In The Bends, Thom tells us he wishes it was the 60s. One may imagine two versions of the 60s liberatory, hippies - one as losers who turned away from real political action to have sex and do drugs, and one as a revolutionary force of change in society. We shouldn't be so black and white, and we should acknowledge the level of CIA counter intelligence at play here in both versions, but regardless, it may be fair to say that both populations of 'hippies' likely existed. Thom is likely nostalgic - already what many would consider a reactionary tendency - for the former type, the hedonistic withdrawing loser who avoids true political conflict through 'peace and love' sex and drugs, etc. That, or he maintains the fantasy that he is the latter through renunciation - this would be even stranger (Thom is not doing sex and drugs, that is true, but he is escaping the world, not encountering it).
In Ok Computer he literally tells us he would like a simple life, the house and the wife, the green lawn and white picket fence, all tucked away from the chaos of the modern world - even if it meant making a deal with the devil. This is the faustian deal capitalism offers us - the quiet, complacent life of a placated consumer who does not worry about politics or genocide but in turn must be complicit with the evil, or the riskier choice of fighting for no tangible immediate reward, and only the slim possibility of a deferred change. We must of course be heroes and take the latter. For an example see characters like Cypher in The Matrix.
If we were more generous, we would say Thom is simply voicing what Guattari might frame as 'his unconscious desire to be a fascist,' or what a behaviorist would call 'conflict avoidance,' and as such, it is not an actual endorsement of true world views. This could be plausible if not for Thom literally telling us a few weeks ago he does not care about the dying children or families and just wishes to play his bass in peace. Finally, though Thom does suggest that we "bring down the government, they don't speak for us," he immediately disavows the radical nature of this in the next line when he sings "I'll take a quiet life, a handshake of carbon monoxide."
Ok Computer is about individual feelings of depressive or neuro-atypitcal overwhelmedness followed by schizophrenic withdrawal from the world. This is best exemplified by Climbing Up The Walls. I will not elaborate, listen to the song, and look into the psychotic break Thom had when writing the album. As Deleuze and Guattari have mentioned, or as Nick Land has shown us, schizophrenic collapse, if not properly navigated, can lead to a doubling down of conservative old-man behavior.
It seems Thom might've wrote the lyrics to Ok Computer B-Side 'A Reminder' as if he knew about this Deleuzo-Guattarian schiz-retteritorialization; as if he knew he would grow to become that conservative old man and would need a 'reminder' of his values.
If Ok Computer is the first onset of schizophrenic collapse, with its dry sarcasm, social critique, and blend of traditional instruments and electronic manipulation, then Kid A is the full on psychotic break into no man's land. It's about depression, trauma, distance, dissociation, darkness, paranoid fantasies of ghosts haunting, etc. It's a less rosy, dreamy form of escape, more of a nightmare.
Ideotqeue is about the fear of nuclear war destroying Thom and his family, and how he would cut a deal to save himself - 'who's in a bunker, take the money and run.'
Amnesiac reflects the sleep theme, and continues the mild political critique - Like Spinning Plates is about political lies.
Interestingly enough, the same musical composition for Like Spinning Plates (chord progressions and melody) is reused on All Hail to Thief track I Will which is about taking your family and hiding them in a bunker to protect from nuclear holocaust. Some of the lyrics seem recycled from Ideoteque as well.
All Hail to the Thief feigns the most political messaging with its overt, on the nose track '2+2=5' and its narrative of being 'anti Bush War on terror' or whatever. According to the internet (Wiki, duh), the album artwork is interpreted as a possible depiction of Bush's plan for peace in the Middle East, specifically between Israel and Palestine. Read that last bit again - wow!
Meanwhile, In Rainbows is a purely romantic album, right down to its chord progressions. It has no political tones. It is pure Radiohead at its most escapist (it's a great album).
King of Limbs sucks, I don't even care what's going in there.
A Moon shaped Pool is a romantic album with minor political tones and messages, we don't need to discuss it.
The nail in the coffin is that this doesn't all end when we take Thom Yorke out of Radiohead. Thom Yorke side-project Atoms For Peace presents an interesting semiotic / historical irony - the title of the band is lifted from the government program and Cold War propaganda strategy of the Eisenhower administration that directly contributed to the building of nuclear reactors in countries such as America, Pakistan, and - wait for it - Israel. The aim was to surround nuclear weaponry by a political narrative of hopes and fears to make nuclear weapons seem more marketable.
Chad Waters vs. Virgin Yorke
I just want to take a minute to compare Roger Water's politics and music to Yorke's.
Water's political activism has always been consistent - reality or material based, anti-imperial, anti-fascist, etc., active (as opposed to reactive) and 'not woke' (I am not endorsing a woke or anti-woke position here, just making an observation...).
Water's, whose father died in WWII leaving him resentful towards the way governments treat people as disposable, engages with the real horrors of war, political violence, etc., does not avoid them with his music. He fantasizes about using his money and power to save people and does it all while ironically using lesser slurs and being somewhat sleazy towards woman. Not necessarily endorsing this, but he is uncompromising in his personality as he speaks out against the horrors of the world (he brought up a bunch of black kids up on stage to sing the chorus of Another Brick in the Wall Pt 2, flashing a large sign stating 'Trans Lives Matter' the last time I saw him...).
Water's is kind of a Neo-liberal cowboy. He wants to fly refuges to safety in his private jet, he mocks Margaret Thatcher, he is dry and sarcastic. He turns towards the world while Yorke turns away.
Anyways, hope this was somewhat interesting to read for some of you folks...
