Week 38: 50 Albums That Changed Music

[Swish]

While I was a bit surprised by the choice for this week, I can't say that I disagree with it since I like it a lot and feel it was influential to many that followed. Radiohead - The Bends (1995)

In parallel with Jeff Buckley, Radiohead's Thom Yorke popularised the angst-laden falsetto, a thoughtful opposite to the chest-beating lad-rock personified by Oasis's Liam Gallagher. Sounding girly to a backdrop of churning guitars became a much-copied idea, however, one which eventually coalesced into an entire decade of sound. Without this...Coldplay would not exist, nor Keane, nor James Blunt.

So we have Radiohead to blame for James Blunt. Bastards! Well, as I was saying, I think this record and this band influenced many who followed, and would probably include Travis, John Mayer, and probably a dozen or more others I can't think of off the top. Yeah, they had a big hit with Creep in '92 and released Pablo Honey the following year, but The Bends made them famous and introduced the sound that defined them for the years that followed. Ok Computer may judged as better by many of us, but this is the right choice IMO.

Swish

[kexodusc]

Interesting choice...as usual, the list seems to pick an artist at a point in time that I don't really disagree with, but then puts their own spin on it by picking the wrong album.

Maybe the argument is that "The Bends" was the album that steered Radiohead and led to all the imitations? Guess that's possible.

Radiohead's always been one of those bands I can respect, but really just don't get me really excited. I don't mind them.
I laughed when I heard "OK Computer" was listed as most influential album of the 1990's (though in hindsight why not?)but, there's no denying OK Computer was the album that Radiohead will be remembered for - if you put all their other works together, they still don't have the impact of that one album. When "The Bends" hit, it was just recognized as another good album from another band who had some success in the new "alternative" movement, certainly didn't reach #1 on this side of the pond. OK Computer was a hit worldwide, and really was the album that separated Radiohead from its peers. Without OK Computer we wouldn't even remember Radiohead now, they'd be another "The Verve".

Any lasting impact that The Bends had on the music industry was totally eclipsed by OK Computer, which did all over again, only more so.

[-Jar-]

Any lasting impact that The Bends had on the music industry was totally eclipsed by OK Computer, which did all over again, only more so.

if THE BENDS spawned a decade of immitators, OK COMPUTER showed that while they could immitate, none of them could even come close..