At 2:45, Radiohead completely shifts into heavy rock, and Jonny Greenwood is spotlighted with an unhinged guitar solo. Distorted sounds start to creep in at the edges. The mood of the song shifts at the two-minute mark, getting darker and starting to build the tension. Yorke’s soaring vocals provide a strong melody, even though his lyrics are oblique statements of isolation and anger. A minor key acoustic guitar riff and gentle percussion drive the song initially, and watery electric guitar tones float over the top. The track is a stunning achievement, starting quietly but with momentum. To their credit, both Parlophone in the UK and Capitol in the US followed the band’s wishes, releasing the six-minute progressive rock-styled “Paranoid Android” as the album’s first single. The songs had the basic outline of alternative rock but often had unusual, sometimes jarring elements that made it, initially, a tough sell for the labels. On the other hand, OK Computer turned out to be a difficult record to pin down sonically. The Bends was full of great alternative rock songs that just didn’t connect with a wide audience. That doesn’t mean it was particularly commercially viable, though. With their creativity in full bloom and the record company taking a hands-off approach, OK Computer was exactly what the band wanted it to be. Radiohead stipulated, however, that the song couldn’t be put on the film’s official soundtrack, wanting to save it for the finished OK Computer. Luhrmann uses a lot of alternative rock in the movie, but “Exit Music” is easily one of the best tracks. The song climaxes with Phil Selway’s crashing drums and Colin Greenwood’s fuzz bass before sagging back into a quiet finish. As it continues, the distinctly uncanny sound of choral voices running through a mellotron provides backing vocals. Vocalist Thom Yorke and an acoustic guitar drive most of the song. The track is downbeat and sullen, perfect for a story that ends with the leads both dead. They agreed, and the result was “Exit Music (For a Film)”. Director Baz Luhrmann contacted Radiohead about writing a song for the closing credits of his film Romeo + Juliet. The first thing anyone heard from the record turned out to be available only to moviegoers and, eventually, on VHS tape. By all accounts, the record label left the group completely alone during this process. From there, they used a variety of locations inside as recording spaces, trying to get specific and unique sounds. Subsequently, they decamped to an unoccupied mansion in the English countryside with producer Nigel Godrich. Radiohead found their initial attempts at recording the album at a studio near their homes in Oxford unsatisfying. That was enough to keep the band’s name out there and to keep their labels, EMI, Parlophone, and Capitol, in their corner for the production of OK Computer. and Alanis Morissette each took Radiohead out on tour as their openers. The album did have its fans, though, and big-time rock acts R.E.M. That acclaim didn’t translate to any significant hits, but the videos got some airplay on MTV. Music journalists seem shocked that a band they had written off as a one-hit-wonder had improved as musicians and songwriters. Their second album, 1995’s The Bends, was released to a tone of surprising critical acclaim. The band had had a huge hit with “Creep” in 1993 but had failed to follow it up with anything nearly as successful as their debut album, Pablo Honey. At the time, Radiohead was still trying to build a career for themselves as musicians. Time has been kind to the record, and its legend has grown as Radiohead continue to be “A Band That Matters”. Peruse any publication’s list of Best Albums of the 1990s, and you’ll likely find OK Computer lodged in the top ten, if not ranked number one. On the 25th anniversary of its release, it seems like a given that Radiohead‘s OK Computer is one of the landmark albums of the 1990s.