AMNESIAC

Before I go further, I want to say that I do consider RADIOHEAD prog in the overall view. While I despise the "next Pink Floyd" comparisons I used to hear, I do think that's the element the two bands have in common. My two-star rating is not an attack against RADIOHEAD's status as a prog band. It's just that my reactions vary considerably to these albums. This one was an experiment that didn't go so well.

It worked on Kid A. It didn't work so well here. It's tough to say given that I consider Kid A to be the ultimate RADIOHEAD masterpiece if not one of the most seamless albums that I own, but it's unavoidable. Unfortunately, I cannot honestly say that Amnesiac is of anywhere near the same quality as Kid A. For one thing, cohesion is mostly lacking here--there is not really a flow from one song to the other.

The truly damning problem, however, is the fact that there are too many songs that for various reasons, I simply cannot stand, and no amount of listening or re-listening has changed that. "Knives Out", "Morning Bell/Amnesiac", "Hunting Bears", and "Life in a Glass House" simply lack any enjoyable factor in them. The latter three just plod along directionlessly and especially in the case of that awful remake of "Morning Bell", rather tunelessly until the end. I simply cannot comprehend what possessed RADIOHEAD to slaughter a song that worked so well on Kid A, and actually release the corpse to the public. "Life in a Glass House" isn't that bad, but is dull enough that I simply have no need to listen to it. The same goes for "Hunting Bears", which more than any track on Amnesiac smacks of filler. As for "Knives Out", while it's faster-paced, I simply cannot stand it, neither lyrically nor musically. I don't understand what anyone sees in it.

That isn't to say this album is without merit. "Pyramid Song", "Push/Pulk Revolving Doors", "You and Whose Army" (the end of it, anyway), "I Might Be Wrong", and "Like Spinning Plates" are all certainly worthy of mention, especially the utterly sublime "Pyramid Song", which is almost on par with the ultimate RADIOHEAD masterpiece, "How to Disappear Completely". Which is no insult to it...I'm not sure most songs COULD ever attain to such a high level. "I Might Be Wrong" is excellent here--particularly when the synth riff kicks in. It works far better here than in the studio (I've never understood all the raving and drooling about live RADIOHEAD, anyway, for the most part).

As I said, there are some very nice songs on this albums that I would definitely select if I were compiling a Greatest Hits of RADIOHEAD album. The trouble is, there just wasn't enough for me to keep this thing around, and I finally ripped the songs that I do like and sold the CD. Amnesiac quite simply lacks the consistent quality for me to consider it a good album. Knowing that Amnesiac is essentially a slapped-together album of outtakes doesn't help me any, either. And coupled with Hail to the Thief, which I also think is excessively "hailed" by some, given that it's not up to par with the three RADIOHEAD greats, I have to wonder if RADIOHEAD floundered or flat-out lost its touch after its three masterpieces in a row. Only their next album will tell.

my favourite Radiohead album, i'm not sure why. This one is considered to be "Kid B", taken from the same sessions as the almighty Kid A, it is basically part 2 of a double album and a truely incredible project. Not to say this is better or worse than Kid A or any of their albums really, they are all masterpieces in their own right (some more than others). This one follows the same basic patterns of Kid A, fusing rock with electronica. Drum machines and acoustic drums are combined on this album like its predecessor. This one is easy to get into once you have got into Kid A, yet it is still slightly challenging. Radiohead explore the bold use of trumpets on this album, especially on the closing track. The production highlights this album as another oddity with lots of strange effects. This builds up a very technical and complex album, yet has a more accessable overlook than the previous album.

"Packt Like Sardines in a Crushd Tin Box" kicks off this one with the use of clanging sounds and drum machines with an excellent mid section, it flows well throughout and is a decent introduction. This hints that this album is full of prog tendancies although the album is not prog in itself. This track flows into "Pyramid Song", which is a strong contender for the greatest Radiohead track ever written. A beautiful, simplistic piano piece with a building up atmospheric orchestra. Simplicity would be the key, but this is Radiohead, so they have combined this simplicity with lots of technical sounds. This adds to the song giving it a unique stance and making it truely beautiful and breathtaking. The track only has about 5 lines of lyrics which dont really make sense, though they dont need to, it is very moving, emotional and depressing yet breathing positivite life.

"Pull/Pulk Revolving Doors" is a decent track though i wouldn't be surprised if it got skipped. Its basically 4 minutes of glamourus electronic beats and sampling, showing off the technical production and complexity. "You and Whose Army" is a very gentle piece by this band is one of the best pieces on the album. Thoms voice sounds almost angelic on this album. there is a dirty production used in the intro to build up the uniqueness and effects. This track has a mellow piano build up with wonderful vocals that sounds pleasing to the ears. It then picks up with an uplifting melody and even better vocal work from Thom, notice also how the production effects build up too. This track starts brilliantly but the key to this song is in its build up and climax.

"I Might be Wrong" is the first real guitar based track, opening with some feedback and leading into a cool distorted riff combined with thoms ghost like vocals. This is a great piece to listen to and moves along very swiftly. My favourite part is the climax as on the previous track. "Knives Out" is the most ordinary track here. it isn't too weird and became the albums second single. This track uses more basic standards to writing a rock track with verses and chorus structure but for Radiohead this is a welcoming change, not something they have really done in a while. "Morning Bell/Amnesiac" uses the same structure and lyrics as "Morning Bell" on Kid A yet uses different instruments to produce a very gloomy and dramatic sound. I prefer the original track though this one works well enough to please.

"Dollars and Cents" opens with a lush sound even if the vocals sound very opaque. This track has a good build up leading into some speedy vocal work by Thom. This shows off a darker edge to this album. this piece really picks up during the "why don't you quiet down" part and shows off some excellent basslines. "Hunting Bears" is a weird guitar track used to keep the album flowing. A bit of a filler but i like it, nothing much to say here really, it neither drags the album down nor excells it, skip it if you want, its barely (or bearly) a vital track. "Like Spinning Plates" is plain weird! I like it a lot even if it enduces headaches. This is the pinnacle of strange production effects. The vocals are really good here. I highly recommend you check out the live version on the I Might Be Wrong EP. "Life in a Glasshouse" almost made it onto Kid A and was the main urge for releasing the rest of Kid A's tracks that got missed out onto Amnesiac and i am damn glad they did as i love this album. This track is quite progressive, lead by Thom and the trumpeteer. This track builds up and is another headache inducer. A brilliant close to a masterpiece of an album.

This isn't the most enjoyable or accessable album of the bunch but Radiohead are at their musical best here and the album works magnificently well. This one is more difficult to see the best of and probably should be one of the last studio albums you get, when you are ready to take this on you will experince pure Radiohead bliss.

The 'madness' of Kid A reaches its apogee with this set - which prior to its release was actually billed as 'the songs' the were left off Kid A!!!

In reality it feels like the bits that didn't make the Kid A cut but which were close to the band's heart.

In that it suffers a little from all such releases - perhaps the band was too close to the music to truly be objective. Indeedm they themselves have said that they considered the Kid A/Amnesiac sessions to be the hardest working period of their careers and that they did become detrimentally (to the band) ensnared in over-analysis of every note and noise recorded.

However, despite some fairly unlistenable material here, there are gems. Pyramid Song revolves around a gorgeous piano motif, I Might Be Wrong is a great piece and Dollars and Cents is a genuinely spooky piece of music.

Like other reviewers I find Life in a Glasshouse tedious, the dissonant brass at the end of the song seeming superfluous and smacking of a kind of 'wouldn't it be great if we added...' over-reaching.

Amnesiac is best viewed as a companion piece to Kid A. With the exception of the beautiful Pyramid Song, it is not essential, though if you're a fan of Kid A, it deepens the experience of that record considerably.

Considered the little brother of 'Kid A', and usually given less respect than that album, I'm probably in the minority of Radiohead fans who likes this one more than 'Kid A'. While some of the experimental aspects of 'Kid A' sounded like test-pattern blueprints for real songs, 'Amnesiac' is packed with fully-realized songs that retain their experimental edge while also possessing the approachable human quality of pre-'Kid A' Radiohead.

Electronic gadgetry is still the basis for their sound on 'Amnesiac'. The jarring quality of opener "Packt Like Sardines In A Crushd Tin Box" is like Kraftwerk meets 'Yellow Hedgerow Dreamscape'-era Porcupine Tree. This fractured alien vibe dominates other tracks like "Pulk/Pull Revolving Doors" and "Like Spinning Plates". It's when Thom Yorke starts releasing his more emotional side that this album starts to shine. His convincing wail is smooth as silk on "Pyramid Song", a nice contrast to the subtle oddball time signature that gently jerks the song from side to side. Other high points might revolve around Yorke's vocal purges, but there's also plenty of amazing musical dexterity and chemistry from everyone else throughout "I Might Be Wrong", "Knives Out" and the inspiring "You And Whose Army?" The album ends with in an interesting sequence: 1) hazy guitar theme ("Hunting Bears"), 2) melancholy electronic phasing ("Like Spinning Plates"), 3) smoky lounge weirdness ("Life In A Glasshouse"). A fitting if disorienting end to the rollercoaster rides beforehand. 'Amnesiac' deserves to be judged on its own merit, and not in the shadow of the groundbreaking 'Kid A'.

Not particularly memorable, but...

Amnesiac is not for fans of Indie music or Alt Rock, but fans of Can, Holger Czukay's solo material, and the more avante-garde will find plenty to enjoy both here and on Kid A, the two most creative and progressive albums of Radiohead's catalogue.

This is simply not the same Radiohead that wrote Creep, but a band seeking to obliterate the looming monolith of OK Computer that threatened to be a gravestone for the band. How could they possibly follow up a work of such magnificence, relevance and, as it turned out, influence. Every other band and it's dog started to sound like Radiohead in order to shift product, so the band were faced with a dilemma;

Create OK Computer 2, or choose the more artistically ethical path of attempting to create something new? Fortunately, they chose the latter, and we are left with two highly progressive albums that are not easily accessible as Radiohead's earlier work was, but challenging and very deep. Other reviews have exposed remarkable background information, so I will do what I prefer to do - just relax myself into the musical groove and pass on what I hear.

From the opening percussive sounds of "In a Crushd Tin Box", we can tell that there is an unusual sonic landscape unfolding before us. The deep thuds of the electro groove that drives the rest of the track recalls Can. Thom's vocals are oddly soothing, but Wow! the textures that open up on guitar and keyboards are like nothing else, and the odd mantra of "I'm a reasonable man, get off my case" punches through the mix. The music continues to unfold organically and increases in intensity and complexity of texture, with every detail in the music crisply marked out until the sudden ending.

"Pyramid Song" blows the memory of the previous textures away with a simple piano riff that attempts to be rhythmically neutral. Delicate washes of electronics occasionally wind their way around Thom's haunting melody. The entry of drum and bass is pristine and rhythmically complex, and more textural build-ups keep the momentum of the musical journey intact. Again, a lyrical mantra emerges; "Nothing to fear, nothing to doubt".

"Revolving Doors" catches us by surprise - the percussive sounds are massive, giving the feeling of equipment being pushed to the limits. Mmmm! Thoms voice is oddly processed, through some kind of vocoder, and again, we get a concentration on electronic textures, with some curious and fascinating alternations The rhythm section is worth noting, as it is very inventive.

"You and Whose Army" begins like a track from OK Computer or the Iron Lung EP, with Thom's vocals, delicate guitar work from Mr Greenwood, and slightly sinister mid-range vocal harmonies. The double bass changes the sound closer to a simplistic jazz texture, and Thom's vocals wander in a nice jazz style. When the drums enter, it does seem as if we're back in OK Computer territory, but Radiohead are ahead of the game and pull in the melodies nicely to concentrate more on the textures and natural ebb and flow in the music.

"I Might be Wrong" is just incredible and unpredictable - you just don't know which way this song is going to turn, and yet the building blocks are very simple. This is how to create great and original songs without resorting to virtuosic noodling in order to impress. Instead, Radiohead concentrate on taking textures, riffs and patterns from their own past - there is much about this song that reminds me of songs on "The Bends", but then subject them to a whole new treatment with electronic washes and the layering of instrumental parts.

"Knives Out" is much more conventionally in the previously established Radiohead style - but again, listen to the rhythmic invention; there's some really subtle stuff going on here. Thom's voice is given the full treatment for this track, and rings out beautifully - this is the first time we get the feeling of a "song" proper, as in previous tracks, the voice is used simply as part of the overall musical texture.

Through the rest of the album, Radiohead continue re-inventing their sound and style moulding melodies, scultping soundscapes, realising rhythms and throwing textures off the wall - Amnesiac/Morning Bell recalls "No Surprises" with the little xylophone motif, Dollars and Cents, a monumental track, continually threatens to erupt with the driving bass line and suggestive drums with controlled build-ups and pull-backs...

This is an album that rewards the patient listener - the listener that is not after a "hit" or to be bludgeoned by virtuosic impressiveness, but demands something a bit more special from music - something that recalls the past without blatantly stealing from it, something that looks to the future and enters the realm of the experimental without going into the more psychotic avante-garde - something truly progressive, rather than regurgitative.

There is nothing to not like about Amnesiac, and everything to like. It doesn't completely blow me away - and I don't want it to. It's not an album I'd revisit constantly, but one to return to every now and then to enjoy the refreshing change, and notice things you hadn't noticed before. Although Amnesiac is far more progressive than OK Computer, and a truly great album, a Masterpiece of prog should call me from the shelf every time I go to put some music on, telling me that if I choose something else I might regret it.

Amnesiac does not do that. In fact, it kind of lives up to its name - by the time you've heard it all the way through, you know you've heard something very special, but you can't remember any of it, and you don't really want to hear it again immediately.

Hence I do not consider it a masterpiece - but it is amazing and a great investment for any fan of Prog.

After Kid A, they showed us Amnesiac.

So many people consider this album as the little brother of Kid A or something, maybe because after The Bends and OK Computer, they decided to experiment more with electronic music, the first step was something great, a masterpiece released in 2000 called Kid A, therefore seeing a succesful album, maybe they wanted to follow that mix of electronic with their alternative roots, as a result of that, one year later Amnesiac was released, and what have i found?

First of all i have the Special Edition album, which contains smething like a book, which is always weird, with draws and strange figures as usual, the cover art of the regular album is not the best, but it´s representative, who does not remember that "bear" crying?, the same way goes musically.

"Packt Like Sardines in a Crushd Tin Box", the title is the first hint of a strange album, it starts with a bass line which is always remembered for Radiohead fans at the beggining of the album, this song is merely weird in the sense of how Yorke´s voic and drumkit are entering to the song, showiong us for the very first minute the electronic sound.

"Pyramid Song" (which it´s original name was Egyptian Song), maybe because when you hear Egypt you would probably remind pyramids and that things, anyway this is a classic song, not that beautiful as others, but with that piano landscape and mood is also memorable for any listener, that kind of songs that you could love or hate but never will be an average or "x" song.

"Pull/Pulk Revolving Doors", mmm i dont like this song at all, despite i like samples and Radiohead in it´s electronic moments, this song is boring for me, always the same style music and tones, maybe if you are a complete fan of electronic, you could enjoy it , but also you could say that this is nothing but a waste of time.

"You and Whose Army?", haha ilove this song, starting with the title, this is a very nice melodic song, with has Yorke´s beautiful voice (as usual), and a soft guitar soung hand in hand with it, how i love that lines... c´mon, c´mon, i think you drive me crazy, you and whose army?, maybe what i love is not the lyric, but the way as Thom says it.

"I Might Be Wrong" is probably one of the best if not the best track here, which shows us for the first time in the album that beloved Greenwood´s guitar, this song is not that electronic and take us back to the rockish and alternative part of Radiohead, with the always progressive part through it, here i love the changes because are always in the best place, i mean sometimes you can predict when a change comes, this time no.

"Knives Out", after a great song which is one before it, we have Knives Out making a couple of best songs of the album, this is again a song which shows us the complexity of the guitars, (remember Radiohead has 3 guitarists including Yorke), maybe you will remind a bit of Paranoid Android if you attemp to play this song, good enough for any strict listener.

"Morning Bell / Amnesiac", if you listened to Kid A you know what i am talking about, the new thing here is that is another version of the song, forget that drumming of the original, and think only of the voice and "air" as a background.

"Dollars and Cents" is another great song here, i think is one of that songs taht are always progressing despite looks like the same and repetitive way almost always, here i love tha bass making the rythm and the whole song, also the quality of the drumming is extraordinary, im sure that you might find this song interesting.

"Hunting Bears" is a short instrumental song whic offers us only some nice guitar sound, but actually is a slow electronic song, nothing special here.

"Like Spinning Plates", this is a tough one because i have to tell you that this song was only another song for me, nothing to be proud of and enjoy, but when i listened to it in the Live "I Might Be Wrong EP", i was shocked and amazed, a very different song beautiful piano replacing that poor electronic sound, so when im talking about Amnesiac´s version, i will tell that is only a nice song, nothing more.

"Life in a GlassHouse" is an excellent song to end and experimental electronic oriented album, this is originally a B- Side, so i think fans should know it very well, i love it´s emotion and everything, from the vocals and lyrcis, through the sax and melodic almost deppresive sound.

Well, after all i have to confess to you that this album has never been my favorite not even in my Radiohead´s Top 3, in fact talking about studio albums i think i like this more than Pablo Honey but that´s all. Ayway im not saying that this is a bad album , but definitely not the best, some great songs, some bad songs, i would give it actually 3.5 stars, so here 3!

2.5 stars really!!

Keeping Radiohead's adventurous spirits going, this album delves/dives deeply in the roots of Thom Yorke's depression or "mal-être" all the way down to paranoia, alienation and simply bordering the mental sanity frontier.

This album is rather unlike anything they had done before but at the same time is a logical artistic continuation of Kid A. somehow hovering between post rock (more like the Tortoise direction) and a weird sort of trip-hop or acid-jazz, mixed in with the usual sound of Radiohead. A good deal of these tracks deal with his contradictions and his confrontations (and apparently not just his internal ones) and we are far from the impressive inventions of OK Computer. BTW, Brother Jimmy ( Caravan's Pye Hasting's brother) pulls in a few clarinet lines with his brass section buddies, but this hardly saves the day.

Too many sampled and techno-oïdal moods are preventing me to really appreciate much deeper (but I do think this might be shallower than Thom had originally intended it also), but I do confess I have a problem really caring for the problem of this eccentric self- centred songwriter he is. Thankfully, he keeps the album short enough not to have you pop it out of your deck.

As intimate and personal or even inventive of an album, I think this is too obtuse for the average proghead to invest time (and money) into this album, for the little potential rewards that repeated listenings might just bring to you. And although there are moments of beauty, the risk of driving you to the brink of mental insanity or even suicide is a bit too evident should you decide to get intimate with Thom's alienations.

2.4 Stars (in prog standards, for prog fans)

2 stars (in musical standards, for non-prog fans)

After two highly sucessful albums (Ok Computer, Kid A) where Radiohead developed their own interesting sound mixing rock with electronica, Radiohead seemed to have decided to develop their creative (Yet somewhat inaccessible) Kid A and make it even much more progressive. So, more progressive should be a good thing in a progressive rock world, but this time it isn't. This album is somewhat dull, hard to understand, and at points somewhat unlistenable. The music just reached a point that by being so obtuse and deep, I just can't really enjoy the music. In short, this album sounds like a psychological mess put to music, with questionable results.

Packed Like Sardines begins the album and sounds like a song coming from Kid A, electronic, hypnotic, creative, etc. Not really good, but it is quite listenable. Pyramid Song might make you think the album would be a complete masterpiece. This is possibly the most depressingly beautiful song I have ever heard and easily my favourite Radiohead song alongside Idioteque from Kid A. I can't put to words how beautiful this song is, you have to listen to it. Tom Yorke's vocals are at the very best, the keyboard arrangement and off-beat piano gives me goosebumps, and all the other instruments complement the perfect music flawlessly.

That's it, might as well stop the album here. When you hear someone as horrid as Pull/Pulk Revolving Doors attack your hears with the unmusical noise that makes up the rhythm. For some reason, the background noise reminds me of Porcupine Tree. You and Who's Army is as good as the opener. That means it is listenable. At least it sounds like music, with nice melodies and chords. I might Be Wrong , is an ok piece driven by a guitar riff, but it is probably too long for the amount of material it offers. Knives Out has a pleasant guitar riff, but the sound quality of the song is unbearable, and the song does not have much besides that guitar. Amnesiac/Morning Bell sounds very familiar, it reminds me of Sigur Ros but with a depressing tone. Not bad. Dollars and Cents might be the "Idioteque" of this album, with driving rhythms and desperate vocals but nowhere close as good. However, it is possibly the second best song of the album. An interesting thing to note is when a symphonic keyboard enters at minute 3. Hunting Bears is pointless guitar noodling for 2 minutes, but the next song Like Spinning Plates is a very paranoic and quote successful at portraying it, but as music, it is not that enjoyable. Life in a Glass House is, I must say, my 3rd favourite song of the album. It is a nice jazz song with the style of singing from Radiohead. As a result, it sounds quite unique.

1. Packed Like Sardines in a Crushd Tin Box (5/10)

2. Pyramid Song (10/10)

3. Pulk/Pull Revolving Doors (1/10)

4. You and Whose Army ? (6/10)

5. I Might Be Wrong (5/10)

6. Knives Out (3.5/10)

7. Morning Bell/Amnesiac (5/10)

8. Dollars & Cents (6.5/10)

9. Hunting Bears (2/10)

10. Like Spinning Plates (4.5/10)

11. Life in a Glasshouse (6/10)

Who Should Get this: Any fan of Radiohead's Post "Bends" period, especially fans of "Kid A". Any fan of the genre of post-rock (Godspeed, Sigur ros, etc), Anyone who wants to try to listen something quite obtuse and unusual.

Who Should Not Get This: Anyone who do not like Radiohead, Anyone who does not like electronic sounds. Anyone who does not want to take a risk over something inaccessible that might never click on them. Anyone on a tight budget who could just buy a more enjoyable experimental album.

My Grade : D/C

If Radiohead surprised everyone with their previous album ("Kid A") they didn't repeat it with this one.

For several reasons.

The mood and sounds of this album are almost identical to "Kid A". Mostly because the music developed here was written at the same time and can be considered as left over. And they pretty much sound like this.

There are some blunders as well, like the very weak "Pulk Pull Revolving Doors" which is another dull electronic experimentation. Yorke's laments are the same as well ("You & Whose Army").

There is little inspiration to be felt on this work and the fan might have a feeling of being fooled in some way. The band should have released this "work" as a bonus CD for "Kid A". It would have been more honest.

Anyway, I really don't like this album very much (but "Kid A" wasn't my cup of tea either). Just as "Optimistic" was my fave from their previous album, "Knives Out" is my favourite on this one. The reason being very simple: it is a true and good "Radiohead" song. It is so simple to be effective, isn't it? I'm just asking more of these.

There is of course a languishing one as well; otherwise this shouldn't be a Radiohead" album ("Morning Bell/Amnesiac"). But that's almost it in terms of good songs.

As soon as the band gets back to their electronics, I just lose control. Can't help. In this respect, "Like Spinning Plates" is unbearable to my ears. Two stars for this average album.

'Amnesiac' - Radiohead (7/10)

It's a bit annoying when people simply pass 'Amnesiac' as just being a collection of 'Kid A' b-sides (even though that's sort of what it is.) It's not detached from 'Kid A' at all; I just don't think it's a complete subordinate to it's 'big brother.' In fact, I listen to this album alot more, and some of the songs on here, I like more than any of the material on the other one.

By why is 'Kid A' hailed as a masterpiece, and not this one?

I would say consistency. There's honestly some stuff here that really does sound like it's a b-side, whereas 'Kid A' wielded a strong sense of cohesion and album-sensibility...

But why doe's Amnesiac earn a good rating as well?

Because the songwriting is generally great, and it's only stripped of enough weirdness as to make it more listenable, but still progressive and unpredictable. Listening to 'Amnesiac,' I start to wish there were at least some songs on there that had a 'single' quality about them, so as to give a break from the strangeness and give the listener a mind's rest. Songs like 'Knives Out' and 'Like Spinning Plates' are full of emotion, and 'The Pyramid Song' while coupled with a bit of an annoying vocal performance from Thom Yorke, should appeal to prog fans.

'Amnesiac' will be compared to 'Kid A' until the end of time; theres nothing past that. However, on it's own, it is a relatively strong album with some gorgeous tracks, and deserves much more than being dismissed as a 'b-side compilation.' 'Amnesiac' is a companion to 'Kid A,' and nothing less. 3.5 stars.

"Amnesiac" is the 5th full-length studio album by UK alternative rock act Radiohead. The album was released through Parlophone Records in June 2001. The material on "Amnesiac" were recorded during the same sessions as the material for it´s predecessor "Kid A (2000)" and released just 8 months after the said predecessor, so it´s fair to call them sibling albums.

Stylistically "Kid A (2000)" and "Amnesiac" feature a lot of similarities, which is only natural since they were recorded during the same sessions, and the tracklists for the two releases probably weren´t chosen before all material was ready, but there are differences between the two albums too that make them stand out as individual entities. Overall "Kid A (2000)" is a more electronic inclined release while "Amnesiac" reintroduces rock guitars to the band´s sound. "Amnesiac" is still an alternative rock album, featuring a lot of electronic elements though as well as elements from ambient pop/rock, rather than a more guitar driven rock release. It´s pretty eclectic too which the New Orleans-styled jazz rock track "Life in a GlassHouse" is an example of.

"Amnesiac" features high level musicianship and while there is a lot of focus on experimenting with sounds it´s still lead vocalist Thom Yorke´s emotional vocal delivery that´s predominantly in focus and ultimately defines the band´s sound. The whole thing is packed in a professional and well sounding production, which brings out the best in the music.

With "OK Computer (1997)" and "Kid A (2000)", Radiohead more or less revolutionized the alternative rock scene and also managed to bring a more experimental spin on creating rock music to a mainstream audience. It´s quite a huge achivement and therefore it´s probably utopia to think that they could continue releasing such high quality statements. My overall impression of "Amnesiac" might suffer a bit from the huge expectations I had as the result of listening to the two innovative predecessors. To my ears it doesn´t quite reach the heights of those two albums. It´s however still a pretty great and quite adventurous release by Radiohead deserving a 3.5 star (70%) rating.

Amnesiac is Radiohead's 2001 release.The album is often described as a collection of B-sides from the previous release, Kid A. This might be because of the musical style, which hasn't changed its direction at all since Kid A. The music is not bad in my opinion, and I actually don't enjoy this album much less than Kid A.

Amnesiac features some fantastic songs that are among Radiohead's best. The emotional "Pyramid Song" is a very interesting and emotional piece telling a dream Thom Yorke once had. "I Might Be Wrong" features a catchy guitar riff and a great chorus, which makes this one of my favorite Radiohead tracks. "Knives Out" is one of the album's singles and is one of the most accesible songs here. This doesn't mean that it isn't a great track though, and I can always enjoy it. "Dollars and Cents" is one of the darkest tracks on here. It features a good bassline with mysterious sounding vocals.

The remaining tracks are less interesting, though most of them are still nice. "You And Whose Army" is a beautiful and gentle piece and the final two tracks are good, though not among the album's best at all. "Morning Bell/Amnesiac" is a remake of "Morning Bell", which originally appeared on Kid A. This version is much weaker than the one appearing on Kid A though. Just like Kid A, Amnesiac features a bunch of weaker pieces too. The opener, "Packt Like Sardines In A Crushd Tin Box" isn't an interesting track at all, and the same goes for "Pulk/Pull Revolving Doors". "Hunting Bears" is another track that simply doesn't do much good to me.

Amnesiac is a slightly less good album than Kid A in my opinion, though the difference isn't very big. I rate this album three stars, as it's a pretty good album, though very far from perfect. The album is rather inconsistent and not as interesting as several other Radiohead releases.

I find it absolutely hilarious that Radiohead specifically promised this would be a more guitar-heavy (which it might be, but not by much) and less inaccessible album than Kid A. This was recorded in the same sessions that produced Kid A, and it sure as heck sounds like a Kid A outtakes album. I liked Kid A pretty much from the start, never considering it at all inaccessible, and I still had a very hard time absorbing this album. The general approach to the songs might be more or less the same as on Kid A, but the songs, on the whole, are much more abstract in sound and feel than the ones on Kid A, and that's to its detriment.

The album bunches all of the "normal" songs into the middle, in a move that seems a little odd to me. Despite how much I enjoyed the experimentation on the last album, these are easily my favorites of Amnesiac. "I Might be Wrong" boasts an extremely effective riff that plays well off of the various "modern" (circa 2001) percussion rhythms, and Thom delivers a performance that reeks (in a good way) of snide cynicism. "Knives Out" sounds just like a typical OK Computer track, with a great set of guitar lines and a hell of a dark vibe (it appears to be about cannibalism), and because of that it's not surprising that so many fans clamored for this track to make it onto a proper studio album. And finally, "Amnesiac/Morning Bell" is a reworking of the Kid A version of the track, as the arrangement now centers around slow guitars instead of keyboards, and it's quite nice.

The other eight tracks, though, are all over the map. Quite a few of them, as has been pointed out by some others, work better as ideas than as completed tracks, and don't feel quite done yet. The most obvious offender is "Hunting Bears," a two minute guitar (mostly) instrumental that basically keeps playing a single line (that's not that great) over and over again, and it clearly should have been left off the album. "Pyramid Song" works more as a mood song than anything else, as the piano chords and various synth wails sound pretty and sad, and largely cover up the seemingly directionless nature of the song. I guess it would help if I could figure out exactly what mood the band tried to convey here. Some tracks, like the opening "Packt Like Sardines in a Crushd Tin Box," or "Pull/Pulk Revolving Doors," or "Like Spinning Plates," basically take a few off-kilter electronic rhythms and textures and build an entire song around them, with some singing that doesn't really have much of an effect one way or the other. I mean, I basically like these tracks, but I still find them a little off-putting, and I don't "get" them the way I do a lot of the Kid A material. I do like the closing "Life in a Glass House," with some effective and unexpected use of big band sounds, but the other two ("You and Whose Army?," "Dollars and Cents") more or less pass me by every time I hear them.

So basically, I still don't really know what to think of this album. My inclination is that I quite like the album overall, and that parts of it are great, but it still confuses me in a lot of places. I'd rather listen to this album straight through than The Bends, which is why it gets a slightly higher grade (to be exact, The Bends is a high ***, this is a very low ****), but I can't go higher than that. Fans of the band will definitely want this, but others should probably make sure they like Kid A a lot before getting this one.

PS: The "Hunting Bears" slot was originally supposed to be filled with a fantastic track called "Cuttooth," but was pulled out at the last minute for reasons I still don't know. With that track in the "Hunting Bears" slot, the flow and feel of the entire second half changes and improves drastically, and this becomes a more solid **** that could make a case some days for a *****. Alas, 'twas not to be.

I actually prefer this one to the earlier Kid A, to which this forms a companion album (with many of the recordings here originating from the Kid A sessions). There's a curious emotional warmth and rawness here which contrasts interestingly with the icy cold distance of Kid A, there's one of Radiohead's best latter-day guitar rock efforts in the form of Knives Out, and there's some intriguing twists to the Kid A approach - witness, for instance, the cameo from jazz legend Humphrey Lyttleton on Life In A Glass House, providing one of many warm, organic touches growing over the cold inorganic electronic edifice.

Radiohead recorded more than 20 songs in a more experimental vein than what they had done previously. These songs were originally going to be released by the band on a double album, or possible as a series of EPs. They eventually decided to release the songs across two standard albums because the music was thought to be too dense for most listeners to listen to in one sitting. Thus, "Kid A" and "Amnesiac" were born. "Kid A" was released first, and many fans and listeners were surprised at the sound that was being produced from a band that was considered to play guitar-based rock. The band definitely took a huge risk, because most of these songs were more electronic and experimental than what their listeners were used to. But people accepted the changes and embraced "Kid A" and this was followed up by "Amnesiac" where most of the remaining 20 songs were included.

"Amnesiac" as described by Thom Yorke, is a different way to look at "Kid A", sort of an explanation. It contains music that is highly experimental and even approaches the sound of Krautrock at times. Along with the typical guitar-based music, you get looped recordings, electronic manipulation, vocal manipulation, and drum machines. It was important to the band that no one of the members felt left out of the songwriting/recording process because of the new ways they were writing and producing music on these songs.

So while "Kid A" seemed more cohesive, this album does not seem to be as much of a concept that was evident in the previous album. But that's okay, because the style of the music is cohesive. I love the fact that the band expanded their horizons on these two albums, they were not content to ride off of past successes, and because of this, their fan base grew even more. It also opened up a lot of listener's minds to experimental, non-typical rock. However, "Amnesiac" is still a very misunderstood album. Many listeners skip past the more repetitive songs to listen to the ones the like the most. This ends up creating a lot of different viewpoints on the overall acceptance of the album. So hopefully shedding a little light on the tracks will help with the understanding of what the music was trying to convey.

"Packt Like Sardines in a Crushed Tin Box" starts out the track list with a more upbeat rhythm and with processed vocals from Thom. The rhythm is a tinny-sounding beat which sounds like someone beating on a pot. This one to me is a bit weak for a starting track, but it does work as a preface to what is to come. Lyrically, it's sort of a warning that if you didn't find what you were looking for previously, maybe you should try something different, which is what the band was doing here, going against being labeled as a certain kind of band. The next track is the amazingly beautiful "Pyramid Song". This was one of the singles from the album, and is probably one of the less experimental tracks. However, it is driven by piano and keys and it has a very strange rhythm. This is one of my favorite Radiohead songs, completely full of emotion and beauty. The orchestration sounds like someone pleading to the listener, and some eerie sounds soon come along, but only add to the yearning of the music. Out of nowhere, rhythm kicks in when you least expect it, but it doesn't detract from the song, it enhances like you wouldn't expect.

"Pulk/Pull Revolving Doors" has Thom's vocals processed again, and is a strange one indeed. The lyrics are based on a text about different kinds of doors as explained by a "Childcraft" book. The song itself is about choices, how some are important and some are not. Probably one of the weaker tracks here. It utilizes a looping track from much earlier sessions from a song that wasn't released until much later called "True Love Waits" as the sound backing the lyrics. "You and Whose Army" uses strange items like egg crates and etc. to create the effects of this song. This one is a politically based song about betrayal of leaders that had been trusted, specifically Tony Blair in this case. Much more interesting than the previous track and also more accessible even with the strange objects that were used.

Next up is the track "I Might Be Wrong." This is based on a blues guitar riff written by Greenwood, the band's guitarist, which acts as the foundation of the song. It is played under a more robotic beat, so is actually a combination of electronic and standard instrumentation. The lyrics are sparse but portray hope that a change for good is coming. "Knives Out" was another single from the album. It is less experimental and really packs a wallop as far as emotion. Strangely enough, the lyrics seem to be about cannibalism, but they are likening big business, specifically the record industry, to preying on the weakest in the human race. The guitar work on this track is influenced by The Smiths guitarist's style.

Next is "Morning Bell/Amnesiac" which is a more experimental version of "Morning Bell" from the album "OK Computer". Yorke said it was included because it came from a different place than the original and it just felt right. The lyrics are mostly the same, but it is a slower tempo accompanied by a chiming sound. "Dollars and Cents" is the next track. This one was originally over 11 minutes and was inspired by the krautrock sound. Yorke wanted Jonny to write a Coltrane-inspired track and this was the result of that. The guitar has a warped kind of sound and there is an orchestral passage in the background that has a far away sound to it. It is also a more traditional meter than most of the songs on the album. The next track "Hunting Bears" is a very sparse instrumental piece with a looped guitar sequence played underneath another guitar and synth. It acts as a link between the preceding track and the following one, but interesting enough to not just be considered filler.

"Like Spinning Plates" is probably the most interesting tracks on the album as far as experimentation goes. The song "I Will", which at the time was an unused track and would later be used on the album "Hail to the Thief", is played backwards as the accompaniment. Yorke liked the melody that the reversal of the song created, and he wrote lyrics to go along with this new melody. He then learned how to sing the lyrics in the first verse backwards, which he did. The backwards vocals were reversed and then recorded against other instruments, and that is why the first verse has that backward-sounding effect, yet you can still understand the lyrics. Kinda neat trick, huh? The remaining lyrics are sung normally, but many listeners wondered how that first verse sounded so strange. The last track is "Life in a Glasshouse" and is the only one written after "Kid A" was released. The band was unhappy with this song was sounding, because it sounded to much like funeral music. They contacted famed jazz trumpeter Humphrey Lyttleton, and asked him to listen to a demo of the song. He suggested they make it into a New Orleans Jazz Funeral style. They recruited his brass band to play on the song, and that is the sound you get. You still have that funeral march beat, but it sounds cheery against the bright horns. Humphrey's horn part is mostly improvised against the original track.

So, there you have it. Radiohead at their most experimental, and in my opinion, it works well. With only a few exceptions, the music here is very interesting, even ground breaking at times. It had a great influence, along with "Kid A" in getting a new generation interested in music exploration and opened the doors to other bands wishing to explore new musical avenues. I don't quite consider it a 5 star album, but it is close. There is just a slight feeling of not being as cohesive as it could have been, and a couple of the tracks are a little too repetitive and weak, but for the most part, it is still an excellent album.

It would seem here that Thom and company are trying to imitate, pay homage to, or evoke the experimental music of the 1960s BEATLES. They also seem to have become quite enamored of New Orleans music and jazz sounds, stylings, and motifs.

1. "Packed Like Sardines in A Crushed Tin Box" (4:00) interesting start but then goes wrong. (8.5/10)

2. "Pyramid Song" (4:48) Excellent top to bottom--and very experimental. Love the Beatles-like orchestration. My favorite song on the album. (9.75/10)

3. "Pulk/Pull Revolving Doors" (4:07) playing with trip hop and glitch and scratch electro-editing. I like it! (8.75/10)

4. "You and Whose Army?" (3:11) almost retro 1950s blues turning into BEATLES piano-based psychedelia. (8.75/10)

5. "I Might Be Wrong" (4:53) electronic opening joined by BUSH-like guitar. It really goes nowhere else until 3:50 when all drops out and some interesting Bayou-bluesy electronica finishes it. (8.25/10)

6. "Knives Out" (4:14) interesting interplay from the three guitarists and nice vocal melodies. (8.75/10)

7. "Morning Bell/Amnesiac" (3:14) another song that contains elements that are very reminiscent of BEATLES music circa 1967. My other top three song. (9/10)

8. "Dollars & Cents" (4:51) guitar play like some of the early electrified guitars of the 1950s or 1960s with a bit of a jazz or bassa nova feel and rhythm to it. A top three song for me. I love the playfulness of the vocals and drums. (9.5/10)

9. "Hunting Bears" (2:01) Bayou blues. Not enough to make this one viable other than as an experimental interlude. (3.75/5)

10. "Like Spinning Plates" (3:57) highly experimental sound engineering over which Thom starts whining halfway through. (8.25/10)

11. "Life In A Glasshouse" (4:34) Dixie blues-house horns! Interesting. (8.5/10)

Total Time: 43:50

I appreciate all of the experimental melding of very old riffs and sounds with contemporary innovations in electronica, but often the songs feel quite monotonous to a lyric-deaf listener like me.

B/four stars; an interesting collection of songs meeting the usual Radiohead standard for experimentation and mood. Three great songs and some other curios.