Radiohead

Radiohead are hands down the best live show around. Yeah, I said it, and it’s true. With perfectly run production, lighting that paints moods from Ibiza club to intimate lounge, and a passionate delivery that’s more journey than show, Radiohead performances are transcendent and visceral, and this one was no exception.

Their first of two sold-out appearances at Auditorium Theatre couldn’t have proved Radiohead’s stature as greatest live band more, given the band has been rumored at the brink of break up, virtually silent for the last couple of years and this outing tested nine new songs in a set of 23. If the new material and the band’s interpersonal relationships posed a challenge, it wasn’t evident this night. In fact, Radiohead seemed genuinely thrilled to be out on the road again. Thom Yorke flashed smiles, while guitarists/keyboardists Jonny Greenwood and Ed O’Brien fluidly moved between instruments, coloring mood and sound; their dueling drums on “There There” brought the song to a full roar. Meanwhile the rhythmic chemistry of bassist Colin Greenwood and drummer Phil Selway sent songs into pulsating dance grooves and flavored the quieter moments with subtle fills. The group’s chemistry, insistent pursuit of pushing sonic boundaries (even between-song sonic motifs were presented) and intellectual lyrical content put Radiohead on a higher plane, and live the music takes on more meaning.

The set comprised material primarily from 2000’s Kid A and 2001’s Amnesiac along with new songs from their forthcoming record, which is slated for release sometime next year (no label affiliation has been announced as yet). As is typical with Radiohead, the new tunes presented during the show take new shapes before making their way to an album, but in the meantime sound quite promising. An emphasis on serious rhythms and a return to guitar-driven melodies appear to be the direction for their new material. “15 Steps” ushered in with handclaps, underlying tribal beats and an urgent, penetrating groove, which Yorke almost rapped over while he rode the rhythms, dancing to the beat. “Open Pick” stripped the band back to its roots with a more straightforward rock song pushed along with huge grooves and three-guitar power. “Spooks” had a foreboding lead-in, the mood intensified with green lights pulsing to red, like a visual soundtrack to a disturbing alarm, while minor-key “Videotape” featured Chopin-like chords, which yielded to pretty melodies before surging louder.

Another almost rap/spoken song came by way of “Down Is the New Up,” where dueling drums melded with piano melodies and “Bangers ‘N Mash” found Yorke augmenting the intoxicating groove by adding extra drums and tambourine into the mix. His bratty intonation was juxtaposed against soaring melodies. Though “Nude” has been played live before, it has yet to make an album and this incarnation highlighted Yorke’s beckoning falsetto while he swayed his hips to the lopey, sensual beat. His angelic “Ooh”s closed the tune in an almost operatic fashion.

It was a gift to see the group in a fairly intimate theater setting, their last Chicago appearance, and arguably one of their best shows, filled the outdoor Hutchinson Field in 2001 with tens of thousands of fans compared to the 3,900 capacity of Auditorium Theatre. Fans were also treated to songs spanning Radiohead’s career, reaching back as far as sophomore album The Bends with “Bones.” The show’s finale summed up the evening with electro-transmissions, multi-layered vocals and Yorke’s lullabye intro building to passionate falsetto. The beats followed suit, escalating and blending into transmissions of noise on the apt closer for the night, “Everything in Its Right Place.”
– Althea Legaspi
– Photos by Hali McGrath (taken at the Greek Theatre, Berkeley, CA)

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