Song of the Week #3

 

 Song of the Week #3: 10/22/22

    This week, I'm being a bit more timely. That's not to say there haven't been certain challenges I've had facing this blog post. I have been in one of those musical slumps where you listen to the same eight crappy songs over and over again, so it is rather tough to determine an apt Song of the Week. I don't want to pick something I've been super into for a long time, and I don't want to pick something I've only been listening to for a day or so. I need something that's been in constant rotation for about a week. There's one song that fits the bill for that, and although I feel like it's a bit bland since I've written about this band before, I'm going to go with it. This week's SOTW is none other than "Faithless the Wonder Boy" by Radiohead. This cut was a b-side on the "Anyone Can Play Guitar" single back in 1993 or 94. Unpopular opinion, but I love "Anyone Can Play Guitar," so it makes sense that I'd enjoy this track so much. If you didn't already know, this is my favorite Radiohead era by far, even if it didn't produce their best tunes. They were so raw and immature and their take on the noisy grunge-pop of the period was really, really fresh. I don't care what anyone says, the 'head were doing it different, even then. The songwriting isn't deep, sure, but it doesn't feel like it's trying to be, either. So many groups were trying to be different. Radiohead wasn't trying to be anything they weren't when they made Pablo Honey. It's simple and it's stupid, and that's the point! I think so many critics get it wrong about the debut in that regard. Is it Radiohead's worst album? Probably. Is it a bad album? Not by any means. If any other alternative band had released Pablo Honey, critics would be ruling it a classic of its time. Duh, it doesn't hold up to Kid A whatsoever, but does it really need to? Ok, ok, I'm getting caught up in this argument, but that's not the point of this post. "Faithless the Wonder Boy" is a really simple song in the group's discography. The lyrics are childish and incredibly repetitive (Thom can't put the needle in), the instrumental is basic as far as Radiohead goes, and there is absolutely nothing about the song to write home about. I don't say these things as criticisms though. I don't think there's a need to overcomplicate things. I think it is a catchy, fun, and enjoyable pop tune and that's all that matters. I think it would be idiotic to look any deeper into this. I like to think Thom Yorke was having fun, and if you don't like this song because it's stupid, that's a-okay. I'm going to keep on listening.

Selected Listening: