

With all the attention Radiohead’s new In Rainbows album (released digitally today) has received due to its unique sales plan, it’s possible to forget that this is an album with actual songs on it, rather than a way to turn the music industry on its ear. But it is, in fact, an album, and that album has a sound.

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Fans expecting a sonic revolution on the magnitude of Kid A are likely to be disappointed, In Rainbows representing an expansion of earlier Radiohead ideas rather than a departure from them. Likewise, anyone looking for the dramatic anthems from the band’s earlier albums will prefer to keep listening to those. But the more I listen to In Rainbows, the more I notice the sort of subtle touches, sonic variety and chordal development that could make the album a so-called "grower" with Radiohead fans. It simply gets better with each listen.

Listen: 30-second sample from "Weird Fishes/Arpeggi"

Making your way through In Rainbows, you understand why Radiohead refuses to release their albums as individual songs on iTunes and other digital outlets: the songs flow into each other with a sense of purpose, and sound like they’re meant to be heard in a row. In general, the trend throughout the album is from fast to slow tempos, but, of course, the overall progression is a lot more complex than that.

The album kicks off with Thom Yorke declaring, "How come I end upwhere I started, how come I end up where I went wrong" on top of a stomping beat that feels like an IDM-typedeconstruction of the sparse, cheerleader style pioneered by Gwen Stefani in "Holla Back Girl," but soon guitar and bass kick in toenvelope the listener in a rapidly-expanding layer of Radioheadlushness.

Then it’s time for live favorite "Bodysnatchers," a whirling dervish of a track that rouses on the level of Kid A‘s "National Anthem." After these two driving tracks, In Rainbows wends its way into slower, more haunting territory with "Nude," a waltz with velvety bass and string swells that sounds like it would be perfect accompaniment for slow space footage a la 2001: Space Odyssey. The ambitious, beautiful "Weird Fishes/Arpeggi" expands a jittery acoustic guitar riff into a glittering crescendo that resolves into the underwater aesthetic hinted at by its title, ultimately ensnaring the listener in a whirlpool.

"All I Need," a nicely disorienting track, sounds somewhat like Thom Yorke fronting The Boards of Canada, while "Faust Arp" could be an answer to The Beatles’ "Blackbird." Then the album takes a turn for the experimental with the wide, watery drum sounds of "Reckoner," which adds Fender Rhodes and more string swells, and includes a few surprising/satisfying major chords.

As for the last three songs, you’ll have to listen for yourself. Then, vote for your favorite In Rainbows tracks with our voting widget:

How do you rate the songs on Radiohead’s In Rainbows album?