Radiohead, The King of Limbs: How Not to Review an Album

Radiohead surprised the public this week with both an announcement of a new album and subsequent release of this album.

The internet was a hive of activity yesterday as rumours swirled around about their new release. When the album was in fact released, the predictable race to write a review began. I myself kept an eye on this development, watching people's snap judgements and early opinions emerge, allowing them to influence my own decision as to whether I should pick up the album or not. After watching these reviews and after getting my hands on the album, I found myself wondering what on earth had just happened.

In effect, I was swept away whilst browsing the net in a manic search for opinion on this album. This was a first for me as I have usually been content to wait a few weeks before making a decision on an album. I think the manner of release of this particular album has underlined the 'fast-food' tendencies of the contemporary music industry. The space of time between the announcement and release of this album was one week. With digital distribution, the space of time between the release of this album and the attainment of it for the consumer is, depending on your internet connection, about 10 minutes. We are getting very close to instantaneous consumption. In fact, this album was released a day earlier than initially advertised. It was practically pre-instantaneous. With such speed of consumption, the rush to form and find opinions was not far behind. If we can get music so quickly then of course we will hunt for opinions on that music quickly. It is no longer products that we wish to ravenously consume, it is also thought.

I have heard the album twice since yesterday. The first time I was reading while listening, the second I was travelling. Music is the kind of thing that you live with and that becomes part of the environment. As such, I still have not made any kind of value judgement on the collection. I will allow it to grow or wither on its own merits, within the atmosphere of my own musical life.

Perhaps then I will bother to write a review, when I have fully understood my relationship with The King of Limbs.

-The English Student