Released:  March 13th, 1995

Recorded:  1992, August – November 1994

Genre:  Alternative Rock

Record Label:  Parlophone, Capitol

Duration:  48:37

Producer:  John Leckie

[expand title=”Personnel” trigpos=”above” tag=”h22″](Regular band members in bold.)

• Thom Yorke – vocals, guitars, piano, string arrangements, songwriting, artwork, illustrations
• Jonny Greenwood – guitars, organ, keyboards, synthesizer, piano, recorder, string arrangements, songwriting
• Colin Greenwood – bass guitar
• Ed O’Brien – guitars, backing vocals
• Phil Selway – drums, percussion
• Caroline Lavelle – cello
• John Matthias – violin, viola
• Nigel Godich – production, engineering
• Chris Blair – mastering
• Chris Brown – engineering
• Stanley Donwood – artwork, illustrations
• Paul Q. Kolderie – mixing
• John Leckie – production, engineer, mixing
• Guy Massey – assistant engineer
• Sean Slade – mixing
• Jim Warren – production, engineer [/expand]

[expand title=”Track Listing” trigpos=”above” tag=”h22″]

1. Planet Telex
2. The Bend
3. High and Dry
4. Fake Plastic Trees
5. Bones
6. (Nice Dream)
7. Just
8. My Iron Lung
9. Bullet Proof.. I Wish I Was
10. Black Star
11. Sulk
12. Street Spirit (Fade Out) [/expand]

[expand title=”Singles” trigpos=”above” tag=”h22″]

1. My Iron Lung – October 24th, 1994
2. High and Dry / Planet Telex – February 1995
3. Fake Plastic Trees – May 15th, 1995
4. Just – August 7th, 1995
5. Street Spirit (Fade Out) – January 22nd, 1996 [/expand]

Why The Bends is One of My Favorites

Radiohead is one of the most acclaimed popular bands among critics, with virtually everything sans Pablo Honey garnering rave reviews, and topping not only “best of the year” lists, but also “best of the decade” and “best of genre” lists.  I like OK Computer well enough, and Kid A has some bright moments, but for me, The Bends was really their last accessible album.  Call me uncultured, ignorant, or just plain stupid, but Radiohead has gotten a little avant-garde for my tastes, and truthfully I wish we’d gotten more stuff like “Creep” out of them.

“Creep” was an awesome song on a so-so album, and it wasn’t until The Bends that Radiohead delivered a consistent product.  Thom Yorke has always had an interesting way with his lyrics, but they ended up becoming too vague and abstract for my tastes; clarity should not be underrated.  Luckily The Bend sees him in top alt rock form, singing marginally sad songs about loss, vanity, and other socially dissatisfying concepts.  “Bones” speaks to society’s growing obsession with numbing themselves through medication, “Fake Plastic Trees” describes how artificial and ultimately “fake” our culture is becoming, and “My Iron Lung” is apparently a testament to the band’s contempt for “Creep’s” popularity.  It’s not a happy album by any means, though it’s a pleasant listen it its own quasi-dreamy way.

The difference between The Bends and similar albums of the time is that Yorke seems to be “sad at the world.”  There are personal songs on the record, but there are also many songs which seem to point at the whole world as a source of sadness rather than a particular girl or event.  Ultimately there’s a lot less ego on here compared to other angsty records in the same vein, giving the album wider focus and increased relevance.  Its less raw but more mature than its alt rock brethren.

What I love most about The Bends is the actual music.  And not just instruments, but the interesting melodies and chord progressions that the band has crafted.  Some are simple and catchy (“Just,” “Bones,” “Black Star”), and others have a pleasing yet slightly unusual quality (“(Nice Dream),” “Fake Plastic Trees,” “The Bends” “Sulk”).  It’s got the spirit of alt rock, adding more attention to detail and a melancholic vibe throughout.  Yorke’s voice veers away from the mumbling, grumbling, and shouting of similar sounding singers, and acts much like an instrument in its own right.  His high pitched croons span much of the album, though he does sometimes dip into more conventional territory (“Just”).  He manages to hit some particularly emotional territory when combining his falsetto with frustrated groans, such as the end of “Fake Plastic Trees.”

Still a guitar-driven outfit at this point, the band gives the instrument a soft and soothing quality that ends up being quite relaxing in spite of the wistful lyrics.  I really enjoy the very slightly flanged strumming in “High and Dry” and the clean electric picking in “Street Spirit.”  Even though the guitars are soft, they’re also bright and crisp; The Bends lacks all the fuzz and static normally present in alt rock.  I love the sound of distorted guitar, but a break is refreshing as well.  “Bones” and “Just” are really the only tracks to feature overt distortion, and the only ones that rise above a certain degree of lethargy present on the rest of the record.

The Bends is an album full of great songs, though at times I find the entire collection to be a bit too downtrodden.  I would like to have seen Radiohead’s more lively side pop up more often.  It’s still a great listen from beginning to end though, with no slumps or hiccups to speak of.  It maintains seamless continuity and even though I have to be a certain mood to listen to more than a few tracks. it’s at least one of those albums I can let spin until the end.

Written by The Cubist

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