This is the 7th album from world famous art rock band Radiohead, and it was fairly historic when it came out. After all, this album had a pay-what-you-want sort of model that, somewhere along the way, helped lay the groundwork of the streaming era we are currently in, which…like it or not, it’s here. The 2000s were a hell of a time to be in the music industry, let’s just say. But back to In Rainbows. My relationship with this album and the music within it began with the From The Basement version of the closer, Videotape, many years ago (God, that’s a good song) because I wanted to hear the studio version, I ended up buying the album without hearing the whole thing, intending to save it for a rainy day because it wasn’t available on streaming services at the time. It was one of four albums that I bought with this spirit in mind, the other three were Smashing Pumpkins’ Mellon Collie and The Infinite Sadness, King Crimson’s In The Court of The Crimson King and Radiohead’s OK Computer, the latter two of which I ended up listening to eventually and are now some of my favourite albums ever! This album had some big shoes to fill…and it came up just short. But for what it’s worth, it’s still a fantastic record from front to back. There are no true bad songs on here and it’s so easy to get lost in the beauty of this album. Production is super crisp, even if mixing is a little iffy at points. Composition is, as mentioned, beautiful. It’s not nearly as satisfying as OK Computer, but it’s more of a subtle outing for Radiohead. They go for a more low-key angle as opposed to a grand statement. This is also true for lyrics. You have Thom Yorke’s often soft vocals throughout the record, but the guy still knows how to put the pedal to the metal when he needs to. The lyrics themselves are basically what I’ve already mentioned before: falling short of expectations. And that’s not me knocking on Radiohead at all, that’s just the theme of the record. The whole point of In Rainbows is to relieve pressure from Radiohead given how much weight has been on their shoulders since that one album, and that other album and everything after. It certainly feels like the pressure has been relieved and Radiohead can do whatever they want without any sort of monkey on their back.
PRODUCTION
Production is pretty excellent. Mixing is amazing from an instrumental standpoint. The percussion sounds so clear, especially on Weird Fishes/Arpeggi, oh my Lord! Bass sounds pretty and makes this album have a lot more warmth and body. It also adds a lot more oomph to Bodysnatchers. Although, I think it could be a bit clearer and warmer on Nude, like it just missed a sweet spot. It just needs more texture. Speaking of Bodysnatchers, guitar is fantastic as well. They are handled with such care from track to track. Both acoustic and electric guitars have so much body and flavour and it makes this record pop that much more. Vocal mixing leaves a little to be desired in some spots though. I feel like Thom is fighting to be heard just a smidge, but otherwise, it’s fine. The mixing really makes for a warm, comfortable sound.
Effects on this album are also amazing. We’re immediately greeted with these scattered, peppy shotgun blasts of electronic splat on 15 Step. Panning on this album is used for more layering to great effect here. The layering on this record is phenomenal, and it makes this record sound spacey. The multitrack guitars on Faust Arp are great and they make the song way more interesting and are handled gracefully in a way that preserves the song’s complexity while not causing any confusion. Why have one guitar when you can have two? Amirite Phil? Reverb on Thom Yorke’s voice is pretty great too, especially since it adds emphasis at the end on 15 Step, leading into that instrumental interlude. But mostly, Thom’s voice is pretty clean and without effects, and it is more of a straightforward rock album because of that. The production really services the laid-back, relaxed, straightforward vibe of this record beautifully. It’s not necessarily ambitious, but it serves an album that has a more laid back vibe very well in In Rainbows.
COMPOSITION
Composition’s great…really great. Guitars sound great, whether acoustic or electric. The acoustics on Faust Arp bring a nice soothing background to everything else that is anything but, which adds more layers to the song’s meaning. Fuzzy electric guitars on Bodysnatchers is excellent and it’s really the only spot on the record where they’re that aggressive. The rest of the guitars are clean and comforting and it really helps to sell a more laid-back vibe from In Rainbows. The bass helps with that immensely by adding some low end. It’s not like OK Computer where the bass is obviously doing stuff and contributing, but you can really tell that it’s there and it’s important on this album. I feel like it’s slightly overpowering and could be clearer, but that’s more of a nitpick. Drums are immaculate. All I need to say is Weird Fishes/Arpeggi, with the compact, yet peppy drums that set the tone at the very beginning of the song. Also, the crashing drums setting the tone for Reckoner are amazing and they sound like a glass pane breaking with those snares. Synthetic elements of this album are great too, especially with that splattering sound at the beginning of 15 Step, and the pulsating quiet synths on Weird Fishes/Arpeggi. It makes me think that this album is a happy medium between OK Computer and Kid A, their previous landmark records, balancing the heavy electronics with heavy acoustics, in a way that isn’t necessarily thematic in nature, but more a fun jam session. The foreboding synths on All I Need fit the stalkerish vibe of the song perfectly only to bust into these passionate pianos and lush strings. Speaking of pianos, they are always nice and full and are absolutely beautiful, such as on All I Need. The strings on Nude and Faust Arp are very pretty too, and they add a background layer of beauty to this record. This album is very pretty when it comes to an instrumental standpoint and it’s inviting because of it. Soft as my pillow, right, Thom?
The structure of this EP is pretty great too. You don’t get this massive, unifying thread like on OK Computer, but that’s what makes this record stand out to me. But that’s not to say the flow isn’t good, on the contrary. This album opts to spread out their songs and their moods throughout the record, building up energy just to bring it back down and then bring it back up again. With songs as unique and layered as these ones, I’m sure it was a bit of a challenge to bring them all on an album and give it some kind of flow, but Radiohead managed to do it. It gives a more laid back and carefree vibe to this album. Speaking of which, song structure has this in mind. There are no Paranoid Androids or any other massive magnum opuses, but Radiohead just opts to try things out. The 5/4 on 15 Step, the changing feels on Faust Arp, and Jigsaw Falling Into Place, which sounds like a slightly less heavy version of Everlong by the Foo Fighters. The building, reverb-caked, evil guitars on House of Cards under clean, easygoing electric guitar chords make the song sound like it’s about to collapse, like a house of cards. Hell, Videotape has that “secret rhythm” where Thom’s actually playing these chords on the 16th note after the downbeat, making it very frustrating to find the beat, but it is still pretty experimental and cool. But if this album is anything, it is the album of instrumental outros and interludes. These are everywhere and they are a welcome addition to every song they show up in. The instruments take over on songs like Nude and they are just beautiful. It makes this album so easy to sink into. I lump Thom’s vocals as an instrument in that case because it fits in so well with everyone else and the relaxing decompression that this song provides. Radiohead clearly knows what they’re doing, and the best part is, this is the album where Radiohead stops caring about their image and any contractual obligations and not only does it show, it pans out really well.
LYRICS
Lyrics are pretty great too. They are a solid piece to an already rock-solid album. And that solid state of this album comes from none other than Thom Yorke. It has been a few months since I listened to OK Computer and part of why I love that album is Thom’s obvious control over his voice. Fast forward 10 years to In Rainbows and we get some of that on this album, especially on Bodysnatchers, which Thom starts us off with a softer sound, getting more and more aggressive as it goes along, ballistic by the end. Wow, what a fun song! It reminds me of what Swans would go on to do a few years later with Apostate off their 2012 album, The Seer, but condensed into 4 minutes and change as opposed to half of a 23 minute song. But this is the most aggressive we see him on the whole record. Jigsaw Falling Into Place comes close with the rock banger vocals, but it’s not quite as aggressive, opting for a less raw Julian Casablancas-esque tone. But the majority of Thom’s vocals on this record are subdued, quiet and pretty crooning, which is kind of fitting for the vibe of this album.
To segue into my next point, Thom Yorke is a perfect vessel for the vibes and themes of this album. You must be sick and tired of me bringing up OK Computer again, I know I am, but this is super important to the mindset of In Rainbows. The Tourist saw Thom Yorke begging us in song form to “slow down” and enjoy what’s around us and this album is Radiohead following their own advice. In Rainbows is no grand artistic statement on the state of the world, nor is it the saddest Radiohead album, but it is far more of a relaxed effort. And as such, it kind of fails to live up to the astronomically high expectations that I, and I’m sure many Radiohead fans had going into this album, but that is by design. And on top of that, a massive lyrical theme is failing to live up to expectations, then not bothering to meet them and doing whatever you want, enjoying your life. If you bring up the references to Goethe’s Faust, it comes more into view. Long story short, the devil makes a bet with God that he can steal Faust, God’s favourite human’s soul and drive him away from his goals of knowing everything. Already a big mistake on Faust’s part, speaking from deep experience here. Of course, Faust is prime real estate for a devil promising everything that Faust wants, so he sells his soul to the devil and experiences the regret and misery that comes with it, similar to Faust Arp and Reckoner in their themes. He realizes that life was always beautiful without knowing the secrets of the universe and having unlimited knowledge and power and the tragedy is that he realizes that just as he’s about to die, which is what Videotape is getting at. And what’s important to both Faust and In Rainbows is that Faust still goes to heaven because he apparently only lost half the bet. On In Rainbows, Radiohead doesn’t quite meet the expectations of OK Computer and Kid A, but they didn’t really care at this point in their career. Their contract with their record label was up with Hail to The Thief, and this album is where Radiohead rekindled the spark that got them to that place of immeasurable success in the first place. As such, they relax a little in lyrics and it is a more loving, more fun experience.
CONCLUSION
In short, good return on investment, I feel confident in my purchase of this record. A record which some say is Radiohead’s best, which I disagree with, but I can definitely see why people adore it. I adore it. In Rainbows is an album that changed the course of music history without trying as hard to change it, because Radiohead arguably did that 10 years prior to this with OK Computer. And I would compare the two like this: OK Computer is like New York City, a bustling, world-class metropolis. In Rainbows is more like New Orleans: a more relaxed, laid-back city. It’s the Big Apple vs. the Big Easy. And talking more about In Rainbows, Radiohead has had to deal with pressure to make the next OK Computer, the next Kid A, the next masterpiece, it was deteriorating the mental health and status of the band. In Rainbows was Radiohead’s opportunity to just take a breather, and this album sounds like a 42 minute breather. It is a light, breezy, fun experience and that feeling is infectious. The production is great. Mostly every instrument sounds nice and clear except for maybe bass and a few moments where vocals fight to be heard, but beyond that, it’s gravy. It’s definitely not as ambitious as its predecessors from a production standpoint, but if anything, that services the more relaxed aesthetic of this album. Speaking of a relaxed aesthetic, instruments really play their parts well on In Rainbows. It’s this light-hearted jam session of every instrument that makes up this record and since it’s Radiohead, and they’re ridiculous, they all play their stuff incredibly well to make for a relaxed vibe. This is a Radiohead that doesn’t have to adhere to any hardline structure for this album to work, and this is a Radiohead that is trying things out to see if they work. And since, it’s Radiohead, pretty much every musical idea is executed amazingly. These instrumental interludes are where the moods of each song envelop the listener and it feels like a warm hug every time. Of course, Thom Yorke’s vocals lead the charge well, with his use of contrast in moods and dynamics, but opts for the softer end of the dynamic and emotional spectrum more often than not to fit the softer vibe of this album. He is more relaxed when singing these songs because this is an album with a more relaxed mentality. It’s definitely focussed, but not laser-focussed. The only boundaries they have to face with In Rainbows are their own and they don’t care about the massive expectations placed upon them by others, which shows in lyrics, and well, everything about this album. If you’re looking to get into Radiohead and to figure out the vibe of this band, but don’t want something too heavy, I think In Rainbows is a good place to start. I may prefer OK Computer, as that album is as ambitious, sprawling and teeming with detail as they come, but In Rainbows is definitely going to be an album that I listen to and cherish for a while.
I’m giving this one a Decent 9/10.
FAVOURITE TRACKS: 15 Step, Bodysnatchers, Nude, Weird Fishes/Arpeggi, Faust Arp, Reckoner, House of Cards, Jigsaw Falling Into Place, Videotape
LEAST FAVOURITE TRACK: If I had to pick one, All I Need. But that song is still excellent.
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