Written by Bill WhitingPhotos by Scott Preston
Abingdon, Oxfordshire, England’s Radiohead rolled into a capacity packed Riverbend Music Center in Cincinnati, Ohio on June 5, and performed a groundbreaking set of original rock music enhanced by a high tech visual extravaganza. Colin Greenwood on bass and Jonny Greenwood on lead guitar and keyboards set the mood on the opening one-two punch of “Bloom” and “Airbag.” Ed O’Brien’s shimmering guitar lines painted with depth and pure tone on the involving masterworks, “Kid A” and “Bodysnatchers.” And, Phil Selway’s epic backbeat on drums and percussion provided the glue and foundation for much of the evening’s highlights, including the riveting compositions, “Codex” and “The Daily Mail.” But, it was Thom Yorke’s passionate lead singing and keyboard playing that connected strongly to the Riverbend audience on new material such as the beguiling “Lotus Flower” and the powerfully evoked classics, “Nude” and “15 Step.” A brilliantly projected light show conveyed a multi dimensional experience as bulbs flashed in time to the music while moving screens popped out apart from the backing monitor to display Radiohead in it’s naturally ethereal enhanced environment. With Yorke dancing about the stage, the ensemble took their daring and transcendant sonic improvisations to a higher level on the tour debut, “Subterranean Homesick Alien,” and a brief Neil Young tease of “After the Gold Rush” into the propulsive, “Everything In It’s Right Place.” Leaving the stage to several standing ovations, the group returned to encore for the last time with epic takes on “The National Anthem” and “Reckoner.” Radiohead left it’s Cincinnati faithful with a warm sense of fulfillment, and a deep desire to catch the band again in the near future.
Setlist: Bloom, Airbag, Kid A, Bodysnatchers, Staircase, Codex, The Daily Mail, Myxomatosis, The Gloaming, Separator, Nude, Identikit, Lotus Flower, 15 Step, Feral, Idioteque
Encore: Morning Mr. Magpie, These Are My Twisted Words, Subterranean Homesick Alien, (After the Gold Rush intro) Everything In It’s Right Place
Encore 2: Give Up the Ghost, The National Anthem, Reckoner
Check out more photos from the show here.
