RADIOHEAD

01 — Origins

A Brief History

Radiohead began as On a Friday, named for the day the five schoolfriends from Abingdon School in Oxfordshire rehearsed. Thom Yorke, Jonny Greenwood, Colin Greenwood, Ed O'Brien, and Philip Selway formed the band in 1985, signed to EMI in 1991, and renamed themselves after the Talking Heads song "Radio Head" from True Stories. What followed was one of the most radical evolutions in rock history — from guitar-driven angst to electronic abstraction, orchestral grief, and internet-era distribution experiments.

1985–1991

On a Friday

University scattered the members, but they reconvened on weekends. Demo tapes and local gigs built a following. Jonny Greenwood joined last — he was originally the band's roadie before becoming lead guitarist.

1992–1993

Pablo Honey & "Creep"

Debut album and unexpected worldwide hit. The band grew to resent the song's dominance, often playing it ironically or speeding it up in live sets. Still, it funded their future freedom.

1995

The Bends

John Leckie production, soaring guitars, Thom's voice at its most visceral. Critical redemption. Tracks like "Fake Plastic Trees," "Street Spirit (Fade Out)," and "High and Dry" defined alternative rock of the era.

1997

OK Computer

Recorded largely in Jane Seymour's St. Catherine's Court mansion. A dystopian masterpiece about technology, alienation, and transport nightmares. Grammy-nominated; frequently cited as the greatest album of the 1990s — and of all time.

2000–2001

Kid A / Amnesiac

Paris and Copenhagen sessions with heavy electronics, Warp Records influences, and jazz. Split across two albums recorded in the same period. Deliberately difficult, commercially triumphant. No traditional singles campaign for Kid A.

2003

Hail to the Thief

Two weeks in Los Angeles. Bush-era politics, climate dread, and compressed urgency. A bridge between their electronic period and the organic warmth to come.

2007

In Rainbows

Released online with pay-what-you-want pricing ten days after completion. Reinvented music industry conversation. Warm, lush, reconciliatory — "15 Step," "Weird Fishes," "All I Need."

2011

The King of Limbs

Groove-based, loop-heavy, inspired by club music and nature. The "Lotus Flower" video with Thom's viral dancing introduced many to their later era.

2016

A Moon Shaped Pool

Long gestation; strings arranged by Jonny. Grief, climate, and aging. "Burn the Witch" video with stop-motion horror. Possibly their most emotionally direct late-period work.

Present

Hiatus & Solo Work

No full album since 2016, but members remain prolific: Thom's solo and Atoms for Peace, Jonny's film scores, Ed's EarthSpeaks, Colin's film composing. Fans still parse every interview for reunion hints.

02 — The Band

Five From Abingdon

The same lineup for four decades — a rarity in rock. Each member shapes the sound: Thom's voice and vision, Jonny's orchestration and noise, Ed's texture, Colin's groove, Phil's precision.

03 — Records

Discography

Nine studio albums, numerous EPs, B-sides compilations, and live recordings. Filter by era, browse tracklists, and hit ▶ on any track to hear a preview.

1993

Pablo Honey

EMI · Produced by Sean Slade & Paul Q. Kolderie

Debut. Grunge-adjacent. "Creep" overshadowed everything else — but "Blow Out" hinted at future depth.

1. 01 You
2. 02 Creep
3. 03 How Do You?
4. 04 Stop Whispering
5. 05 Thinking About You
6. 06 Anyone Can Play Guitar
7. 07 Ripcord
8. 08 Vegetable
9. 09 Prove Yourself
10. 10 I Can't
11. 11 Lurgee
12. 12 Blow Out

1995

The Bends

EMI · Produced by John Leckie

The leap. Britpop-adjacent but stranger. Jonny's guitar ascends; Thom's melodies devastate.

1. 01 Planet Telex
2. 02 The Bends
3. 03 High and Dry
4. 04 Fake Plastic Trees
5. 05 Bones
6. 06 (Nice Dream)
7. 07 Just
8. 08 My Iron Lung
9. 09 Bullet Proof..I Wish I Was
10. 10 Street Spirit (Fade Out)
11. 11 Sulk
12. 12 Black Star

1997

OK Computer

EMI · Nigel Godrich co-producing

Y2K anxiety before Y2K. Nigel Godrich becomes the "sixth member." Paranoid androids welcome.

1. 01 Airbag
2. 02 Paranoid Android
3. 03 Subterranean Homesick Alien
4. 04 Exit Music (For a Film)
5. 05 Let Down
6. 06 Karma Police
7. 07 Fitter Happier
8. 08 Electioneering
9. 09 Climbing Up the Walls
10. 10 No Surprises
11. 11 Lucky
12. 12 The Tourist

2000

Kid A

Parlophone · Nigel Godrich

No guitars on the cover — because they're often absent in the mix. Warp, Aphex Twin, and political dread.

1. 01 Everything In Its Right Place
2. 02 Kid A
3. 03 The National Anthem
4. 04 How to Disappear Completely
5. 05 Treefingers
6. 06 Optimistic
7. 07 In Limbo
8. 08 Idioteque
9. 09 Morning Bell
10. 10 Motion Picture Soundtrack

2001

Amnesiac

Parlophone · Same sessions as Kid A

"Like you've gone mad in a cupboard." Pyramid imagery, jazz horns, and "Like Spinning Plates."

1. 01 Packt Like Sardines in a Crushd Tin Box
2. 02 Pyramid Song
3. 03 Pulk/Pull Revolving Doors
4. 04 You and Whose Army?
5. 05 I Might Be Wrong
6. 06 Knives Out
7. 07 Morning Bell/Amnesiac
8. 08 Dollars and Cents
9. 09 Hunting Bears
10. 10 Like Spinning Plates
11. 11 Life in a Glasshouse

2003

Hail to the Thief

Parlophone · Abbreviated HTTT

Fast, angry, eclectic. "2+2=5," "There There," and the title's contested political reading.

1. 01 2 + 2 = 5
2. 02 Sit Down. Stand Up
3. 03 Sail to the Moon
4. 04 Backdrifts
5. 05 Go to Sleep
6. 06 Where I End and You Begin
7. 07 We Suck Young Blood
8. 08 The Gloaming
9. 09 There There
10. 10 I Will
11. 11 A Punchup at a Wedding
12. 12 Myxomatosis
13. 13 Scatterbrain
14. 14 A Wolf at the Door

2007

In Rainbows

Self-released · Pay what you want

Their most loved? Intimate, poly-rhythmic, reconciled. The "Disk 2" B-sides are essential listening too.

1. 01 15 Step
2. 02 Bodysnatchers
3. 03 Nude
4. 04 Weird Fishes/Arpeggi
5. 05 All I Need
6. 06 Faust Arp
7. 07 Reckoner
8. 08 House of Cards
9. 09 Jigsaw Falling Into Place
10. 10 Videotape

2011

The King of Limbs

XL · TKOL

Loops, polyrhythms, woodland spirits. "Codex" and "Give Up the Ghost" are fan favorites; divisive on first listen.

1. 01 Bloom
2. 02 Morning Mr Magpie
3. 03 Little by Little
4. 04 Feral
5. 05 Lotus Flower
6. 06 Codex
7. 07 Give Up the Ghost
8. 08 Separator

2016

A Moon Shaped Pool

XL · AMSP

Some tracks date back years. Orchestral, autumnal, mourning. "True Love Waits" finally committed to tape.

1. 01 Burn the Witch
2. 02 Daydreaming
3. 03 Decks Dark
4. 04 Desert Island Disk
5. 05 Ful Stop
6. 06 Glass Eyes
7. 07 Identikit
8. 08 The Numbers
9. 09 Present Tense
10. 10 Tinker Tailor Soldier Sailor Rich Man Poor Man Beggar Man Thief
11. 11 True Love Waits

EPs & Compilations

Essential non-studio releases — click any cover to enlarge.

03b — Visuals

Artwork Gallery

Stanley Donwood (and aliases like The White Chocolate Farm) has defined Radiohead's visual language since The Bends. Album sleeves, singles, and special editions — click to view full size.

04 — Canon

Essential Songs

Impossible to rank — but these tracks capture the breadth of Radiohead: anthems, deep cuts, and live transformations. Press ▶ for a 30-second Apple Music preview (internet required).

01

Paranoid Android

OK Computer · 1997

Six minutes, four sections, three music videos. The prog-punk-opera template.

02

Street Spirit (Fade Out)

The Bends · 1995

Arpeggiated despair. Thom: "the first time I'd written something true."

03

How to Disappear Completely

Kid A · 2000

Strings by Jonny. Thom floating. Often the emotional peak of live sets.

04

Pyramid Song

Amnesiac · 2001

Jazz funeral in 4/4 or 3/4 — still debated. Horn section heaven.

05

There There

Hail to the Thief · 2003

Ginger-haired Thom in a forest. Jonny's tribal drums. Cathartic crescendo.

06

Weird Fishes/Arpeggi

In Rainbows · 2007

Overlapping guitar cycles. Deep-sea metaphor. Fan-favorite for a reason.

07

Reckoner

In Rainbows · 2007

Phil's polyrhythm + Thom's falsetto gospel. The "golden ratio" of their catalog.

08

Idioteque

Kid A · 2000

Two chords and a sample. Dance-floor apocalypse. Still blows speakers.

09

Let Down

OK Computer · 1997

Delayed vocals, airport melancholy. Beloved deep cut turned singalong.

10

True Love Waits

A Moon Shaped Pool · 2016

25 years from first live performance to studio version. Patience rewarded.

05 — Ideas

Themes & Aesthetics

Radiohead's art extends beyond music: Stanley Donwood's artwork, Chris Hopewell and Garth Jennings videos, and a consistent obsession with technology, ecology, and power.

06 — Performance

Live & Tours

Radiohead live is a different band — songs deconstructed, extended, or accelerated. The 1997–98 OK Computer tour, 2000–01 Kid Amnesiac shows, 2008 In Rainbows world tour, and 2016–18 AMSP dates are legendary.

Bootleg culture: Radiohead officially released 12 live recordings from the In Rainbows tour free online — unprecedented for a major act. Sites like Citizen Insane document every setlist.

07 — Beyond

Side Projects & Collaborations

Each member's solo work feeds back into Radiohead's DNA. Cross-pollination with Björk, Scott Walker, Patti Smith, and countless film composers.

Thom Yorke

The Eraser / ANIMA / Tomorrow's Modern Boxes

Solo electronic and dance-oriented work with Nigel Godrich. ANIMA paired with Paul Thomas Anderson short film for Netflix.

Thom + Nigel + Flea + Joey Waronker

Atoms for Peace

Amok (2013). Live band extrapolating King of Limbs grooves. "Default" and "Before Your Very Eyes."

Jonny Greenwood

Film Scores

PT Anderson, Lynne Ramsay (You Were Never Really Here), Jane Campion. Orchestra conductor and avant-garde composer.

Jonny + Shye Ben Tzur + Rajasthan Express

Junun

Recorded at Mehrangarh Fort, India. Documentary by Paul Thomas Anderson. Sufi-rock fusion.

Ed O'Brien

EOB — Earth

2020 album. Shoegaze-adjacent, environmental themes, featuring Thom on "Caspian."

Philip Selway

Familial / Weatherhouse

Intimate, folk-tinged solo records. Composed music for BBC drama and theatre.

Colin Greenwood

Film Composition

Scores for indie and documentary film. Less public but deeply respected in soundtrack circles.

Band

7 Worlds Collide

Charity supergroup with Neil Finn (Crowded House) for Oxfam — includes several Radiohead members.

08 — Impact

Legacy & Accolades

Inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 2019. Multiple Grammys. More "greatest album" list appearances than any band of their generation. They changed how artists think about contracts, leaks, and direct-to-fan distribution.

09 — Go Deeper

Official & Fan Resources

Dive further into the rabbit hole — official channels, archives, and documentaries.