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[NAPK1NS]

In May, this album will be one year old.

From a band who's been known for thier melancholic, shape-shifting sound, the quality of this record seems less of an accomplishment and more of a magic trick. For all the band's worldly concerns of dehumanization and ecological destruction, this is a much more focused and personal album. The emphasis on strings and choir grants a unique identity, but the album doesn't attempt to tear down walls or recast their sound as unprecedented.

What an effective ninth album.

To my ear, Decks Dark and Ful Stop are some of the best tracks they've produced. "Decks" in particular has a unique structure in the way it marries its lyrics and music. The logic of the lyricism begins to break apart into strange descriptors while the sound becomes more disturbed.

Around the 1:17 mark, the bass begins to moan over some lines that have haunted me since it's release.

"But it was just a laugh
Even at this angle, we both crumble.
Ten-ton head made of wet sand
The dread circumference
You gotta' be kidding me
The grass grows over me.
Your face in the glass
In the glass
It was just a laugh, just a laugh.
It's whatever you say it is."

Defeatist, but the song has managed to rake away at my mood every time I hear it.

Ful Stop manages to bowl you over when the guitars explode around the 2:50 mark. This portion of the song switches the guitars and bass off and on, giving the impression of sound that swirls and undertows. In headphones and eyes closed, this song is consuming.

I had an opportunity to see the song live at Outside Lands in August last year.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NBuWojKm9Pg

Anyway, It's a great album. Wanted to hear others selective thoughts about it, or it in relation to the discography at large. I probably consider it to be their second or third best work.

Going to see them for the second time in Portland in April. Can't wait.

 

[JoJoShabadoo]

Almost one year old? Fuck, time flies by way too fast.

I love the album. One of their greatest IMO.

 

[TheExhaustedWalrus]

I think it's my fourth favorite of theirs. I am huge RH fan so once it came out I dropped everything and gave it listen while sitting outside, I still remember that experience and it stuck with me.

I think it's a pretty organic album by RH standards and has some of Thom's most heartbreaking vocal performances and lyrics. There are only a couple songs I don't really care for (Tinker Tailor and Desert Island Disk) but the rest are stellar.

If I had to pick a favorite it would be Daydreaming. I think it's one of the best songs RH has ever made. It's like a lullaby and a nightmare mixed into one. I like to think the song is a loop of someone's mind and the music video with Thom repeatedly walking through doors only to submerge into a cave while droning like a monster is a great representation of sadness and isolation.

Also, like you OP, I'm seeing this spring in ATL for the first time. I never thought I'd get to go but I got lucky with tickets the minute they went on sale. I cannot wait.

 

[Ethelwulf]

Yeah Decks Dark is awesome. Burn the Witch has something haunting as well. In Rainbows is till my favorite. And also, in before this turns into a "rate all Radiohead albums thread"

 

[TissueBox]

Present Tense is straight-up amazing, probably my favorite on there.

It just keeps on getting better and better, before getting into a fast-paced beat and then winding down with those hallowed vocals hauntingly filling the background. Gotta give it a re-listen now. >_<

 

[ChimpBottle]

My pick for this album - as a casual audiophile- would be The Numbers.

Seriously, listen to it with good headphones and close your eyes. It's like Daft Punk levels of sound engineering

 

[Lkr]

Ful Stop is one of my fav Radiohead songs

 

[blame space]

I'm not a huge radiohead fan so I'd never heard true love waits and holy shit

incredible sounding album on headphones

 

[Chezzymann]

his voice doesnt sound good in some songs and he gets too high pitched (ex true love waits) but theres some amazing stuff in there too. I love the numbers and present tense.

 

[Jocund]

It is absolutely one of my favorite Radiohead projects. I can listen to it front-to-back with no problem, except for The Numbers.

 

[TissueBox]

I'm not a huge radiohead fan so I'd never heard true love waits and holy shit

incredible sounding album on headphones

I prefer the acoustic version but yeah that song is magic either way. Definitely a huge, long-time fan favorite, it was pretty cool to see it finally on a studio album after being a live show exclusive for so long (like many other Radiohead stuff that is).

 

[blame space]

the numbers is a great song!

 

[MrOogieBoogie]

I was addicted to this album when it came out. Had it on repeat for weeks pretty much. Even saw them perform it live at Madison Square Garden (fantastic show, by the way).

 

[Helmholtz]

Incredible album. Present Tense is amazing and the acoustic version they did is so fantastic. True Love Waits finally gets a studio version and it's nothing like what I imagined but so powerful.

 

[Sullichin]

There is so much subtle detail in these tracks. Whatever is going on at the end of Tinker Tailor, and what's happening in the low freq range in True Love Waits blows my mind.

 

[Eighthours]

Yep, this is a fantastic album. Definitely in their Top 4. It's too hard for me to pick a winner!

 

[Jezbollah]

Haven't listened to it yet. It's on my list.

 

[FantasticMrFoxdie]

Incredible album. Present Tense is amazing and the acoustic version they did is so fantastic. True Love Waits finally gets a studio version and it's nothing like what I imagined but so powerful.

The Numbers acoustic version:

https://youtu.be/Ti6qhk3tX2s

is also good-tier

still salty and waiting for my Moon Shaped 'In the Basement' session....

 

[WaffleTaco]

First time I've ever listened to Radiohead (besides Creep), and I think that this album would have been better without the singer. It sounds beautiful otherwise, but his voice distracts from the sounds and brings a good album from a B to a C.

 

[EVOL 100%]

This one was shockingly good.

I thought TKOL and IR were good but disappointing and Yorke's solo work was unacceptable for an artist of his stature, so I wasn't really expecting too much. Plus, Identikit and Ful Stop in their early forms were meandering and half-baked. But despite all my apprehensions, they knocked it out the fucking park on this one. It was everything I wanted it to be.

 

[Sullichin]

First time I've ever listened to Radiohead (besides Creep), and I think that this album would have been better without the singer. It sounds beautiful otherwise, but his voice distracts from the sounds and brings a good album from a B to a C.

I guess you already have to be used to Thom's voice. A lot of the cuts from this album were favorites that were floating around for a while, I'm glad they still have the vocals!

 

[Kieli]

Yorke's voice is definitely contentious. It work in some song, but I find it grating in others. Nevertheless, Radiohead is one of my few favourite bands.

 

[MrOogieBoogie]

First time I've ever listened to Radiohead (besides Creep), and I think that this album would have been better without the singer. It sounds beautiful otherwise, but his voice distracts from the sounds and brings a good album from a B to a C.

I'm triggered so hard.

 

[Metaroo]

Desert Island Disk knocked the wind out of me when I first heard it using headphones. My favorite off the album by a long shot. The Numbers is also great, and probably has the best build up in the entire album. Love the whole thing!

 

[Helmholtz]

The Numbers acoustic version:

https://youtu.be/Ti6qhk3tX2s

is also good-tier

still salty and waiting for my Moon Shaped 'In the Basement' session....

Man, yeah it is. Only listened to that once when it came out but it's even better than I remembered. He still sounds AMAZING live, kind of crazy. Such confident performances.

 

[Extollere]

I've never been a huge Radiohead fan (just never got into them), but this is a great album.

 

[TheCowboyPoet]

It's definitely a step up from The King of Limbs, but I don't think it's anywhere near as great as their best album, Kid A.

 

[EVOL 100%]

Man, yeah it is. Only listened to that once when it came out but it's even better than I remembered. He still sounds AMAZING live, kind of crazy. Such confident performances.

He sounds amazing in those particular performances, but honestly his voice is getting increasingly spotty.

Every single goddamn performance of Burn the Witch has been awful

 

[Gouty]

I think if they had just omitted one or two tracks it would've been right there with in rainbows .

Its still amazing though.

 

[Sullichin]

He sounds amazing in those particular performances, but honestly his voice is getting increasingly spotty.

Every single goddamn performance of Burn the Witch has been awful

It's not just his voice. I've seen Radiohead several times and BTW just doesn't compare to other explosive openers like There There.

The Lollapalooza recording is probably the best take on the live version I've heard. When I saw them at MSG it was good but pretty much every other song in the set sounded better.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4_TOczdsnw0

Bonus, Thom singing the beeps at the start of Paranoid Android later in the show-
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IC1u5Pt3N74

 

[NAPK1NS]

I'm always fascinated by the polarization of opinions when discussing this band. If we were discussing say, Lemonade by Beyoncé, the masses will probably tick the same few songs as the big knock outs. Here, we have people omitting The Numbers from their listen-through while others elect it as their number one choice off the album. It's really fascinating.

That, and the adversion to Thom's voice, which is a neat opinion to hear. I only fell in love with this band in 2011 but can recall hating his vocals for years before that.

 

[Helmholtz]

He sounds amazing in those particular performances, but honestly his voice is getting increasingly spotty.

Every single goddamn performance of Burn the Witch has been awful

Oh fair enough. To be honest those two are the only 'live' performances I've seen for this album, and those are well directed and produced videos, and probably not the only take. I just think the fact that he's capable of singing like that on a good day is pretty impressive for his age. When he's on point he's still got one of the greatest voices out there.

Also. Decks Dark is SUCH a great song.

 

[Valhelm]

burn the witch is my shit

I need to hear the album a few more times to know if I like it or not. It always takes a while for Radiohead songs to click with me.

 

[Bronx-Man]

It rivals 808s & Heartbreak as my favorite album to listen to in the winter. Decks Dark and The Numbers are fantastic tracks.

 

[CreeperBlocks]

The Numbers and Desert Island Disk are my favourite songs on this album. It's a great Radiohead album. I enjoyed it.

 

[hydruxo]

Yeah I love this album. Decks Dark is also my favorite. It's got a distinct vibe about it that just immediately resonated with me. Very poignant lyrics, and that goddamn choir is perfection.

 

[Dead]

I'm sad I didn't listen to it until a month or so ago

It's beautiful and honestly the most meaningful record I've heard Radiohead put out. It might be my favorite as of now after several re-listens.

 

[MrOogieBoogie]

Bonus, Thom singing the beeps at the start of Paranoid Android later in the show-
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IC1u5Pt3N74

Wow, this is a really bad performance from Thom. Was he drunk?

 

[NotLiquid]

The other day I found out that Thom's ex-girlfriend Rachel had passed away in December to cancer.

I don't think it's a secret that a lot of A Moon Shaped Pool was likely written about the pair's separation, but the fact that she was suffering from cancer helps paint another perspective on a lot of the album to me. What if they were aware of her condition? Did that somehow influence the record even further? The idea that some of the lyrics aren't just referring to Thom separating from his love but that said love might have been in the process of dying makes the record a lot more haunting to me. It's not quite as scarily prophetic as Bowie's Blackstar but still, man. True Love Waits just seems like the most somber thing ever as time goes on.

That aside, fucking hell what an album. I'd long been waiting for Radiohead to let some of their demons seep back into their tracks which I haven't felt since Kid A. Such a melodic, subtle and resonant record. Burn the Witch, Decks Dark, Ful Stop are some of my all-time Radiohead favorites and Glass Eyes is, in my honest opinion, possibly the most beautiful track they've ever put out.

 

[hughesta]

Absolutely phenomenal record in every respect.

 

[Blader]

A beautiful album that's one of their strongest works. Doubly impressive that they produced something of this quality at this point in their lives and careers.

I saw them last year, for the first time ever, at MSG. Amazing show; closing with Creep, a song I don't even like that much but can appreciate for its rarity, was a hell of an experience.

 

[TJ Verboten]

After Burn the Witch, I find AMSP to have too many
mid-tempo songs, which nerfs it's ceiling relative to past RH albums.
It gives a beautiful sounding record a kind of listless feeling toward the end of the record.
It wouldn't take much to take this very good RH album into a great record.
Remove Desert Island Disk
Add an up-tempo, energetic, more acoustic laden rocker after the Numbers.
Something in the vein of Jigsaw Falling Into Place.
Like if they had taken a track like the Trickster, and repurposed just enough to fit AMSP's aesthetic, but retained enough of the energy, up-tempo, guitar laden elements of that tune, then'd you'd have the one kick in the pants tune that the back half of AMSP could really use.
And for those who would argue, it's not that kind of record, I point you to Burn the Witch. If that track can fit on the record, so could another in the back half.

Note that I still very much like AMSP and am glad it exists, as it's a worthy, proper album, unlike the King of Limbs, which despite my love for Bloom and Lotus Flower, should've been called an EP given how short the record is (plus limp tracks like Magpie and Give up the Ghost are some of the weakest tracks RH's ever put on an album).

I'd put AMSP in the category of less flawed and more cohesive than Amnesiac and HTTT, but give me the highs of those records over AMSP.

Holy Masterpiece Trinity tier remains:
Ok Computer/Kid A/In Rainbows.

Still Great tier:
The Bends
(remove Sulk, perhaps drop Bones, find a place for
Permanent Daylight/The Trickster)
Amnesiac
(switch Like Spinning Plates from the very good Twin Peaks album version into the godtier live version, remove Morning Bell inferior version, drop Hunting Bears, don't care if it's a litmus test by RH themselves but lose Pulk/Pull RD, find a spot for a couple b-sides like the Amazing Sounds of Orgy, Fog, maybe Worrywort. Cuttooth is pretty decent but woudnt fit at all on Amnesiac so that stays a b-side.)

Very Good tier:
HTTT (too many tracks but give me its highs)
AMSP

Shouldve been an EP tier:
TKOL

Pablo's still enjoyable too thanks to You, Lurgee and Creep.

 

[Deleted member 30609]

I don't think there's anyone who likes Ful Stop as much as I do.

 

[ElectricBlanketFire]

Outstanding. I'd rank it just behind Amnesiac and Kid A.

 

[Screaming Meat]

Daydreaming and this version of True Love Waits give me shivers the second they start. The best song on the album though is...

Ful Stop is one of my fav Radiohead songs

I don't think there's anyone who likes Ful Stop as much as I do.

Hell yeah.

 

[Will the Thrill]

Absolutely love it still, if I tallied every "play" from itunes up and added them together the amount of time I've spent listening to this album would be preeeetttty embarrassing but worth it lol

It's just such an anxious album, and as an anxious person, I just connect with so much of it.

However I think the album has gotten retaken by In Rainbows for me in overall ranking. Tinker Tailor is just a song I skip basically every time, where as Faust Arp from IR I actually like. I also enjoyed Thoms live version of desert island disk more. Those are the two weak spots on the album.

 

[SamVimes]

Still annoyed they didn't play Present Tense at Primavera.

And yeah, Ful Stop is amazing, try listening to it while jogging if you haven't.

 

[dogstar]

For me it's their best LP... I felt this way after my first listen, but many said give it time, let the dust settle and then judge... well I have, and it's still top of the heap for me. Their are so many great tracks, and not a single one is duff... It manages delicacy and power (without being overblown) in equal measure, and is quite simply a masterpiece. My favorite tracks are The Numbers, Decks Dark, Desert Island Disk and Daydreaming... but everything else is amazing too.

 

[SuperAndroid17]

This version of Ful Stop from 5 years ago is so much better than the new version.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yXQGmdJeH_8

I noticed they play it very slower live in comparison to that version ^.

Still a great song nonetheless

 

[Creaking]

Still need to go back to this. I liked the early songs they released, but when the album finally came out, I listened to it once and nothing stuck. Haven't gone back since. I think I was low-key disappointed, but there's probably something I just missed.