I wrote about Radiohead's latest album The King of Limbs when it first came out. I was rather underwhelmed on initial plays of the album, and I said then "I think [the album] wants to be a grower (at least I hope it does), but I’m not finding a lot to go back to on my first few listens. I’ll stick it out and keep trying, but for right now I’m filing this one under 'mild disappointment.'" Watching the band perform the songs on Nigel Godrich's From the Basement series has done nothing to alter that impression. In fact, if anything, their performance has made me firmer in my criticisms of The King of Limbs. The band rarely seem to be playing together and interacting. Certainly, their performances feel less intense than those of the webcasts they offered along with In Rainbows. More than that, though, the songs themselves just don't stick compared to those on their previous album, and the sooner Thom Yorke gets over whatever inspired his vocal on "Feral" the better. I will say that, to be fair, the performances didn't always seem to work to the benefit of the songs: "Little by Little," which I like very much on the album, never achieved the playfully deranged rhythm that it does on the album, and "Bloom" and "Lotus Flower" seemed even more underwhelming than they do on record. One pleasant surprise was that "Morning Mr. Magpie" proved to be a fantastic live number and grew in stature from a somewhat reserved take on the album.
The very clear exceptions to all of this, though--on the album and during the show--are "Give Up the Ghost" and "Separator," both of which stand, in my mind, as two of Radiohead's finest songs to date. The former offers Thom Yorke's best vocal turn on the album (which counterbalances the fact that it's basically a solo performance here) and the latter is just a beautiful song, particular during the final 2:30 of this performance when the guitars come in. Perhaps not so surprisingly, neither would feel nor sound out of place on In Rainbows, an album whose gains Radiohead seem to have turned their back on, to a certain extent (this in spite of its so obviously pointing a way forward for the band. It's clear The King of Limbs couldn't have happened without In Rainbows, but Radiohead seem to have decided not to embrace the best aspects of that album for some reason). I don't think The King of Limbs is going to end up near the top of my "Albums of the Year list (frontrunners right now: Mogwai, The Caretaker, Cults, Tim Hecker, and Low), which is honestly the first time I can say that of an album by Radiohead. Anyway, enjoy the performances of "Give Up the Ghost" and "Separator" if you're so inclined.
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