It's been a while, but now that we're finally settled in out here in Philadelphia I can finally wrap my head around some music.
This weekend I got the chance to download the new Radiohead album, The King of Limbs, thanks to their early digital release. I wasn't really sure what to anticipate going in to my first listen, having been pleasantly surprised by the last Radiohead release (In Rainbows), but knowing that Thom has been doing a lot on the side (see: Atoms of Peace) that leaned more towards the electronic/prog arm I was curious to see how this album would lean.
My initial thoughts, now that I've had a chance to listen through the album once or twice? It's good. It's much more of a return to a steadier electronic sound than In Rainbows, (which I thoroughly enjoyed because it brought a little more of Greenwood's guitar back into their sound), but as long as you don't expect a raucous guitar filled track to lift the album's consistent electronic heartbeat it is a fine album with a lot of delicate subtleties that really lend themselves to Yorke's voice and the music's haunting melodies.
The King of Limbs is a mellow listen but one that moves a pace quick enough that you're not likely to stop paying attention at any point; it begs your attention with each sweeping crescendo and falsetto. Yet, in many tracks Yorke's vocals dance in the background and are overlayed by a smooth beat that drowns both the vocals and the harmony together like a finely choreographed finger paint.
