HAIL TO THE THIEF

I used to listen to RADIOHEAD for a while in the 90s and the music they did, at least on the albums "Bends" and "OKC" was quite OK for me at that time and I had the impression that they were sure much better than other bands from the genre, whether it's Oasis, Nirvana or who ever. But after they started to include a lot of electronics in their music I lost interest in the band although funnily this is the only reason why they finally been included on this site. Ok let's try to concentrate on this album.

Track 1 is starting quite nice actually and Yorke's vocs are still tolerable,though quite weeny then it suddenly develops to a very common Post-Punk Alternative song heard already in a similar way many times from numerous bands.

Track 2 starts again in a very mellow and melancholic way (and this is in fact one reason why I don't like such kind of music that much, the music is either very sad and depressive or very noisy and aggressive). The music played here I find in fact quite monotonous,after a while a very repititive part is starting with lots of electronics and a sudden end. That's it and actually I cannot detectany complexity here and therefore I have to agree to many co-reviewers.

Track 3 again starting melancholic, slowly it becomes to be tedious and I'm seduced to press the skip-button. Okay let's still suffer a little bit with Thom Yorke. The way this guy is singing he must be depressive like hell. The positive thing is that the songs are very short.

Track 4 is starting in a different way (WOW surprise), the usual electronic sound we're used to since Kid A. Again melody and rhythm very simple but even not nice to listen (at least for my quite old and trained ears). This is definitively not my kind of music and reminds to some electronic stuff done in the 80's (Kraftwerk and whatever). Moreover Yorke's weeny vocalss together with this plastic sound is really a torture.Thanks God it's over.

Track 5 sounds rather nice with acoustic guitar and the vocs are somehow tolerable on here. It's almost in the style they did on "Bends".I would say nice but as well nothing special. The song is developing quite well to a faster speed but again somehow the impresssion: "You had heard something like this before!".

Track 6 starts quite fast and altogether it seems it's a quite nice song, although lots of electronics being used, but in a nice way. I don't want to discuss its progressiveness, it's just nice,nothing more.

Track 7 starts with piano and is obviously a very melancholic song again, the slow mood together with the weeny vocals are almost sufficient to commit suicide. Definitinely No - skip-button!

Track 8 the title track is using again exclusively electronics and quite monotonous and boring I have to say.

Track 9 has at least almost no electronics, nice but not very exciting as well, although it's probably the best song so far. People who favor distorted guitar would call it excellent I guess. Not completely my stuff but I can tolerate. Whereas on Track 10 again Yorke's weeny voice is going into its extreme and again a reason for suicide - skip-button!

Track 11 is a very boring song as well let's go to Track 12 which is probably the "toughest" one on the album, containing quite a lot of electronics and distortion (cool for most "youngsters" I guess, not for me).

Track 13 is once again a nice song with Yorke singing in a tolerable way. Finally the last one is okay to listen as well..

CONCLUSION: I would not call "Hail to the thief" the worst RADIOHEAD album ever (their first one was probably worse), but for sure it's not as good as "Bends" and "OKC", it's containing some nice, but as well not exciting songs, but a considerable amount of (at least for me) non-tolerable songs. In fact I received this album soon after its release, listened to it once, then it disappeared in the rearmost corner and only listened it today again for reviewing. But I think it will disappear again. I would say 2 stars is a fair rating.

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