Mutter the word “solo” at your own peril. The poet of ennui has made it very clear this isn’t a launch pad for a whole new music career.
So you can keep your “Radiohead to split” ramblings for another day. In fact The Eraser even comes with his bandmates’ blessing.
The advantages of Yorke doing it his way are obvious: complete artistic control and the joy of ruling his own little fiefdom.
What he risks losing, though, is that certain je ne sais quoi that can only be produced by a group of comrades who have been to hell and back together, as demonstrated by Dave Gahan’s mediocre solo effort Paper Monsters.
Lucky for Yorke, then, that head producer Nigel Godrich was quick to sign onto the project, eager to see what the songwriter could come up with whilst free from the constraints and expectations of his day job.
They say:
Gigwise: “Thom Yorke has sculpted an album with an agenda and substance, and more importantly has offered tantalising glimpses of his genius.”
Kingblind: “Yorke isn’t breaking any new ground and that’s kind of sad.”
Rolling Stone: “Yorke comes on as a Lieutenant Columbo of the psyche, rumpled and haggard, who always has just one more question. On The Eraser, he has some particularly barbed ones.”
We say:
The Eraser is a return to the haunting electro soundscapes found on Radiohead’s Kid A and Amnesiac albums – music that crossed frontiers, kicked down doors of perception and challenged other musicians to think differently. However, what was fresh and groundbreaking back then isn’t necessarily so today.
But if you can forgive the lack of creative progression here you’ll discover some remarkable moments, lyrically and sonically: the broken piano chords and synthetic cut ‘n’ paste Aphex Twin beats of the title track; the click-clack rhythm and trippy vocals of ‘The Clock’ which call to mind Radiohead’s ‘The Gloaming’ as Yorke addresses climate control and Government futility; and the tour de force that is ‘Harrowdown Hill’ which explores the death of weapons inspector Dr. David Kelly (“Don’t walk the plank like I did/You will be dispensed with when you become inconvenient”), accompanied by eerie synth and a restrained guitar funk conclusion.
Elsewhere, though, the droning ‘Black Swan’ and the moderately creepy ‘Skip Divided’ prove to be nothing more than ambient toilet breaks.
Indeed, if anything, they serve to highlight the need for a real band to tap into the mainframe and install a beating heart in the rigid machinery, processed or not.
Still, The Eraser is a worthwhile excursion through Yorke’s techno warped mind and a welcome stopgap until the new Radiohead album they are currently working on is unleashed next year. Just don’t expect anything hugely innovative.
Like this? Try these:
Aphex Twin – Come to Daddy
Passengers – Original Soundtracks 1
Radiohead – Amnesiac
RELEASED
10th July 2006
LABEL
XL
POSTED...
Thu 6 Jul 2006 at 10:53am
