lazarus
Blue Crack Supplier
Alright, I know this thread seems like it's over 5 years old, but I listened to both albums back-to-back the other day and it's been on my mind since.
I've made it clear in numerous threads that I prefer Amesiac to its predecessor. I'm of the firm belief that had the albums been released in the opposite order, you wouldn't have as many people preferring Kid A. I think people, even subconsciously, may feel that Amnesiac is stuff that wasn't good enough for Kid A, or some kind of sessions B-sides, something that the alternate version of Morning Bell probably reinforced. People who followed the band around this time should know that's not the case, but whatever.
What I'm going to try here is a head to head comparison, attempting to keep the track orders intact, but switching where it seems necessary. Because Amnesiac has one extra song, I've removed Hunting Bears as it's the shortest song by far, and is an instrumental.
In each matchup, the Kid A song will be listed first.
1. Everything in Its Right Place vs. Packt Like Sardines in a Crushd Tin Box
WINNER: Everything in Its Right Place
This one is one of the easier decisions to make. While Sardines is a very cool track, Everything is more powerful overall. It creates a lot of atmopshere, not only for Kid A, but for the "new phase" of Radiohead's career. Sardines gets the slight edge in the lyrics department (both songs have few words with strange declarations), but that's just not enough here.
2. Kid A vs. Pyramid Song
WINNER: Pyramid Song
Simply put, Pyramid is one of the band's finest moments. It's very evocative, relaying a haunting dream of the narrator that's no question among Yorke's best lyrics as well (though it only has one verse, repeated, plus a one line refrain). The music carries this off perfectly, adding the touch of the exotic with the strings that give the song its title, as well as an off kilter drumbeat that keeps the listener a bit on edge.
3. The National Anthem vs. Pulk/Pull Revolving Doors
WINNER: The National Anthem
A tough call here. I think the Amnesiac track is one of the cooler sounding things on the album, and while the hard-to-discern lyrics might seem non-sensical, the line about "But there are trapdoors that you can't get back from" speaks volumes. The National Anthem is a live favorite and a well-loved song on Kid A, which compares well here because both songs are among the "hardest" on their respective albums.
4. How to Disappear Completely vs. You and Whose Army
WINNER: You and Whose Army
This will likely be one of the more unpopular decisions, as I know Disappear is well loved, probably because it's one of the only links on Kid A to old Radiohead. It's admittedly pretty, but unfortunately it doesn't go anywhere for me, even at nearly 6 minutes. It's rather droning. At 3 minutes, the comparitively short You And Whose Army? covers much more territory. It begins with a lightly strummed guitar, and almost sounds like some 1940's crooner song. But just past the halfway point, the piano and drums come in and put this thing over the top. The lyrics seem political, and while they don't get into specfics, there's a challenge here to some entity, and it's a strong one. Yes, it could have been longer, but at least it doesn't overstay its welcome.
5. Treefingers vs. Like Spinning Plates
WINNER: Like Spinning Plates
Here's where I have to start shuffling things around to make better comparisons. Treefingers is an instrumental, and Like Spinning Plates has very few (most of the backwards). This one's a toss up; Treefingers doesn't really do much for me, and coming as soon as track 5 on the album doesn't help it much. If anything sounds like it could have been a b-side, it's this. Plates is a bit more substantial, and is served better by being on the denser side 2.
6. Optimistic vs. Knives Out
WINNER: Knives Out
One of the closer calls. These are both fairly conventional rock tracks, the Amnesiac song probably the most like old Radiohead on both albums. But that's not why it gets the edge here. I just think it's a great song, with beautiful work by all the instrumentalists.
7. In Limbo vs. Dollars and Cents
WINNER: Dollars and Cents
Here I shuffled again, as I felt the dreamier Amnesiac song was more comparible here than Morning Bell, which will compete with itself. In Limbo segues right from Optimistic seemingly without a break, so perhaps it's unfair to isolate it. But it does seem like too much of a transitional track that doesn't really go anywhere or do anything, and pretty much lives up to its title. Dollars and Cents takes the strings from Pyramid Song and applies them toward different ends. The lyrics are much more specific than anything else on the album, and help to make it come off as a much more political animal. The music is fairly laid back considering the message, and while it's not one of the better tracks on the album, it's more accomplished here.
8. Idioteque vs. I Might Be Wrong
WINNER: Idioteque
This is somewhat going against my own feelings, as I rather prefer the Amnesiac track here. But Idioteque is one of the best songs on Kid A, and has a deserved following among Radiohead fans. I do think this is close than much would think though. Both songs are pretty aggressive sonically, and the sound of IMBW can be traced almost exactly back to Brian Eno & David Byrne's My Life in the Bush of Ghosts. It's got a great guitar part and cool percussion, but the song really climaxes when everything drops out for a moment and Yorke lets out this plaintive wail that's one of the best moments on the album. However, in the interest of objectivity I'll tip the hat to Kid A here.
9. Morning Bell vs. Morning Bell/Amnesiac
WINNER: Morning Bell/Amnesiac
Another opinion that I fear won't be very popular. I guess it's how you interpet the lyrics. The song seems to be about the dissolution of a marriage or significant relationship, with the talk about possessions and "cut the kids in half". The paranoid sound of the version on Kid A is well done with the drumbeat and the keyboards, but to me, the key is in the words "release me", and the version on Amnesiac sells that better. You have these angelic bells and have the sense of someone swimming up towards the light. This take seems to balance the sad with the salvation in a way that the original doesn't.
10. Motion Picture Soundtrack vs. Life in a Glass House
WINNER: Life in a Glass House
I don't think there should really be much of an argument here. MPS is beautifully orchestrated, but it's up against a pretty brillant creation by the band. Glasshouse comes out of nowhere as some kind of New Orleans funeral dirge, with a horn arrangement by Jonny Greenwood that one-ups the work on the other album's finale. For a pair of albums that saw Radiohead go off the deep end into a claustrophobic and abstract exploration of their sound, this song strangely brings things back around to an old-fashioned conclusion. The opening line "Once again I'm in trouble with my only friend" goes right back to Morning Bell, the lyric "packed in like frozen food and battery hens" references the beginning of the album, and the way Yorke sings "well I'd like to sit around and chat, only there's someone listening in" right as the song concludes seems to implicate the viewer, and makes the whole thing a bit of a meta experience.
FINAL SCORE: Amnesiac 7, Kid A 3
I know most will those numbers are out of whack, and I'd like to hear further discussion about the quality of the individual songs themselves, as opposed to the albums as a whole--I'll admit that Kid A probably flows better, but that wasn't the point of this comparison.
I've made it clear in numerous threads that I prefer Amesiac to its predecessor. I'm of the firm belief that had the albums been released in the opposite order, you wouldn't have as many people preferring Kid A. I think people, even subconsciously, may feel that Amnesiac is stuff that wasn't good enough for Kid A, or some kind of sessions B-sides, something that the alternate version of Morning Bell probably reinforced. People who followed the band around this time should know that's not the case, but whatever.
What I'm going to try here is a head to head comparison, attempting to keep the track orders intact, but switching where it seems necessary. Because Amnesiac has one extra song, I've removed Hunting Bears as it's the shortest song by far, and is an instrumental.
In each matchup, the Kid A song will be listed first.
1. Everything in Its Right Place vs. Packt Like Sardines in a Crushd Tin Box
WINNER: Everything in Its Right Place
This one is one of the easier decisions to make. While Sardines is a very cool track, Everything is more powerful overall. It creates a lot of atmopshere, not only for Kid A, but for the "new phase" of Radiohead's career. Sardines gets the slight edge in the lyrics department (both songs have few words with strange declarations), but that's just not enough here.
2. Kid A vs. Pyramid Song
WINNER: Pyramid Song
Simply put, Pyramid is one of the band's finest moments. It's very evocative, relaying a haunting dream of the narrator that's no question among Yorke's best lyrics as well (though it only has one verse, repeated, plus a one line refrain). The music carries this off perfectly, adding the touch of the exotic with the strings that give the song its title, as well as an off kilter drumbeat that keeps the listener a bit on edge.
3. The National Anthem vs. Pulk/Pull Revolving Doors
WINNER: The National Anthem
A tough call here. I think the Amnesiac track is one of the cooler sounding things on the album, and while the hard-to-discern lyrics might seem non-sensical, the line about "But there are trapdoors that you can't get back from" speaks volumes. The National Anthem is a live favorite and a well-loved song on Kid A, which compares well here because both songs are among the "hardest" on their respective albums.
4. How to Disappear Completely vs. You and Whose Army
WINNER: You and Whose Army
This will likely be one of the more unpopular decisions, as I know Disappear is well loved, probably because it's one of the only links on Kid A to old Radiohead. It's admittedly pretty, but unfortunately it doesn't go anywhere for me, even at nearly 6 minutes. It's rather droning. At 3 minutes, the comparitively short You And Whose Army? covers much more territory. It begins with a lightly strummed guitar, and almost sounds like some 1940's crooner song. But just past the halfway point, the piano and drums come in and put this thing over the top. The lyrics seem political, and while they don't get into specfics, there's a challenge here to some entity, and it's a strong one. Yes, it could have been longer, but at least it doesn't overstay its welcome.
5. Treefingers vs. Like Spinning Plates
WINNER: Like Spinning Plates
Here's where I have to start shuffling things around to make better comparisons. Treefingers is an instrumental, and Like Spinning Plates has very few (most of the backwards). This one's a toss up; Treefingers doesn't really do much for me, and coming as soon as track 5 on the album doesn't help it much. If anything sounds like it could have been a b-side, it's this. Plates is a bit more substantial, and is served better by being on the denser side 2.
6. Optimistic vs. Knives Out
WINNER: Knives Out
One of the closer calls. These are both fairly conventional rock tracks, the Amnesiac song probably the most like old Radiohead on both albums. But that's not why it gets the edge here. I just think it's a great song, with beautiful work by all the instrumentalists.
7. In Limbo vs. Dollars and Cents
WINNER: Dollars and Cents
Here I shuffled again, as I felt the dreamier Amnesiac song was more comparible here than Morning Bell, which will compete with itself. In Limbo segues right from Optimistic seemingly without a break, so perhaps it's unfair to isolate it. But it does seem like too much of a transitional track that doesn't really go anywhere or do anything, and pretty much lives up to its title. Dollars and Cents takes the strings from Pyramid Song and applies them toward different ends. The lyrics are much more specific than anything else on the album, and help to make it come off as a much more political animal. The music is fairly laid back considering the message, and while it's not one of the better tracks on the album, it's more accomplished here.
8. Idioteque vs. I Might Be Wrong
WINNER: Idioteque
This is somewhat going against my own feelings, as I rather prefer the Amnesiac track here. But Idioteque is one of the best songs on Kid A, and has a deserved following among Radiohead fans. I do think this is close than much would think though. Both songs are pretty aggressive sonically, and the sound of IMBW can be traced almost exactly back to Brian Eno & David Byrne's My Life in the Bush of Ghosts. It's got a great guitar part and cool percussion, but the song really climaxes when everything drops out for a moment and Yorke lets out this plaintive wail that's one of the best moments on the album. However, in the interest of objectivity I'll tip the hat to Kid A here.
9. Morning Bell vs. Morning Bell/Amnesiac
WINNER: Morning Bell/Amnesiac
Another opinion that I fear won't be very popular. I guess it's how you interpet the lyrics. The song seems to be about the dissolution of a marriage or significant relationship, with the talk about possessions and "cut the kids in half". The paranoid sound of the version on Kid A is well done with the drumbeat and the keyboards, but to me, the key is in the words "release me", and the version on Amnesiac sells that better. You have these angelic bells and have the sense of someone swimming up towards the light. This take seems to balance the sad with the salvation in a way that the original doesn't.
10. Motion Picture Soundtrack vs. Life in a Glass House
WINNER: Life in a Glass House
I don't think there should really be much of an argument here. MPS is beautifully orchestrated, but it's up against a pretty brillant creation by the band. Glasshouse comes out of nowhere as some kind of New Orleans funeral dirge, with a horn arrangement by Jonny Greenwood that one-ups the work on the other album's finale. For a pair of albums that saw Radiohead go off the deep end into a claustrophobic and abstract exploration of their sound, this song strangely brings things back around to an old-fashioned conclusion. The opening line "Once again I'm in trouble with my only friend" goes right back to Morning Bell, the lyric "packed in like frozen food and battery hens" references the beginning of the album, and the way Yorke sings "well I'd like to sit around and chat, only there's someone listening in" right as the song concludes seems to implicate the viewer, and makes the whole thing a bit of a meta experience.
FINAL SCORE: Amnesiac 7, Kid A 3
I know most will those numbers are out of whack, and I'd like to hear further discussion about the quality of the individual songs themselves, as opposed to the albums as a whole--I'll admit that Kid A probably flows better, but that wasn't the point of this comparison.
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I love it. I find it incredibly catchy.
How to Disappear > Amnesiac 
x infinity
I see your point, though. I guess with me, I find it utterly compelling because it doesn't appear contrived. It strikes at something real, even if there's no apparent joy. But, to me, realness can be joyous. It's also very cohesive, as a whole...a bit more than Amnesiac, IMO. You and Whose Army? nearly pushes it even, however...the second half of that is extraordinary. 
