Soaring to number one on the UK album charts, reaching an impressive 21 on the US Billboard 200 and receiving humongous critical acclaim, Radiohead were now a household name. With the release of OK Computer, that all changed. However, its lack of worldwide commercial success also left them looking like a one hit wonder. An honest reaction to their sudden fame and a dramatic musical shift, The Bends proved that Radiohead were something special. Still, some critics noticed potential, and two years later their second album The Bends fulfilled that.

The single Creep was a worldwide success, but the album was criticised for being too derivative. Radiohead released their debut album Pablo Honey in 1993 to middling reviews. In other words, Radiohead’s third album OK Computer may be 20 years old, but in 2017, it’s more relevant than ever. The difference is, now we consume it through devices that know our favourite restaurants, daily commutes and exact location. Film, TV and music still love to warn us about tech, from Charlie Brooker’s Black Mirror to Arcade Fire asking “what if the camera really do take your soul?” on their 2013 album Reflektor. Still, I’m no stranger to techno-paranoid media. I will never live in a world where everything – from schools to houses to pockets – isn’t filled with computers.

Ok computer radiohead year