I've finally bought myself the latest Radiohead album and some of you will be pleased to hear that's it's good and melodic, more like The Bends than their last two albums. Of course, I had heard it before (how could I not?), but now I can really get into it (no, that involves nothing that will leave stains). At first I reacted a bit to it as I reacted to Phish's Hoist when it came out -- namely, I was disheartened because I thought they were foresaking their experimental side and retreating to a more conventional pop paradigm. While I may not like the two-minute, radio-friendly format for music (really, all you punk purists -- music was meant to carry on without borders, like water, not restrict itself to a time limit simply for the nostalgia of the short and sweet ... I mean, short is fine. Some art has to be short (like most lyrical poems), but the 2.5 minute limit was only instilled as a result of the need for commercials [and the notion that people have no attention span]. It wasn't some innate manifestation of rock, except that it helped make it popular [but that's nothing to be proud of ... Elvis's white skin helped just the same]). The point is I like my art long and winding and weird -- I like James Joyce, Dali, and improvisational jazz and rock, like Miles Davis in the 60s or the Dead. If your art makes you feel comfy and safe, something is really wrong.

  posted by S. Parker @ 10:35 PM