OK Computer (1997) - Album Review

OK Computer is still one of the best albums I've ever listened to. The fresh sound and still topical lyrics help to keep it timeless, especially with their themes of expectations (Let Down), the want for a simpler, better life (No Surprises), searching for purpose in life (Subterranean Homesick Alien), how technology can simultaneously save and end us (Airbag, Lucky), political manipulation (Electioneering) and I'm going to stop right there because I think you get the point.

I wouldn’t say it predicted the future; it just simply described the very basics of us, although the technology aspect can make it feel like the Black Mirror of music. Regardless, the topics OK Computer chooses to explore do help make it timeless and able to speak to many people. Some still ring true today, being Radiohead’s most popular songs, at least on Spotify. Karma Police, No Surprises, and Let Down recently entered their top ten. Some songs go back to more classic rock sounds, like Airbag and Karma Police, although they have their tweaks: Airbag has distorted drums, and Karma Police has the electronic feedback gradually building up in the part (For a minute there, I lost myself). Lucky is probably the most rock-sounding track in this album.

But on top of those rock bases of OK Computer are little specialties each track has. There’s Airbag and Karma Police, but there’s also the spacey guitars of Subterranean Homesick Alien and the electronic beeping at the end of Let Down, with the almost bell-like sounds of No Surprises. Ironically enough, each track has a surprise of its own, so that it never feels stale. When you listen to the album, it’s always changing in the tweaks.

Overall, it’s still a fresh album that has stood the test of time thanks to its amazing sound production and still topical themes about us as humanity.

I rate this album a 10/10, and my favorite track from this album is Lucky.