About Gabe Johnson Expertise I am an expert on the material in Radiohead`s songs. I can answer nearly any question related to lyrics interpretations and changes from album to album. I can also answer many questions related to specific band members such as their upbringings and musical influences.
Experience I have listened to Radiohead heavily for three years, and discuss/research Radiohead in order to further my appreciation and knowledge for the band.
I was reccomended by a Pink Floyd expert from this site to apply.
Publications Write monthly music review for school paper.
Question this might sounds completely random and far-fetched, but could it be possible that OK Computer, Hail To The Thief, and any following album could be like a trilogy sort of thing, that describes first, the "rise of tyranny" (OK Computer), then the "reign of tyranny" (Hail To The Thief), and finally the "fall of tyranny" (maybe next album)?
i'm not the most learned person in radiohead-ed-ness, so bear with me.
also, could it be possible that the Amnesiac is a kind of "reaction" to Kid A, maybe with the premise that Kid A is the life story (or maybe just a "day in the life of" thing) of a very paranoid person, and that Amnesiac is the man reflecting on his life (maybe at the end of "Motion Picture Soundtrack" he dies) or maybe just a dream that the man has after this "day in the life of" thing, if it were to be that premise (maybe he just falls asleep at the end of "Motion Picture Soundtrack").
i don't know...just figured i'd ask.
thanks.
Answer Thomas,
This is an interesting prompt. Although you are by no means incorrect in assuming there may be greater notions behind Thom Yorke's albums, I doubt they are in fact as deep as you're proposing.
For example, if Thom planned to connect OK Computer, Hail to the Thief, and a followup, he probably wouldn't be as quiet as he is about it. If anything, Thom would immediately have reported in an interview or something along those lines as per his intentions. I say this because Thom usually does announce how his albums should be interpretted, and Thom isn't one to exactly have much "hidden" meaning in his songs besides the topical lyrics which can have many interpretations. Also, another point against your argument would be the large amount of time between OK Computer and Hail to the Thief and the Kid A/Amnesiac period. As for "the rise of tyranny" being a theme in OK Computer, I'd disagree in that there are multiple songs about tyranny already existing in OK Computer, such as Karma Police and Electioneering. Although your idea isn't insane, I think you, like I have in the past, are baffled by the insane depth of this band. Notably, Yorke writes most of his catalogue related to the corruption of government or other things that are beyond his control. Since this theme is so prominent, it's easy to interpret each album as being related to eachother.
The truth in your interpretation is that from OK Computer and beyond, all albums were indeed about "larger" subjects, as opposed to Pablo Honey and The Bends which were both moreso about love between lovers.
As for your Kid A/Amnesiac theory, it's again a good idea but probably untrue. Amnesiac is actually just a collection of songs that Thom didn't want to put on Kid A. If he could've managed to keep the concept he wanted on Kid A unique, he probably wouldn't included many of the songs you hear on Amnesiac. This is why their release dates are so close, because they did little to no recording for Amnesiac.
Thanks for your e-mail and for being a good Radiohead fan. These theories that you proposed are ones that almos coincide directly with ones I used to consider. However, I learned to not take Radiohead as seriously as I once did, because Thom is very human and has very similar theories to other political writers of this time, just in musical format. Also, inherently, Thom is known to take his own music a lot more seriously than HE may even need to. (If you watch Meeting People is Easy and his interviews with Japanese media, you see how depressed it can sometimes make him.)
