Quarta-feira 11 Mar 2015, 22h:42
OK Computer is possibly the most acclaimed popular music release of the last twenty years, and attempts to write about it usually throw around phrases like "groundbreaking" and express some sentiment of it being "the definitive album of the 90s." It's gotten to the point where we've canonized OK Computer so much that it feels routine to crown it the top spot on "best album" lists, like OK Computer's superiority is some objective musical truth. For this distinctly SUBjective list of albums I love, I think it's necessary to clear the air of "top lists" and the sacred cow reputation that OK Computer has accrued over the years. I'm going to attempt to describe why I think this album is so good and why it stuck with me, on a very human level, and not as some objective truth.
It was Paranoid Android that hooked me in. The 6-minute opus took inspiration from Bohemian Rhapsody in how it shifted tone and focus, and I kept listening out of pure curiosity from not having heard anything quite like it before. Radiohead uses guitars, yes, but not in the traditional way that most "rock" bands used them. There are guitar solos and distortion effects, yes, but these are tools used to create an introspective atmosphere rather than for flashy spectacle. They also use DJ beats, glockenspiels, electronic effects, and whatever else they needed to build the textures of their music. It was sort of an awakening experience for me to be exposed to conventional rock instruments used in a way that is not very rock-like, and to instead make thoughtful music that would often take multiple listens to sink in.
Once I was acclimated to Paranoid Android, the rest of the album fit together for me. From the tragic romance of Exit Music (For a Film), the unhinged Karma Police, the creepy and unnerving Climbing Up the Walls, and the beautifully calming No Surprises, it felt like Radiohead was tapping into feelings that were universally relatable.
I've seen a surprising amount of discussion about what meaning, if any, the album title holds. Do the words "OK Computer" imply complacency with the rapid advancement of technology? It would certainly fit in with the themes of modern alienation and the relationship between humans and machines. In the most maligned track on the album, Fitter Happier, we hear short phrases that are supposed to be indicative of what a "normal" life looks like (Fitter, happier, more productive, comfortable, not drinking too much, regular exercise at the gym…) read by a computerized voice. Whether or not you hate the track, it undoubtedly makes a point in the album's overall theme. The song title for Paranoid Android also touches on the idea of robotic emotions, while tracks like Let Down sing about the malaise of everyday life (The emptiest of feelings, disappointed people clinging onto bottles…).
And yet, for all its technical wizardry and thematic depth, none of this would be important if the music wasn't good, and at its core, OK Computer is full of well-written and well-performed pop songs. I don't want to build up the album to be more complex than it is, because part of its appeal is how accessible it is (it's a fan favorite for a reason). Heck, No Surprises is practically an exercise in beautiful simplicity.
What appeals to me the most, though, is something that many people won't be able to relate to. I lived in England in 1997 when this album came out, and it's hard to explain, but OK Computer just sounds like how I remember life back then. Waking up to a cold, foggy English morning feels exactly like how OK Computer sounds, and that's exactly why I love it.
Favorite tracks:
Let Down
No Surprises
Climbing Up the Walls