Dissect - Talking Radiohead w/ Dr. Brad Osborn + Listener Submissions

Episode Date: December 12, 2023

Acclaimed Radiohead scholar Dr. Brad Osborn joins the show to talk all things Radiohead. We discuss the infamous In Rainbows x OK Computer "Binary Theory," In Rainbows' Disk 2, share our Top 5 Radiohead albums, and a lot more. Then we hear from Dissect listeners around the world sharing their thoughts on In Rainbows. Purchase Brad's book. Listen to the Binary Theory. Listen to Thom's alternative Hail To The Thief tracklist. Host/EP: Cole Cuchna Audio Production: Kevin Pooler Theme Music: Birocratic Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

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Binge the Wedding Scammer wherever you get your podcast. Welcome everyone to a special episode of Dysect. I'm your host, Cole Kushna. Today's episode is part two of our season 11 finale on Radioheads and Rainbows. Later in this episode, we're going to hear directly from Dysk listeners around the world sharing their thoughts on in rainbows. But first, we're going to have an all-things radiohead discussion with my guest today, Dr. Brad Osborne. Brad is the professor of music at the University of Kansas and the author of Everything in its right place, analyzing radiohead. Brad also contributed analysis. to this past season on In Rainbows. Brad, thanks for joining us, man. Hey, what's up? Thanks for having me. Yeah, so in a few minutes, we're going to answer some questions by listeners of the show. But first, I'm going to have some questions for you, Brad. Again, thank you for joining us.

Thank you for all your work this season. Truly incredible. I really consider you, like, the preeminent Radiohead Scholar in the world. So it was very much a pleasure to be working with you this season. But we've never really talked about your Radiohead fandom. I'm always curious about where people's fandom and a certain artist or band started. So, like, what was that for you with Radiohead? Was there a song, album, or a moment that got you into them? And then since that moment, what they meant to your life. Yeah, that's a great question. And it goes

all the way back to 1995 to this thing we had when I was a teenager called the BMG Music Club. Yeah. And they would, you remember BMG? Dude, I remember that. Yeah. So they would like mail you CDs, and if you kept them, you know, they charged you, but you could, like, listen to it and send it back, and they wouldn't charge you. And so they sent the bends, and I am sorry to say, I sent it back, man. I was not into the bends at the moment it came out. I was into, like, more like metal and punk, and it was just a little bit too Brit Pop, kind of too straight ahead, hard rock for me. But then in college, so like around the year 2000, 2001, my room, my roommate Jean was like, hey, have you heard kid A yet? And I was like, oh, like that

Wanker English rock band, like I don't like them. And he's like, no, this is totally different. You should really listen to this. And I mean, my mind was just blown wide open by that. And it really resonated with a lot of things. I was in music major in college at that point. So I was into more complex music, both like popular stuff like math metal, but also learning more about 20th century classical music. And it just spoke to everything I was into at that point. And then I think it really, like, I got to see them live for the first time on the Hale to the Thief Tour in 2003.

And that record, really, I think, cemented my love life with Radiohead. It also came along at a really good technological moment because I had this car stereo, and it was like a pioneer CD player in my car. And it was really ahead of its time. It had this, like, eight character display. And so if you put in a CD and played a song, you know, it showed you the title of the song on the CD player. This is 2003, right? And so when we suck young blood came on from Hale to the Thief, it would just say, Radiohead, we suck. That was my favorite part about

listening to Hale to the Thief in the car. That's a very oddly parallel experience with me in terms of my fandom with Radiohead. I was too young when I first heard them to understand what they were doing and they didn't have appeal to me. at a really close friend who would always, who was a very big radio head fan, would always encourage me to check out the bends. And then, okay, computer, when that came out, none of them at that point,

I was listening to more like indie rock, like at the drive-in type of more. Oh, totally. Me too. Yeah. And so for whatever reason, it just didn't resonate at that moment. And it was Kid A, right place, right time for me

and my very, very, very, very formative years. And it just really resonated me. Of course, then I went back to OK Computer and the bands and followed them from Kida on, like, in real time, which, you know, celebrating each album release, you know, to this day. I would say they are my favorite band ever. I think they probably had the most impact on me personally. As an artist, as a creative, as, I don't know if I would say, like philosophically, but. There is something about their music that touches me in a way that, frankly, is very rare to find. Like, they do it most consistently.

There might be another artist or album or a song that does it in moments, but it seems like consistently with them, they are able to give me these kind of transcendent moments in music that I, I mean, that's why I do the show. It's why I love music so much. And they've given me those probably the most out of any artist ever over the years. So I'm glad I found them. I'm glad it made sense at some point in my life.

I mean, you're a professional music scholar, I guess, you would say. I guess I'm curious about the transition between being a fan and then formally studying them and then to the point of actually writing a full book analyzing them. When did that transition occur? Yeah. So I went to graduate school in 2004 to do a master's in composition and music theory. And I remember we were reading all of this stuff about metrical dissonance in European art music, like Robert Schumann and stuff. And I was lying in my bed one night, an idiotic came on.

And I think it was probably two in the morning. And I heard all of a sudden that the drums were in six, but the voice was in four. And I was like, whoa, that's like the stuff we're learning about in music school, but it's like popular music. like I wonder if I could write a paper about this. And I actually ended up writing my master's thesis on Radiohead Song, Idiotec, which ends up basically being like the ending of chapter three in my book, is a condensed version of that master's thesis on Idiotec. So that was the first moment that my love of Radiohead crossed into my music scholarship stuff.

Yeah, so then, I mean, after that point, like, it's one thing to do a paper on one song. what about the music attracted you to eventually write an entire book about it? Yeah, that's a good question. I mean, especially like the terror of never having a good idea again as a master student is a real thing. And so I didn't go necessarily digging for more Radiohead stuff. But I would start, you know, I'd write this paper about musical form. And wow, three of these examples are from Radiohead.

They do this weird thing all the time. I would write some article on guitar harmony, on specific chord voicings, and, oh wow, like seven Radiohead examples in this paper. And after a while, I just realized that if you're looking for a band that's always going to deliver interesting stuff on a number of different musical fronts, I mean, Radiohead just keeps coming up. And I was going to be happy to write a bunch of other articles. And then I got this job at the University of Kansas, and it's what's known is a 10-year track

job. So I had six years to either write six more articles or a book. And I decided I wanted to, in those six years, is really sit down and write a single book devoted to Radiohead rather than just having, you know, seven of their examples in every scholarly paper. Yeah, I mean, the book is incredible. I would suggest anyone with, I would say if you're a non-musician, I'm not sure if it would be understandable, but I'd say if you are a musician, it's definitely worth getting

and reading and really looking into. It's really incredible, and it's a great feat. I love that it exists. That's how I found you. I'm curious to know where in Rainbow sits in the band's discography for you in terms of like, I don't know, hierarchy or something. And what about it differentiates it from their other works? Yeah, I think that in a lot of ways, it's quite like OK Computer in that it definitely sits on the quote-unquote rock side of their catalog after 1997. But I think what makes it different than OK Computer is that like the band is clearly.

learned from their post-millennial experimental stuff and incorporated that into the basically rock sound of in rainbows. And so in that way, I guess it's a lot like Hail to the Thief, because Hail to the Thief to me is the absolute synthesis of the rock band of 95-97 meets the experimental band of 2001. But Hail to the Thief is not terribly accessible. We can talk more about that later. I think that in Rainbows does that synthesis. of the rock and the electronic in the most accessible way of all their records. Yeah, that's going to get us into the first listener question that we got, which was why in Rainbows for a season.

And I can give just kind of some of my thinking behind that, because this was absolutely torture for me to try to pick a Radiohead album for a season of Dysect because there was so many good candidates. Okay, Computer, Kid A, and in Rainbows being probably the most, obvious ones and the ones that I considered the most in rainbows probably being of the three i don't know i wouldn't say it's the least popular but i mean if we're talking history of music i think okay computer kid a are the ones that are going to kind of stand out historically yeah but why i ended up choosing in rainbows after much debate and you are a part of this was I do think it is

maybe the most representative of them as a band it was very hard to me to pick kid A even though it's my favorite album of theirs because it doesn't it doesn't feel like a product of the band if that makes sense it's you know there's a famous quote by um uh ringo star about sergeant pepper is that he learned how to play chess during that record because a lot of that record was done by, you know, Lennon McCartney. And I feel like I've read some quotes, and I think it translates into a lot of the songs

where, you know, maybe Tom and Johnny and Nigel were kind of heading a lot of these songs and the others were struggling to find their place. And so I didn't know if that was the best representative of them as a band. Okay, Computer, I had a hard time landing on, although it was very close, was that it didn't incorporate what I think,

ultimately made Radiohead very very special which was the electronic elements synthesized with traditional rock elements and Johnny had not quite delved into his classical bag so to speak yeah I don't think there's real strings on okay computer and so to do a record that doesn't showcase the electronics the orchestration I mean in rainbows has all of that and it's very concise and very complete, very clean. And so ultimately, I landed on it because I do think it's the best representation, the most concise representation of all the things that make them great.

I don't know. Does that, do you agree with that? I do. I think that on OK computer, I'll just echo one of your points that, like, they were learning how to get there. They were learning how to do the electronic stuff that would make them great, but they hadn't figured it out. And I think your point about, yeah, there aren't even like real strings on that

record. There's like the mellotron in exit music and it's like, oh, you can see where they're going with all of this, you know? Also on like street spirits, they do some of that kind of wonky electronic orchestration, which is great, but it's like, they're reaching. They hadn't quite found it yet. And I think

in rainbows, they really, really found it in many of the moments that are my favorite feature just crushingly, soul-crushing strings, without which I don't know. I mean, God, Johnny's orchestration.

He picks his spots, but every time he just knocks it out of the part every time. And I was worried also if we picked one of the older records that, you know, maybe some of the podcast listenership, who is of a younger generation, might kind of write it off as like Dad Rock, you know? Like, OK, Computer is a very cool record, but it could be construed as Dad Rock in a way that maybe in rainbows transcends. Yeah, I do think that's true. I think, I do think, OK Computer, although,

was very innovative at the time and still, I feel like, feels timeless, it does still, to me, feel of a certain era or a product of a certain era, a very innovative iteration of that era, but there's a lot of distorted guitars, you know, there's, it just does, it does sound very much of late 90s rock. Yeah. Where in Rainbows, I think you can release that album today. You can release it 20 years ago, you can release it 50 years from now, and it's going to resonate the exact same, because they're not drawing on any, they have transcended influence, it seems like, by this point, and they are just, they have created their own thing and exist in that sound, and it's truly, I'm timeless gets thrown around a lot in music conversation. I do genuinely

think it is their most timeless record in terms of, you can't pen, it to any era. Like it doesn't sound like 2007 when it came out. It doesn't, it doesn't sound like anything but in rainbows to me. Yeah. And I was more convinced of that after analyzing it than I was after even before going in. Um, so how I tried to choose these listeners questions, thank you for everyone that submitted them. I typically try to choose ones that got multiple questions, the same question got asked multiple times. And so, uh, the next, uh, the next. Uh, the next. Uh, the next next question that came up a lot was, is there a song on In Rainbows that you like more or less after having analyzed it? I'll toss that to you first. Is there any song on In Rainbows that

I don't like being negative on the show? So any song that you liked more after analyzing it? Yeah. Let me address the negative because the short answer is no. There's no song in general, because I ask this question a lot. Like, oh, music theory, doesn't that like kill the music? There's literally no song I've analyzed where I like it less. I either like it the same because it didn't reveal any secrets to me that I hadn't heard before. Right. Or I like it more because I find even sort of more secrets to dive into an interpret. But the song on In Rainbows that I have appreciated more since analyzing it was all I need.

Okay. And I think the reason is like, God, the bass and drums groove is so smooth. Like you would never guess that it was 10 versus 4. Like, you'd never guess that it has this metrical dissonance. And then once you hear it, like, you can't unhear it. And, God, it's just so smooth. Like, I could listen to that groove on loop all day. And then before you know it, you're at that amazing piano chord, Tom plays.

And then the whole thing burst into this giant climax. And I think one thing you've helped me understand about the whole record is the number of times that they execute such restraint for several minutes on end to make something really land. and man, the way that you explain that and all I need, absolutely. Yeah, that was a big revelation for me too. It's like, again, it's like, I don't notice these things in the detail that we do, you know, explain on the show eventually until I sit down and really analyze them. And that was one of my biggest musical takeaways was just like, I mean, there's a reason why it took them like two to three years to create this and why they

agonized over these same 18 songs or whatever they were, banging their heads against the wall, trying to find the perfect arrangements for these songs. But, I mean, it shows up, in the end, it shows up in the music because the restraint, so many times the restraint is so calculated because I feel like they've outgrown just slamming the distortion to make a climax, you know, that that feels cheap to them, I think, at this point in their career. Yeah. And so you have to be creative about what becomes, what comes before the climax.

to make the climax that isn't just distorted and crash symbols and you know to feel like a real climax and i think that speaks to another thing i really admire about uh radiohead which is the egolessness of the band members you know you know tom york and johnnie greenwood i think get most of the respect and maybe that's well deserved but ed phil Colin they pick their spots and they're so brilliant in terms of not only the part parts that they write, but where they choose to come in and their ability to kind of see the bigger picture and again, have that eagelessness to not feel the need to play every second of every song. But anyways, back to your point about all I need. That's a great revelation. I would say for me, it has to be reckoner. I like that song going in. Nude, I would say it has always been an all-time song for me across all genres, all artists. I've connected that song so much in my life. And Reckoner not so much in that same way.

And now Reckoner is at the level of a nude to me, specifically that bridge. Everything that comes before it, of course, makes that bridge. But that bridge specifically, like, man, that is some of the best music I've ever heard. And it brings out emotions in me. it's one of those transcendent moments, you know. Yeah, and that specifically of that bridge, your analysis, your take on that bridge

is the moment of the whole season in which your feelings about a particular moment made me like it even more. I think your analysis of the bridge of Reckhunter was amazing. Well, thank you. Yeah, I'm glad I was able to land. I think I landed the plane there because those are the moments that make the show to me. And I always want to do those moments justice. and I spent a long time on that section specifically.

So I'm glad that it resonated there. Okay, we got to address this. Came out probably the most popular question, the binary theory. Okay, let me prepare. I wrote down some cliff notes of the binary theory for those that do not know what this is. Okay.

Brad, let me know if I miss anything here. But I'm going to outline the binary. theory for those that don't know what it is and then we can talk about it. In Rainbows was released 10 years after OK Computer. Okay Computer's working title was zeros and ones. Both in Rainbows and OK Computer have 10 letters, two letter words followed by an eight letter word. In Rainbows was released on 10, October 10th. So there's all this stuff about ones and zeros and tens in relation to In Rainbows and OK Computer. They posted 10 cryptic messages on their website ahead of In Rainbow's release.

The final, the 10th post was the announcement that the album was coming in 10 days. So the basic premise of this 10th spiracy or the binary theory is that Radiohead was kind of typing a code to us, its fans, this binary code of ones and zeros pointing to this connection that in rainbows and OK computer, which in Ramos being 1-0 and OK computer being 0-1, as the original album title was, are companion albums meant to complement each other and maybe even heard in sequential order, alternating sequential order. So what I mean by that is that the output of this code, this binary code, is a playlist or a joint album, I guess, a mega album or something, in which you alternate songs from OK Computer and in Rainbows.

So you'd start with Airbag, the first track on OK Computer, followed by the first track in Rainbow's 15 step, and you would go in this alternating order between the two albums to make this mega album. And the underlying belief here is that Radiohead did this on purpose, that they, you know, consciously made in rainbows as a companion to or a supplement or whatever with OK Computer. Hopefully, I don't know, does that make sense?

It does. There's this one thing you have to do with the track listing, though, because right? Because OK Computer has, what, 12 tracks, right? 12s, yeah. So you have to, like, slam in two of them in a row, I think right before Faustarp, I think is how that goes, something like that. I'll link the playlist of this version of the two albums in the episode description. if anyone wants to listen to it. Do you buy the theory?

So, I mean, look, like, I should be the last person to tell you that, like, thinking really hard about something and, like, finding hidden patterns is not a good thing to do with your life. Like, trust me, I'm all about that. But to be totally honest with you, there are enough mysteries to be unlocked, for me at least, within, like, radio has actual music and the musical structure of their output that I've been totally satisfied going down those kinds of rabbit holes and I never find myself really that into the whole binary code thing. I will say that Kid Amnesia to me makes a better argument for if you're going to combine two albums in a cool and creative way, I get more into that than the whole, okay, computer and rainbows thing.

Yeah, because Kid A and Amnesiac was written at the same time. Exactly. It makes more sense. I think I'm right in line with you. I don't necessarily buy it. I don't want to discourage anyone that finds value in listening into that way. Exactly. Supposedly there's connections between the songs.

Like, I was listening to parts of it today. You know, like body snatchers and what's the alien song on OK Computer called? Subtrain and homesick alien? Yeah. Those are back to back. So it's like there's a out-of-body kind of possessed quality there, I guess, that you could maybe find some connection in. But it does, just to be frank, it doesn't do really anything for me.

I don't find it complimentary. Isn't it just like the classic Dark Side of the Moon and Wizard of Oz thing for the 21st century? Yeah, I think it's something along those lines. Again, if you find value in it and the experience is a rewarding one for you, like, great, that's awesome. But yeah, I'm with you in that there's enough in the actual music to dive into than kind of these. more conspiracy theory type things. And I mean, based on my research about the band and just hearing them talk about making music, man, I mean, I don't think they have it in them to do this kind of thing because it's hard enough for them to just make a fucking album.

They're like torturous about making the albums. And they, like every album, it seems like they're about to break up because of it. And it's like to add that layer, which seems impossible. And you've talked a little bit about the intentionalist fallacy on the show. So I'll also say that to me, I don't care much about artist's intention. And so whether they did this or didn't do this or frankly have forgotten if they did it or not by this point, I think that it's more about what the individual can come up with creatively as a way to enjoy music. Yeah, I generally believe that too.

And again, that's why I'm like personally, I don't find value in it, but I'm not discouraging anyone that does. In the same way that I personally find value in Reckner's Bridge being the golden and second. of in rainbows and the song itself, I find value in that knowledge. And they definitely didn't do that on purpose. And that doesn't actually matter to me. It's still, it's still something that enhances my experience of that moment. And so, you know, it just so happens that the binary theory doesn't for me personally. But yeah, again, if it does for you, great.

Okay. We got a ton of questions about in Ramos disc two. I think they just want general thoughts on it. I'm not going to be analyzing the songs formally. So sorry to disappoint there. But it's brilliant. I mean, there's some brilliant songs on there. I would say Down is the New Up is one of my favorite radiohead songs of all time.

But I agree with the band and that it doesn't fit in rainbows. If you try to put it on in rainbows, it's not complimentary at all. I think a song like Go Slowly does actually. fit in rainbows probably could have fit on there if they wanted to but I I generally enjoy that they one that they released disc to and they gave that to us at the same time essentially they released that with the box set way back in 2007 so that has been out there since in rainbows has been released and so you can tell that they're proud of those songs and they're all very brilliant songs so I

just like that we have them in an official release form and that we can listen to them just like in rainbows. I'm curious to know your thoughts on this two. Yeah, well, I have a short answer and a long answer. The short answer is that I think bangers and mash is my favorite. Oh, interesting. Okay. And I think it could plug in well to the first half of in Rainbows, because it has this kind of body snatchers-esque, like the manic vocal delivery. Yeah. I always think it sounds like something that could be in a high-energy car chase scene in like a Guy Ritchie film or something, like lockstock and two smoking barrels or something. something. Yeah. But I mean, the longer answer is that when you're a scholar, you really have to

create these firm boundaries for yourself. Otherwise, you just go off the deep end, you never get anything done. And so I hate to disappoint, but for me personally, the boundaries I've drawn for myself and my radiohead research has been studio versions of albums. And so, like, I haven't really paid that much attention to disc to, just like I haven't paid much attention to the extra stuff on okay, not okay. I've never been a guy. who's like tracking down set lists from the 2007 St. Louis show. Right. Like, I really have poured my heart and soul into analyzing the 10 to 12 tracks from each studio album,

and that's it. Okay, so this one I'm actually very interested in your answer on. This is from Cole Carroll. This was only asked once, but it's a great question. What is the most technically impressive song by Radiohead? Oh, I love this question. God, it's such a good question and such a hard question because, like, technical can mean so many different things. But I think that this thing I've described is the Goldilocks principle in Radiohead's music, where they're always balancing the experimental with the conventional.

This is so essential to Radiohead's genius that you might start looking at songs that almost tip the balance a little bit too far to the experimental for the ones that might be the most technically impressive. And so I think two plus two equals five comes to mind. Okay. Like, that one was almost, I mean, it's basically four songs stitched together, like, happiness is a warm gun style. Yeah. They go from, you know, each section is its own time signature and instrumentation and timbre. And, you know, like the first section's in, like, this contemplative seven, eight.

And yeah, what a way to start an album, right? You're like, if that's the first sound, people hear after all of the, okay, I put up with your kid, a nonsense, and your amnesiac, when are you going to bring the guitar back? And the album starts that way. Jesus. Like, that was almost a death sentence, I feel. So do you think that one achieves the Goldilocks principle? I think that that one, God, and you're going to ask that question.

I think that that one might tip a little bit toward the two experimental. I think that because it's completely through composed, there's not a single section that comes back the whole time. There's very little to remember and very little to like sort of hum as you're walking around the kitchen hours later. you know. Yeah. In the moment we're listening, it's like a really engrossing in-depth sonic experience, but I don't think there's much to recommend it in terms of memorability in that song. Right.

Is there any other songs that come to mind that... When we say too experimental, it's not like a knock, obviously. Sure, sure. The Gloming from Hell to the Thief. I mean, Hell to the Thief has some pretty austere experimental stuff, and the gloaming has got to be one of them. Like, where is the beat? You know, it's like halfway between like boom, boom.

It's like, where is that? And, you know, there's a little bit of a melody, but mostly kind of Ed's like, whoop, whoop, whoop, you know, thing. Yeah, yeah, yeah. And then the whole king of limbs, I have to say. I was going to say, that was exactly what I was going to say. Like, King of Limbs as an album is like all of that. Yeah, and that was a really important album for them to experiment,

and there I'm using that word intentionally, to experiment with this, like, hyperproduced multiple percussion tracks, which is why they would lay, or need Clive Deemer to be a second live drummer. I don't think they get it right on that album. I think they get it right on a moonshape pool. And I think that's why that album is more accessible than the King of Limbs, even though it has some of the same kind of rhythmic and percussion tricks going on. Yeah, the process behind King of Limbs was super fascinating.

I haven't done a deep dive on it, but I was just kind of reading some general stuff about it. And it was like apparently for like six months. I don't know if that's exaggeration, but they were just using like turn. Ternables to create the music. Wow. Turn tables and like looping software that Johnny made from scratch and max. Yeah.

And they restricted themselves from touching actual instruments and just made music through those mediums in which, you know, you think about the first song, Bloom and that looping piano and all the weird loops that come in after that. And it's, yeah, I don't, it's definitely, I think, toward the bottom of my personal hierarchy, in terms of their albums, but it's still a great listen. It's like such, it's so interesting.

I feel like there is those kind of moments in their discography where it's like, you know, Hail the Thief to me stands on its own. It's a great album, but it very much was, it very much led to the beauty and the perfection of in rainbows.

And I think to your point, King of Limbs led to what became moon-shaped pool. Yeah. And I mean, we can't fault them for needing an album to figure things out, you know? Right. And we all know that Hail to the Thief was recorded in like this mad rush in L.A. in like a couple weeks. Like, that was not going to be their masterpiece, you know? Yeah.

And there's definitely a pattern in their album making, which the album they're working on is a reaction to their previous work. So it's like they didn't, they wanted to torture themselves like they did in Kid A. So they said, we're going to record hail the thief very fast. They weren't happy with hail the thief completely. They think they rushed it. And so that's what led to the torturous process of in rainbows and really trying to get it right. And so you see them kind of always reacting to their past work in some kind of way, which is very natural for artists, I think, to work in such a way. Okay, a couple more questions.

Videotapes, syncopation debate. I spent a lot of time on it, you know, this last past episode. So maybe we can make this one quick. But I know you are very much on one end of the spectrum in terms of your opinion on it. So I'm curious, or I just want you to kind of share your opinion with the audience about, is the piano in the recorded version, album version of videotape, syncopated or not? Well, I love that I've been a radio head scholar for long enough, and I do a lot of these interviews. And this is definitely in the top five questions I get asked all the time.

If you're curious what the number one is, it's what's up with the rhythm and pyramid song. That's the number one question I get, which I'm always happy about because I'm like, wow, what a music theoretical question. But no, I'm very firmly there that I do not hear the piano in the recorded version of videotape as syncopated. But I think, you know, you've talked a lot about music psychology in the show, and so a lot of that can be explained by what people call the mere exposure effect. So like I said, I don't listen to a lot of live versions or bootlegs. So in fact, the first time I heard videotape was on the record.

And I probably heard it for hundreds of times before I heard on YouTube or some YouTube video, probably something Warren Lane put up there about the syncopation in it. And now, I mean, it just sounds wrong. And that said, your beautiful recomposition of the TR-909 beat for the for the, for the episode 11 when you added the extra stuff so it actually sounds like right in 4-4

oh man I was out on a run when that came on and I just about tripped and fell in my face because it was just so well backwards feeling for lack of a better term okay that's interesting well shout out to Andrew Atwood who is the one that created that beat for us

I loved it I was like I was so I started it because I was like you I don't hear it syncopated I still don't hear it syncopated, even though I know it could be there, the album version that is. And so I was very much on that side of it. But the more I research it and heard the other side of it, I was like, man, it is very compelling. And there's evidence that it was, it seems very clearly that it was recorded as syncopated. No, I believe that.

And in fact, in your show, when you talk about, when you isolate the very ending and you can hear the metronome bleed through Tom's headphones. Like, you made a really big deal that the metron is clearly in double time. But I don't think he pointed out that if you really are listening hard, it is also exactly opposite the piano courts. So it's not only in double time, but you can hear it's on the offbeats. So he is for sure playing the piano syncopated in the recording. Okay. Yeah.

So interesting. I mean, like I said in the show, I think the debate is way more interesting than trying to like figure out what's right and wrong. Well, I think they're both right. I mean, like, exactly. Yeah, yeah. It definitely used to be a song in which the piano was syncopated. The question is like, you know, this is a famous discussion from philosophy,

but if you remove every board of a ship and then rebuild it, is it the same ship still, right? So if you strip away all those live layers and then re-record it as a, well, not re-record it, but it kicked on out of the studio and take out the stuff he loved. Yeah, anyway. Okay, this was an interesting question. I forgot to write the guy's name down that submitted. I'm sorry. but he was interested in what Radiohead album he should check out after finishing the season.

And it's interesting to me because I assume, obviously there's going to be Radiohead diehards that are listening to this. But there were definitely people that have been listening to Dissect for a while that were not exposed to Radiohead and that this was really their first introduction to them. And shout out to you guys because that is beautiful. It's the reason I make the show. I love that I can expose new people to the. great artists and that you guys are willing and open to like take take that on and not just like tune out because you don't know who this band is or not experience them so I don't know do you have a do you have a kind of a second album that you would because I do think in rainbows is a great

entry point yeah for for all the reasons that we've talked about before where would you point people to next so I love the idea that somebody listens to your show and picks up in rainbows as like their radiohead starter kit. And I think that you go one of two places next, and preferably both. You go to OK computer and you go to Kidd A. Yeah. And you go to OK computer because then you're going to get

this kind of like rock and roll background, but a more evolved form of it, I think, than the bends. And you go to Kitt A so you can see where those experiments really came in that influence in rainbows. I think the last place you go is probably hail to the thief or the king of limbs. I think that those are for refined radio head pallets only. And I just worry that if I send you to amnesiac, I mean, I love amnesiac,

but I just worry if I send you to amnesiac next, that you might just be bored. Yeah. Yeah, yeah, yeah. That's definitely in line with my thinking. The only thing I would add to that is, I mean, obviously, just check out as much as you can. But yeah, I would start with OK Computer, Kid A.

But if you want the album that sounds the most like in rainbows, probably a moon-shaped pool. For sure. But I don't want someone to hear exactly like what they just heard, right? Yeah, exactly. I want them to have the cultural music historical context for like where that album comes out.

Yeah, exactly. We're going to end our discussion today on this question from Matt German. He said, did analyzing in rainbows change where it sits in your personal radio head rankings? And I'm going to combine this with our personal top five album rankings. I always like to say this is, for me at least, this is personal favorite. I'd never try to make a case that blah, blah, blah is Radiohead's best album. I don't know. I'm not,

I'm not one for those debates. So I'm curious to know you're a personal top five radiohead. And if in rainbows might be a little bit different for me, but like if your analysis of in rainbows change where it sat. What a great question to end on. I'll save the top five for the end. But yeah, analyzing rainbows, actually, in rainbows did actually move it higher. My first assessments of that album were like, basically, I like listening to this rock music with the windows down in my car. But I think that's because they did such a good job at hiding some of the complexity on the album that you and I have talked about. But, you know, like, once you dig in, you realize it's not all like this simple rock record that you thought it was. And yeah, if the listeners of the entire season of this podcast have realized anything, like, I hope it's that.

That the more you dig into the seemingly simple rock record, it's so complex and rewards this kind of deep thoughts. Okay, but here's the top five. So for 15 years, I said basically that Hale to the Thief was my favorite record. Wow. Wow. Holy crap. For the simple reason that it's, to me, the synthesis of the rock and roll years with, the electronic experiments. It's like the perfect synthesis of it. And then after analyzing in

rainbows, rainbows is now number two for me. But on any given day, I'm probably listening to in rainbows more than hail to the thief. Okay. So two and one might have flipped. But then, you know, three, four and five are going to stay in this order, I think, for a long time. Kid A, number three, number four, okay computer. You know, I know that's pretty low for a lot of people, but I'll always prefer maybe a little bit less rock and roll from this band. And five, a moon-shaped pool. It's a really great record. Yeah, it's a beautiful record.

Hopefully not their last, but if it is, it's a beautiful one. Okay, so just to get it right, Hail to the Thief is still number one. It's Hail of the Thief 1 and in Rainbows 2. You're watching like two people cross the finish line right now and wondering who's going to lap who, I think, at this point in my journey. It's either at this point, Hales of the Thief number one in Rainbows number two or flip that. Okay. Interesting.

That's really interesting. I wouldn't think Hale to the Thief would rank. Have you heard, do you find yourself kind of alone in that in terms of Hale to the Thief number one? Yeah. And I might, you know, I might stick with it purely for the shock value of it because people are sort of kind of like taken aback. Yeah. But, you know, it was the first time I saw them live was in support of that record. It was the first time that it was like the radio head.

record I saw it out, right? Because my friend had to get me on to Kid A. But like, I bought Hill to the thief. It was my thing. And I think I'll always have that personal relationship with it. Yeah. Okay. That makes sense. For me, it's Kid A number one. I respect that. It's, and that's a, to me that my top three are somewhat interchangeable. You can make arguments. I could personally make arguments for all three being number one. But Kid A, as the personal, connection to Kidae is just so profound for me. It came at the perfect moment of my life. I have so many, if I had to choose one album that soundtracked my life, it's Kidae. It just has that, it's just part of me in that special way that music can be, feel like a part of your life. Kidae is that

album. In Rainbows is number two and my analysis of R in Rainbows, our analysis, the season on it is what it's, so for me, it was always Kidae, okay, computer it is now kid a in rainbows and i'm very i'm feeling very confident in that ranking um so i would definitely say the analysis of in rainbows definitely changed my view of it in terms of my personal connection to it of course but also where i feel it sits in their discography mostly because i i love that it's 10 songs i love that it's it seems like the most of my favorite albums are 10 to 12 songs and they are less 45 minutes or less there's something about nailing that and they are very conscious of doing that uh with the track listing of in rainbows and it's the perfect length there's not a dull moment

there's not a skippable moment um i think it's sequenced perfectly um i love i mean more so now after analyzing it but i love the kind of thematic and sonic arc of it all that I didn't really realize as much before, which it starts more aggressive and heavy and kind of softens towards the end, of course, leading to videotape. I love the connections between like a 15-step and videotape and how that kind of exemplifies this journey that the, I don't think it has a storyline, but there is, does feel like a, there is some kind of, you are taking some kind of journey when you listen to the album. Yeah, I didn't, I didn't get that journey until you unpacked.

it, but now I totally believe it. And I would never say that in rainbows is a concept album, but I think it rewards this kind of thinking across multiple tracks with the same lens. Yeah, yeah, exactly. I would say this has been one of the most rewarding seasons of dissect I've ever done. I don't think there will be anything that top season one, you know, Kendrick Lamar to Pimp a Butterfly, because it was the genesis of the show.

And there's just so many things that I can't replicate in your first kind of baking. be in that way. But this one, man, I really enjoyed doing this work. It was so rewarding. It was, I feel like I, I wouldn't say I feel like I have changed. But I honestly feel like, um, I've gained even more of appreciation of life through this album and this, in this analysis somehow. Wow. Which, I don't know. It's, it's, it's, and maybe it's just like this time of my life. I know part of it was like Tom was literally the age that I am now when he was writing it. I think I've connected to some of those themes in terms of mortality and you start thinking very seriously about those things. People around you, health issues, that kind of stuff. So it might just be right place, right time,

like kid A was back in the day for me. But something about doing this work now, that really, really, really moved me. It was one of the most rewarding experiences of my life, I think, in terms of this kind of work. That's awesome. That's awesome, though. I think the moments in the season where that feeling really came through that I could tell you were feeling that way, where like I said, the bridge of Reckoner, but also you're like five-minute deep dive into Faust at the end of video, I was like, man, Cole is feeling something here. Yeah, I think the Faust stuff, like, even that story was really moving. I need to read the actual thing because it's this huge epic,

but the main takeaway of that story, which I also think is in in rainbows in a less kind of intentional way, but I think the feeling of it isn't there, and it's clearly in the title. But the idea of

our purpose here being one of positive, forward striving, and progress in that the aim is not in a destination. I think that was for whatever reason at this time of my life was really profound. I guess it just really moves me in the idea of that being our purpose here. In that striving, it's such a powerful idea.

And if you could commit yourself to it, man, if we could all commit ourselves to that. Just the striving part of it, just trying and just the intention behind our actions being pure. I think that is very powerful and profound if you allow it to be. But back to the rankings. Kid A and Rainbows. Maybe in Rainbows is number one. Maybe I just convinced myself. But OK, computer number three for probably obvious reasons.

I have the Benz at number four. Ooh. It's definitely not a perfect album. But the moments, there are some very high moments, street spirit, fake plastic trees. Planetellix. Yeah, I mean, there's just some really, really, really, really good moments. So I have that number four, although probably can be convinced that it could go five. Number five, I had really actually a hard time with.

It's definitely between Hale of the Thief and a Moonshape Pool. I might give the slight edge to Hale of the Thief. They're both brilliant records. I don't know I'd say maybe the Bens, Hale of Thief, Moon Shaped Pool are all kind of competing for these last two spots. But, yeah, Hale of the Thief, it has the synthetive. this thing that you, and I do like the experimentation of it. Like, where is the experimentation more overtly than like in Rainbows, although in Rainbows definitely has those elements,

but it's just a little more palatable. And it is the album that I found myself returning to a lot. Hailed the Thief, and it's always an enjoyable listen. I think where I get a little bit hung up with that record is, I do think it could have been better. Like the songs, I don't know if they found, as they did on in Rainbows, the perfect articulation or recording of them.

You know, and that's for obvious reason. They recorded in like two weeks, and they themselves feel that way about that album. And I think it's a little too long. Yeah, it's 14 songs, right? It's 14 songs, but there's a lot of long songs on it. I believe it is their longest album in the discography. And so I don't, what I'm personally looking for in music about albums, I like concise albums.

I like just getting the best of the best. and I think there's a little bit too much extra, I guess I would say, on the album. It'd be interesting to get Cole Kushner's 10-song director's cut of Hail to the Thief. Oh, yeah, right. I think Tom or someone from the band actually put out a different track. Yeah, Tom did. He put out a different track listing of Hail to the Thief, and I think he cut a couple songs.

like saying this is how I do it now. And they're there. I remember there there was first in Tom's arrangement. Are you aware of this at all? No, I've never heard of this, but I like that as the album opener, actually better than 2 plus 2 equals 5. It makes less of an artistic statement. I mean, They're There is definitely my favorite track on that record.

Yeah, me too. That's a brilliant song. That's such a good song. Live too when they're all playing the drums. Yeah. It's really good. Okay. I think that's everything we have.

today. Thank you, Brad. I really appreciate your work, not only on the season, but just in general. Again, anyone, or I guess where would be a good place for you, people to follow you and your work? I'm on the platform formerly known as Twitter as at Radioheadbook, so pretty easy to remember at Radioheadbook. You can also find me on Instagram at Bradiohead. Ah. Yeah. But aside from analyzing radio, Head book, is there any other places that you would direct them to you to find more of your writing about Radiohead? Yeah, I mean, I'm actually quite easy to find on the web. I'm a public intellectual of sorts. I teach at the University of Kansas. So all of my work you can find linked to what I've done there. I've done a lot of stuff with music videos, especially some stuff with hip-hop music videos that maybe long-time listeners of your show might be interested in. And I'm actually currently writing an undergraduate music theory textbook that attempts to

teach freshman and sophomore music theory with what I call more Beyonce less Beethoven. Oh, beautiful. That's right at my alley. Yeah. That's perfect. Yeah, you've got to, I'm going to have to check that out when you're done with it. Well, thank you for joining me, Brad. This was a pleasure to talk to you. We are now going to transition to

one of my favorite moments of the season, which is hearing directly from Dysect listeners who submit their thoughts on Radiohead and in rainbows. There's some beautiful thoughts here. Thank you to everyone that's submitted. And we're going to cut to those now. And thank you everyone that has listened to season 11 and supported the show. Very much appreciate it.

I'll talk to you guys soon. Goodbye. Allison Baker, Connecticut, once this album has made its impact on you, you'll keep coming back to it for years to come. You'll find that every time you listen to it as you grow, age, have new experiences,

you'll find something more to it that you didn't hear before. Its lyrics offer wisdom and insight and the sound, something profoundly beautiful. It's arguably one of the most cohesive and well-thought-out albums of its time. I'm Abhishek Paul from Mumbai, India. In Rainbows, for me, it's almost like home base. When I venture out into all these other genres and artists and feel these myriad of emotions, I always come back to in Rainbows to feel settled. Just like a rainbow for me, the album is a lot of converging and conflicting emotions.

emotions, but it's all part of the same source. And so this album makes me feel safe in the face of all these emotional colors. We're all just human. It's the excuse, epiphany, fact that I realize every time I listen to the album. Hi, Cole, and the Dissect Team, it's Jemima from Brisbane, Australia. I just wanted to congratulate you guys on such an awesome season. Radiohead is my favorite band, and Dissect is my favorite podcast. So when I saw you guys were doing a season on In Rainbows, I cried. I actually cried a lot during the season, especially during the Reckoner episode, where I cried on the train, so thanks for that. I loved hearing the passion shine through in Cole's voice.

You can just tell that there's a special place in his heart for Radiohead. Now, where to buy an own smart to know? My name is Juan from Queensline, Australia, and my biggest takeaway from season 11 was how beautifully radiohead portrayed the idea of reaching out and striving for the unattainable, aka the rainbow, like Faust did in his quest to bring utopia to his land is the true pinnacle of life. His life ended in glory when he made it about paving the way

for the generations that will follow his. Rambles by their nature will always be elusive, yet they will always be worth reaching out for. I have a new appreciation that only great artistry and the examination of great artistry can provide. Thanks, Cole. Hi, this is Dax from Arlington, Virginia. I've been a fan of dissecting Cole for years.

Love your stuff. If this season has taught me anything, it's that Tom York is actually saying words that make sense. This has been in my top three all-time favorite albums for years now, and only this season after Cole has gone through every single line of this album, have it started to understand what most the tracks even mean. I didn't even know that Jigsaw falling into place was anything other than a man at a party. Thank you, Cole and crew.

My name is Kush, and I'm from England. I used to listen to strictly electronic music. Like Cole, I was narrow-minded and obsessive about my taste, but instead of Stravinsky and Mozart, I was swaying back and forth to drum and bass and techno and dark dingy clubs in London. One day I stumbled across Radiohead's nude and my world changed forever. I didn't pick up on its commentary on fame or the circular nature of the recording. I just knew it was the most beautiful piece of music I'd ever heard.

Suddenly, all other music sounded flat and meaningless. My big takeaway from this season is that meaning is in the ears of the listener. Even if Tom York himself denies it, if you see the golden ratio, no one can take that away from you. Hey, this is John from Cleveland, and this season helped me discover how Radiohead are the best at crafting a a song structurally and musically to match the thematic elements they're talking about in the lyrics. It was truly mind-blowing. It feels like each song is almost a macro version of text painting. And I loved learning about rhythmic fakeouts, and I especially enjoyed hearing snippets of peaches in 311 tracks.

Cole, you could tell in your voice how fun and fulfilling writing this season must have been. Thank you for writing another epic one. My name is Maurice. I'm from Phoenix. And the biggest takeaway from me within Rainbows and Season 11 of Dysect is when I listened to this album in 2007 and everything that it made me feel that that was done on purpose and it was intentional. And I don't think I comprehended that at the time. And even to this day when I listened to that album, I'm blown away by how amazing it is. And to hear you say how everything was done on purpose is just remarkable. Hi, this is Pete from Sacktown.

Thanks for another great season, Cole. My takeaway from In Rainbows is related to the haunting, ethereal song, videotape. This idea of watching a recording of a life reminds me of the incredible scene in the movie Below, where Ray Leota's dying character goes to the garage alone to listen to an audio recording apology and loving appreciation from his incarcerated son. Also, the outro to the song videotape echoes throughout my head, giving chills at will. By 2006, I thought maybe Radiohead had peaked already. Then I saw them live that year, and they made me feel real stupid for even thinking that.

The pinnacle that night was videotape, still the most amazing thing I've ever seen live. Cut to me staying up to download in rainbows the night it came out. I wanted to just skip the videotape, but I resisted. The album is amazing. They did it again. And then videotape comes on. I'm waiting for the buildup, and it never happens. For a minute, I thought there was something wrong with the MP3 file.

I've grown to appreciate the album version since, but it always feels like there's something missing. My name is Josh from New Jersey. Radiohead fandom is unique in the sense that their fans, by and large, are elitist music snobs who consider they know more than the average listener. I comfortably belong to this group. This season humbled me, as I clearly did not know as much as I thought I did about this band and epic album. While impossible to note all the highlights, the Reckoner, golden ratio, layered guitar work on weird fishes and videotape episodes were absolutely incredible. Thank you, Cole. I can only privilege to get more radio-ed albums on future seasons. Thanks again. Hi, I'm David from Minneapolis.

At age 19, I have fond memories of the music from the fall of 2007 and in rainbows in particular, vivid memories listening to nude with leaves falling, walking my campus, or to Reckoner on the bus to go to a dance night. I think of the album as textures and less as songs. and the podcast did a great job dissecting all those beautiful textures. Thank you, Cole. Hey, this is Connor from Los Angeles. I think because I grew up playing instruments, I tend to latch more on to the instrumentation of music more than the lyrics,

which is probably one of the reasons why Radiohead is my favorite band. The nature of Tom's voice, which is sometimes unintelligible to me, lends itself really well to blending into the band as just another instrument. This season of Dissect, though, has given me a much greater appreciation of the lyrical themes that Tom weaves throughout the album, and that's just going to deepen my listening experience of In Rainbows the rest of my life. Thanks. Hi, Ben here from London.

Biggest takeaway of the season is that Radiohead really constructed this album to be a work of art, a whole piece. Whilst at first listen, the songs don't necessarily seem to be thematically connected, the more you examine them, the more you can see a web of connections become apparent. It's actually a really sexy album. There's a lot of sex in it, whether that's imagined. sex, frustrated sex, lack of sex. Through the dissect episodes, I've realized that it's a lot like Bob Dylan's blood on the tracks in the sense that it's like a nonlinear story being told from the

perspectives of lots of different selves, very modernist. Hey Cole, this is Nate from Boston. I have to say, my favorite episode of this season has been the one on Reckoner. I loved her analysis of how the golden ratio appears within Reckoner's Bridge and how Tom said that its inclusion was completely unintended. I think it's such an interesting case study in artist's attention versus audience interpretation. And the coincidence of something that perfect showing up accidentally in such a meticulously crafted album has both blown my mind and made me appreciate in rainbows even more. As always, great work on the season. I'm excited to see where you go next. Hi, Cole, Michael from Boston's North Shore here. I've always enjoyed your podcast because, as you say,

there are reasons your favorite songs, your favorite songs, and looking deeper at the arc and help us understand why. I've always considered my favorite song to be reckoner. When I found out that this season of Dessac was going to be on In Rainbows, I was thrilled that I was going to get your take on Reckoner, and it did not disappoint. You help me understand why I was always mesmerized by the drums, why I got this heavenly feeling when the bridge kicked in. So thanks, Cole, not only for this incredible season, but also for providing your listeners with new perspectives when consuming art. I can't wait to see what next season brings. And lastly, thank you, Radiohead. Hey, Cole, my name's Reese, and I'm a listener from New Zealand. I first listened to

in rainbows at the start of this season, and some songs I didn't really get, and other times I knew there were great moments in these songs, but I didn't fully understand why. And during this season, I kept going back and re-listening after every episode. And that's my biggest takeaway. I think it's re-listening. You may not get music on the first listen, and it takes repeated listening and attention to understand what makes music so brilliant. And now I can't stop listening to In Rambos, and I'm a huge fan. So thank you so much for this season, and I'd love more radiohead seasons in the future. That was my cat Lola. My name is Stuart. I am in Edinburgh, Scotland, and I really enjoyed this season.

Obviously, one of my favorite albums. Biggest takeaway, I think, was your examples of how they had written songs to a certain point that anyone else would consider good, but they wanted to take it even further and make it great. And the difference between stopping it good and continuing to great, I think, was the most interesting part of this whole season and absolutely chimed with everything I already think about this album. But now I love it somehow even more. Hey Cole, this is Jamie from Denmark. I only recently got into Radiohead.

In June I got kicked out of school for my alcohol addiction and I decided to get sober. Radiohead helped me through a lot. I listened to in rainbows a few times but I feel like I never really understood it. After listening to this season I've fallen in love with the album though, and I was right up there with Kid A and Ok Computer. Listening to this season I learned a lot about the process of making such a great album. A lot of the lyrics suddenly resonated with me and the instrumental building of the album is simply amazing. Now when I go back to the album, I feel like I finally get it because of this podcast. Thank you, Cole. Love the show. Bye. Hi, Cole. My name's Charlie, and I'm from England.

My biggest takeaway from this season to dissect would be the idea that happiness is not something, it's not a goal that you can attain. There's the idea of touching a rainbow, something not possible. And I think you really beautifully summed up the core. premise of this album and yeah I really loved it all the best hi Cole my name is Hudson and I'm currently living in Seattle Washington the thing I found most fascinating from this season is just how creative radiohead is with their musical choices the way they create wildly unorthodox parts and weave them together into a

cohesive whole is incredible thank you so much for this podcast this is Joe Frego from Los Angeles California thanks for an amazing season of they suck I listen to in rainbow was well over a hundred times. And I love how you highlighted so many things I never picked up before. Mainly the drum loop in videotape. I always pictured Phil going ham and doing dozens and dozens of little beats,

but it makes so much more sense that they actually looped that part, the buildup and jigs are falling into place. I love how to analyze why the end crescendo works so well. And then Tom sang in rainbowsing, Rackenor. I can't believe I never picked up on that. Keep up the good work. Hey, so.

Jake from Melbourne. I purchased my first CD, OK Computer, as a 13-year-old and the influenced radio head has had on my music and life is entrenched. In Rainbows has been the only album to challenge or even come close to having such an impact on me. I can't thank you enough but diving into this album and enhancing my already immense appreciation for it. Your episodes on 15-step, nude, videotape were just incredible, yet it was the reckoner episode that blew my mind. And I've already inked my body in appreciation of it. Thank you. Matthew, Long Island, New York.

In Rainbows was my introduction to Radiohead. Of course I knew of them, but never took the time they deserved. I guess you can say I was more of a hip-hop guy in my teens. And coincidentally, this was my introduction to dissect, thanks to my brother John. In Rainbows was the soundtrack to my life for quite a while. One of the many reasons is the song Reckoner. This helped me mourn the loss of my grandmother, along with being an inspiration for me as I navigated through my young 20s.

And now, after hearing Cole break down the song Reckoner, it is even more meaningful to me now. I mean, the song is so good, Cole even told us to stop what we were doing, sit back, enjoy the very moment when the album in rainbows all comes together. Pure beauty. Hi, my name is John Bastch, and I am from Portugal. My biggest takeaway is that what can seem to assess moments of greater staleness and melancholy are actually full of rhythm and full of life themselves. I think that the way that radio head uses rhythm to convey those feelings on in rainbows is the perfect demonstration of how they are a valuable part of the rhythmic process that is life itself. Hey all, my name is Dylan from Rapid City, South Dakota. As someone currently progressing through Radiohead's discography one by one,

I knew that this album had a large amount of conversation around it regarding it being one of the best Radiohead albums, if not one of the best albums ever. Upon first listen, I wasn't sure if I fully grasped that notoriety, as I immediately started comparisons with two of my own favorites, with Ok Computer and Kid A. However, with multiple listens and the whole Dysect Season now behind us, I can confidently see I understand the hype now. I have seen the other side of the rainbow. My biggest takeaway from season 11 of Dysect is that I always knew Radiohead had a distinct

sound, but never actually knew why. As a drummer, I love how often Radiohead would work in odd-time signatures and create unique rhythms, but wouldn't have recognized the owns Martinau or thought about the music theory interplay between Tom singing and what the rest of the gang play. The band's always had such unique and singular quality to them despite their genre experimentation, so bringing some method to the madness has been very insightful this season. And lastly, in Rainbows, it's a top two album from my favorite band. It's just so much fun to hear someone geek out over the exact same music.

You listen to it countless times. Hi, my name is Alice, and I'm here in Nashville, Tennessee. Dysact and Rainbow's have been a truly transformative journey for me, and what really stood out to me about the whole album and everything was just this idea that Reckoner serves as a culmination of the album's essence. This, I think, echoes the underlying interconnectedness that we see it in rainbows, much like Ripples and Water and Colors in a Rainbow, seemingly separated yet fundamentally linked.

This is more than just music to me. It's a transcendent experience genuinely changed my life. Hi, Cole. My name is Alberto and I'm from Montreal, Canada. Listening to the season covering in rainbows was a truly special experience. Radiohead had always been a musical blind spot for me, despite being aware of all the praise and acclaim over the years across their many albums. Learning about the intention and meticulous craft they put into their art has been inspiring and opened my ears to their other work.

Your writing and analysis this season is some of your best work to date and was a true joy to listen. Thank you and all the best to you and the entire dissect team. This is Rubin from Alberta, Canada. This season has really shown me how this transcendent piece of work has even more layers when you see the meaning derived from the tonal themes portrayed characters and defiance of modern song structures. I am now able to see music differently, understanding the depth in songs, that are dissected differently compared to rap songs. I'm Akeel and I'm from the UK.

I think one of the most special things by in Rainbows to me is that if you consider Radie Hurd's entire catalogue, it really does stick out as an outlier. Because if you look at all the other albums, they always seem to embody one specific, strong emotion. Oker Computer, for me, is a very anxiety-ridden album. Kid A is very desolate and very isolating. But in Rainbows doesn't have that sort of feeling.

There's so much variation among all of the tracks. And to me, I think that makes it their most special and varied projects. Hi, I'm Diego from Adela Hara, Mexico. In Rainbows has been my favorite album for the longest time. I even remember listening to it in my childhood thanks to my dad. Throughout the whole season, I've come to understand the themes of humanity, coming to terms with death, and reaching for a better place on a deeper level. I've also come to appreciate Tom Jorke's lyrics,

even more for their special way of expressing such specific ideas and themes. It made me have an even more personal experience and falling in love with my favorite album all over again. Thank you Radiohead for creating this masterpiece and thank you, Dysect. Hi, this is Howard calling in from San Diego. Recently, I've stared down the face of the existential dread that Radiohead confronts head-on and in rainbows. What's the meaning of life if it is definitionally finite, if it could all fade to black at any moment? What's remarkable to me is that Radiohead achieves in the span of three songs, but it took me months of therapy to arrive. The precarious beauty of life is a call to action, to step into those moments of transcendence

and to live in rainbows. That is the best that we can do. That is all we can do. Michael, this is Amher from Vancouver. I've enjoyed season 11 of dissect, and because of it, I now have a greater appreciation for music. In Rainbows is a rough first listen, but it and radiohead have both grown on me quickly in the past six months. It's always been someone who has placed just as much importance on the music within a song as the lyrics, if not more.

Thanks to your dissection of all the intracial musical stuff going on within rainbows, it has truly helped me gain a greater understanding as to why I love music as much as I do. Music really does go beyond words. And lastly, the Owens Martinel has to be my new favorite instrument. Hey, my name is Jorge

from Orange County, California. I just want to say that this album and this season of dissect have really shown me the beauty in life, and I think it's really easy to overlook because life is so hard and there's so many obstacles, But we take simple things for granted. Like, I'm looking at this tree with beautiful red leaves right now.

Most days, I probably just ignore it and drive right past it. But right now, it's just really beautiful to me, and it makes me feel warm inside. Sorry if that's corny, but I don't know. I feel good. Thank you so much for what you do. Hey, Colin, team. This is Ethan out of Jacksonville, Florida. I've been listening for about four years now, and I can't believe another incredible season to dissect us out of its end. This has been my first deep dive into Radiohead's music, and my biggest takeaway,

away from this album is that they really are masters of diversifying their sound while still holding a common string of themes. This track list truly feels like the spectrum of a rainbow. My experience was only further enhanced by the stellar breakdowns of the musical tools, concepts, and core progressions used to create this colorful spectrum of the human condition. Thanks again for another fantastic season and keep living in rainbows.