The current Radiohead tour is hitting only nine North American cities, but the band still managed to squeeze in two consecutive concerts in Berkeley, in between Coachella appearances. Both were knock-outs.
I was amazed at how they now have the stature and resonance of bands like Pink Floyd, Led Zeppelin and the Grateful Dead for peeps under 40. Their classic tracks have become pop culture landmarks whose opening notes can trigger hysteria, or at least loud enthusiasm.
Those, like me, who heard both nights heard eight of "OK Computer"'s twelve songs -- a fitting tribute for the twentieth birthday of that landmark album.
Students from the University of California at Berkeley, where the Greek Theater is located, swarmed the hills above the theater (where I heard the show) in almost unprecedented numbers. (Only Hozier and Tame Impala have drawn as many.) And they were jazzed, smiling and joking and laughing like people who hadn't laughed in a while. This -- two sold-out gigs that could be heard full blast for free in the springtime hills above the Greek -- was a treat, and everyone knew it.
Night Two (April 18) was even better than the excellent (but rainy) Night One (April 17). The band served up musical caviar like "Paranoid Android," arguably the greatest melody from any band to have emerged in the post-Beatles era. (The "rain down" part cries out for adaptation and expansion by a symphony orchestra.) Plus, an exquisite "Street Spirit," the band's "Sound of Silence"; and a "There There" that Jonny Greenwood, on fire, turned into a flameball.
And then there was the astonishing final encore, "Karma Police," which had a Cobainish cultish quality. I've never seen a crowd enjoy and need a particular song more in recent memory. Even after the band finished, thousands spontaneously sang "I lost myself, I lost myself."
Peaks were everywhere. "Climbing Up the Walls" made me feel like I was in the middle of a sci-fi horror flick. "The National Anthem" sounded like a song you hear while you're dreaming. "Separator"'s melody caught me by surprise on second listen.
And when Thom Yorke muttered "oh shit" during encore "Give Up the Ghost," Greenwood apparently instantly turned the audio sample into a tape loop, though it was hard to tell at the time what exactly had happened. (Btw, contrary to published rumors, the band did NOT perform "Creep." I have the entire concert on tape, so I know.)
The best new ones, from last year's "A Moon Shaped Pool" album, were "Ful Stop" and the evocative "The Numbers."
On the first night, they wasted no time getting to some of the gold on "OK Computer," bringing out "Lucky" with a whisper that turned into an operatic roar early in the set. Played at a slightly slower pace, it seemed to fly like some sort of prehistoric bird.
Other highlights of the first night included "Everything in Its Right Place," which always has the feel of a cozy overnight transatlantic flight (on an airline other than United, of course!); "Fake Plastic Trees," which never fails to get me choked up; and the uplifting (and rarely played) "The Tourist."
The last time I heard them was at the same venue eleven years ago, when they were road-testing material that would later appear on "In Rainbows." It was a limited-edition tour that I caught twice. At that time, "OK Computer" was a mere nine years old and the word Obama was unknown to most Americans. At those concerts, a star of the set was "Four Minute Warning," the best of the new ones, though oddly later consigned to a bonus disc and never subsequently played live. And "House of Cards" was already embraced as an encore and had everyone clapping along, but is now almost never performed (though they did play it on the second night here). .
In those eleven years, Radiohead has become an even better, tighter live group that has weeded out all irrelevant notes and dead patches. They even creatively filled up the empty space after their opening act with fascinating pre-recorded experimental and atmospheric music (and kept the wait to a half hour).
The opening act was Dudu Tassa and the Kuwaitis. At their best, they sounded like a combination of R.E.M. and Cem Karaka; at their worst, like the Gypsy Kings. Thoroughly enjoyable set that mixed various middle eastern musical forms with modern rock. (Tassa should try a cover of "Paranoid Android.")
Radiohead's U.S. tour ends tomorrow night (April 21) at Coachella; the European leg begins in June.