Best Albums !: Radiohead. The Bends (1995)

The Bends, released on 13 March 1995 in the United Kingdom and on 4 April 1995 in the United States, is the second album by the English rock band Radiohead.

While Radiohead's debut, Pablo Honey, was a more traditional post-grunge, upbeat rock album, The Bendse art rock that was soon to be explored (though this went largely unnoticed at the time). The Bends balances such hard-rocking songs as "Just" and "My Iron Lung" with slow and atmospheric ballads such as "Street Spirit (Fade Out)" and "High and Dry". Meanwhile, songs like "Planet Telex" showed increased experimentation with keyboard textures. That song also led the band to commission their first remixes, which appeared as b-sides. In contrast, "My Iron Lung" displayed heavily distorted screamed vocals and guitar soloing, but with a multi-part song structure, tempo changes and loud-to-soft dynamics, all of which marked a change from their previous rock sound. The Bends also brought the group a wider audience with singles likeFake Plastic Trees" and the hypnotic "Street Spirit (Fade Out)", the latter a surprise hit which earned Radiohead's highest UK chart placement to that date. showed some movement toward th "High and Dry", "

The band credited producer John Leckie (The Stone Roses, The Fall, Pink Floyd) with allowing them the freedom to do things their own way on The Bends. Trying to follow-up the success of their 1992 single "Creep" with further hits, the band also developed their style in more subtle directions after the over-the-top sound of their debut Pablo Honey. Lead guitarist Jonny Greenwood said, "We did what we wanted for our second album, and we ignored all advice, unlike the first record.". Key influences cited by the band during the recording were Jeff Buckley, Magazine, Morrissey, R.E.M. and the Pixies. The band also covered songs by Carly Simon and Tim Buckley during this period.