Radiohead - No Surprises | Singer Reacts |

[@cgallagher4501]

Theres a reason why many of us who have suffered from depression/anxiety find a haven in Radiohead - beautiful sadness...

[@cgallagher4501]

But they didnt just do sad songs - Id recommend Reckoner (live Basement version) for some contrast

[@assaf_benshi]

Personally have not experienced any form of depression, but I am still strongly attracted to Radiohead. For me its the musical brilliance and the creativity which Radiohead brings to the table which was extremely ahead for their time.

[@cgallagher4501]

For myself when times were hard their music with all its quirks and complexity would act as a comfort in a way most music didn’t

[@Srb1973]

Couldn't have put that any better sir!

[@RavenaDenver]

A lot of Autistic people really relate to Radiohead too. A lot of their music is what it feels like and what we think about the world. Subterranean Homesick Alien is what really got me hooked. I never heard any lyricist express exactly what the world feels like to me in music form.

[@simonhaslam]

The playback was at double-speed so he could hold his breath for half as long, but I saw behind-the scenes footage were he couldn’t hold his breath any longer. He was so angry because he knew he had to re-shoot the whole video again. That’s why he smiles at the end because he knew he’d nailed it.

[@VonBlade]

Meeting people is easy.

[@jonny26281]

Watching the documentary it looked like it must have been hell to do that video.

[@VisualTraining]

@@jonny26281I think Thom also stated he has a fear of drowning due to an accident when he was young.

[@FetterWaschbaer1994]

I‘ve heard that he was aquaphobic and this was also a way of fighting his fear of water. But i don‘t know if that‘s really true. If yes, this is Badass ! 😎

[@DoctorMeatDic]

Total lies. The footage was not sped up. The documentary speeds the footage up to show how many takes it took. The video is in real time, nothing was faked in any way.

[@jameshannagan4256]

I love that little smirk after the water drains it's not always as dark as people think there is a lot of humor and sarcasm in there as well.

[@Injektilo44]

Did you see Meeting People Is Easy, the documentary about Radiohead during OK Computer era? I think the smurk is due to the multiple takes it took to shoot that video… and finally getting it!

[@jameshannagan4256]

Yes I have although not for years I was being more general i am so sick of people saying how depressing Radiohead is ect. and that's not true much of the sadness is very much tongue in cheek.@@Injektilo44

[@crumbtember]

I interpret that as he is proud of himself for making it through.

[@vzmol]

Oh yes. This was really hard for Thom to pull off. Nonetheless the smirk as a genuine reaction to "not drowning" is a nice detail :)

[@IAEBNY]

Music isn’t depressive when irs sad, it’s depressing when it’s bad

[@ChristopherStendeck]

I was an 18-year-old in a mental health crisis when this album came out and nothing could have captured my depression, my extreme angst, my cynicism, my disillusionment more perfectly. Though it does send me back to those times, I find a strange comfort in reliving the memories and feelings it brings. The whole album is a masterpiece and I still rank it amongst the top ten best albums of all time.

[@CarolinaGirl6919]

I think there are a lot of music Critics might agree with you on that. Before I experienced them, I remember Michael Stipe from REM saying that he thought that radiohead was so good, It Frightened him

[@ozzydichter8670]

The most beautiful way to deal with depression is Radiohead

[@Jafmanz]

NO! as much as I love Radiohead. The most beautiful way to deal with depression is by making someone else's suffering bearable! By giving to others you can give to yourself. Thats what Radiohead did! You should too

[@ozzydichter8670]

@@JafmanzOk I understand your point but well music is that for me it is in low moments when I felt that nothing made sense when at night I couldn't even sleep from thinking so much it helped me

[@ozzydichter8670]

@@Jafmanz I say it for me, it is the least painful way to deal with the problems that I usually have and not only with Radiohead but with music in general it makes the mind distract.

[@Jafmanz]

OK I get you. Do what you need to do! share Radiohead with others too. ❤@@ozzydichter8670

[@stephanemignot100]

Hikes in the woods and Radiohead, trees are my friends ^

[@kid_a_mnesia]

Well, if "No Surprises" hits you like this. I really cannot wait for you to react to the one of the most hauntigly uncomfortable beauty of "How to Disappear Completely"

[@jaybeevee6994]

Or videotape, also an insanely sad song

[@NickHunter]

Exit Music for a film....

[@toddcleave8449]

What this guy said.

[@irvancrocs1753]

Let Down is also great..

[@claudeiglesias]

I believe that nobody but you had captured the deep feeling/meaning of this beautiful song and put it in words. Thanks a lot. So fine. Keep going!

[@EuphoriaTakeMyHand-GV]

I appreciate you really taking in both what you were hearing and seeing. Your interpretation made it clear how carefully you were paying this the attention it deserves. Great job! 👏

[@MrUndersolo]

I saw Radiohead live during the 'In Rainbows' tour, and at one point Thom Yorke did crack up over something that happened on stage. It can be a melancholy ride with this group, but there are still moments of levity that pull you through. That's what makes the band truly special and appealing to so many of us.

[@thecraftmasque]

One of my all-time favorite bands. whenever i feel down i listen to radiohead - it makes me more depressed but somehow i feel better afterwards.

[@ollylappage2595]

catharsis... You have to pay the price to get the (sometimes small) reward afterwards... That said I had to take a whole 5 years off from listening to emotional music. Now I can again...

[@thecraftmasque]

@@ollylappage2595 hope that means you're on the other side of the dark and not back in it.

[@joshuathompson2404]

Yeah, you're right. No anger, no build, just quiet resignation. A handshake of carbon monoxide....he's done with this life...just one more bellyache, and then the pain is over forever.

[@chinolobo8621]

So dark man

[@joshuathompson2404]

@chinolobo8621 it's a dark one, for sure....made more crazy by how beautiful the music is.

[@JamesKovacic]

This video perfectly captures the simultaneous claustrophobia and catharsis of the album. Thom is a master of embracing uncomfortable emotions and turning pain into beautiful art

[@EbonySerpent999]

I strongly recommend the whole album, it's perfect, quite relatable (from my perspective) & relavant to society, basically. Edit: It's funny how nobody ever seem to talk about what this song is actually about: What we're told to strife for and the life we're shown as an I deal will ultimately solve nothing because it's completely superficial. The narrator has achieved everything he was supposed to, and has only destroyed himself in the process and found no peace at all. "The American Dream", if you want to call it that, is a lie. Like the entire album, it's an attack on modern soulless neoliberal capitalism; it's not just a sad song about suicide. I recommend you look into the meaning behind the lyrics on genius.

[@mumbledg]

And has aged very well in my opinion. It's from 1997 when internet was just becoming widespread and no one imagined what a social network was. Yet its take on the alienation of modern life completely stands today.

[@neil2444]

OK Computer is one of those rare albums where every song is remarkable and makes sense with every other song on that album. I certainly consider it one of my all-time favorites.

[@vzmol]

OK Computer is my all time #1

[@arztje]

It's one of the greatest albums ever made.

[@EbonySerpent999]

@@mumbledg 100% agree.

[@soyburglar77]

I’ve been a massive Radiohead fan since I was 15, which was the year that their song Creep debuted. The Bends got me through high school, OK Computer came out the year I turned 19 and moved away from my hometown, Amnesiac, Kid A, and Hail to the Thief all helped me through my first divorce, In Rainbows literally helped to keep me sober after leaving rehab in 2008, and Moon Shaped Pool was the album I cried to nightly when my 2nd marriage failed in 2014. Today, I’m 46 and I just got a new apartment 2 weeks ago after 8 months of brutal homelessness…and I’m still finding comfort and solace with the band whose entire catalog has been like a soundtrack to every era of my life. I guess my biggest takeaway is that whether you’re an awkward, left-of-center 15 year old or 46 year old recovering addict restarting life when everyone else my age is vacationing around the world…validation through music and art has always been something I truly appreciate and regard highly. Real connection is difficult for many of us introverts and has only gotten more difficult for myself as I’ve aged…and it’s nice to have this band as a touchstone or means of grounding my soul. Of course, there are other acts I appreciate just as much, but this video isn’t about them, so…lol. And it is so incredibly cool to me how younger people are coming around to discover this amazing band. If you’ve not viewed it already, one of the most popular Radiohead fan faves is the ‘In Rainbows - Live From the Basement’ video here on KZbin. Their live performance of the album is nearly indistinguishable from the recorded tracks, which is incredible considering the complexity of their instrumentation. I watch it in full at least once a week if not more, and have for years. Check it out!

[@nothinspermanent8039]

Read your comment, thats deep. Good to read,thanks

[@jameshannagan4256]

Well said and good luck with your life I have had some struggles myself and Radiohead helped me grieve when my wife died suddenly at 48 and I was in a profound state of shock. I went off the deep end for a time and In Rainbows really was like therapy.

[@HABO2210]

Heard this song for the 1st time in House MD Season 6 intro, when House was in rehab. Oh man, what a scene, what a perfect song

[@Beluga_Too]

Amazing reaction. Just want to say this video nails depression for me. Staring straight ahead, drowning but saying nothing. And when you get that gasp of air it's amazing! Often short-lived, but amazing.

[@ericshinkle417]

Radiohead just sidestepped grunge in the 90s and NuMetal in the 00's. Phenomenal musicians.

[@shaftpunk84]

There’s a fantastic Radiohead documentary called Meeting People is Easy that covers the period just after OK Computer. Shows the band dealing with the new success and attention on them and how miserable Thom was during all of that. Also some bits of them working on new music, some of which didn’t see the light of day until YEARS later. There’s a scene that shows them filming this music video and Thom was having a really hard time holding his breath for the underwater shot. He had a lever below his neck to pull and release the water if he needed air and each time he pulled it he got angrier with himself. The take that ended up in the video where he finally pulled it off was the last one.

[@jonnyno1974]

thanks for sharing, I'll shoot to search for it and watch it!!

[@brrryan2908]

I appreciate your genuine, intelligent, and empathetic reactions. :)

[@jakeyo1752]

Radiohead is my comfort band bcuz Thoms lyrics are relatable to most people and his voice just delivers the emotion of the words so perfectly

[@suhailski]

I remember hearing Radiohead for the first time in the 90s. It felt like my mom’s hug.

[@Feniremmen1]

From my experiences with Anxiety and depression, The Bends and OK Computer are a panacea for the soul. Somehow it all, always leaves me feeling that it will all be okay.

[@jonjoreynoldsgranner7307]

Street spirit, fade away. Is my radio head song. When I'm down I blast it out and just sit and listen.

[@The-Feral-Child]

Not sure why this has only just popped up on my feed, I’ve been subscribed for ages and love Radiohead, they were the voice when I didn’t have the words. They’ve literally saved my life on numerous occasions and they will never know! ❤

[@gusfernanddes]

this was one of the best reactions that I've ever seen of this song (probably the best) congratulations!!! You should react to more Radiohead, pretty sure you gonna like it

[@DarrellW_UK]

I wondered if anyone might react to this! Up it pops, in my opinion this is more emotional than Creep but Creep stole all of the thunder! It’s just a beautiful song that really hits home, great analysis and reaction!

[@Geeo__UK]

Nice to see you jump into Radiohead - Where I End & You Begin would be my recommendation if you want to react to more

[@marciopinho6100]

There's a reason why this album is considered by many, many...many artists and critics to be one of the best of all time. Its really that good and yes, it's melancholic with "electioneering" being the only "happy" song. It's not an album for the unprepared or an album you'll enjoy at first listening. Well, that's Radiohead I guess 🙂

[@MiguelAngelTlapalcoyoaMendez]

Beautiful song by Radiohead, it brings back many memories of my adolescence, it's very sad, merry Christmas!❤

[@JoeKerr019]

Anytime i hear this song, reminds me of song by Joy Division " A cry for help, a hint of anesthesia ". Its a horrifying song about The moment when the pain is too much to bear and you just want to, End it all. as someone with depression this one hits heavy. I feel like Radiohead did the perfect trilogy of Death with No Surprises (Dying) , Pyramid Song (The Journey of the Soul) and Videotape (Whats left for the living).

[@HeartBrains]

You'd be surprised how this one specific song, saved my life so many times.

[@iwonacece5073]

Love Radiohead and your reaction was on point. Really enjoyed it and you got my sub. Hope you react to more music from this amazing band ❤️

[@jameshannagan4256]

She needs to get in touch with the basement sessions especially the In Rainbows one there's nothing like seeing these guys pull off all these intricate songs live and they sound even better than the studio. If that doesn't make you a fan then Radiohead may not be for you.

[@alanpassmore2574]

I come from this generation. It makes me happy to see so many young people who are so open. Respect.

[@EditsByAgni]

The things I perceive from the Song, if I try to describe them in words the beauty of those perceptions would be no more. There's a reason why people like me suffering from clinical Anxiety and Depression, have found a place of comfort in RadioHead. ❤

[@vanrose9857]

Your reaction at 5:24 is reminiscent of Thom Yorke’s reaction when he was shooting numerous takes for this video and couldn’t quite manage to hold his breath for long enough.

[@junkheadrooster]

Tthis was one of those songs I always went back to as a teenager when things got too deafening. There's this feeling of acceptance despite the heavy undertow of the waves underneath it. It's funny looking back and remembering that at a time i thought this would be the song I'd wanna listen to on my deathbed when I'm older.

[@connerthatdude9369]

Masterpiece of a song. This is the happiest level of sadness you can feel. I mad respect him

[@user-cs4fg1rm5k]

In the documentary Meeting People is Easy, the making of this video is featured. Many, many takes of Thom surviving a drowning were shot. They were beginning to bring together their art and aesthetic.

[@vzmol]

Wait. What do you mean by "beginning"? Music video for Street Spirit is a masterpiece, not mentioning others. Logo, font, booklet design and art on The Bends accompanied the band for years, changing slightly on OK Computer but still - the same artist, Stanley Donwood. He literally did all the covers of RH albums.

[@user-cs4fg1rm5k]

@@vzmol Pablo Honey and the Bends sound much different than primarily Nigel Godrich produced OK Computer and subsequent albums. It was also an EMI album release as opposed to Parlophone.

[@vzmol]

​@@user-cs4fg1rm5k oh, so you didn't mean visuals when speaking of aesthetics. Yeah, alright. I don't know if I would draw some line in RH's music, probably not. It's more of a timeline to me with each album at it's place in time. Constantly evolving. Their work is crazy colorful!

[@specialed36ify]

Incredible song off an amazing album. One of my favorite albums of the last 30 years hands-down.

[@philiptaylor6911]

I worked on the special effects company on this video Pennicott and Payne we had all tried to see if it was possible to hold our breath for the allotted time non of us could so that is why it was filmed at twice normal speed even then it was hard he was getting very anxious before the final take but nailed it ,it was up to us to get that water out as quick as possible the helmet had to go redesigned so the water could come out almost at once even so it instilling panic .

[@lynseyh8876]

Listen too radiohead LET DOWN absolutely beautiful ❤

[@fuzzmuscle69]

Great recommendation. My favorite Radiohead song.

[@FlatSpinMan]

Really excellent ideas in your analysis of this song. And watching your reaction, I could see how it resonated with you. This album is one of the only ones I can say I like the whole thing.

[@kinocrone7275]

This song is my go to when I get overstimulated at work. It's not even the lyrics, there's something in the way the song is constructed that brings me down to earth like no other

[@hampuspersson6509]

This was a really good interpetation of the whole song. Sometimes that is exactly what a quiet depression feels like, no release, just more or less frustration.

[@ShawnsLoop]

A great insight. The lack of that release in the end is extremely identifiable. Not in a GOOD way, but a REAL way. Apathy is a big piece of mental health struggles that doesn't get discussed a lot. Or just isn't given time to be acknowledged as a very real feeling for many of us. You don't often have the energy to scream out in frustration against the world and the grind. Often, it has you worn down. And this song captures that feeling....eerily well.

[@vaughnnewman8903]

The Bends and OK Computer, the latter being one of the greatest albums ever made, are great albums. Radiohead was decades ahead of their time with OK Computer. Please check the albums out fully, along with the videos of the songs.

[@78zappaf]

You should see the making of the music video. It's took so many takes. No wonder Thom smiled after doing the underwater section. He immediately had to go back to miming or else that take would be ruined.

[@lovegod3344]

Every time I watch this MV, I cry.

[@SimonThornhill]

It's not despair. It's just being British

[@chrismontaigne6288]

Watching you watch this is everything for me….1:34 the gulp because that line is just POW… i know what’s coming but I feel the same …and when the water shows up 1:42 yup

[@CaptainFram]

This reminds me a whole lot of the clip for Lisa Hannigan's song Little Bird. The whole thing is one slo-mo shot underwater in a single take. It's so simple but incredibly effective!

[@themrfox1]

I loved this reaction. Great observations, would just add this was made in a time where albums were listened to from start to finish, Paranoid Android covers the missing frustration, Exit Music for a Film dwells on it. Let Down compounds it. The Tourist wraps it up.

[@GiselaOsinaga-i3u]

It´s the lullaby to go for that eternal sleep

[@chrisrolek1073]

I've always interpreted this song's meaning as a statement on people's tendency to resist stepping out of their comfort zone or take a chance. Many times people's fear of the unknown prevents them from progressing. I think of "no alarms and no surprises" as allowing that fear to take control.

[@dancarter8389]

Great reaction. I remember when this album came out and how ubiquitous Radiohead were at the time. This is a high point for sure. Thanks, from a fellow Canadian.

[@elenaekanathapetrova2282]

I think it's exact that happened to me. I mean emotionally. I really like a Radiohead and listened them a lot for some time. but I have had trouble with didn't have any relief from this depression condition and melancholy. I used to resonate with Tom York for some while but later I felt that I'm stuck. And when I start to listen Japanese music Ado for example. it was really such relief for me! just incredible how different musicians can really help you in some period of life.

[@MSB042170]

I mean you could not have explained it any better. I think your interpretation is spot on. It is why so many people now believe that Radiohead could see what was happening in society and how it was effecting all of us. Ok Computer and Kid A really were ahead of their time. Great video.

[@cyclops60]

This is one of my favourite Radiohead songs. It was featured in a brilliant UK comedy series called the Royle Family (pun) about a working class family. The daughter had just become a mother and was doubting her ability to cope. The scene was her and her partner looking into the the babies crib while playing 'No surprises' as a lullaby and happily humming along oblivious to the dark lyrics! Pure gold! Cheers.

[@timaustin2000]

EXCELLENT analysis of their choices for this song. I agree entirely - it's about the anxiety of modern life and our inability to scream about it - keep calm, carry on. All repressed, all under the surface. The pain of life within us all. Lovely.

[@ZRL_TWJS]

I loved your reaction, new subscriber!

[@PeteEdmunds]

Heard this so many times. But for first time today the performance reminded me of Rufus Wainwright. Similar melancholy and tone and phrasing. It’s a masterpiece - just like the whole album.

[@PsmFans-do2gp]

"Such a pretty house, Such a pretty garden" damn😌

[@ivanreis5886]

just like you said, it is the beautiful of metalanguage, the song really do have no surprises, like a constantly silence pain that depression and anxiety makes to us on each deep breath that we take

[@wanillman]

Thank you! You've just got a new subscriber :)

[@andreywhite2513]

Radiohead - Street Spirit (Fade Out) must see

[@bryantaracena-belard7374]

yep specially the performance at japanese tv from 90’ I think its the best by far.

[@Noharashinnosuke]

Radiohead - nude

so good one of the best bands ever noone now makes music like this anymore

[@GrogMindwhip]

Every time I watch this video I hold my breath when Thom's head goes underwater. Not consciously, just as a spontaneous, natural reaction.

[@Themachomanic]

To me the water represents grief. Like maybe while its low its when a person you know is close to dying, then it fills up and you gotta live with it after they die...but look at his expression completely shift after it drops down and completely goes away. He looks refreshed and born again. In order to live on happier, we gotta become versions of ourselves who aren't used to having those dead people in our lives anymore.

[@ericshinkle417]

After grunge, there was an absolute bottoming out of musical talent and inspiration, during the period of Kid Rock, Limp Bizkit, Creed, Nickelback. It was an absolute horrorscape. Bleak, dark, no message, smelling of axe body spray, sounding like despair (not the good kind.) Radiohead came along to give a talented sound to despair ( the good kind?). God bless these blokes.

[@HectorRojas-he8g]

I love Radiohead

[@hdzziin]

I HAVE BEEN DYING FOR YOU TO REACT TO RADIOHEAD LETS FOOCKING GO, do more albuns especially In Rainbows or OK Computer.

[@megamonalithic3353]

Great insights, Radiohead are worth a deep dive.

[@socalnitro]

What did my son get for Christmas. A Radiohead Tshirt 🤟🏻 Live on your own terms.

[@indridcold5432]

I felt the darkness crawling and the sadness but you really help me to understand part of it thanks

[@JaredSingletonATL]

I've always thought of this song as a highly detailed description, lyrically anyway, of what a panic attack feels like

[@pglsp]

the making of was INSANE! you should watch it

[@WinstonSmithXxX]

Most perfect collaboration song with video ❤❤❤

[@Mark-qk6gw]

I've never heard a person pull this song apart as well as you had.. well done.

[@edwhite517]

What a beautiful tune set against the bleakest of songs, a very British thing to do. Wonderful.😊

[@genevievecaballero4104]

Climbing up the Walls is the release on the album 😊

[@craigpurcell6432]

Not the way he's living: It's the world.

[@pauldavies2178]

Off one of the best albums ever. Definitely worth your time.

[@soyburglar77]

I’d also like to make a suggestion - well, I have many lol but for the sake of brevity, I’d place this artist at the top of my list - if you haven’t already showcased his talents. But I’d love to hear your impressions of some of Jeff Buckley’s live performances. I’d recommend specific songs, but everything he did live is a practical masterpiece. Due to his unfortunate untimely death in 1997 at the age of 27, there isn’t a massive body of work to be considered, but there is enough very high quality stuff (for the time, especially) just on KZbin alone to give anyone interested a good idea of his ability. My favorite Buckley song personally is Lover, You Should’ve Come Over, which I find incredibly difficult to sing perfectly, myself. Mojo Pin and Grace are also amazing. Ok, I’m blabbing. Thanks! And I subbed! Very much looking forward to checking out so many of the artists in your playlist I’m not even a little bit familiar with lol.

[@ajames8237]

I think of it as a lullaby about the desire to alter the course of one’s life. The water dropping away suggests he moves away from the darker option.

[@tczarny13]

my day, every day

[@EtonDG]

The video is even more disturbing when you think about the pain Thom Yorke went through to film it

[@leehiro4840]

We need more Radiohead reactions from You 🥲

[@alexm4567]

Watching that was like waterboarding .like the reaction, enjoyable 😊.

[@Buzza235]

"Karma Police" is a gem.

[@kerrydunn7760]

There are some tunes you just have to listen to and not need to disect, some might relate to at some time in there life Radio head just gets you and gets the message across

[@BarelyEinstein]

For me this was always a song about disaffection, about anger without energy. Not giving up so much as accepting the shoe on your neck as long as you're at least somewhat combortable.

[@spamdatgd6326]

For me this song is a slow descent into madness, but there is another element. There is clarity, but also carbon monoxide on stand-by. Thom is a master songwriter. The protagonist is the human race. It's a common theme for him. Kid A continued (and accelerated) it. I love this guy and this band

[@marekowczarek]

so sentimental, everything is in Your eyes

[@ROArecords2]

My interpretation of the video is that like the song, in the beginning he has given up and is ready to end it all. Then near the end of the video and the song he changes his mind and decides to live and that the world has some good in it. In the video there seems to be some panic as he realizes he doesn't want to drown.

[@paulgilligan1535]

No and No again! This is everything we as people fight against every day. This is a conversation about how good we are at resisting this feeling! Of how he fights it!!

[@7_of_1]

You do great reactions, you don’t pause in key moments that ruin the song. Great analysis ❤

[@johnstart1781]

My generation´s music. I´m so proud.

[@DonGiggity]

I’ve always loved this song from the start but I loved it more when I learned how to play it on guitar and sing to it. It’s special to me now…😊

[@jamesnunn7181]

The first line of the lyric (as shown ‘backwards’) is printed as ‘a heart full up like a landfill’ but he clearly says ‘a Glass full’, you can clearly hear it, with the ‘ss’ at the end

[@jameslabeck6407]

One of my favs