TBO.com - TBO is Tampa Bay Online

Radiohead Performs At Height Of Powers

Tribune photo by MICHAEL SPOONEYBARGER

Thom Yorke of Radiohead performs Tuesday at the Ford Amphitheatre.

ADVERTISEMENT

By CURTIS ROSS

The Tampa Tribune

Published: May 7, 2008

TAMPA - Lost in all the hubbub over Radiohead's pay-what-you-want experiment with "In Rainbows" was what an excellent album it is, easily the band's most accessible since 1997's "OK Computer."

That realization, in turn, tended to overlook the fact that Radiohead made much fine music in between those two albums, even if it took extreme left turns and made for more challenging listening.

After Tuesday night, consider yourself reminded on both points.

The English quintet drew a crowd of 17,500 to the Ford Amphitheatre for the second show on its current tour.

The group has as dour a reputation as anyone this side of Pink Floyd, but singer Thom Yorke seemed close to cheerful, enjoying the crowd's response and dancing madly when the mood struck.

He also mugged shamelessly for the video camera during "You and Whose Army?," giving the song a happy-hour-in-Cyber City feel. "That's for the folks on the hill," Yorke said, dedicating the number to the crowd on the Amphitheatre's lawn.

Much of the band's material is pretty and haunting, such as Tuesday's opening number, "All I Need." But the back-to-back pairing of "Airbag" and "Bodysnatchers" put to rest any notion that these experimentalists can't rock.

Although he spent just as much time on keyboards, Jonny Greenwood let it be known that he remains a guitar hero for a new age. His terse, trebly leads cut through with jolts of sheer rock energy.

Greenwood's brother Colin handled bass and occasional percussion, while guitarist Ed O'Brien wielded what looked like a Geiger counter on "15 Steps." Drummer Phil Selway was commanding even on the band's most scattered rhythmic efforts.

Much of the set drew on "In Rainbows." Highlights included a beautiful "Weird Fishes/Arpeggi," a haunted, percussion-heavy "Reckoner" and a tense "15 Steps."

Like any band with a taste for psychedelia (even in digital form), the light show was outstanding, utilizing metal tubes and poles, most of which were suspended from the stage's ceiling.

Throughout the evening, there was a sense of watching a band at the absolute height of its powers - a great band doing powerful live versions of rich, strong material.

And they could have constructed an equally fine set just off the songs they didn't play.

Opening act Liars haven't faced many crowds the size of Tuesday's, but the foursome held back nothing, particularly lead singer Angus Andrew.

Tall and gangly, Andrew moved with the erratic coordination of David Byrne, only far less hinged. Sporting a dark, G-Man suit and a tentative moustache, Andrew was appealing and worrisome in equal measure.

The band's music lost some of its dark power being performed in the waning minutes of daylight. But the band's sheer heads-down determination, and Andrew's manic intensity, made the set worth seeing.

Curtis Ross can be reached at (813) 259-7568 or cross@tampatrib.com

Share this:

Loading Comments...

Email Print

ADVERTISEMENT