This is not review of the latest Radiohead

Most folks have probably heard about the most recent Radiohead release, In Rainbows, and the revolutionary manner in which it was released. I heard a few tracks off of it when wandering through a game store the other day, and it sounds really good.

As mentioned previously, I have had the tendency to be a bit of a fanboy when it comes to music. In the past, I've gone for long stretches where I fixate on a few bands, purchasing any material that I can find, and listening almost exclusively to them. There have been times where the same cassette or CD has gone around and around in my car for a week or more.

It probably started when I was a kid, and my brother got all of these KISS albums. Although I listened to the radio quite a bit, and heard some great songs, I had this internal resistance to seeking any further, unless it was by KISS. Then in middle school and high school, my focus shifted to Iron Maiden and Rush. When I burned out on those, it became Zeppelin and Pink Floyd, and later the Rolling Stones.
Variously, for the next twenty years, I got totally into the Grateful Dead, Bob Marley, the Tragically Hip, Dave Matthews Band, Blues Traveler, Sublime, Outkast, Beastie Boys, De La Soul, Miles Davis, John Coltrane, and, finally, Radiohead. I was turned on to Radiohead when OK Computer came out. I quickly scarfed up the previous two albums, The Bends and Pablo Honey, as well as the OK Computer B-sides, How's my Driving?.

When I moved to Michigan, I bought the next two Radiohead CDs that came down the line, Kid A and Amnesiac. Same deal--listened to them incessantly. But one thing changed: I wasn't driving nearly as much, so my time to blast music began to diminish. I didn't listen to rock music at work, because I find lyrics too distracting, and I don't tend to rock out in my room. So when Hail to the Thief came out, I was less than motivated to pick it up. Plus, the Kid A/Amnesiac sessions really seemed to be the boundary of sustainable experimentation for this group. Like the supposed "heat death of the universe" theory, the sound had expanded so far beyond The Bends pure pop rock that further expansion would probably yield something that I wasn't interested in listening to (see the latest Bjork), and a step back towards OK Computer would be a shame. Somehow, despite the genius of Kid A/Amnesiac, I didn't trust them to pull off a follow-up.

I still haven't listened to Hail to the Thief. I'm not avoiding it or anything, but that sense that it was too soon after their best work pervades. I do look forward to picking up In Rainbows, however, as the tracks that I heard indicate that they have found their way back to more widespread accessibility with a sound that has evolved nicely. After spending the past few years actively expanding my palette of new music, it's kind of nice to look forward to something by a previously beloved artist.