Good but VERY overrated (OK Computer - Radiohead)

Member Name: shaneo632

Product:	OK Computer - Radiohead
Date:	13/09/09 (5 review reads)
Rating:

Advantages: Sone cracking tunes

Disadvantages: Ridiculously overhyped

Radiohead's OK Computer really does fascinate me - it's hailed frequently as one of the greatest albums of all time, but I just don't see it. Sure, it's well composed and harmonious, but it's also beyond depressing and plodding. It also features the waste of space of a track that is Fitter Happier, where Steven Hawking seemingly makes a guest appearance. I was always a bigger fan of their superb album Pablo Honey, which featured the likes of Creep and Anyone Can Play Guitar. It's not that I don't like this album - I do, but I find it incredibly overrated.

I listened to it once and wasn't very impressed, so I kept listening to it and it did admittedly catch on. It's quite different to their previous efforts - it's a lot more refined from a production perspective and nowhere near as raw or gritty. Although it means the grungey and raw elements of their previous album are mostly gone, it does mean that we get some really robustly produced songs - Paranoid Android is engineered with a very crisp and robotic sound that does fit the tone of the song itself obviously. The unqualified triumph of the album is Thom Yorke, whose vocals are again very good. Particularly in the song Exit Music, he makes it both emotionally resonant and very intense - you can tell that he's poured his entire heart and soul into it.

Karma Police is probably my favourite song on the album - it was a hit single and features some funny lyrics (such as "her Hitler hairdo is making me feel ill"). It's a very clever song with an interesting concept.

Electioneering is also a great tune - it's a lot heavier and more raw than most of the stuff on this album, and feels as though maybe it was written in the production cycle for Pablo Honey rather than this.

I still don't see what the fuss is about after all of this time - I think it's a good album, but I fail to see why it's so hailed as one of the best albums of all time. It's a clever, well written album, but I fail to see what distinguishes it from its peers. Also, after numerous listens, I still profess to prefer Pablo Honey.

Summary: A smart and melodic album