Amnesiac (2-10" LPs)

While Radiohead's 2000 album Kid A was already a shocking experience, nothing could have possible prepared fans for what would proceed the album in only a year, the vastly obscure Amnesiac. Written as a parallels to one another, the two albums fit together like pieces of an obscure and disturbing, yet ultimately ingenious puzzle. Kid A had it's fair share of uplifting moments throughout the paranoia and gloom, but Amnesiac pulled no punches, and searched for an answer in the same vein as Kid A. Both albums share some specific themes, as evidenced by the two separate versions of the song Morning Bell, but both have very different personalities. It seems as if both started in the first place, a single point of birth, and spiraled off spontaneously in opposite directions. Kid A made the climb ad infinitum, and Amnesiac dug into deeper ground and swam into darker water. The album is largely a disturbing search for some kind of resolution to life's angst and internal pain, and the trip it takes to the answer is nothing short of astounding. But let's not kid ourselves, the chances that any album after Kid A would have been an easy listen is zero to none. That's not to say that this album is completely unaccessible. You have heard weirder music, but sometimes it feels like the emotional bomb is being dropped track after track, and the only thing that seems traditional are time signatures which aren't even always present. Upon first listen, the record will mostly likely sound distant and unapproachable, but once the listeners ears decide to take the wheel and drive the music home, a beautiful flower blooms and things start to make sense. Each song is hand crafted in this way, to reap rewards over time, and only time will do this work. Most of the songs, such as Knives Out and Pulk/Pull Revolving Doors meander with no real resolution, perhaps representing some kind of ongoing search. There is some accessible material here, namely I Might Be Wrong, an electronic groove which builds itself fantastically into catchy layers which build and then destroy themselves to a wonderful effect. Many Radiohead fans also cite Pyramid Song as the bands best song. But simple lack of accessibility leads many to believe that the album is at fault despite how much someone can enjoy it in the end. Radiohead know that how much one wants to make a record that can tear down doors won't necessarily make them deliver. While at first it may seem like a collection of songs that simply weren't strong enough for Kid A, Amnesiac actually has more structure than it's predecessor, and is just as enthralling when one finally comes to understand it's ins and outs. While this is easily Radiohead's most difficult, jarring, and wildly experimental album, it is also the most engaging, rewarding, and to some, the best.

I rarely give ANY product this kind of review - but Amnesiac is one of those rare CD's that can be listened to in entirity. Moody, extremely layered, sad, whistful.

Listen to it once and you will be hooked.

THIS IS AN INCREDIBLE CD AND THESE GUYS ARE AWESOME LIVE!
LIKE SPINNING PLATES!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Rock music does a lot of things extremely well, but one emotion that it seems to have difficulty capturing is despair. I'm not talking about the blues. The blues involves reveling, often in a kind of self-satisfied way, about one's awareness of how badly one's life is going. There's nothing smug or self-satisfied about despair: it is a prelude to the death of hope, the reaching of a point from which one can't "come back." "Amnesiac" captures despair better than just about any rock album I can think of (another great entry in this abject sweeptakes would be Fleetwood Mac's masterpiece "Then Play On").

"Amnesiac" is to most music dealing with misery as opening up a bottle of whiskey in a darkened room with a loaded gun on the table, alone and with the phone disconnected, is to a bragging drunkalogue delivered to a crowded AA meeting. If you don't understand what I'm talking about consider yourself fortunate. If you do, get "Amnesiac." It does perfectly what it sets out to do, with no compromises or gratuitous bows to commercial acceptance or normal rock and roll conventions. It couldn't be the high art that it is if it had been done in any other way.

I remember listening to this album while reading at the library on cold winter days somewhere in upstate New York when the sun did not shine (which was often). These songs have a haunted feel that perhaps matched my surroundings and my mood. I agree that this album is maybe not right for every single occasion, but I feel I have to defend some songs on this album that have been pounded on by others. In my opinion, this is one of the best albums in terms of interesting music that you can actually enjoy listening to. I have listened to this album (as well as all of the other Radiohead albums) from start to finish many times, and for some reason, Amnesiac is the most fun. As for the disjointed sound, who is bothered by this now? How many people have not gotten used to listening to a wide range of music on iPod shuffle mode? I am not one of those guys who defends avant-garde art because it's daring or clever. I actually like these songs for what they are. In terms of favorites...
1.Life in a glass house--like being drunk in an old French wine bar on a wet night walking home with your crumpled hat and clinging to a telephone pole for support. I was shocked to see other people don't like this song. It gives me chills every time I hear it. But hey different strokes.
2.Pyramid song--driving through an unknown mountain town on a cold still night alone. I like how this song builds into that dreamy, melodic nowhereness.
3.You and whose army--I like how weak his voice sounds in contrast to his big words--overall it gives me the feel of a weak person reminding someone who is tormenting him that we are all weak and there is strength in numbers. Do not mess with us!
4.Hunting bears--as a post-apocalyptic source of nutrition, bears will be hunted. It will be a sad time. This song will make it sadder.
5.Spinning plates--probably not good enough to listen to on repeat, or maybe not ever, what the hell, skip this one.
6.Knives out--sounds more like a Radiohead song than anything else on this album, and it's good, but not as good as some of the other songs on Amnesiac.
Anyhoo, if you don't like this album I can't help you. It's not worth trying to change someone's opinion regarding music anyway. (Have you ever tried to recommend something you are super excited about to someone and they are like, eh..) I feel that way about this album. I'm just glad I have it and can listen to it on my headphones so as to not annoy those around me.