Radiohead: 5 Songs You Need On Your iPod

Radiohead isn't a band that I listened to as a teenager, which is when they first got famous. I remember thinking the low-self-esteem-anthem Creep was the most obnoxious song on Earth. Not because it was crap musically, but rather because it was getting way too much exposure. That, and I hated the grunge kids who came to school with their greasy hair in their faces and (over)played this song on their discman between classes.

I was so put off by their grunge image and sound that I never listened to anything else of theirs -- and if I did, I didn't realize that was who it was. Which actually happens to be the case, as it turns out. You see, someone recently went on and on about how wonderful this band was/is and so I decided to have a listen to some of their tracks, just to disprove that someone. Interestingly, Radiohead seems to have changed, and for the better, with every album. So much better, that there are 5 songs which I now own and I must confess listening to lots and lots and lots. These songs are brilliant, and they're not overdone, overplayed or overexposed. In fact, they're so good, that if Radiohead put out an album of music that had nothing but this kind of sound on it, I'd happily become a Radiohead groupie.

No Surprises

Somewhere in the back of my mind, I remembered this song. It came out in 1997, and since I didn't listen to the radio then, or have MTV, I'm not sure how I knew this song, but I did. I really liked it then and I love it now. Of course, I had no idea what the lyrics were, cos Thom Yorke mumbles through most of it. But it sounds nice, so who cares? The video is a bit disturbing to me though, so be warned before watching.

All I Need

This is from the newest album, In Rainbows. I like the groove quite a lot, but this is another song I had to look the lyrics up. I admit I wish I hadn't done that, as the words are a bit strange, but I can pretend they're not, I guess. I suppose that was the intention of whomever wrote it... you can't write that bizarrely and not expect it to raise eyebrows. I can't decide if it's a love song or someone miserably accepting that that's as good as it gets.

Nude

This song is quite pretty in a dreamy, backward record sounding kind of way. I can't really put my finger on what attracts me to it, but it feels very ethereal when I listen to it. I really like the vocals here -- even though, as you may have guessed, I've not a clue what he's saying. And no, I'm not going to look them up this time, I'd rather not know!

Weird Fishes/Arpeggi

Now here's a happy-ish song. At least, that's what I think it is, if the music itself is any indication. If you like Coldplay, you will like this song. If you like Radiohead, however, that might sound blasphemous, so just pretend that I didn't say it. I've got not a clue what he's saying here, and like I said before, I've learned my lesson and am content to make the words up as I listen.

Everything in its Right Place

I really like the chord progression in this song. It's quite electronicky (that's not a word, is it?) sounding, and if you like that kind of genre, you'll like this song. You'll probably recognize it, though you may have trouble with the words, apart from those in the beginning!