Radiohead Album: “Pyramid Song, Pt. 2”

yorke and co. have long been infamous for saving some of their most interesting material for b-sides and tossoff collections like this one. while you should already know and love "Amnesiac"'s "Pyramid Song" for the genius that it is (as well as the only demonstrable use of Herman Hesse for any artistic purpose whatsoever), this single provides useful context by introducing fans to some of its ideological cousins. worth it for fans--but who else would be reading this?

I urge anyone reading this to buy this CD. OK, so you're probably heard Pyramid Song and you know how beautiful it is. That's reason no. 1 for buying.

But the main reason is The Amazing Sounds Of Orgy. This is, in my opinion, better than anything actually on Amnesiac, and I think it's a real travesty that it wasn't included on the actual album. It's haunting and beautiful whilst being very catchy, and the a...h bits are great. At the end, when Thom is singing "so glad, so glad you're mine" it sends shivers down my spine.

The dark, tribal feel is carried over to new single There There, which is also a fantastic song.

Track three, Trans-atlantic Drawl, is a simple, screeching rock out. You know, the sort of thing that Radiohead don't "do" anymore. Terrific stuff, although a little disconcerting when it suddenly stops.

Again, please buy. Please. You know you want to...

"Pyramid Song" is a wonderful song, not quite like anything else on Amnesiac particularily, but that's okay. Its a very beautiful song, and I absolutely love it. But, the rest of the songs on this EP/Single are quite strange.

"The Amazing Sounds of Orgy" absolutely SCARE ME. Very beautiful in a strange way, but also very odd. Unlike anything Radiohead has EVER done, and I really do mean EVER. VERY different. Haunting sounds in the background and very dark and deep. Crashes and screams are lined throughout the song. Thoms voice appears in two octaves, Tenor and Alto. (mid-deep and regular). I really do mean scary for this song, quite frightening but strangely comforting. Sounds like a thunder storm or something.

"Trans-Atlantic Drawl" starts off with a heavy folksy-blues melody and guitar, but then just moves into this heavy electronic sound, very much like the works of artists like Paul Lansky (I only mention him because Radiohead sampled him for Idioteque for the keyboard voicings).

"Kinetic starts off very smoothly from "Trans-Atlantic Drawl" (I have a slightly different import than this, mine if from Australia) and has a very electronic sound as well, drums are there, lots of drums, and the keyboard is also there, but the rest is left up to electronics and Thom's voice. Very odd but also very pretty, sounds like the work of Laurie Spielgel, an electronic artist at the end a little. Perhaps one of my favorite Radiohead songs, I really love it.

This is excellent for anyone who is looking for a very electronic Radiohead. That is what makes this EP/Single SO VERY UNIQUE, even for Radiohead. Sounds very new, and not like anything else theyve ever done, excellent continuation to a Radiohead collection.

When Radiohead announced their new album as a return to roots, I should have known better than to believe them. But never fear, Pyramid Song is yet more unchartered territory and yet more gained ground. Its sheer simplicity with voice and piano, then drums later on added. Although never electronica a la Kid A, it certainly isn't rock (Pablo Honey), indie rock (The Bends) or Prog-rock (OK Computer). Its more sorta stripped down indie. the B-sides are also excellent.

The first single from Amnesiac and the first commercially available single from Radiohead in nearly four years.

PYRAMID SONG: Begins with a piano playing and Thom singing (can somebody picture him in a bar singing this besides me?). Great introduction to the public on Amnesiac with its orchestrations that compliment the song, not overpower it.

THE AMAZING SOUNDS OF ORGY: Low organ sounds, a lot of hi-hat and an occasional snare drum at appears at various times. Reminds me of early Pink Floyd (like "Pow R. Toc H.") a little bit with its bleak romantic story, echoing percussion and eerie sounds

TRANS-ATLANTIC DRAWL: Picture a radio (old fashioned kind) blaring out fuzz guitars, blaring trumpets and layers of vocals. That happens for about half of the song. And then (and I can picture this too), the radio gets knocked down/shot down (it sounds like it) and now it's a simple synthesizer playing until the close.

OVERALL: Great opener and bridge between the weirdness of Kid A and the apparent coherence of Amnesiac (I'm listening to it as I write this)