every trace of their social media presence, the British five-piece released two new songs this week, ahead of the Sunday release of their new album, as yet untitled*.
*The name of the album is not AS YET UNTITLED, event though that would be quite a stereotypical Radiohead thing to do.
The first one, Burn the Witch, had been teased through leaflets posted to a number of UK fans of the group and 15-second clips on Instagram, the first move the band did since the social media white-out.
Burn The Witch combines the ominous feel of the band’s previous work, such as Hail to the Thief, while incorporating orchestral elements born out of guitarist Jonny Greenwood’s side-job as a soundtrack composer. The building of tension through the drums and violins strings used for percussion as much as for melody, the track is a textbook case of the group being able to reinvent their sound all the while remaining true to what makes their sound unique. And it makes an immediate impact, something that was somewhat lacking in their previous release, The King of Limbs.
The lyrics seem to denounce groupthink and collective insanity that seems to afflict any society throughout history when faced with something they cannot understand. This is exemplified in the music video, which uses stop motion to make an homage to one of the all-time great films about provincial dread, The Wicker Man. Two English staples used to make a very important commentary on current events.
Daydreaming, the track released today, is an evolution on the tried and true Radiohead piano-led ballad. Echoing On the Beach-era Neil Young, Thom Yorke sings beautifully about desolation and desperation, while wandering around aimlessly in the video, directed by Paul Thomas Anderson.
The overall feel of the song reminds me of something I once heard about freezing to death. It’s supposed to feel like falling asleep, I heard. This song feels similar to that idea, since it combines a familiarity and coziness with an underlying menace — seriously, there’s an element of dissonance near the end of it, when Thom Yorke finds himself laying on the ground near a fire, that actually sounds like something that stalks the night in search of prey — that makes the entire thing one of the best things the group has released. Ever.
Two days away from releasing a new album, Radiohead has the music world’s undivided attention, and the world can’t wait to hear what they have to say. What’s come so far has certainly been worth it.
