The Bends

I wonder when I last listened to The Bends in full, start to finish? More than a decade, maybe even 20 years, and yet from around 1996 to 2003 I bet it was something I did at least weekly. In the intervening time, I've probably talked it down, in the frequent Radiohead-based monologues I like to embark on, but this just reminded me that it's great. Muscular, emotional, raw, and with just a hint of the extraordinary path they were going to go on. For a bog-standard alt-rock band, The Bends would be as good as it gets, instead of a stepping stone. A few highlights on this listen - the whole of (nice dream), the wordless vocals that kick off the title track, the harmonies in Blackstar, absolutely bellowing the chorus to Sulk, and probably above all, really engaging in the guitars in Just - a superbly chaotic song. Tremendous stuff Thom and the lads.

A stonewall classic. From perfect guitar tracks like My Iron Lung and Just to the fragility of Fake Plastic Trees and Bullet proof...I wish I was. Radiohead are a band that hit differently to any other band. And there's an argument to say this is only their 3rd or 4th best album.

really good songs but after listening to so much radiohead im starting to see how it sounds like a lot of the same

It's Radiohead coming into their peak era. It's a shame they left guitars behind, but can't complain since they gave us this.

Listened to this in the library during my free period 23/06/26 One of my fav Radiohead Albums. All Bangers. Have listened to it a lot previously.

Today I think "High and Dry" is my favorite Radiohead song, although I know that's subject to change. Hard to believe this has been out for more than 30 years; it doesn't seem dated to me like some music from that same period — maybe because it's "music of Radiohead" rather than "music of the 1990s."

Alright but I wouldn't relisten

Yes

Depressive af

Notable Textzeile: I get on the train and I just stand about Now that I don't think of you I keep falling over, I keep passing out When I see a face like you Ist ja wirklich selten hier, das ich denke ein Album hätte länger sein können. Hier ist es der Fall. Daher direkt ein zweites Mal gehört und da hat mich dann einiges genervt. Aber ist ja eine gute Erkenntnis über mich selbst. Ab und zu mit Abstand Radiohead - The Bends super. Zu eng aneinander doof. Ich rate jetzt mal für super.

Das Album vergesse ich immer, was ein Zeichen für meine Vergesslichkeit und für die Qualität der folgenden Radiohead Alben ist. Starker, atmosphärischer Rock mit Hits und coolen Deep Cuts... Gleichzeitig auch irgendwie eine Band die nicht so richtig zu wissen scheint was sie sein will.

Ikonisch. Kein Song zuviel, keiner zu wenig. No Skips, all hits. Ist es das beste Radiohead-Album? Wahrscheinlich. Werden mir Menschen da widersprechen. Definitiv. Aber ich kann mit OK Computer und Kid A wirklich wenig anfangen.

my favorite album of all time

Yes sir. Don't leave me high. More like Sadiohead. Cant believe i hadnt heard this. I thought they were overrated b4 this. 5/5 In all seriousness the anger and wash of the guitar combined with the beautiful voice and melancholic content makes for an interesting mix

good

black star :(((

It’s okay

music is love

8/10

Gets better with every listen

I WANNA BE APART OF THE HUMAN RACE!!!

Fake Plastic Trees is such a great song. The album just works.

Whatever you do, do not listen to this album if your depressed, it will kill you.

Good listen, but mainly for the "Hits" like Just, Planet Telex, High and Dry, Fake Plastic Trees, My Iron Lung etc. Deeper cuts like the title track, which reminds me of Paradise City by GNR of all songs, are decidedly less memorable. That said, its much better than Amnesiac and Hail to the Thief that I've listened to previously on this journey. We don't really need to have every Radiohead-album on here, and if we just stuck to the holy trinity of OK Computer, Kid A and In Rainbows we'd have a lot more room for something else. The Bends can have a space in here, I guess, but there's a fair amount of Radiohead-burnout here when we could make room for something different.

My favorite Radiohead album.

It is a dynamic album with some depth, the guitar sounds great and the songwriting is decent. Yorke can be a bit whiny sounding but I am okay with that. This album was a huge influence on the Brit-pop sound. It is a decent album has some really good songs and a few meh tunes.

One of the most immersive albums I've ever heard. The textures of the sounds show how well designed this project is, taking your ears for a 49 minute long adventure. Marks the true beginning of one of the best alternative rock bands ever.

Amazing album, not more not less

Vh1 used to have an alt-rock side that made an impression on me in the 2000s, I was unaware how much of that aesthetic is a reference to this album. It's not the Radiohead I've grown to love, it's the Radiohead before that, I wasn't aware High and Dry was theirs, a lot of these songs felt like the DNA of an era. Points for that. It's a little more commercial than I'd appreciate, a bit on the soft rock side too, but then the actual composition of everything is pretty exquisite. I'd buy this record so I could spin it at reunions, it's a safe bet for most ears. 4.1/5

Love this album and knew so many of the songs but there were a couple I had never heard. Radiohead is the greatest.

No Notes just perfection

This is Radiohead's second album, a departure from the pure rock first album, and more towards the real sound of the band. It's ethereal, introspective and easier to listen to. An essential amongst the plethora of Radiohead's albums, and a great one.

One of my all time faves. Hits a certain nostalgia button, but is also just a great example of 90s alt rock. So many timeless classics.

Planet Telex is the opening song, an underrated song. It is a great start and progresses nicely through High and Dry and Fake Plastic Trees, which are both sublime. Great start to finish, no complaints.

Arguably better than OK Computer. This is Radiohead taking a stab at Britpop, while also staying true to their form. It is a crime that this isn't regarded in the same realm as OK Computer and Kid A. 10/10

god bless radiohead one of my all time favorite bands - thom yorke <3 is not of this world! Great album I see no fault just beautiful from start to finish and grateful for the journey

This is like the Yellow-crowned Night Heron I saw last night. It appears to be a bit fragile with a long neck and a delicate plume of feathers tilted back off its head. Long legs hold a unique, eggplant-shaped body. It catches me off guard because it doesn't quite fit into the local bird genre. Sometimes forgotten until it pops up and reminds me of how fascinating it is.

Not since the Beatles has a popular band made such great strides from album to album. This is the second step of 4. A quantum leap from the first outing. OKCpu and Kid A get more attention for their sonic leaps but I would argue this is where the band really reaches and find their voice. Excellent top to bottom.

It was way different than from what I had expected it to be. I liked it tho.

This is easily my favorite of the always hyped Radiohead albums.

What a beauty!

Freaking 10/10 abum, Street spirit really just overshadows any song that may not be so strong. Fucking love radiohead

This was the first Radiohead album I ever owned. I had only heard “High and Dry” and “Fake Plastic Trees” when I bought it, but it quickly became one of my all-time favorite albums. The crazy thing is, it might not even be my favorite Radiohead album. I genuinely don't think there's a bad track on here. Every song lands and the album never loses momentum. It's one of those records where you start it and suddenly realize you've listened to the whole thing without even thinking about skipping ahead. What makes The Bends so special is that it balances big emotional moments with straightforward rock songs better than almost anyone else, they pefected this sound. I've been listening to this album for years, and I still throw it on randomly all the time. It's just so damn good from start to finish.

As of writing, there are 1089 albums on this website's list, which includes six (6) Radiohead albums. I'm on album #74, and somehow...this is my 4th Radiohead album. Maybe the generator knows that Radiohead was once my favorite band of all-time. But because I recently wrote a lengthy review of Kid A where I dove into my history with the band...I don't want to do it all over again. I can tell you that this might very well be my favorite Radiohead album. OK Computer is the canonical favorite in their discography, but at this point, I am so familiar with that album, I know it like the back of my hand. The Bends? It's still at least somewhat fresh to me. Listening back to it today, I was surprised by Bones. I had forgotten about the song Bulletproof. I forgot that the song High And Dry preceded Fake Plastic Trees. Some lyrics tripped me up when trying to sing along. So the album as a whole is still at least a little exciting to me. Of course it's whiny, Radiohead have always sounded like that. But at least this came out before the pointless Thom started doing the pointless "ooouuuuaaagghh" sounds when he couldn't think of something interesting to say. The drumming is great, the musical progressions are interesting, the rockin' singles are great, the slow and soft ballads are beautiful...I think songs like (Nice Dream) and Bulletproof pretty handily outshine Just and My Iron Long. It's just a big and beautiful record. Not nearly as ambitious as their later work, but it's more than made up for by Thom's pretty little castrato voice.

Okay I get it now. Still dont understand why they decided to have the worst sound ever later on on Kid-A but whatever.

An acceptable rock album. Nothing spectacular here. The only song on this one that grabbed me was "Street Spirit (Fade Out)", which I had never knowingly heard before. Hopefully I'm done listening to Radiohead. My Rating: 3/5

Eh. Overrated. Boring.

Very nice

okay at first all the songs kinda sounded the same but when i tell you i loved sulk it when into like 3 of my playlists which is an achievement believe me another one i really liked was just it when straight into emo goth from the 90s playlist all of them were similar but special in their own way i know a few raidohead songs but let me say i only know the popular ones yes i am a larper ngl but i am glad i got to hear more of their songs would i listen to the whole album again no but did i really like it and will def be listing to the ones in my playlist yess to happy i got recommend this website day 1 !

Great album, not my fav radiohead

Ah, my favorite ever used store find. I knew Creep, this album had just came out and I saw it for 4.99. Had to cop it. Still one of my favorite albums to this day. 5/5

I’m surprised by how much I enjoyed this because I’ve not really been a fan of any Radiohead song I’ve ever heard.

Buen material. Siento que tiene buenas canciones, pero no mis favoritas de su discografía Muy fiel a su estilo, que ya en Pablo Honey estaba bastante marcado, pero de igual manera esto es solo un paso a toda la evolución a la que han llegado Se disfruta! 3.8

One of my favourite albums!

I feel like High And Dry is one of Radiohead's best known songs at this point, but there are so many good things in this album. I really enjoyed Fake Plastic Trees, (Nice Dream), and My Iron Lung the most, but this is just one of those albums I can probably put any of the songs on and be happy with it.

One of their many 5s and probably the most approachable of them. Street Spirit and Just got me into Radiohead and I will forever love this record.

Not a huge radiohead fan, but this is truly seminal.

Some people go through life not reading Harry Potter, and wearing this wilful ignorance like a medal. This cohort is blind to the daily cultural references to the wizarding kingdom: "he's such a Muggle!" ... "spitting image of the Weasley twins" ... "sort of dobby-like" ... "dementor? never even met her!" and so on. For me, Radiohead has always been my Harry Potter. I have skirted, avoided and shunned their music. "God no", I would say when someone pulled out a CD. "You can skip getting me tickets," after they announced a show. I slipped out of The Park at Glastonbury when I heard rumours that Thom Yorke was arriving for a surprise gig. It seems though, in spite of my self-imposed obliviousness to their craft, I have created a sort of radiohead-shaped web in my head from all the strands of music and culture that surround me. My wife and I would sing "you do it to yourself, you do!" when we encounter logistical problems of our own making. I hear my friend Marshall's typically strumming patterns in Fake Plastic Trees. Another dear friend chose to spell the shortened form of his name, Thomas, with an "h". Street Spirit has surely been played over the credits of film after film. And, dare I say it, but: Coldplay. Years of absorbing fragments from here, on repeat, have finally come together in my virginal listening of The Bends. And now I can listen to it in its entirety, free from late-adolescent stubbornness, I can appreciate that this is a masterpiece. It weaves a thick mesh of lyrics, melodies, and wide soundscapes, all brought to life by the beautiful vocals and tectonic arrangements. I can see why I blocked it out in my youth, as it lacks the screaming guitar solos and aggressive stance I sought then. But now, I can see the truth: Thom Yorke is a wizard, and we are all but feeble house-elves at his feet.

Always torn between this and OK Computer as my 2nd favourite Radiohead album (In Rainbows will always be no. 1). While this doesn't have anything as astonishing as Paranoid Android, and could be seen as a bit more generic alternative rock compared to what came after, The Bends is just jam packed with great rock songs. Just is as good as any rock song out there, singles like High and Dry and Fake Plastic Trees are lovely, and Street Spirit feels like a sign of things to come.

This is a really good album

베스트: High and Dry

Baby, does in fact, got the bends. Singular in the Radiohead catalog but just damn good songs.

They knew exactly what they were doing.

Not favourite Radiohead. Like later albums better.

Street Spirit is the song that introduced me to Radiohead when I was 11-12 and the first song I learned picking on in a non-classical piece... this album even if wasn't great is special for just those reasons alone

I know everyone loves it but I thought this was boring when it dropped and a relisten has not changed that opinion

awesome album, their most rock based album in my opinion, no bad songs, every song is a standalone banger, this is an essential album to listen to, amazing

High and Dry is pretty good. The rest isn’t doing it for me. I just really am not a Radiohead person

So I was expecting to hate this but the songs (at least the fast tempo one were really good but the slow ones really did nothing for me. So I had to split the difference and give them an average score.

Don't think a review really required.

The Bends I think this is still just about a 5, even if it doesn’t appeal as much to me as it once did. The inventiveness and quality of what they did from Kid A (and OK Computer) onwards I think throws into relief how conventionally alt-rock much of this one feels. It, of course, is a demonstrably superior version of alt-rock compared to their peers, and has 5 or 6 killer tracks in The Bends, High and Dry, Fake Plastic Trees, Just, My Iron Lung and Street Spirit, and there touches of genius and ingenuity all over it, but it does broadly stick broadly to typical structures and instrumentation, and lyrically it feels very similar to Pablo Honey with more than a touch of adolescence to it. Street Spirit really is transcendently superb, it could easily grace any of their albums, and those other big songs are still excellent, and while nothing else on the album is quite at the level of those, they are of a sustained quality, even if the Nirvana-isms are a bit naked in places. Nice Dream and Bullet Proof are probably my favourite of these, with Sulk being possibly the weakest track. It may be revisionist and from a viewpoint of the totality of their career to date, but I feel you can see why they wanted to do OK Computer and then Kid A, they must have felt they had taken their guitar heavy sound as far as they could, I can see how they wouldn’t want to just keep making The Bends over and over, especially when plenty of other bands would base their career off this template - Bullet Proof is very Coldplay’s first album. In the final weighing, it has to be a five, if only for the presence of The Bends, High and Dry, Fake Plastic Trees, Just, My Iron Lung and Street Spirit, songs that many bands would kill for, even if it in context of their career it feels _relatively_ limited in scope and ambition, as fair or unfair as that comparison might be. 🤿🤿🤿🤿🤿 Playlist submission: Street Spirit (Fade Out)

The memories! These mid to late 90s albums can really get you in the feels. In fact recently I have started relistening to this. It was overshadowed somewhat by 'OK Computer', and the trail of ambient genius since, but as a defining album of 90s guitar rock sitting outside of any easy definition, it's frighteningly good. Aside from the big tentpole tracks there are others just as superb. 'Black Star' an alternative break-up anthem with epic chorus; 'Sulk' a clear 'OK Computer' precursor in its glorious sweep. Not a rock reinvention, but certainly taking it to different places. There's not a weak track; an album sitting comfortably in a genius discography.

It influenced Coldplay and Muse and, well, that says it all.

Excellent album. Four stars Thom York: distinctive voice Stripped down style Excellent songs: Planet Telex, High and Dry.

Not my favourite of their but still epic

Already listened

Thanks for reminding me about this album

My favourite Radiohead album, less conceptual perhaps (though not entirely) then their other classics, but the quality of the songs wins the day. And the playing is as ever, committed and fascinating. One might say that Radiohead made three leaps in their artistic journey. This is leap one, and an extraordinary one at that.

soft spot for radiohead, always❤️

*crying noises of agonizing pain* (9/10, 5/5 on this scale)

4th best Radiohead album Standouts: High and Dry, Just, Fake Plastic Trees, My Iron Lung

Not my favorite

shhhhh thhhhhom i can make it through bones, just, and iron lung. every other is a skipper bc of cringe, boring, or both. a shame too. some of the best, most exciting guitar playing i’ve heard on a bad record.

Classic but my least favorite Radiohead album

I am a harsh critic. I don’t just give out 5 stars willy nilly, but sometimes there can be no argument. Even with a brutal hangover, I listened to this twice and it still sounded triumphant and epic. Even the more downbeat songs sound positive. This is one of the best rock albums ever made. The writing is fantastic, the execution is fantastic, the mood is fantastic and the production is fantastic. Yeah, it’s fantas…absolutely wonderful.

I can understand why people love it but the only thing you want to do is fall into depression and kill yourself

Holds up so hard

lowk my favorite radiohead album ive listened to thus far on this list

A few great, nostalgic songs, and overall great vibe, but not an album I’d listen to start to finish.

its giving toy story 3

One of the best not only rock albums … but all albums. This is one of the GOATS!

i am bending over to this album

Nadine’s album that I actually like for the most part. Will wonders never cease.

great but i can’t give it a 5 bcs their other albums are better the first album here i’ve listened to in full multiple times before

It's much better than OK Computer and some moments are even listenable, but, unfortunately, that doesn't means that this record is any good

Le meilleur album de Radiohead à date, même avec la voix pénible de Yorke.

I’m biased going in as a Radiohead fan and it was a joy to be asked to listen to this from start to finish after a very long time! And it was even better than I remembered. No skips. So so so good.

Best

This is the best of their albums, I’d say. Still annoying to listen to, but not as annoying as their later stuff.

Listened to before? Yes Context? Radiohead’s second album and what’s considered to be their first masterpiece. How does one, in the span of merely two years, go from writing songs like “Thinking About You” to masterpieces such as “Street Spirit (Fade Out)”? How do lyrics transform from the blatant sneers of something almost as Sex-Pistols-esque as “How Do You?” to the cleverness of “My Iron Lung”? Was it belated puberty? Extensive devotion to the songwriting craft? Exhaustion? It wasn’t like Radiohead didn’t have songwriting ability beforehand. Just look at songs like “Creep” or “Anyone Can Play Guitar”. In the former, you had Yorke’s wide vocal range and raw lyricism on full display, as well as odd chord progressions and experimental guitar technique. In the latter, you have biting satire that manages to be both personal and political (as things often are) as well as drenched in noise. But there’s something so much greater about The Bends. Maybe it’s the pauses taken throughout—something lacking in Pablo Honey—or maybe it’s the heights they reached for. Maybe it was a newfound awareness of the surrounding world. Radiohead’s roots are present. There’s still the band with the spazz of a singer who called Jim Morrison fat, ugly, and dead before nearly drowning himself. There’s still the guy who plays guitar like he’s trying to ride a bucking horse. But they’re stepping up to the studio with the wisdom of seasoned people-watchers. The songs unfold like a pulse reverberating against a fingertip. Yorke tends to write about others more than himself. The album is full of grocery store personalities. Wives and husbands. Reckless young men. It’s all very empathetic; he mourns the situations of those around him. This is what makes the song “Bullet Proof” so particularly shocking. It’s entirely in first person. It’s the people-watcher going home after a day out. You can picture the barren kitchen—the dark room. There’s all this exhaustion from seeing so much bad. Masterfully located after it is “Black Star”—the climax of the album: the point where this defeated observer attempts to reach out after all this time as a bystander. It revolves around this central figure who is deeply unhappy, but refuses to acknowledge the true root of that unhappiness. The observer is begging them to see what is truly wrong, but ultimately has to step away from the situation. And, of course, there’s the perspective change in “Fake Plastic Trees”—arguably the best song on the album. A beautiful ballad about consumerism, it tells the story of a deeply unhappy woman, who lives in a place folding in on itself—who’s married to a man who’s life work is defeated by something as basic and constant as gravity. Neither of them have a purpose, and they both claw desperately at a passionate, reckless way out. By the end of the song, the previous third person refrain of “it wears [her/him] out” switches to the first person “it wears me out”. Listening, you can imagine Yorke seeing this couple in the grocery store, using them as vessels for this emotional critique before turning inward to examine the weight all this bears on him as well. When the song builds to a downpour of acid rain, obscuring the details of the events in favor of raw emotion, everyone involved is soaked. When the downpour stops, you’re reminded that the observer is there as well. Whether you as a listener identify with the third or first person narrative doesn’t matter. Just as what is presented later in “Black Star”, this is a collective suffering. “Fake Plastic Trees” almost feels like the natural conclusion of the “I don’t care if it hurts/I want to have control/I want a perfect body/I want a perfect soul” part of “Creep”, as well as the thesis of the album as a whole: the artificial against the real. This is even presented in the album cover; it looks like the crash test dummy has found Nirvana. This theme is pretty strong throughout, but there’s never quite a consistency to how it’s presented. “Kill yourself for recognition”. “I don’t want to be a krippled kracked”. “Prozac painkillers”. “A lack of oxygen from my life support/my iron lung”. The observer struggles as much as their subjects. Of course, all of this vulnerability and despair is tempered with anger and snark. “My Iron Lung” practically predicted the modern day Facebook aunt or the teen using ChatGPT for an essay. “Just” has the famous refrain of “you do it to yourself/you do/and that’s what really hurts”. The observer even pulls himself out of mourning the lives of these sad people, straight-up saying “you don’t get my sympathy”. “Sulk”—which is probably the weakest song on the album, despite still being quite good—contains the biting line “just like your dad/you’ll never change”. This is what really makes the emotional depth and nuance of the album. For all the empathy the observer has for the people trapped in the box of consumerism and conformity and mental illness and performative nonsense, they’re also rightfully angry at the stupidity and lack of courage that led them into that trap in the first place. There’s no single way the observer feels about everything; it’s all in conflict. The observer even fears falling into that trap themself on “Bones”, which laments the physical and mental toll of life and how that wears on youth. Which, as a retail worker with chronic pain. Yeah. Accurate. While “Bones” was written about the negative effects of touring, its emotional connotations extend well beyond that context. After all, if you’re Jonny Greenwood, you’re probably pretty worried about getting carpel tunnel or crippling neck pain. Not only because it leads to physical pain and means you can’t play your instrument on the same technical level, but because that instrument and your dynamics and the way in which you play it in a live setting is an emotional expression. The same could apply to any young person wanting to make a change, but worn down and afraid the world will steal their passion. “The Bends” (title track) captures a similar anxiety, holding all of the subject matter of the album in the palm of its hands. There’s political unrest. Nostalgia. A sense of waiting for something bad to happen. And, again: an artificial life support, as he’s “lying in the bar with [his] drip feed on”. There’s such anxiety in it—a sense of “just let it happen already—get it over with”. Anxiety is a feeling Radiohead does extremely well. While it’s brought to new heights as the emotional foundation of OK Computer, it’s also what makes much of The Bends so lyrically rich. “Street Spirit (Fade Out)” is a perfect closer. The main riff sounds like trying to run from impending death. It’s probably the bleakest the band gets to. The observer has snapped and spiraled. While it offers no hope, it does offer catharsis. While the observer, the subject, and the listener blur into a muddled haze, what stays constant is the shared emotional experience; they can descend together. On a sonic level, Radiohead takes things to a much more complex level than on Pablo Honey. It’s not that Pablo Honey didn’t already have its fair share of technical playing, but it was pretty much pure noise. The Bends takes deep breaths. It knows how to build. “My Iron Lung” does this the best, with the octave-shifted arpeggios slowly building to distorted choruses, complete with slap bass and all. Then there are the ballad-y builds in “High and Dry” as well as “Fake Plastic Trees”, and the insane dynamics of “Just”. “High and Dry” has what’s probably the most tasteful guitar solo of Radiohead’s career. And it’s hard to imagine that Jonny Greenwood, who’d been so angry about how quiet “Creep” was, had matured enough to include the great number of slow acoustic songs on The Bends. Not that he still doesn’t make himself heard loud and clear, of course—and thank god for that. The Bends is, at its core, just an amazing guitar album, from the songwriting to the experimentation to the tone. There’s also the use of some more effects, with a lot of octave shifting and delay. It seems to be the first album where Ed O’Brien stepped beyond simply gluing together Yorke’s and Greenwood’s guitar parts with distortion, and started adding more dynamic textures. Thom Yorke brought out some of his higher vocals as well. It was clear from songs like “Creep” that he knew how to sing that high, but it seemed as if he was almost ashamed of it. He was going for that more angry, snarling sound. After all, it was ‘93: the successful alt rock vocalists were people like Kurt Cobain and Eddie Vedder, with low, ugly voices. Was there any place for an anti-rock-star, anti-society alt-rocker who could sing falsetto? Sure, he could sing lower just fine, but it would’ve been a waste if he hadn’t made use of his full vocal range. Thankfully, it was one of the elements brought into the expanded sonic palette of The Bends. There’s also more experimentation with genre. “Bones”, dare I say, has a bit of a bluesy touch to it. “Fake Plastic Trees” and “High and Dry” could be classified as singer/songwriter. On songs like “Nice Dream” and “My Iron Lung”, they take the loud/quiet dynamics popularized by the grunge movement outside of their original context to emphasize a sense of growing frustration. It’s also the first of their albums where the label of “art-rock” starts to truly make sense as a way to describe their sound. The Bends may not be Radiohead’s masterpiece in the same way OK Computer is, but it is their album that arguably best reaches the sweet spot between art, craft, and emotion. There’s a reason it’s continued to resonate through later generations—and not just because of the band’s uncanny ability to predict the future. The songs are accessible, timeless, raw, and well-written. Everything from the tilt of the dummy on the album cover to the falsetto on the chorus of “High and Dry” was destined to become ubiquitous. In other words, The Bends is Radiohead’s album that’s most accessible while also being extremely well-written. Sure, Amnesiac is a good album and all, but it’s an acquired taste. In contrast, anyone from the most pretentious critic to a ten year old can appreciate “High and Dry”. If you haven’t already, give this album a listen. Not only is it just fantastic, but Radiohead does societal critiques and political songs much better than most other bands. And even outside the lyrics, you can appreciate a lot of these songs for just being bangers.

Honestly, I was prepared to hate this. But this is a very sympathetic record. Palatable and very honest. I don't know if radiohead will become one of my staples but I enjoyed it.

4.6 2x but listened to this many times and every song is gold

a legendary album

The Bends is far from my favorite Radiohead album. It feels like the band have found what they wanted to be, but not yet fully developed into being comfortable with that style. It reminding me of an ex asside, I still think its pretty good even with all that said. This feels like the most post-nirvana album of theirs and probably the best pick to get someone who thinks "Radiohead is too slow" to listen to. It's just lacking in the standouts I find in their best work, and feels more like a showcase of things to come then an incredible album in its own right.

Already very familiar with this album, sitting as definitely one of my top 50 albums. Relistened to some songs I was more unfamiliar with, however i remembered why i was unfamiliar with them. 9/10, a couple songs ruin that 10/10.

Demasiado calmado y tranquilo para mí

Whilst I appreciate that they did more musically adventurous things, in some ways it's a shame they didn't stick as a more typical guitar band because this album fucking rocked! The Bends, Black Dtar, Just, even Sulk all have incredible crescendos

Aight, its radiohead

I wish I could dislike Radiohead from having a ex that was a mega fan and slightly pretentious about music, but I simply can’t. The Bends isn’t even my favourite album and yet they still manage to knock it out of the park, getting you in your feelings and each song has something to say. An artist is truly special when they manage to capture your attention with their music yet in an unpretentious way, discretely framing your life through their soundtrack. I can’t pick out a song, perhaps I’d say Iron Lung and the Street Spirit Fade Out are the weaker tracks as the others are brilliant.

First ever radiohead experience - it's great and I can see why the band has the hype it has.

Wow, wow, wow. Radiohead's second album did not disappoint. I love the futuristic quality of the sounds despite it being an album from the 90s. I love the cohesion of the album, every song flows into one another. Definitely one of my favorites I've listened to this year.

Had to give it a second listen and liked it much more the second time around.

No skips. I don't care for the critics that glaze the group but I personally enjoy listening to Radiohead. Will revisit 4 sure.

I love the deep-fried album artwork. Overall, the album is alright, nothing too bad. It was decent having it in the background while I was doing other stuff.

I Love IT!

Review - really shows that they hit their stride with Ok Computer. The good songs are good but there's a lot of chaff here too. Score - 7/10 Need to listen? YES

Full of bangers

Radiohead's third best album. the only reason its not a 5 is because it sort of drones on in the middle...but there are a lot of bangers on this album.

Tremendo disco. Increíble. No sé si sea por la edad, pero me encantan los discos de Radiohead, desde su primero hasta Ok Computer, y después como que les fui perdiendo el gusto. Ya no conecté con los que vinieron después, justamente por lo diferente que se escuchan a sus primeros álbumes. No es que quiera lo mismo, pero este Radiohead era el que me gustaba, con el que crecí y cuyos discos me siguen pareciendo una absoluta gloria. Genial.

A masterpiece. Balances the line between rock and experimental, mainstream and alternative, depressing and uplifting.

Bien.

Much better than Girls Against Boys album of the same time period and somewhat similar style that I received the day before. And generally a good work, although I'm not a fan.

Here we go, first encounter in this project with the most overrated band of my times. Bunch of pretentious private schoolboys who've made some decent music, but no exactly earth-shattering stuff. I do, though, have fond memories of this record. There are some solid songs (High & Dry, Fake Plastic Trees, Black Star) though quite a few are so-so chuggers (Bones, Just, Bulletproof). A lot of the sounds are very enjoyable but Thom Yorke's voice is often annoying. Overall, both better and worse than I remember.

7.5/10 - I would have sworn “Creep” was on this album.

One of my favorite 90's rock albums. Nearly every song on here is amazing. 9/10

Not bad, not my thang

Somebody on the list-making committee must like Radiohead, as this is their third appearance. Radiohead is known for their alternative rock, although to me the music here is a mixture of rock and hard rock. I know none of these songs, although that’s not a surprise since they are from the 90s. Barely good enough for three stars.

My old friend Radiohead. Them wishing it was the 60s on 'The Bends' is like me wishing it was the 90s now, which I do, so that's a song that's grown on me with time. But this isn't one of the 3 Radiohead albums I own, and thus (or therefore?) it's not one of the Radiohead albums I particularly like. However, a shoutout to 'My Iron Lung' for being another excellent Rockstar Supernova performance! That show is like the State to State of music - I'll never forget it, even if I forget everything else. I think a lot of these songs are used in sad TV scenes, and that's kind of the vibe of the album: sweeping, sad, but a little bit generic (at least now). I'm a mild fan. Highlights: 'Fake Plastic Trees', 'Black Star'

definitely feels transitional but that’s probably because i know what’s coming next. fake plastic trees and street spirits are major highlights

Depression's best friend. Saw these songs live in Berlin and seeing some Irish bloke breakdown in tears at every Radiohead song really tells you enough about how their music makes you feel. I still keep coming back for more hurt though. Fave track: Fake Plastic Trees

The pivot away from Pablo Honey and especially Creep into whatever this is to avoid becoming pigeonholed might be one of the most important decisions made in music history. The first of many masterpieces by arguably the greatest rock band of all time (at least to me). Hard to pick a favourite track but (Nice Dream) did something to me on relisten. 4.5/5

favs: black star, street spirit (fade out), just, fake plastic trees, (nice dream)

230525 12:55 4

This is a perfect album. 10/10

Planet Telex - 4.5/5 The Bends - 4/5 High and Dry - 5/5 Fake Plastic Trees - 5/5 Bones - 4/5 (Nice Dream) - 4/5 Just - 4.5/5 My Iron Lung - 4.5/5 Bullet Proof … I Wish I Was - 4/5 Black Star - 4.5/5 Sulk - 4/5 Street Spirit (Fade Out) - 4.5/5 The generator cursed me by handing me my first Radiohead album as what was essentially the B-sides of another album and now gives me an album where not a single song is skip-worthy. Incredible work. Overall: 5/5 Favorites: High and Dry, Fake Plastic Trees, My Iron Lung, Black Star

My favorite of the Radiohead albums we've had to date.

My personal choice for favorite Radiohead album

eh fuck it

I feel like putting something less than a four is crime (?) just for the influence and popularity of the band, but its like OK computer, some good songs, the others didnt do it for me, just not my style.

Este album es una L O C U R A Lo que a mi en lo personal me hace darle 5 estrellas a este album es que es el primer gran paso que tuvieron hacia descubrir su sonido y lo que más adelante los termina haciendo una de las mejores bandas de todas. Hay variedad pero a la vez este album tiene un sonido destacado como tambien pasa con OK Computer. Fácil 5 estrellas y no se para de escuchar este tremendo album.

Primera vez que lo escuché quedé en parte decepcionado, porque no podía no compararlo con okcomputer. Pero pero pero, me encantó. Siento que es muy facil de escuchar, hay temones y muchos y para cualquier momento del día. “Just” temón, la tengo pegada. 9.1

Es un álbum sencillo de escuchar corto y el álbum con mejor crítica de la Banda. Al ser el segundo álbum y ya habiendo tenido un gran éxito como Creep, tuvieron que armar algo que estuviera a la altura de la misma. Lo que sucede con muchas bandas o cantantes que tienen un hit mundial es que tienen que armar proyectos sólidos, The Bends fue ese proyecto sólido que trata de mostrar el lado de la banda más sensible y profundo al chocarse con esa realidad de éxito temprano pero que tienen mucho para dar desde lo musical pero mejor aún que es el fuerte, la profundidad de las canciones y de las letras. Top 3 🌟 1- Fake Plastic Tree 2- High and Dry 3- Just

Disappointing album. None of the songs stood out for me. The musicianship was fine but the songs seemed to lack creativity. For example, the distorted guitar always seem to sound the same regsrdless of the song. It made them all sound too simikar for my taste.

Forgive me, generator, for I have sinned. It's been 720 albums since my last Radiohead record. In that time I have lusted after all styles of music, Kraut, Psychedelic, Reggae, Blues, Funk, and have worshipped at the altar of Saint Osbourne. I have strayed from the righteous path of Radiohead and I repent. I will go and say 9 Hail David Bowie and 6 Hail Elvis Costello and try to do better. Call me a heretic but this and Pablo Honey are their only albums that should be on the list.

Not too fussed about it, although there were some bangers I didn't realise were Radiohead. Otherwise was kind of just a blur.

As usual, this rating is out of principle. The insufferable frontman outmatched in insufferability only by band's own fanbase. Petty? Maybe. But a petty act of a small man for mankind, a big act of pleasure for a man.

First front to back Radiohead experience - This was a surprising project; I've never been keen on radiohead as it feels a lot like an acquired taste (no passing judgement of course) The quality of the composition and mixing of what feels like a million elements going on at once compliments the stage of life that listeners may have heard this album in that being young-late adolescence, where your entire existence is composed of the unknown and the fear that lingers as you make your way through it all Best song - Just

I'll never forget my first time listening to this one all the way through. I'd heard so much about Radiohead being the best band ever. I had tried out some of their stuff, but never really understood it. Figured it was just one of those things pretentious people said they liked, but it didn't actually make sense. Then, one night sleeping over at the Martin's house (for some reason, lots of family in town or something) I'm on the army couch in the basement of the first Vincent Ridge house and decided to listen to this album all the way through at like 2AM. Planet Telex had me hooked, and I was like "Oh maybe I can get this". By the time I hit Nice Dream, I think I understood Radiohead. It opened up their entire catalog to me after that track. Obviously everything else is amazing too. I always think of this album as dated, it really has aged poorly compared to their other absolutely timeless albums that will always sound like they're from the future. But upon listening to it through again, it's a really really good look into the nostalgia of 90s britpop and 90s rock in general. Obviously by this point Radiohead still hadn't found their sound, but as an album encapsulating the 90s, it's pretty much flawless. There are pieces of this that start to encapsulate the future, and somehow they were able to dive into those pieces from this album later in OK Computer, making a seamless immersion in those specific moments. For example, the beginning riff on Just. Looking into the lyrics on My Iron Lung, that's another anthem honestly. Very fun (but also dark) lyrics. So punk to escape from your "iron lung" by writing about how confining it is.

Esse é o álbum acessível de Radiohead pra fãs de rock. Tem algumas das mais "pops" deles mas já mostra pra onde eles tavam indo com o som deles. Acho que é meu top 3 deles. Trabalho fenomenal de guitarras e riffs sólidos malucos.

RAD IOH EAD

An album I listened to a lot when younger, but one I hadven't listened to in a while. Radiohead kept releaseing better albums (untilt the last 2). Still it is a great album, every song has something interesting about it. Just lacks the depth of the albums that follw! 4.5 rounded down Heard before? Yes Owned: Yes. 75/297 (25%) Will I get: Already have

It’s a great 90s Brit rock album but I prefer what Radiohead turned in to

meio repetitivo 8/10

Soooo many amazing songs, had a few that were just “great/good” to me hence the four stars (at least on the first listen). My fav was “The Bends”!!!

Best Radiohead album thus far

4.4/5

The best band on the planet 10/10.

Radiohead records are either a 1 or a 5 - this one is a 5, absolute banger

absolutely love this album, but i won't separate the art from a group who vocally refuse to stand against genocide.

Me gustó mucho mas de lo que pensé que me iba a gustar. High and Dry es un temazo. A nivel sonoro la experiencia es buena, y las letras tienen sentido.

While "Ok Computer", "Kid A" and "In Rainbows" are perhaps Radiohead's most lauded albums, their most accessible, and for me, their most flawless, has always been "The Bends". Melodic, emotional, and with no fillers, it is filled, back to front, with bangers. From the slow build intensity of "High and Dry", to the anger of "Just", and the ethereal "Nice Dream" its peaks are so strong yet so varied, and it truly has no weak songs. This is one of the albums I have listened to the most, and one I have never tired of.

Love this album. Solid almost all way through, and I like that you can hear them transitioning into the sounds of OK Computer.

I revisit this one all the time. It always reminds me of getting ready for the Alex G show in Brooklyn because Cheyenne put this record on.

One of my favourite albums of all time. Outstanding

Ok

What a great leap from Pablo Honey. Radiohead managed to distance themselves from "Creep" and found a whole career path in the process. The Bends finds Radiohead still playing with guitars, but also starting to experiment with textures and space. It's not perfect, but it's a great improvement on Radiohead's sound and an important stepping stone in their development

The start of one of the greatest album runs of all time Not my favourite Radiohead album (in rainbows) but makes it close to my top ten from anyone ever. From start to finish immaculate, hard to pick a favourite track and changed and influenced British guitar music from its release. Just stunning. Favourite track: Street Spirit (Fade Out)

So close to a 5, but I think it’s a 4.5…. Beautiful though

Good vibes, good guitar

Radio craniums

Great songs and a cohesive album but ultimately it’s Radiohead before Radiohead’s Radiohead so a shade too vanilla

Probably the most familiar Radiohead album to me. Also sounds like Coldplay to me. I like a few of the songs but not really my vibe

Hard to beat. Radiohead at their early finest. Not a skip on the album. Just a masterpiece from start to finish. Iron Lung. Wow.

This was a great Radiohead album as well. Liked it a lot. Some songs rocked some were super mellow. Maybe I’m starting to get Radiohead? Not sure there were a couple I listened to that just stunk, but this is the second one I liked.

A classic. People seem to look down on it because it's not OK Computer, Kid A or In Rainbows. Almost any other band though, this would be their magnum opus and the fact that it isn't as good as those other albums doesn't mean it's not still 5 stars. Brilliant

Es radiohead, obvio que iba a estar buenísimo

If you’re younger than Gen X, I need to explain this. Radiohead had a huge hit with “Creep”, but just about everyone thrift they were one hit wonders on the early 90s alt-rock beat. Instead, they ho back in the studio and create an introspective, critical album that is the new British Rick sound of, in the words of Nick Hornby, “… a cocktail of rage, sarcasm, self-pity, exquisite tunefulness and braininess.”. Radiohead the band that people know as the genre-pushing artists started here.

own

Bullet proof.

Another masterpiece. No sophomore slump with this album.

A different level

The one where the band single-handedly saves stadium rock. Who knew the levels of creativity they would go on to demonstrate. Sounds as good now as it did the day I bought it. 5* (and anyone who says it isn't is just wrong ;-)

Damn near perfect front to back

I realize I’m writing these more as a journal/reflection for myself rather than true album reviews, but here we go: This is probably the album cover I remember the best from Radiohead, and it was interesting to learn that The Bends was the first Radiohead album with cover art by Stanley Donwood, who has continued to produce artwork with the band ever since. As far as the music itself, I was surprised that outside of High And Dry I’m not sure I recognized much. This album felt like a very different (but more “traditionally alternative”) style than the other two albums I’ve reviewed as part of this journey, both released in the 2000s versus the 90s (Amnesiac & In Rainbows). While I’ve come to associate Radiohead with the more haunting and experimental sound of their later albums, I did really enjoy this one. Street Spirit (Fade Out) was probably my favorite.

Blows they're Zionists now :(

There's some really interesting instrumentals here. The last few songs really got going. But it's not resonating with me as it is with other people. Glad I got a listen. Time to go back to the Flaming Lips on repeat then...

I still really don’t get the love for Radiohead, but there’s no denying this is a pretty well conceived of and executed album

Buenas letras; la música no me llamó la atención, y quizá sólo por no ser mi estilo. High And Dry tiene una interpretación sublime del vocalista. Sorprende su capacidad en cuanto a falsete también en la canción siguiente, y la siguiente, y la siguiente... Harta un poco. Lo poco interesante que le hallé a Fake Plastic Trees es la adición de instrumentos de cuerda; similarmente, sólo me gustaron las guitarras en Bones. Ahora bien, Nice Dream es una de las mejores; no por su inicio aburrido, aunque con la llamativa imaginación de una instrumento que parece colgar infinitamente en dos notas, sinó por su evolución y brevísimo solo, que la mejora demasiado. Los acordes de Just están bien; mi segunda favorita (puede ser que, con el tiempo, le agarre más cariño). My Iron Lung es simplemente cautivante; ya hay, entonces, una tercera. A este punto, con Bullet Proof, ya entiendo por qué es considerado un gran álbum. A Sulk le salvó la batería y el solo. En resumen, amé la mitad del álbum; mas ni el inicio ni el final se me hicieron particulares o destacables. Admito que juzgué mal a la batería, pues, andando el tiempo, le noté la utilidad. Este es mi primer álbum de la lista. Haré lo posible por no puntuar canciones individualmente, porque mi pensamiento es el siguiente: el álbum musical es una unidad como tal, no sólo un conjunto de canciones. Naturalmente, se tratará siempre de mi apreciación a la primera escucha; el encontrarle el tino y el concepto a un álbum no requiere de una sola, sinó de varias y de exhaustivo análisis e investigación, así que ni yo ni nadie se debe tomar esto muy en serio. XD

Discazo

4/10

this album is when radiohead first starts to find their artistic footing and it shows. the songwriting is beautiful on songs like street spirit and fake plastic trees yet it’s so simple. i wouldn’t say this album does much to push boundaries like their later albums did but this is a lovely track list of songs. i loveee those strings on nice dream

I'm not a fan of Radiohead, and I don't believe I've listened to this album start-to-finish. I generally dislike Thom Yorke as a singer. On their later albums, they also tend to just _not_ rock, which is a weird thing for a rock band to do. This being one of their earlier albums, it's still got a fair bit of rock in it, but it's also still very much suffering from my distaste for Thom Yorke's singing. I don't hate this album, but I'm definitely not going to listen to it again.

This one's quite nice, more energy / less depressing than later radiohead albums IMO

Nu zit ik lekker te genieten van Caissonziekte, het voor mij 5e Radiohoofd album in deze lijst. Ondertussen krijg ik een teneergeslagen whatsappberichtje van iemand zo'n 80 kilometer verderop in het land, die voor de pak 'm beet 19e keer naar Elvis (ja, nee, die andere dus) moet luisteren en ik snap zijn emotie als geen ander. Later vandaag danwel begin morgenochtend zal ik zelf klagen dat dezelfde lijst 5 keer met The Byrds komt aankakken. Ik ben dus hypocriet. Het zij zo. Spreek me er gerust op aan. Ik ben ook maar een mens met bijbehorende deukjes en vlekjes. Moet je vijf keer Radiohead hebben gehoord? Nee, ik denk dat je na 2 albums prima zelf had kunnen bepalen of je meer van ze had willen horen. Misschien dit album voor het minder tot niet experimentele geluid en dan Kind A erbij voor het wél experimentele. Dat is uiteraard veel te logisch beredeneerd; zo werkt de lijst nou eenmaal niet. In dit geval heb ik er schijt aan dat Ome Robert en z'n minions me vijf keer naar één band laten luisteren want Radiohead scoort hoog bij mij, zo ook deze keer, maar kijk morgenochtend voor de grap nog maar eens op m'n profiel. Neppe Plastic Bomen, Hoog en Droog, Zojuist, M'n IJzeren Long, Straatgeest (Decrechendo)... 5 sterren!

I'm not sure why I didn't listen to this sooner, it's right up my alley! Odd and pretty in so many ways.

Nice, and good to hear fake plastic trees in context. That said. I still don’t quite understand why this band is held in such disproportionately high esteem compared to other similar bands. I keep expecting to be blown away! Deathcab was my top artist of 2025! They can’t be that far off right? Maybe they are. I’ll investigate. Still, I loved a few especially high and dry and Just.

If this had been Radiohead's first, with Creep snuck in, you could make an argument it'd be their best. Instead, it's their first great album. I don't love the post Britpop tinge - there are moments that Muse would ape, but that's thankfully fleeting

Me gustó, pero a medida que va avanzando, las ultimas las siento q están de relleno

90s Radiohead is probably my favourite Radiohead. I love all the avant-art-electroncia stuff too but that rarely makes good playlist music. The 90s alt-rock stuff is very accessible and singable and fun to hear pop up on a playlist. So The Bends is maybe not the best Radiohead record but it does have the best collection of songs that I'm excited to hear elsewhere.

10/10 album. rock anthem vibes with great guitar cords and solos. one of my favourite Radiohead albums

I never really gave this album a chance, for no particular reason. But it’s worth the price of admission. Absolutely in the canon of 90s rock. It gets deep and heady and angsty, everything great about 90s rock is in this album. Glad to have given it a deeper look.

Good

First Radiohead album I bought. I guess I already knew "creep" but this disc was a revelation. Great video for High and Dry too.

This might not be considered the best Radiohead album, but to me it's their strongest collection of songs. I can't believe 'Bones' is the second least played track (on Spotify); it's one of my favourites.

siento q son lentas para mmi gusto, pero aun asi las disfrute, algunas menos que otras pero la mayoria me gusto. So, album guardado.

The Bends by Radiohead is widely considered one of the defining rock albums of the 1990s, marking the band’s emergence as something far more ambitious than a one-hit wonder. It blends raw guitar-driven energy with emotional depth and poetic introspection, delivering anthems that feel both intimate and vast. The production is lush and dynamic, giving space for Thom Yorke’s haunting voice to move between vulnerability and soaring defiance. Songs like “Fake Plastic Trees,” “Street Spirit (Fade Out),” and “High and Dry” showcase a mastery of melody and melancholy that set the stage for Radiohead’s later experiments. The Bends endures because it captures that rare balance between heart and precision—an album that sounds just as vital decades later.

Incredible as always. Always forget how good it is before listening again. Love the changes in dynamics throughout the album and instrumentation.

A good, but not great Radiohead LP. Most of the tracks here are wildly overplayed but the deeper cuts jumped out a lot more on this listen. Nice Dream, Bones, Black Star all surprisingly good. Catchy, memorable songs but overall just a bit… safe? Give me weird Radiohead over this any day.

I can listen to this all day, all month long. Sometimes I have. 4.5/5

The only Radiohead album I occasionally return to. Tells you more about me, than the album.

Блять) вот надо было так выиграть в лотерее, что из ВСЕЙ музыки на свете выпала Радиохед. По стереотипам музыка данного коллектива крайне депрессивна и годиться для того, чтобы лечь под трамвай включив exit for a film. ШТОШ, если так повезло, то будет на серьезке слушать. Пока просто брит рок. Но вот вокалист на эмоциональных моментах прям умирает ноющие.

4.5/5, 9/10

It was a great album. Loved it.

Mid dude

Significant improvement over the Hail to Thief choice from earlier in the list. This is more the true Radiohead. Excellent work.

Rustgevend

Super natuurlijk

When to listen: Laying on the floor. I'd heard "High and Dry" and "My Iron Lung" before but really liked new-to-me songs "Fake Plastic Trees" and "Just"

Just and Street Spirit are 100% perfect. Everything else is meh

So AMAZING!!!!!

For me Radiohead is only sad songs and existencial crisis so i want to hear what this album is about. Suffering, but very wonderful(like the end of the times) in Planet Telex. I can understand the lyrics, tired sinner vibes. 8 out of 10 The self-title song is good, i liked the riffs in the half-end. The lyrics are like Dumb from Nirvana, but ends hopeful i guess. 7.8 out of 10 High and Dry have a nice chrous, but idk, i think is the singer voice that gives that vibe of hauting and nostalgic. Pre-final riff reminds me of Its Time from Imagine Dragons, but is very good and nostalgic. I feel like this would´ve been written in the late 00s or 10s. 9 out of 10 The cover doesnt match the songs Fake plastic trees remind me of Lorax. Its all too libertador, i enjoy this. 8.9 de 10 A nice sound in Bones, its different from the others. The singer puts more emotion, the sound seems harsh. Talks about getting old? 9.5 out of 10 Nice dreams is very 90s but i feel like this not belong to an adult. A rock on the end. 7.6 de 10 Just is a very messy song, but i liked and i relate to the lyrics, so is goooood!!! liked the more heavy rock. 9.2 de 10 I like the riffs in My Iron Lung, its a good song, kinda generic(not in 1995). Lyrics are curious? 7 de 10 They sound like crisis, but with rock and anger mixed. mid-song have good riffs. Bullet proof is sleepy and purple. 7 out of 10 Balck star have a renegade type of lyrics. I liked, i can feel Resgate thoghtout some parts. Its a very heavy song(lyrically). 8 out of 10 Sulk have the sound that i like. Dreamy but passionate. Love it. 9.3 out of 10 The album ends melancolic, i liked Fade out. Very nice final seconds. 7.9 out of 10 An album very interessing, especially by the decade. Also very Hot Fuss skies and tired sinner lyrics. It was a nice album, but nothing too memorable.

Not big on Radiohead but this was much better than the last album of theirs I had.

From one hit wonder to critical darling. What can I say, deserved it

Wow! I own “Pablo Honey“ and “Kid A“, but had somehow never managed to hear this album. I am simply blown away. This may be the best thing I have listened to so far (about 75-80 albums in) in my 1001 Albums journey. Easy 5 stars for me. What I find more impressive is that everything else I’ve given five stars is something I already had heard before, so I already had an idea of its worth before listening for this exercise. This album was, on the other hand, a “cold“ listen, played once straight through. To be that impressed on a first listen is quite something.

Love radiohead

Great emotion and musicality. The whole album blends well together. Enjoyed thoroughly.

Peak Radiohead album. This is definitely one of their best. The whole album is a nice melancholy journey with some banger tracks in there.

I’m the perfect age/race/gender demographic to be a huge Radiohead fanatic, but they never really did anything for me. I can recognize that there is musical talent, but there isn’t any there there. There’s no blood going to it.

It's really impressive that an album as strong as this one is barely in their top 5. Granted, my top 5 is a little weird but I still think it's extraordinarily impressive that this album is as good as it is. These guys had only made one album before this, and the only way you'd hear their inexperience is in the youth in Thom Yorke's voice. They really figured out the formula for a good rock album here, it's just really impressive. Favorites: Planet Telex, High and Dry, Just

The early days of Radiohead are markedly different than their later stuff, but equally as good. Here they have a much more alternative rock sound, with distorted guitars, more radio friendly song structures and vocals, etc… but you can still hear the foreshadowing of what was to come. It’s there, just subtle and buried a bit. I like both ends of the Radiohead spectrum, and this is a great album.

No soy muy fan de radiohead pero me gusto el album la verdad, mi canción favorita es Planet Telex.

Bendy

I think OK Computer remains my favourite, but this is awfully close. Very high 4s so giving it a 5

Some real jewels amongst pebbles, proto-brilliance.

3.5 stars

It's hard to find any flaws in this. Just not something I would throw on very often.

I like their more experimental stuff but still good.

Another banger. 5.

Swag

This is my third Radiohead album and the knowledge that there are still another three to go fills me with rage. They aren't that good. No one artist should have six albums on this list. I'd like to propose a maximum of three per artist. All the extra spaces should then be allocated to artists who are not represented at all. Labi Sifre, Django Reinhardt, Chet Atkins, The Dubliners. All examples of artists who deserve at least one album on here but languish on zero while I am told to listen to yet another fucking Radiohead album.

this album is fucking hard

Best driving album ever made

I didn’t write too much about this album while I was listening to it considering a lot of my friends have been highly anticipating me actually listening to Radiohead stuff, so I took a very silent, attentive listen than what otherwise be a fun writing experience. “(Nice Dream)” was really good though. Liked this a lot! Can’t wait for the other albums.

Like every other Radiohead album - fine, I guess.

Sigo sosteniendo que Radiohead es una de las bandas más sobrevaloradas de los últimos 30 años

3 1/2

Peak britpop

3.5. the highs are high!!!

My favorite Radiohead record. A few misses but mostly great tunes!

Good Shit

A strong album with nice vocals and a smooth flow between songs. Definitely one of their more mainstream works; the title track and High and Dry are my favorites. It's not the best album I've heard from them, but it's certainly one I'll keep coming back to.

cool! not my favorite I guess, but it was interesting to listen to: I would love to bike to this music

Yeah good

mon dieu oui, vive radiohead et vive radiohead

One of my favorites from Radiohead and only second to OK Computer. "Fake Plastic Trees" is my favorite but there is a myriad of tracks to pick from that could be a contender for the best track. It has a nice blend of more quiet, dynamic, and acoustic songs, as well as louder, distorted and more energetic ones. A 10/10 for sure.

Not for me. Skipped after the third song. Their sound kinda just makes me depressed and have a headache.

Gostei

Best Songs: High and Dry Fake Plastic Trees

Great

They make the leap from Pablo honey….Then proceed to blast into the stratosphere with OK computer…Then completely reinvent themselves with kid A. One of the all-time three album runs. The bends to OK computer is the closest modern equivalent to dark side of the moon to wish you were here. Mark it a 5, dude.

The Radiohead catalogue continues to age well. Thoroughly enjoyed listening to this one multiple times and then diving back into OK Computer and Kid A. Fantastic.

2 for 2 on Radiohead

Meh...

It's not that this is bad. It's not! It's actually good. I just can't with Radiohead any more. It's been decades of Radiohead. I just don't care. I would die happy if I never had to listen to another Radiohead song ever again. I know that won't happen though, so I begrudgingly rate this 3 stars and wait for the next friggin' Radiohead album to show up on this stupid list.

Ogólnie vibe albumu fajny, nie słuchałem wcześniej, ale żadna piosenka nie zapadła mi w pamięć

Thoughtful, deep and sad but a Masterpiece of an album.

На этом альбоме пришло осознание,что альбомы нельзя слушать фоном. На первом прослушивании пропустил Nice Dream. Сколько таких бриллиантов я не собрал?

This album was seen as a huge creative leap for Radiohead on its release. Given what the band would do be doing just 2 years later on OK Computer or 6 years later on Kid A, The Bends now sounds downright conventional. But this is where Radiohead began to mature as a band and develop a sound distinctly their own. "Fake Plastic Trees" and "High and Dry" are probably responsible for people assuming they just make boring sad songs, but there are also some genuine rockers on "The Bends" and the incredible "Just." Radiohead's defiance of easy categorization and tendency to push themselves into new territory start in earnest here

Probably my fave radiohead album atm in terms of not having played it to death. Some great great rocking tunes paired with some classic sad ones like fake plastic trees and fade out

Didn’t appreciate this enough when I first listened to it but coming back to it now it’s all started clicking properly Still kinda nuts that this is the same band that made pablo honey not that long before 4.5

Love it

just…. excellent!

Wow, greatness

A guitar driven exploration of sound. Some songs are better than others. A weird homage to classic rock.

I always run through this countdown on a month-by-month basis - i.e., what was the average rating this month, how many 5-star albums were there, etc. This was a strange month for me for the first 3+ weeks without a single 5-star album. Nothing really hit for me, and then a deluge came. From the unexpected (Lost In The Dream by The War On Drugs), to the undeniable (Fear Of A Black Planet by Public Enemy), to the underrated (Pump by Aerosmith), it suddenly was a series of tremendous albums. This record continues that trend. I get that Radiohead isn't for everyone. Some, like my daughter, think they are the best band ever. Others just don't like their sound. While I sit in between, they are undoubtedly an incredibly talented band who make the take risks which almost always pay off. This album is very much in the "it hits" category for me. The first five songs on this are all great tracks. I've always been a fan of High and Dry, but Fake Plastic Trees is every bit as good. Nice Dream is good as well, it just isn't as good as what precedes it, mainly because it just floats along until we get to the strange guitar later in the tune. Meanwhile, Just fits squarely into that mid 90s alternative sound that I really like. My Iron Lung is all over the place, but I kind of dug it. Bullet Proof...I Wish I Was ended up being a solid track. Nothing amazing though. Black Star might have been the highlight of the back half of the album for me. This reminded me of something I might hear from Our Lady Peace. Really liked it. Sulk wasn't far behind. A bit more of a straightforward angsty alt rocker. Sounded excellent. Street Spirit was an excellent way to close this album. It almost had a Metallica type of feel to it to begin with. Actually, upon a second listen, this might be my favorite song on the back half of the album, surpassing Black Star. All wrapped up, tons of tracks to really like on this. A great, great album. 5 stars.

I adore this one! It's the first record I ever listened from Radiohead. This one will forever be one of my favourites, I enjoy it more than OK Computer actually. Great guitar work, and a huge improvement from Pablo Honey.

Only good album they have done

This is a serviceable 90s album. Not my favorite, not the worst.

This is a very good album. It just goes by so fast one song after another well played produced and sung.

Vind radiohead vaak echt kut maar deze is wel de beste

4.6 on this if we were allowed the decimal. Incredible album filled with great songs. All time favourite album ending track in Street Spirit, just utter misery in one song.

At one point this was my favourite radiohead album which is now moon shaped pool these 2 albums couldnt be further apart in sound tho. This album has a very consistent tracklist of alt rock, oasis sounding tunes whic h are all really really catchy (seriously these songs get stuck in my head on a daily basis). This also marks where radiohead started taking music a bit more seriously as they were actually get a lot of attention. Its also of course a huge step up from the grating "Pablo Honey". 9/10 Favourite: Street Spirit Least Favourite: (Nice Dream)

Banger

A lot of y’all are probably more familiar with Radiohead than I am. As a newbie, I’m struck by the range of emotion conveyed by the lyrics, the instruments, and the overall song construction. Easy early favorites: “High and Dry,” “Bones,” “Just,” and “My Iron Lung.” In the long run I don’t know if I’ll ever be a Radioheadhead. But, I respect what I’ve heard so far - here and on OK Computer. And I respect that they refused to stand still, always challenging themselves with new directions. Strong 4/5 but rounding up to 5/5 as I expect to enjoy this album and band even more as I give them more time and attention.

I don't know enough about Radiohead or their career/discography, but this is a fantastic album. The lyrics are compelling and honest, and I found myself caught up in it. I have typically been a reluctant listener based on the hype, but this is a great album. My stubbornness may limit my fandom, but I can't deny the strength and emotion in The Bends. I wish that I were bulletproof.

it was fine

8/10 Highlight: Street Spirit Lowlight: Sulk

It is quite amazing that these guys hamstrung their own early popularity by releasing the worst song off this album as the second single, then decided to play entirely different music over the next few albums. Despite these factors they are still considered by many to be one of the best bands ever formed. They must be very good.

Fake Plastic Trees alone makes me rate this a 5. I always loved that song - this whole album is representative of the unique sound Radiohead brought to the scene during the mid-nineties. And I love it.

I like the instrumental side, but the vocals are not my thing. I also wished it got more experimental/weird.

This was good album that was pleasant to listen to and it also contained loads of interesting stuff in the songs. This was more to my taste than the previous Amnesiac that I listened from Radiohead. Best track was High and Dry.

Le classique qu’il pense être mais est terrible à écouter quand on essaie d’aller bien mdr.

It’s really strange, but I used to think I didn’t like Radiohead. I was especially convinced of this after coming across their 2000 album *Kid A*, which I found absolutely awful. However, this album is a completely different experience. It turns out that Radiohead used to make really good music (which reminds me a lot of Oasis or the Stereophonics). All in all, this album gets a solid 5, and it’s a real shame that the band went off in the wrong direction after that.

i just luv this album that's all x

Deeply overrated band

I liked "Planet Telex", the rest is alright, but I don't like the voice of the singer when it gets too high-pitched and the pop-rock undertones. 2.75 / 5

Tää löytyy omasta hyllystä ja tätä on tullut kuunneltua paljon. Hyvä levy! Suosikkejani on ”Street Spirit (Fade Out)”, ”The Bends” ja ”Fake Plastic Trees”.

Another Radiohead album I've already listened to. This one my be a tie for my favourite with OK Computer, but I haven't listed to In Rainbows for a while to really make that statement.

The second best Radiohead album, in my opinion (second only to OK Computer). Great pop song after a great pop song after a great pop song. Easy 5 stars although I have to admit that since I've listened to The Bends hundreds of times over the past 25 years or so, I don't feel like listening to it very often anymore.

There's a lot of filler on this album, High and Dry and Fake Plastic Trees are great tracks just listen to Ok Computer to In Rainbows instead. What a hell of a run