162. “Pop Is Dead”
“Pop Is Dead” single (1993)
Weak analogies and tales of doing “one final lot of coke to jack him off” atop bratty guitar didn’t do much to set the band apart from their contemporaries. Their worst single by a kilometre. –Justin Gerber”
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161. “Supercollider”
“Supercollider” / “The Butcher” single (2011)
This scrap from The King of Limbs sessions was released as a single for Record Store Day in 2011 along with “The Butcher” and isn’t really able to establish itself within its own breezy melodies despite its lengthy effort to do so. –Sean Barry
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160. “Inside My Head”
“Creep” single (1992)
Recorded at the peak of the band’s fascination with generic angst, it’s all moody bass, vague anti-authoritarian lyrics, and little else. –Dan Caffrey”
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159. “The Butcher”
“Supercollider” / “The Butcher” single (2011)
Level with “Supercollider” in terms of boredom and forgettability. –Sean Barry
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158. “Nothing Touches Me”
Pablo Honey [2009 Bonus Disc] (1991)
Despite a traffic-jammed organ and Colin Greenwood peppering his bass lines with eighth notes, the song gets sunk by the moodiness of Thom Yorke’s speak-singing. –Dan Caffrey”
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157. “MK 2”
In Rainbows bonus disc (2007)
As the second “MK” interlude from In Rainbows’ second disc, “MK 2” serves well as an attention-grabbing precursor for “Last Flowers” seeing as it sounds a bit like a theremin symphony. Unfortunately, it kind of goes nowhere. –Sean Barry
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156. “Yes I Am”
“Creep” single (1992)
A Pablo Honey-era ditty with little to offer in way of melody or lyrics. A five-minute search for a catchy chorus that goes undiscovered. –Justin Gerber
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155. “Phillipa Chicken”
Pablo Honey [2009 Bonus Disc] (1991)
Yorke could be addressing war or he could be addressing love. Either way, the avian metaphor is heavyhanded. –Dan Caffrey”
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154. “Faithless, the Wonder Boy”
“Anyone Can Play Guitar” single (1993)
A typical mopey song that resonates with teens in the maelstrom of puberty, but ceases to translate years later. Thom “can’t put the needle in,” in case you missed those lyrics repeated a thousand times. –Justin Gerber”
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153. “Banana Co.”
“Street Spirit (Fade Out)” single (1996)
Off of 1994’s Itch EP, “Banana Co.” is silly and lackadaisical enough to be considered pop-rock parody. –Sean Barry”
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152. “Paperbag Writer”
“There There” single (2003)
All the components for a great hit — minimal funk bass, anxious violins, subliminal political messages — without the structure of a hit to hold it together. Imagine if this tongue-in-cheek play on The Beatles’ standalone single resulted in a song as equally memorable. Keep writing, boys. –Nina Corcoran
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151. “Kinetic”
“Pyramid Song” single (2001)
Perhaps the band’s only uninteresting flirtation with jazz. Unlike other Amnesiac-era dances with Mingus, this one builds without ever climaxing. –Dan Caffrey”
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