Benjamin Rizzo
This Rainbow doesn’t require a pot of goldBy: Ben Rizzo
Met with smiling eyes from Ireland to Los Angeles, rock giants Radiohead pleased the masses with their latest offering, “In Rainbows.”After a four year slumber, the band, led by front-man Thom Yorke, made their new release available only through Internet download on October 10. Fans chose how much to pay, if anything at all, for the album, sending shockwaves throughout the entire recording industry.At first play, listeners might expect the band’s previous aggressive sound as the first track, “15 Step,” begins with the violent synthesized beats Jonny Greenwood has become worshipped for on prior albums. The song is quickly smoothened out, however, as a mellow jazz guitar riff joins the synthesizer, only to be overtaken again at the end of the track by some fast paced sound mixing.For Radiohead rookies, the band has become known for it innovations in music recording, utilizing techniques and sounds many people have never thought of.Never is this more evident than with track 3’s “Nude.” The song begins with a looped sample of Yorke’s vocals played backward against a background mix of strings and percussion that, when mixed, creates a pretty cool sound and a pretty cool song.Easily the band’s best effort, track 5’s “All I Need” is one of those songs that could be put on repeat and played for an entire afternoon. As close to a love song as Radiohead has come, the track displays a softer sound than most of the band’s latest recordings. The last 60 seconds of this song are as fine a musical composition found this year, as the track ends with a goose bump triggering crescendo for which applause are necessary.Anyone interested in the instrument-like potential of a man’s voice must hear track 7’s “Reckoner.” The beauty of Yorke’s falsetto is only matched by the skill of Phil Selway’s percussion, furthering the band’s progression to a soft yet powerful sound.In all, Radiohead has produced yet another musical masterpiece in a long anthology of constant reinvention. The album achieves an operatic ambiance for which listeners should be charged a price of admission each time they hit the play button.At a price of $0.00, this is the best money you will never spend.
Overall Rating: A
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