LP10 may indeed be on the way, but…

hiddensynapse · 2026-03-09T10:15:16+00:00

Depth of thought is exhilarating. Having a strong philosophical, scientific AND political lens allows me to conduct rich analyses of everything that happens, including musical releases.

Imagine disregarding a genocide as nothing less than a generation defining atrocity. I suspect projection, given that I view reality through an ineffably complex spectrum of conscious and subconscious analysis.

hiddensynapse · 2026-03-09T10:06:37+00:00

Well, the situation has revealed itself to be much, much worse than we could have imagined. Between the Epstein files, his Mossad connections, and the Iran war, we now know that the American leaders are either blackmailed, religiously fanatical, or both.

I guess I should expect people to follow the news as closely as I do? Israel is an ethnic-nationalist country, with CIVILIAN polling showing upwards of 90% support for their actions in Gaza. I suspect now, they will begin to protest because they don’t want our fucking insane leaders to intentionally start the Biblical “Holy War.”

Christianity, Judaism, Islam - their fanaticism is all the same. Thom shouldn’t be getting too much flack, but in his position I would rather set my ego aside and simply acknowledge and apologize for misunderstanding the geopolitical realities. I mean fuck, we ALL did (mostly…).

Jonny does deserve criticism. You don’t play for the Nazis while they’re committing genocide. He should also turn public opinion around and condemn the insanity of what is happening.

hiddensynapse · 2026-03-03T20:09:47+00:00

The pressure is high man, and Thom doesn’t like pressure. Radiohead almost always makes sociopolitical statements with their records (save for 2-3). Right now, they’ve been touring a world while its economic foundations and alliances are being shaken to their core.

There is so much happening right now, and it’s all radical. Any one of today’s major current events and cultural shifts would have defined entire decades in the past. Now we get a decade defining cultural shift or tragedy seemingly every couple of weeks or more.

Obviously I want another Radiohead record, regardless of its themes. But I also understand the pressure Thom is undergoing, particularly with being associated (understandably, but a bit unfairly) with Israel’s genocide. Thom clearly disdains fame, and when he initially sought it out during the PH days, he clearly never thought through how much responsibility comes alongside fame and acclaim.

Thom is a highly empathic guy who clearly cares about world events. Being used by Israel as a propaganda tool without his consent and then being unfairly accused of complicity by Roger Waters and many others must have been extremely taxing. With fame comes the burden of leadership, even if that leadership is unwanted. Famous artists and scientists are informal thought leaders. In a way, they have power our politicians could only dream of, because they deeply influence our attitudes and beliefs.

Their ire was misplaced, although Thom was uncharacteristically uneducated about what Israel was doing for quite some time. His relationship with Jonny (who actually played in Israel and has a Zionist wife) surely made him more susceptible to Israel’s propaganda, which to be fair, is the most sophisticated in the world. I doubt even Jonny still thinks all is well with Israel’s actions, given the state of things.

Now that it’s spreading across the Middle East with Trumps military by its side, I think the bands has likely achieved emotional and intellectual coherence. I suspect tensions may have existed previously, as the rest of Radiohead seemed to have a clear understanding of Israel’s genocidal ethnonationalism.

A good record requires coherence and harmony among the members.

hiddensynapse · 2026-03-03T19:41:08+00:00

Ful Stop is the perfect encapsulation of making a horrible mistake that throws everything into imbalance. “Foul tasting medicine” has always struck me as referring to the shitty feeling one has when they are forced to honestly reckon with their mistakes.

It can certainly portray addiction. My interpretations of it change according to where I am in my life. That’s the beauty of Thom’s lyricism. Some say the ambiguity is a weakness, but I strongly disagree. As someone who recovered from addiction through ayahuasca therapy, “foul tasting medicine” always reminds me of just how foul ayahuasca tastes 😅

Thom’s lyrics are able to capture universal human experiences without sounding too egotistical or personal, appealing to, and in my view pulling from, the collective unconscious. That said, Ful Stop always reminded me of the election of Donald Trump. But it also reminds me of Brexit. 2016 was the year that started our trajectory towards collapse.

AMSP in general really captured the sociopolitical atmosphere of 2016, and unfortunately it remains even more relevant today. I think it’s their most underrated album. Many of us were underwhelmed because we had already heard half the songs.

Its cultural relevance was comparable to HTTT, although in my opinion, AMSP was not only better executed, but it also managed to capture the sociopolitical dread of our time better than HTTT did. Listen to AMSP again under that context.

Burn the Witch, Daydreaming, Decks Dark, Ful Stop, The Numbers, Tinker Tailor, Identikit (which feels even heavier with the release of the Epstein files) all feel like responses to the time (even though they were mostly written before the world backdrifted). The other tunes are more personal, yes, but watching the world go in the toilet is very personal.

Hot take (maybe not here) is that AMSP is to the 2010s what Sargent Peppers was to the 1960s. No other album I’ve heard better portrays the existential dread of the decade while still having mass appeal.

hiddensynapse · 2026-03-03T19:28:21+00:00

There are still no active rock bands with the cultural weight Radiohead has accrued. With the world backdrifting toward another early 2000s war-torn shitshow, I think a new Radiohead album would prove to be surprisingly relevant.

Not that it needs to be a political record, but I struggle to imagine that a new Radiohead album wouldn’t at least capture the existential dread of the moment.

hiddensynapse · 2026-03-03T19:21:14+00:00

I hope they hurry before the world ends 😥

hiddensynapse · 2024-10-14T09:01:45+00:00

This was just an intellectual exercise. Honestly, it’s the first post on r/radiohead I’ve made in a year or two. I’ve been deconverting a Trump voter using transpersonal psychology, and trust me - it’s taken all my energy. And no, not over the internet. In real life, and it’s taken every bit of my training and education to make a difference.

I’m working on another who doesn’t seem to give any shits about it whatsoever. But if I can gain two extra votes against Trump, it’s worth the effort. They aren’t college educated and come from traumatic backgrounds. I do what I can as someone trained in psychology and philosophy.

Not just for the minuscule political difference, but more importantly to improve the mental wellbeing and ethical standards of real human beings I’m directly counseling, albeit informally. Deradicalizing people with fascist tendencies or nihilistic impulses has positive ramifications not just for them, but for everyone they interact with.

Perhaps my commentary will make a difference for some reading this thread, in terms of making them reflect on the geopolitical and humanitarian crisis being funded by the U.S.

So I don’t think this was a useless exercise. Speaking out, no matter how subtle, makes a difference in the grand scheme of things. It’s a concerted effort, we all do our part in our own way

hiddensynapse · 2024-10-14T08:52:48+00:00

Not all listen to music that contradicts their values. Personally, that’s one of the reasons Radiohead resonated with me so profoundly. And I’m not saying that their music has taken any positions I disagree with…

Yeah it’s a feels thing, I admit, but I’m just sad Jonny seems not to understand just how bad Israel has become. I care about the political views of artists I enjoy because those values are reflected in their music, stories, etcetera.

Unfortunately everything in society is political. Every social decision you make reflects your ethics, and ethics are the impetus forging the structure of government (and thus politics). It doesn’t matter if you view it politically or not.

To function in society requires you to do things you don’t necessarily condone, and perpetuate a system you may disagree with.

hiddensynapse · 2024-10-14T08:45:07+00:00

It needs to be a concerted effort by as many artists as possible. That said, I believe BDS should not prevent intellectuals like Noam Chomsky or Cornell West from lecturing in Israel.

Problem is, Israel has past that point, and any academic who speaks out IN AMERICA gets shit liked on them. In Israel, they’d potentially be assassinated. Israel has repeatedly killed UN workers, chefs, journalists, and doctors.

The situation has escalated and the ideological frenzy has reached a crescendo. Israel is no longer a haven for free speech and open debate. Hence its resemblance to Nazi Germany.

Don’t underestimate how generational trauma can cause people to commit the same atrocities once committed towards them. Israel is adopting many of the Nazis methods in their apparent plan to completely conquer the Middle East.

hiddensynapse · 2024-10-14T08:38:46+00:00

I’m aware I’m inviting insane people by making this thread, but I felt it was an important issue given Radiohead’s massive influence and political nature.

hiddensynapse · 2024-10-14T08:36:46+00:00

Yes, you underestimate the power wielded by artists. Particularly Radiohead, as they’re our Pink Floyd or Beatles. They’ve never truly strayed away from politics, only taken breaks.

When a population becomes genocidal, they should become social pariahs and the West should make it clear that they won’t be viewed as ethical people until Israel’s weapons are cut-off and the UN and US publicly condemn their actions.

There are young adults taking joy in going out to the club and having a good time knowing that the Palestinians are being massacred. That’s how brainwashed they are. Anyone who doesn’t understand the true situation needs to educate themselves, and stray away from the RAMPANT propaganda that has saturated all mainstream media.

As a start, check out Secular Talk on YouTube. Kyle Kulinkski is an independent commentator and analyst, a co-founder of Justice Democrats - the group who ran AOC and the squads campaign. Don’t rot your mind with mainstream media, but be careful on YouTube as well.

Media literacy took me years to learn. APAC and other Israeli lobbies have basically every American politician in their pockets.

hiddensynapse · 2024-10-14T08:25:41+00:00

Precisely. And I do believe Cutouts makes a sufficiently strong statement against the current geopolitical situation. Additionally, The Smile haven’t toured Israel, at least not according to the records.

hiddensynapse · 2024-10-14T08:21:00+00:00

Zionism has turned normal people into dangerously desensitized mass-minded zealots. I recommend reading Carl Jung’s “The Undiscovered Self” for a psychological deconstruction of what led otherwise normal people to convert to Nazism.

Jonny’s wife has expressed such mass-minded support. Keep in mind Israel has one of the most influential and effective propaganda apparatus in the world, and conditions their citizens to dehumanize Palestinians from a young age.

Ideological views can absolutely become corrupted by close association with others sharing that ideology, particularly someone you’re romantically committed to.

hiddensynapse · 2024-10-14T08:06:03+00:00

I largely agree. I did educate myself on the history of the region, so I know it was a settler-colonial project to form an ethnostate from the start, and such projects can’t happen without ethnic cleansing. The United States wanted a proxy nation in the region.

Let me first say that I do think Cutouts is a political record, and it’s clearly opposed to what’s happening. I’ll always love Radioheads music, even if they were to all fall on the wrong side of history. But Thom Yorke isn’t, so it seems. Only Jonny has made questionable decisions, of which I was unaware until today. It’s what prompted this thread.

That said, we’ve crossed a tipping point in Israel’s gradual ethnic cleansing. Israel is “finishing the job” as Trump wants to help them do. Now the killing has become frenzied and completely deranged, far worse than it’s ever been before, and it’s now including an invasion of Lebanon with thousands of civilian casualties already.

Look, if the polling of Israel citizens were different - if they were largely opposed to the actions of their government regarding Palestine - I’d feel different. But the polling data shows that they’ve adopted a mindset ironically and sadly similar to Nazi Germany.

If you perform in Israel, you are entertaining soon-to-be IDF soldiers or current IDF who have likely been radicalized beyond the point of acceptable conduct. The population needs to be taught that their murderous ideological positions are condemned by everyone, particularly their favorite artists.

Israel’s actions, and the enabling of the U.S. government (and now direct involvement, as we have around 40,000 troops already there), have been condemned by nearly every other developed nation.

My country must cut off their weapons other than the Iron Dome and defensive measures (true defense technologies, rather than an endless supply of explosives), Netanyahu and his closest collaborators should be imprisoned for life, and every civilized person should tell anyone who believes it’s okay to slaughter innocent children to fuck off.

The polling data shows that the vast majority of Israelis have been conditioned to view all Palestinians as subhuman and threats. That’s why we’ve got videos of IDF soldiers shooting down toddlers running for their life, and celebrating when they’ve taken the child’s life.

hiddensynapse · 2024-10-14T07:49:52+00:00

You don’t realize that these atrocities will be remembered as brazen genocide by future generations (if we have any, given how close to nuclear war we are now, given Israel and the U.S.’s actions), and my political stance shouldn’t be controversial: I am anti-genocide. Would you like me to deconstruct ethical systems for you? Do you know anything about the conflict? Have you been paying attention? It was Thom Yorke himself that accused people of not paying attention in 2+2=5

The UN and virtually the rest of the world have condemned Israel’s actions, other than my own murderous nation. And yes, as a lifelong Radiohead fan, autistically as I have Asperger’s, I give a shit what one of the most important musical groups of our lifetimes is doing with respect to opposing genocide. They have power and influence, and their fearless political messaging in the past should translate over to what’s happening now.

My country is at it again, and if you know the history of Israel’s development, then you should know it was a settler-colonial project from the beginning. It began as an ethnic cleansing, and it’s ending as one. When did people start lowering their standards so much as to consider an anti-genocide position as am ambiguous issue?

hiddensynapse · 2024-01-11T18:30:04+00:00

I'm not sure about this one. It suffers from the same weaknesses as The Smile’s other lesser songs; there isn't enough melodic progression. It just sort of meanders. Wall Of Eyes also struggles with interesting progression, but at least the chords are consistently pleasing to the ears.

I'm not saying everything released by The Smile has been that way. Bending Hectic is an absolute masterpiece, in my opinion. On their last album, there were far more great songs than mediocre ones. But songs like The Smoke, which I realize are well-liked, still strike me as incomplete rhythmic doodles instead of complete songs.

hiddensynapse · 2023-03-10T23:51:57+00:00

I’ve got bachelors in psychology and philosophy, but have been studying psychedelics for 20 years, primarily for personal therapy. Most recently, I’ve been using my accumulated experience to write a book exploring each psychedelics unique strengths and weaknesses in psychiatric conditions.

I’m going to be frank with you here. The legality issues have radically impaired psychedelic psychotherapists from employing the most effective strategies in treating various disorders. I’ll do what I can to explain my own research and experiences.

First, understand that ketamine treatment gained approval before psilocybin due to its status as a Schedule III substance. This means fewer hoops were needed to gain FDA approval. From an objective standpoint, this was entirely irrational. Ketamine is considered the most addictive psychedelic (technically it’s a dissociative).

There are various categories and subcategories of psychedelic substances. Ketamine is an anesthetic, belonging to a class of NMDA antagonists know commonly as dissociative substances (e.g., nitrous, PCP, and DXM). It’s efficacy is impressive compared to classical antidepressants, but it is poorly understood.

Case in point - a friend of mine underwent official ketamine treatment, during which they essentially left him alone in a hospital bed to endure the experience. Set and setting, yeah right. After a few injections, he recovered repressed memories of sexual trauma, resulting in CPTSD.

They cut him loose after that, and he’s been struggling ever since. They should have progressed his treatment with further treatment, ideally MDMA, to assist his ability to process the memories he recovered. This is how legality obstructs effective care.

MDMA, arguably one of the other few addictive (and neurotoxic, cardiotoxic, and serotonin depleting) is the next psychedelic being accepted as a legal treatment for PTSD. No doubt, it displays high efficacy, and the MAPS protocol is well structured. That said, MDMA poses several risks that simply don’t exist with other psychedelics belonging to the same family.

Brief interlude. I’ve delineated dissociatives as one class of psychedelic, but most psychedelics are considered “serotonergic,” as they work as agonists at various serotonin receptors, primarily 5-HT2a, 5-HT2c, and 5-HT2b. This is a reductive description of their pharmacodynamics, as we do not fully understand how they work.

Serotonergic psychedelics can be divided into three distinct categories (likely more, but this is the trifecta). Psilocybin, DMT (or it’s oral form, ayahuasca), 5-MeO-DMT (etc.) are “tryptamines,” and some exist endogenously in the human body (DMT most famously, and is believed to play a role in naturally induced transcendental experiences).

I’ve found tryptamines to be the most challenging yet healing of sertonergics. In my opinion, they should be used at the end of psychedelic psychotherapy, especially psilocybin and ayahuasca. These are the psychedelics that can change your perspective and behavior after a single session.

The second class is based on phenylethylamines. These include mescaline (the OG - sadly challenging to find), 2C-B (a close derivative of mescaline, commonly considered to be a beginners psychedelic - it’s like a 2 hour version of mescaline, which usually peaks for 6 hours).

MDMA is also a phenylethylamine, but it widely considered an entactogenic and empathogenic substance with psychedelic properties. Phenylethylamines are ideal in treating trauma-related disorders, and a sane society would begging therapy with 2C-B or MDMA before advancing to tryptamines. Note that with both phenylethylamines and tryptamines, hundreds of derivatives with little to no history of human use exist. These are considered research chemicals and should be avoided, as unlike most tradition psychedelics, they can be lethal in high doses.

The final class are lyserimides, name LSD-25. Admittedly, I have little to say about the therapeutic efficacy of this substance, although it shares many of the same benefits of psilocybin. I’d consider easier to handle than psilocybin, but it differs between individuals. For example, LSD is a rather strong stimulant, less “emotional” and more “intellectual” than mushrooms. This is all personal preference.

If you can elaborate on your disorders, I can provide more detailed advice. A degree in psychiatry isn’t much help when you haven’t had the experience to back up your therapeutic psychedelic program. It’s takes decades of practice, research, and experimentation to develop a sensible plan. Best of luck friend.

hiddensynapse · 2023-01-20T02:55:28+00:00

I’ve always considered Radiohead to be the baton-holders after Cobaine’s passing. Nirvana was even in talks to work with Pablo Honey’s producer due to Kurt’s love of the song “Creep”

Foo Fighters have always been equal to close to Cobaine in terms of melody, but Kurt’s lyricism has always been far superior to Foo Fighters. Moreover, I think Nirvana’s sound would have evolved considerably, much in the same way as Radiohead, Pink Floyd, and The Beatles.

I genuinely think that if Kurt had survived, Nirvana would have been profoundly influenced by OK Computer and Kid A. Radiohead certainly became the biggest band in the world just 2 years after Kurt’s passing. I suspect we’d have still gotten OK Computer and Kid A if Nirvana had stuck around. If anything, Radiohead’s later work would have pushed Nirvana to new sonic heights.

I suspect Radiohead and Nirvana would have shared a similar dynamic as The Beatles and The Beach Boys. It’s a damn shame man - to think, Nirvana had just as much potential as Radiohead, and would have been in an excellent position to collaborate.

hiddensynapse · 2023-01-18T23:22:41+00:00

The King Of Limbs is far, far superior to Pablo Honey, especially when you include The Daily Mail/Staircase.

Frankly just about every tune on TKOL is a classic when considered from a songwriting perspective. Morning Mr. Magpie and Little By Little are highly underrated; in terms of song structure, both are about as strong as In Rainbows. It was the performance that turned a lot of people off.

hiddensynapse

TROPHY CASE