Album Reviews I Wrote As A Teenager: Radiohead's "Pablo Honey"

Music criticism executed with "clinch-fisted intensity"

When I was 15, I started writing a biweekly column for my local newspaper, the Appleton Post-Crescent. Most of the time, I wrote album reviews. I saved many of them in a blue binder I now keep in my office. I am now sharing them with you. Here is my review of Pablo Honey by Radiohead, from November 24, 1993, published when I was 16 (with occasional commentary by present-day me.)

When it comes to rock ‘n’ roll, I have a soft spot in my heart for bands that can write solid melodies and play those melodies with clinch-fisted intensity.

[No disagreement here, young man.]

Radiohead is a band like that. They are a new band from the U.K. Radiohead’s debut album is called Pablo Honey, an excellent collection of rock-flavored pop songs.

[Have you ever tasted Radiohead? The rock flavoring is truly delicious.]

Radiohead has a sound reminiscent of early U2, with their dramatic vocals and soaring guitars. But the guys in Radiohead are not a bunch of copycats. Their songs are idiosyncratic, yet catchy.

[I wrote about this in my book, but people really do forget that Radiohead early on were talked about in “early U2”-type terms, and commonly regarded as a “copycat” band ripping off American alt-rock. Their “difficult/esoteric” rep was still about seven years away.]

The track of Pablo Honey that has received the most attention thus far is “Creep,” which has garnered heavy airplay on both college radio and MTV. Much like Nirvana did with “Smells Like Teen Spirit” a few years ago, Radiohead chronicles the age-old problem of teen angst on “Creep.”

[“The age-old problem of teen angst” — poetic yet insightful.]

The song appears in two versions on Pablo Honey (one is not listed). The only difference between the two is the appearance of an obscene word (it rhymes with “truckin’”). The word isn’t important anyway. The central statement of “Creep” is, “I don’t belong here,” which is something I’m sure all teenagers have felt at one time or another.

[Pluckin’?]

“Creep” is by no means the only highlight of Pablo Honey. There’s the tongue-in-cheek rocker “Anyone Can Play Guitar,” the intricate rhythms of “Ripcord,” and the downright poppy “I Can’t.”

[“I Can’t” has never been played live! Still a banger!]

Pablo Honey is a very good album and a debut Radiohead will hopefully live up to. Its swirling guitars, restless rhythms, and sad songs are great listening.

[They lived up to it. And now for the kicker …]

[Chef’s kiss]