Unlike most rock fans my age Radiohead has never really grabbed me. I have a few of their albums and I like them, but, with the exception of a few songs, they've never thrown me into hysterics the way they do with most. The King of Limbs is no different. There's intricate drumming, spacey electronics, high-pitched vocals with the usual plethora of effects, sounds you recognize as guitar playing (but which try as hard as possible to disguise themselves) and the occasional acoustic guitar so you don't get lost in a sea of electronics.
Like I said, some songs are exceptions. The King of Limbs has “Morning Mr.Magpie,” with its glitchy and minimal drumming, matching guitar (using one of the coolest tones I've heard in awhile) jazzy bass riffs and lyrics dripping with “Karma Police”-esque anger. The following track, “Little by Little” lives up to its title. I didn't care much for it on my first listen but after a few listens I noticed how all the different parts fit together, resulting in a pretty song with a great rhythm and guitar playing that is simple and dark.
My biggest complaint about The King of Limbs is a lack of actual songs. Each track sounds more like an experiment in weird noises, complicated percussion and reverb-drenched vocals. Lead singer Thom Yorke's lyrics specialize in a feeling of alienation and their music reflects that but, in my opinion, to a fault. Even the lyrics are sometimes lost in an overabundance of effects like the delay-heavy track “Feral.”
The other problem with the album is the pacing. The majority of these tracks are slow and droney and the faster-paced ones are bunched together at the beginning of the album. This creates the impression that you're listening to the final track on the album for 3 songs in a row. On a longer album this might not be a problem, but King of Limbs only has 8 tracks and clocks in at just over 30 minutes, so most of the album sounds sluggish and dull.
Overall, the album isn't bad and I will definitely pull it out for a listen every now and again. It's another pretty Radiohead album with lots of darkness, brooding and electronics. The occasional bright and loud song is what keeps me coming back and maybe my dream will come true one day and they'll release an album full of them. In the meantime I plan to keep giving Radiohead one more chance.
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