Search - Radiohead :: Radiohead Box Set

Nothing to complain about

John Stodder | livin' just enough | 01/26/2009

(5 out of 5 stars)

"Just because you like Radiohead doesn't mean you are forced to buy this. In my case, this is was a perfect gift. The only Radiohead I owned was "In Rainbows" and a rip of a library copy of "OK Computer." My brother, a fanatical fan, wanted to correct that on my birthday, so he bought me this box. I'm delighted. It's not a best-of. It has the original artwork (in better packaging). It sounds great. No alternate takes or demos or B sides to clutter up the album sequencing. I have the albums now that my brother listened to as he grew to love this band. That's all I need for now.



Moreover, why be mad at EMI? What would have been infuriating is if they put, say, five unreleased tracks on this set. So you, all of you fans who already have these disks, would have had to ponder whether you now need to get these new disks just to get those tracks. That's a cheap marketing trick that even Steely Dan couldn't resist (putting an alternative demo take of "Everyone's Gone to the Movies" on their "Citizen Steely Dan" box set. What SD fan would need that box set, except for that one stinkin' song? And what casual fan would care that it was included?)



This is a great gift for a serious fan to give a casual fan. Or if you just got into the band via the "In Rainbows" hype and want to catch up. But if you already have all their CDs, stop being so obsessive-compulsive. You don't have to buy this. And the fact that you don't have to buy it shouldn't make you angry at its existence.



As for the music itself-- I'll get back to you. Today, I listened to "Hail to the Thief" for the first time. I liked it okay. It's uneven but the good stuff is very, very good. I'm looking forward to hearing "The Bends" next."

Flawed Execution...

Terrence Rusch | Binghamton, NY | 12/30/2008

(3 out of 5 stars)

"...but as you allready know, excellent material.



It's all in the details, of the packaging that is. What all Radiohead fans and admirers know is that the band deserves a stellar box set retrospective in the vein of The Velvet Underground's "Peel Slowly and See" or Joy Division's "Heart and Soul." Instead Capitiol/EMI/Parlophone have just slapped together the 6 core studio albums of Radiohead's ouvre and thrown in the "I Might Be Wrong Live" EP as an added treat (?), incentive (?), ploy (?).



So... what you get here is basically a discount on just simply purchasing the 7 cds separately from say, oh I dunno, www.Amazon.com !!! Now if you are going to put together a box set containing the majority (if not sum whole) of a group's output, it's not a terrible idea to leave the original albums and thier packaging intact, as was done here. But the pernicious (in other words [...] up) lack of any rarities/b-sides/etc. is just unacceptable. To include the live EP is a bit strange since it was never considered by the band to be a proper album, live or otherwise. So if the inclusion of live material is the idea here, why not PREVIOUSLY UN-RELEASED live material? Or, if inclusion of EP's was the game plan, where's "My Iron Lung, Itch, Com Lag, and Airbag/How Am I Driving?" ?



At any rate, no rant is worthwhile without a solution. So, I propose that into into this bundling of cds be put an 8th cd containing the following b-sides from throughout Radiohead's career, in this order:



---I'm Okay, How Are You? (the B-sides)----



Palo Alto

Bishop's Robes

Coke Babies

Bannana Co.

Talk Show Host

Lull

Killer Cars (electric version)

Molasses

Gagging Order

Maquiladora

Cuttooth

Pearly

Fog

Paperbag Writer

I am A Wicked Child



-HOPE YOU'RE LISTENING EMI !!!!



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