Oh dear Lord. It's as though Achtung Baby and OK Computer are my two children and you're forcing me to decide which one I prefer over the other. I can't choose, really, I can't. They're both near perfection. Maybe I'll try rating both albums by averages, but I emphasise, I consider them just about equal.

ACHTUNG BABY

Zoo Station [4.9]
Even Better Than The Real Thing [4.0]
One [4.0]
Until The End Of The World [5.0]
Who's Gonna Ride Your Wild Horses [3.5]
So Cruel [2.5]
The Fly [5.0]
Mysterious Ways [4.0]
Tryin' To Throw Your Arms Around The World [2.0]
Ultraviolet (Light My Way) [4.0]
Acrobat [4.5]
Love Is Blindness [4.5]

AVG: 4.00


OK COMPUTER

Airbag [4.0]
Paranoid Android [5.0]
Subterranean Homesick Alien [4.9]
Exit Music [4.0]
Let Down [5.0]
Karma Police [4.5]
Fitter Happier [2.0]
Electioneering [3.0]
Climbing Up The Walls [4.5]
No Surprises [4.0]
Lucky [3.9]
The Tourist [4.0]

AVG: 4.06


Just about the same, really.

This is a tough choice.. seeing that OK Computer was my first Radiohead album which got me to go out and buy the rest of their albums (personally love The Bends more than OK..) ...

and Achtung Baby was the album that got me utterly obsessed with U2.
But I think Achtung has more of a 'deeper' meaning to me, so I'll have to go with Achtung Baby.

Re: Achtung Baby vs. Ok Computer
 

Holy crap, I agree with that entire post. Seriously. I'd rate all the songs the same as you did. Both great albums, but Achtung takes the cake.

Of course, as far as I'm concerned, The Bends is better than OK Computer and Kid A is Radiohead's best album ever (granted I've yet to hear Pablo Honey or Hail to the Thief). Achtung is arguably U2's best album though I definitely prefer Pop. Comparing Kid A to Pop would be hard though. I think Kid A to Zooropa would be a better comparison as I think they're both the most "out there" either band has been (although I guess you could count Passengers). If I did that...

Zooropa > Everything In Its Right Place
If it were any other song, Everything... would win. But Zooropa is amazing.

Babyface < Kid A
Kid A is so beautifully strange. Babyface is good and underrated but ultimately nothing special, just a nice little pop song.

Numb < The National Anthem
I love Numb, but The National Anthem has a groove, man. There's no messing with that rhythm section.

Lemon > How to Disappear Completely
Incredibly hard choice because How to Disappear is so beautiful, but I gotta go with the more bizarre Lemon.

Stay > Treefingers
Well, duh.

Daddy's Gonna Pay For Your Crashed Car < Optimistic
Daddy's is badass but Optimistic is a far, far better song. And, hey, it actually has guitar - a rarity for both albums. The last 20 seconds of Optimistic alone make the song worth it.

Some Days Are Better Than Others < In Limbo
Again, In Limbo is just a better song. No competition here.

The First Time < Idioteque
The First Time is a beautiful ballad, but Idioteque is the best song on the album, hands down.

Dirty Day > Morning Bell
Okay, this is kind of unfair because I think of the superior live versions with Dirty Day though I've never heard any live Radiohead songs. This one is actually very, very close. But Dirty Day's lyrics are to die for :drool:

The Wanderer < Motion Picture Soundtrack
This one is also very close, but something about the chord change and the way Yorke sings "I think you're crazy...maybe..." gets me everytime.

So that's U2 4, Radiohead 6. I'd also say that Kid A is stronger as a whole album than Zooropa though both are very, very good as albums.

I hate comparing 2 brilliant albums, but Im going to have to go with Achtung Baby. The reason I suppose is because there is not a song I would skip on Achtung Baby, but on Ok Computer I always skip "Fitter Happier" and sometimes "Electioneering". These albums are not overated.

OK Computer beats the crap out of Achtung Baby, and this is coming from a guy that thinks Achtung Baby is U2's best.

I do not like Radiohead and I think OK Computer is extremely overated. I have all of their albums but I would rather stick a knife in my eye than listen to them.

:eyebrow:

Oh, you're going to play the stupid "you don't 'get' the music" card? Oh, I 'get' it alright, and at times, I even enjoy listening to Radiohead's music, but I can't handle Thom Yorke's voice for more than about ten minutes. And frankly, there's a difference between doing new and inventive things with music and just sticking a fork up your arse, twisting it a few times, and claiming it's experimental music. Radiohead have done both.

If you ask me, there's significantly better music than Radiohead out there.

I think Radiohead are one of the most overrated bands in history. The way people fawn over them is amzing. OK Computer, Kid A and The Bends are all good albums, but the kind of slavering that they induce seems bizarre to me.

I fail to see how Radiohead are overrated. But anyway.

:yes:

well said

Ok Computer is painful to listen to.

I don't think they are two albums to compare song-song

I will vote for achtung baby here, but I think the way things are graded, OK computer gets treated unfairly

Yeah, I don't like doing that lateral song by song comparison! Cos say.. track 2 from album 1 may not be as good as track 2 from album 2 but album 1 may have a better overall feel! And how do you justify not comparing track 2 from here to track 5 from there? It makes no sense!

Anyway, it's Achtung Baby for me even though I love Ok Computer to death!

OKC is one of the records that I think is really, REALLY fucking brilliant, but that for some reason I don't listen to that much. I listen to AB all the time. I don't really want to choose.

i was only saying what you already said.

as for your last comment about there being better music than radiohead, you're more than likely right.

Re: Re: Achtung Baby vs. Ok Computer
 

Yes, it's a whole album of utter crap!

I tried, and tried, and tried and tried again to get into that album. In '97 when everyone was ranting and raving over it, while my interest in Radiohead and waned considerably, I ran out and bought it. What a waste of $$. But it's Radiohead and critics and fans here loved it, so I gave it my best.

However, after 8 years, I can honestly say that I feel most of Radiohead's recent work, including "O.K. Computer" is amongst the most uninspired drip I've had the displeasure of hearing. Sadly, I continue to buy their material hoping they'll find a spark of what made them somewhat interesting years ago.

Bottom line, "O.K. Computer" shouldn't even be in the same poll as AB, let alone ranked above it.

OK comp is a nice album, but AB is much more better and has the perfect flow. i also think that radiohead is a bit overrated. their best album imo is 'the bends'

You've successfully both twisted my words and dodged my argument. Well done! :up:

Achtung. There are parts of OK that lose me, specifically toward the end. I also prefer the "vibe" and maturity of Achtung, but this may have a lot to do with the stage at which each band recorded the album.

OK Computer vs Joshua Tree IMO would be a far more valid (and interesting) comparison. But for the love of God, somone please don't make the thread! :no: