This review refers to
Hail To The Thief (CD version).
After the acclaim aimed at 'In Rainbows' it would be easy to dismiss 'Hail...' as just another evolutionary step in Radiohead 'rediscovering their form'.
While 'In Rainbows' recalls 'OK Computer', it is something of a hotchpotch, albeit with moments of brilliance. 'Hail...' on the other hand is a more complete album, and one that is comfortable in its desolate, synthesized soundscape. Tracks such as 'Sit Down, Stand up', and the glorious 'Where I end and You begin' are some of the finest in Radiohead's history, and with the Yorke vocal-led ballads 'Sail to the moon', and 'I Will', the album achieves a real balance between the electronic and their customary melancholy sound.
If 'Kid A' could be seen as an oddity for fans only, and 'In Rainbows' a move back to their roots, 'Hail...' stands out as a superb album in its own right, perhaps for the first time since 'OK Computer'.