Radiohead at the O2 Arena

Radiohead
Caribou
O2 Arena, 9 October 2012

Arena shows are so odd, they have such a different vibe to them, something I had forgotten as I walked into the vast O2 Arena. Last time I saw Radiohead was, unbelievably, 15 years ago now, on the OK Computer tour so I thought it was well past the time I finally caught up with them live especially as they were playing so close to me in Greenwich.

Last time I saw them I was standing down the front battling the crowds at Wembley Arena but this time I was content to comfortably sit in the side tiers, completely unenivious of all those standing struggling to see. As I came in the support act, Caribou, were already on the stage playing loudly with bright lights flashing away. I had never actually heard Caribou before (because of the Pixies song of the same name as I had imagined an indie rock band) but it turns out they are more of a dance/electronica act, with mainman Daniel Snaith at the side behind his keyboard and the drummer displayed prominently out front, Kraut-rock style. For those wanting to dance I'm sure they were great (funnily enough last time I saw Radiohead DJ Shadow supported them, so maybe their fans do want to dance) but watching them from a seat in an arena didn't exactly do them justice.

Even though I had seen them before, this time I really didn't know what to expect with Radiohead but in the intervening years they really have become adept as an arena band. Before they were content with being a straight-ahead rock band but this time there was an elaborate stage setting comprised of 12 screens, some which remained stationary at the top of stage, and others that moved to different angles throughout the show, all showing close-ups of different members of the band playing, as well as a dramatic, well-lit back screen which switched from different visuals for every song, some rather Matrix-esque, some looking like they came from the Windows Media Player, but still very effective. 

Thom Yorke emerged wearing black, his hair pulled back, rather endearingly, into a little bun on the back of his head and as expected they launched into a track from their last album, The King Of Limbs, the rhythmic electronica of Lotus Flower, the sound loud and pure. At arena shows you may not get to see your favourite band up close but, aside from the impressive light show, maybe it means it really is more about the music and I can't deny they sounded impeccable. Not surprisingly material from the last two albums dominated the setlist, with six from The King Of Limbs and five from In Rainbows. This was fine with me as I've always found that Radiohead are one of the few bands who not only have remained consistently good throughout their career but have actually got more interesting musically. Therefore it was a joy to hear those tracks, whether it was the moody acoustics of Give Up The Ghost or the frantic electronic beats of Feral or the pure rock licks of Bodysnatchers. 

It was definitely great to finally hear the newer material live (particularly In Rainbows because that album owns my heart, I must admit), but they didn't fail to give us a nice selection of older songs either and I can't deny, maybe down to pure nostalgia, it was a thrill to hear songs like There There from Hail To The Thief and Everything In Its Right Place from Kid A. But particularly unexpected and all the more wonderful for it, was quartet of songs from their hugely influential 90s albums The Bends and OK Computer, with the band belting out classics like Planet Telex and Airbag and treating us to an epically beautiful Street Spirit (Fade Out). And as cool as I'd like to be by saying that my favourites of the night were the more obscure songs, instead it was in fact one of their most famous: Paranoid Android, which ended the main set, and sounded absolutely incredible, with pretty much everyone around me compelled to jump up from their seats.

Yorke, of course, is always entertaining to watch, crazily dancing around the stage in his own unique way, while the rest of the band were content to remain in their corners (well aside from Jonny Greenwood, who was constantly running around to play different instruments in his section), but thanks to the screens focusing on each member you could see how deeply each was into the music, the emotion and concentration plain to see on each of their faces.

After two and a half hours and three encores (the third a great version of Idioteque)  it was all over. But then, sitting a couple of rows in front of me, I spotted none other than the American actor Aaron Paul, who plays the meth-producing drug dealer Jesse Pinkman in the fantastic TV show Breaking Bad and is a huge, huge Radiohead fan. I recognised him instantly, even in his Starsky & Hutch-esque cardigan, as I had just watched the first four seasons of the show pretty much back to back. It seemed like fate he was sitting so close to me so I thought, what the hell, and went and said hi and it turns out he is the loveliest guy ever, so I'm really glad I did and it really was the perfect end to a perfect night.