The Synths of Radiohead’s Kid A

[@nicholasmiller7750]

One suggestion/ critique: As you share the information about the songs it would be really cool to hear an example or better yet to see a quick demonstration of the settings they used (or at least an approximation since there are alot of intricacies with their production)

[@Martijnnaber]

The drums for Kid A were done on a Korg Electribe ER-1! That machine has a distinct sound and it’s quite easy to recreate Kid A with it

[@samiam9059]

This guy wasn't even born then...

[@ernestmaciel]

I used to own one 😭

[@ernestmaciel]

I used to own one 😭

[@michaelkonomos]

I searched all over Google and cannot find anywhere that mentions the Electribe on this album. Do you have a source for this?

[@NeoLudditevisons]

Kid A is the most seminal album released in my lifetime. Still sounds like it was made yesterday, like all master pieces - timeless.

[@korneliusoderso]

Björk Homogenic

[@SoundWaveSea]

Actually the analog revival was full on when Kid A was recorded, so it wasn't like Radiohead put this out before the analog revival. The synthesisers of old were back in vogue and very much being fetished. I remember it well, since at that time I was avidly reading up on and collecting the classic analog keyboards. William Orbit was on the cover of every keyboard magazine holding his Korg MS20, just one example (and which instantly doubled the prices of MS20s). Doepfer had already released their A-100 modular synth and modules, creating the Eurorack format. Magazines like Future Music magazine were splitting discussion between the new gear (lots of virtual analog at the time, plus modular synths were back in production) and the classics. I remember I wrote into them and asked them to do something on the Solina String Ensemble and mentioned The Chameleons U.K. as classic users. To my delight, a couple of months later they did just that and mentioned The Chameleons U.K. as a band to check out if you wanted to hear a Solina in action. Kid A was a visionary album that blew my mind, exactly what I wanted to hear. They dialed in the old gear in a really unique way, super fresh, with uncompromising artistry. I bought it a few days after it was released and it quickly convinced me that I wanted the deeper experimentation and sound design of modular synthesis, so I bought a Doepfer A-100. What an amazing machine!

[@decapitateallcops3214]

Great contribution to this video. Thanks for sharing your experience!!

[@madblessings]

Absolutely love this segment, thanks for doing what you're doing! Looking forward to the next one

[@madblessings]

Any album by BOC would be great!

[@audiolego]

I only have The Bends . I will listen to ok comp and kid a .

[@breakbearrr]

The vocal manipulation on Right Place was done using a korg kaoss pad! fun thing to use

[@simenskari]

Live yes, but on the recording Thom is actually scrubbing the playhead in ProTools back and forth! He stated this in an recent interview :)

[@stag7882004]

I use Roland SRX electric pianos expansion patch “Pure EP” for Morning Bell. Sounds amazing

[@lucio788]

I thought he was going to talk about Windows 95 for a second

[@mauriciomandara5946]

This is so cool! Getting to know the synths used by great bands 👍🏻… hope not the last one!… I wasn’t a big fan of Radiohead until kidA came out … was mind blowing in that time … most fans hated it

[@SoundWaveSea]

And, great video and great channel!

[@elvissanchez8985]

It was definitely after the vintage keyboard and synth revival. Off by about 5 years. Those instruments were already seeing a revival before kid A

[@tomblaze2]

I like this new artist based series

[@JoshSemans]

Ondes Martenot is pronounced ‘ond martin-o’ rhymes with ‘pond cart-in-oh’. It’s French for ‘Martenot’s waves’. Maurice Martenot was the inventor, and first presented his instrument to the world in 1928. By this time it was in its second iteration. The ondes that Jonny used on Kid A was a digital ‘student model’ ondes Martenot that Maurice’s son Jean-Lois built. The last ondes to use the Heterodyning valve pair oscillator system was the Mk. 6, which was followed by the transistorised Mk. 7 in 1974 or so! 👍🏻

[@essenceoftheanimal]

talking. why are cool synths even there?

[@logiclust]

mate, KA happened during the thick of the analogue revival. you clearly didn't experience the late 90s. many many bands were using that kit back then and before. hell, even The Church were doing in. super trendy, just not in America.

[@GooGuGajoob]

Why are you grand slamming every word?

[@roberttodd2414]

is it weird that I'm into synths but I think kid A is rubbish, yet think The Bends is a masterpiece, every song perfect. OK Computer is OK...Saw them a few times back in the 90s....

[@logiclust]

they used to do a bunch of free shows in my hood back when they were starting out so I got to see them a few times back then too.

[@roberttodd2414]

@@logiclust I thought they were cooler in the early days

[@towersofasia]

Yeah that is weird...I love the Bends and OK computer (I feel that one has dated the most somehow) but remember very clearly how Kid A blew me away at the time. Nobody expected it and it's still my favourite of theirs to this day.