Events
There’s a good chance you’d never guess that I’m a big fan of Radiohead. I mean, I’ve never written a review of their work and I’ve mentioned them maybe once on the entire site. Well the truth is I love the band and I think any Obnoxious Listener would at least appreciate their work, even if they can’t bring themselves to embracing their unique style… or should I say styles? Radiohead has redefined their sound more times than Donald Trump has filed for bankruptcy. Unfortunately, it doesn’t seem as though they have it in them any more. I just read at the Guardian News that, “Radiohead have no plans to release another album, Thom Yorke has revealed. Long-playing records, it seems, have ‘just become a real drag’.”
Although Radiohead hasn’t officially called it quits and they claim shorter projects such as EPs could be in the future, it got me thinking. It’s so rare that a band will call it quits while they’re ahead. There are innumerable reasons for bands to split or stop producing music, so I can’t claim that the point in which this happens reflects their intentions. But I’d like to think that those who are musicians for the sake of music, as a opposed to entertainment, will step down at the right time. Despite the fact that I would love another Radiohead album, I have the utmost respect for Thom Yorke admitting they don’t have another album in them; rather than scraping another one together because it’ll sell well.
Sometimes I wonder what I’d think of bands like Creed and Metallica if they never released anything beyond My Own Prison (1997) and The Black Album (1991), respectively. These two bands had very different levels of exposure, and started to suck for very different reasons, and at different paces too, I suppose. But I loved at least one album by each of these bands at one point. They’ve both released god awful albums and someone in each of these bands has become so arrogant that I can’t even stand to listen to their earlier work. It’s hard to blame anyone but Scott Stapp for Creed’s mishap, but Metallica should have known something was awry when they released Load… and certainly Re-Load. Oh man… I’d argue that naming scheme is about as bad as the sequel to Die Hard… Die Harder. Of course, it’s not the name that makes them awful, and one could debate Die Harder is awful in a great way.
As soon as a musician starts writing albums for everyone but himself, he starts to teeter on that gray line distinguishing sell-outs. I guess I’d like to think the real musicians will see that in time, or at least before their third farewell tour. Then again, maybe I’m just an idealist looking in. In any case, kudos to Radiohead.
Not sure if you knew this, but the reason that “Load” and “Re-Load” were titled as such is because they were supposed to be a double album. All the songs were written at the same time. They were in the middle of recording when they got an offer to headline the Lollapalooza tour in the summer of 1996, so they released half the songs on “Load” and then finished the rest of the songs for “Re-Load” the following year.
Of course, what you said in the article is still true — the naming scheme is stupid, and the music sucks.
Perhaps the best example of quitting while ahead in the entertainment business is Jerry Seinfeld. He had enough respect for himself and the show to walk away from it after he felt he had accomplished what he set out to, even though the show was wildly popular and he stood to make many, many millions more by continuing.
It's a little more difficult to think of similar situations in the realm of music because bands break up all the time, and like you said there are all kinds of reasons for it (although, “creative differences” seems to be the most popular cited one).
Anyway, we'll see how this all turns out… don't be surprised if Radiohead does end up working on another full-length a few years down the road. Time has a way of changing a person's perspective.
Haha! Glad you agree… I couldn't remember if you were one of those stubborn die-hard Metallica fans that even love St. Anger. And no, I didn't know that about Load and Re-Load. I can't bring myself to listen to those albums again to verify, but I remember loving versions of some songs from those albums on S&M. There was something about the production of those albums that evokes the same sensation I get when hearing nails on a chalk board. I really can't remember if the music changed at all or if they just happened to pick a couple good tracks to use on S&M… and honestly… I don't care enough to find out out. Oh well.
I felt like I disagreed with you on the Jerry Seinfeld example… then I realized all of the examples I came up with weren't voluntary quitters. And I guess Seinfeld was doing really well while it was on the air. Futurama and Arrested Development didn't hit the height of their popularity until long after they were cancelled… I hate it when fantastic shows are cancelled before their time. Furthermore, I'm not really prepared to argue which of those three shows is better… I can't decide myself.
P.S. Did you watch The Wire yet or what?!
My favorite example of a band who should have quit when they were ahead is….Pink Floyd. The more it went on it was like David Gilmore shouting out loud that I really wanted to suck all of these years but Roger kept me in line. Momentary Lapse had a few decent tracks, but for the most part..doesn't go down as true Pink Floyd to me. And to be honest…the end in my head might have been back to the music that mostly Waters put out after The Wall - The Final Cut. I actually enjoy that album…but mostly because I 'made' myself like in the height of my Floyd fandom - you know…the stuff that you know and reminds you of being in high school. But I now recognize how much I would hate it if it was released today…
And I agree, The Black Album was the last of good Metallica. I started listening to them around the same time as Pink Floyd (yes, I'm weird) and Justice was easily one of my favorite tape (yes, Sony Walkman…the original iPod). The Black Album came out my junior year in high school and I've been hoping something good would come out since…but I think I'm finally convinced, thanks to Dan, that I need to give that dream up.
Which of Pink Floyd's pre-Dark Side albums do you think are the best? I only have the four albums from Dark Side to The Wall but I love them all.
P.S. - For a second there I thought you said you had to force yourself to like The Wall, and I was gonna try to reach through the screen to smack some sense into you! lol
Wow, yeah that's quite a threesome and I'm not prepared to argue for or against any of them either. I really need to watch the entire Arrested Development series some time; I think I've probably only seen like a third of them.
You have the The Wire DVD set for me to borrow??? Ya know, for some unknown reason I thought it was like a TNT show or something… I only recently realized it was an HBO show, and that did make me more interested than before.
Pre-Dark Side…my opinion on the best would be hands down…Meddle. The Piper at the Gates of Dawn is decent too.
And yes, please smack me if I ever say anything bad about The Wall!! 
I'd like to just point out that even though Jerry Seinfeld quit while he was ahead, he still had the decency to admit that as his reason for quitting rather then most celebrities who go with the oh-so overused excuse “it just didn't feel right”.
As for Arrested Development and Futurama, I agree that they were both still trying to hit their stride but while Arrested Development was only getting better, Futurama was starting to teeter and as much as it pains me to say…i have to accept Matt G's reason for canceling the show. It's better to leave with your head held high then to leave with your hands on your head.
In the words of George Constanza: “Alright, Folks. That's it for me. Goodnight !”
Also in quitting whiles you are ahead, Ozzy should have stopped after Ozzmossis. The later ones are lame and lost. But moving on, check out Crooked X.
i'm glad, radiohead has been pretty stale from the beginning.
While I certainly can't expect everyone to like Radiohead, I must say that stale is a very poorly chosen word to describe Radiohead… especially from the beginning.
While I certainly can't expect everyone to like Radiohead, I must say that stale is a very poorly chosen word to describe Radiohead… especially from the beginning.
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