OK Computer is an album that serves as a profound musical statement. It’s the point at which Radiohead found their true voice, and the new limited edition release gives listeners a glimpse into the process while offering a brilliant addendum to one of the best albums of our time.
The package features a reissue of the original album, including songs such as the classic “Karma Police” and “Airbag,” which serves as one of the band’s first forays into electronic music. The album also introduced the world to the more epic side of Radiohead with songs like “Paranoid Android,” with its musical movements and arrangements giving another layer of complexity to the music along with songs like “No Surprises” and “Exit Music (For a Film),” which are as moody as they are moving.
In addition, the package comes with a second disc of fifteen songs, including live tracks, alternative versions, and songs recorded on BBC Radio 1’s Evening Session in April 1997. For a true Radiohead fan, the extra disc serves almost as a new album itself with interesting variations on tracks like the Fila Brazillia mix of “Climbing Up The Walls,” which drops in a reggae-esque beat with a straight vocal track, as well as terrific raw B-sides like “Polyethylene (Parts 1 & 2)”. Other standouts include “How I Made My Millions,” which has a really bare vocal sung over piano, the spaced-out “A Reminder,” and “Melatonin,” a terrific song that points the direction toward the band’s future albums.
Two live tracks, “Airbag” and “Lucky,” show the band’s progress as live performers. They developed enormously during this period, from opening for Alanis Morrisette to headlining their own larger shows. Finally there are the three tracks from BBC’s Radio 1 (“No Surprises,” “Exit Music (For A Film),” and “Climbing Up the Walls”), which are truly fantastic versions of terrific songs. The package also includes a DVD of promo videos and performances on Later With Jools Holland, plus some enlargements of the album art from Stanley Donwood and Thom Yorke, so it’s well worth the price.
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