What Album Was Radiohead ‘s High Water Mark?

Only my vote so far for HttT. I am surprised!

 

More votes for Pablo Honey is even more surprising

 

For me The Bends and OK Computer are their best albums.
In all honesty I still need to go through their later stuff. When the box set came out, I got it. I listened to Kid A (twice - because I couldn't believe how poor I thought it was) and found it to be terribly dull, which was disappointing after all the hype of best album of all time that I kept hearing. It isn't even top 200 for me, and the two albums I mentioned prior have it beaten by a long way. I did listen to another album (off the top of my head I can't remember which) and that was considerably better than Kid A.
At some point I will give these albums a better listen, but for now, those two album would be my favourite albums by the band

 

The star ratings at allmusic.com

 

I guess people like "cringe"

 

Ok Computer

Wonderful in so many levels

In an era where everyone and their uncle were using pro tools and recording albums with the intention of "big hits" and loads of filler, Radiohead gave us an ALBUM again. Conceived as a musical whole entity for listening from start to finish. And the songs were just great.

And it was an analog recording! so rare at the time

Without a doubt, one of the greatest albums of all time, and Radiohead's finest, IMHO.

 

I was pretty ambivalent about Radiohead in the 90s.

Then Kid A blew my mind. Amazing album.

I have loved everything since - even their much maligned "pastoral" album TKOL.

 

The difficulty with this poll is that “peak” kind of implies a logical rise and fall, like the performance of an athlete. The problem is that music works differently. The Bends, OK Computer, Amnesiac, Kid A and In Rainbows are all albums that are ranked among the 500 best of all time by Rolling Stone, and A Moon Shaped Pool was also very highly regarded, but released too recently to be ranked. One could probably make a convincing argument for any of them as the band’s “best”.

An astonishing track record.

 

::.. I Agree...despite OK Computer being held as their masterpiece, 'Kid A' was set as the blueprint for the next Radiohead albums for years to come...none of these: Amnesiac, In Rainbows, Hail To The Thief, King Of Limbs, Moon Shaped Pool have something related to 'Ok Computer' but the musicians...by now, almost 30 years after their fist recordings, Pablo Honey, OK Computer and The Bends, look like stand-alone efforts from 3 different bands IMO

 

Very true but more importantly it was Kid A which has had the greatest impact and influence on contemporary music. Other artists haven't borrowed anywhere near as much from OK Computer.

 

For all their greatness I don’t think they’ve been all that influential.

 

In Rainbows. Reckoner is miraculous.

 

To me it has to be OK Computer. That album is in my top 5 all-time records. I think The Bends was great, but OK Computer is what pushes Radiohead into epic territory for me. I admit I haven't listened to the records they made after In Rainbows (just got distracted with other things in my life), but you all have convinced me to check them out.

Somewhat relatedly, does anyone know if they'll tour this year? I saw them do a festival set back in 2010, but would love to see a proper Radiohead concert.

 

As much as I love The Bends, its can be only OK Computer I reckon, such a massive shift in tone and vision.

I like Kid A but I can't hear what everyone calls "a masterpiece"

Lowest point was Hail to the Thief, they sounded bored and un-interested, even Yorke starting dismissing his own work as throwaway. Thankfully they picked themselves up sharpish afterwards.

 

The drumming on that track, with the shimmering ride cymbal, is an audiophile experience in itself.

 

Actually, I think 'How To Disappear Completely' would have fit perfectly on 'OKC'. Also, '2+2=5' was more like their '90s Guitar Driven Rock. If you take away 'Arpeggi/Weird Fishes' and 'Bodysnatchers', then 'In Rainbows' sounds more Pre-'Kid A' then anything off their prior 3 Albums to me. 'True Love Waits' was actually first developed around the time of 'OKC', so it took 2 decades to finally get a proper Studio Release. I do appreciate how the rest of 'A Moon Shaped Pool' was a new Direction from everything since 'Kid A'. I hope they keep moving in New Directions for future Albums(how about Radiohead's version of a FUNK Album?

I think 'OK Computer' was so brilliant that the Band felt trapped in a corner and knew it got not be topped, so they just ditched the Guitars mostly, and went in a completely different direction(with the exception of 'How to Disappear Completely'), but this is just my take on why we never got 'OK Computer'-Part 2. Some of it worked like 'The National Anthem' and 'Idioteque', but I have given up on the first 2 Songs on 'Kid A', as they are just not for me, but YMMV. After hearing the B-Sides of Electronic Blips & Beeps from 'Hail to the Thief', I was about to quit following the band, but they quickly won me back with 'In Rainbows'. Almost lost me again with awful Songs, 'In Bloom', 'Feral' and 'Morning Mr Magpie' from 'the King of Limbs' and mostly mediocre rest of that Album outside of the Great Song, 'Separator'. However, A Moon Shaped Pool won me back again.

 

Radiohead just did a Tour in the US last year, that still focused on 'A Moon Shaped Pool' along with several Songs from 'OKC' and 'In Rainbows' and a few Songs from their other Albums(even one Song from 'The Bends' and for the Tour Stop I saw, it was the Title Track they played as one of the Encore Songs).

So doubt they would be touring(at least in the US) this year. Hopefully, they are working on a New Album this year.

 

High water mark? A Moon Shaped POOL. Get it? High water? Pool? Heeheehee...

 

Kid A

From the perspective of, can they still make music? Yes, sure. Will they ever break more ground? You wish.

 

Kid A helped to change 21st music in general and forever changed Radiohead. After that album there was no turning back. It's a watershed moment in their career.

 

OK Computer (which I voted for) and Kid A. Both vastly different, both A+ albums. Love The Bends and In Rainbows too, the former is when they really arrived and found their own voice, the latter may be their most instantly likeable and accessible album. Their last album was excellent too. Amnesiac is a bit of a “more of the same but not as good” sequel to Kid A but still fine. HTTT is really good too, kind of a middle ground between guitar rock and their more electronic sound, and their only album that suffers from CD-era over-length. Even their weakest albums (PH and KOL) are far from bad. The best band of the past 25 years, IMO.

 

OK Computer. I absorbed that album so completely back in the day it was in my damn veins.

 

Used to get stoned to ok computer. It was a part of me. when kid A came out i went through a big life change and gave up drugs. Maybe thats why kidA is meh to me?

 

Can you add a choice of "I don't know" to your poll?

 

I voted for A Moon Shaped Pool, but anything from OKC to AMSP could have received my vote. I kind of like them all equally. Also want to especially single out King Of Limbs since this one seems to sometimes get short shrift.