Review: Radiohead – The Bends

The pressure that bands must feel after delivering a successful debut album must be enormous. Add the backing of a major label to the mix, and the expectations that come with all of that, and it can be enough to make even the most confident songwriters take pause. Radiohead stormed onto the Alt Rock scene with 1993’s Pablo Honey, that spawned a now-legendary lead single in “Creep.” The debut set has gone on to sell over 1.5 million copies in the U.S. alone. The expectation from Radiohead’s label (Capitol Records) was that they could easily replicate this success on their sophomore effort, The Bends. But true art can’t be forced or so easily matched at the click of a button. The reality that began to sink in for this ultra-talented band during the songwriting sessions for this record led to the realization that they would have to go even bigger than anyone could’ve ever dreamt of. Through these sessions, The Bends has gone on to receive numerous critical accolades, including Rolling Stone’s “500 Best Albums of All Time” list and several platinum certifications worldwide.

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Review: Radiohead – A Moon Shaped Pool

Radiohead - A Moon Shaped Pool

Rarely does one have a moderate stance on Radiohead. More often than not, those who are familiar with the band have by now either accepted that Thom Yorke and company are geniuses (or perhaps aliens) or that the band is, as Dan Ozzi so eloquently put it, “for boring music nerds.” It should be no surprise that I fall in the former camp, believing the band’s penchant for mystique and evolution has helped pave the way for other scene favorites (including Thrice and Brand New) and that even their most flawed albums (The Bends, Hail to the Thief) contain a spark that is integral to their later-career masterpieces.

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