Radiohead
“Separator”
Live From the Basement, 2011
Melody isn’t absent from King of Limbs, it’s just not emphasized. The prettiest, most melodic tracks come at the end — “Give Up the Ghost” and “Separator.” When the latter song comes on, it feels like you’re suddenly snapping out of the record’s weird daze. The beat is more assertive, the melody is much bolder, the arrangement seems brighter and more colorful. The lyrics match the sound, with Yorke singing about waking up from “a long, weary dream.” He sings that he is free from a weight that he’s been carrying and he sounds genuinely relieved and relaxed. Maybe in the future we’ll look back at this song as a meta commentary on his career: It’s the sound of Radiohead shaking off the weight of being such an Important Band, and moving on as a group that’s actually encouraged to explore, stumble and sometimes fail. (Originally posted 2/22/2011)
This is great commentary.
