Ten years ago, one of the most influential and innovative British albums of all time was released. Join us this week as we celebrate a decade of Radiohead’s masterpiece, ‘Kid A’.
The early stages of recording for ‘Kid A’ were a fraught time for Radiohead – which saw them abort attempts at several studios before finding their groove.
Behind most of this turmoil was Yorke’s desire to subvert completely their original style in favour of a more abstract, rhythmic, electronic sound – making it difficult for the band to record in their usual way.
Producer Nigel Godrich, initially uncertain of the new direction, told the New York Times magazine: “Radiohead is a remarkable guitar band, but what Thom wanted now was a sound that doesn’t get made by many bands.”
What Thom wanted was to take apart the most distinct elements of the band’s sound: the vocals, the lyrics and the guitars. In a bid to take focus away from what he was saying, Yorke wanted to make his voice sound like an instrument.
He told The Wire: “On ‘Kid A’ the lyrics are absolutely brutal and horrible and I wouldn’t be able to sing them straight. But taking them and having them vocodored through Jonny’s Ondes Martenot… that was great.” Yorke also moved away from conventional lyric writing techniques – often pulling abstract phrases from a hat at random and splicing them together. Initially the vibe in the studio was tense, with the band on the verge of splitting up. However, as Christmas bled into another New Year, green shoots appeared.
By the time they entered their own Oxford studio in early 2000 with Godrich now onside, the band members were adjusting to their new roles as Brain Eno-style producer/musicians – at times abandoning their instruments and working only with electronic gadgets and software.
Guitarist Ed O’Brien said in a March 2000 diary entry: “I’m trying to get my head around some new software called Logic, which seems to be what all the right programmers are using.”
Embracing this new mood perhaps more than anyone was guitarist Jonny Greenwood – choosing to play an Ondes Martenot on several tracks. The 1920s electronic instrument was used on the album’s title track.
Greenwood told The Wire: “The most famous use of the martenot is the Star Trek theme, and it sounds like a woman singing.” He also wrote a score which was performed by Oxford’s Orchestra of St John and was used on four album tracks.
Warming to his role as mixing desk pied piper, producer Godrich encouraged the band to experiment – even at risk of alienating their traditional audience. Mojo writer Jim Irvin said: “They were studying – and mastering – another way to reflect on dark feelings: some people didn’t need it. It surely alienated some of their original fans.”
As the sessions wore on, Godrich’s role in shaping the album’s sound became as central as George Martin’s in recordings by The Beatles. He was described as “integral” by drummer Phil Selway, introducing techniques such as dividing the musicians into separate recording groups.
Selway said: “At our meetings we always had all six of us there throwing in our opinions and Nigel was very much a part of that and was someone who could bring all of those ideas together.”
With everyone on the same page, the band fell into a real groove. Over the white heat of the smoking mixing desk, around sixty songs had been finished – more than enough for two albums.
The songs in the can, the band bunkered down to the serious business: rowing over the content and sequence. After picking the ten songs all that was left was a name.
There has been much speculation over the inspiration for ‘Kid A’’s title, from computer programmes to literature. However, Thom set everyone straight, telling Martin Clarke in Radiohead: Hysterical & Useless: “[It was] dedicated to the first human clone.”
Considering its mash-up of innovative recording technologies and future-fearing dystopian themes, it seems pretty apt.
Words by Shane Gladstone
Read more of Clash’s 10 years of Radiohead ‘Kid A’ overage:
After Limbo – The Genesis Of ‘Kid A’
The Flavours And Ingredients Of ‘Kid A’
The Contentious Campaign Of ‘Kid A’
Next: the influences that begat ‘Kid A’…
