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Michigan State University Student Radio

Impact 89FM | WDBM-FM

Michigan State University Student Radio

Impact 89FM | WDBM-FM

Michigan State University Student Radio

Impact 89FM | WDBM-FM

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Throwback Thursday — Weird Fishes/Arpeggi | Radiohead

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All the way back in 2007, Radiohead surprise released In Rainbows, one of the shining albums of the 2000s that doesn’t feel a day old.

“Weird Fishes/Arpeggi” is a song that walks on water and shimmers in the heat. Starting off by featuring a drum pattern with a sparse kick and immediate urgency, the finger-picked guitars come in and begin to blend, waver, and glide. While the song lacks a prominent hook and chorus, it still opts to flourish and grow as the seconds go by.

Thom Yorke’s voice, strained and anxious, reaches its peak when the instruments drop out and he cries “I get eaten by the worms…and weird fishes.” The track turns back in on itself, with the bass being busier now than in the first half. Guitars get heavy and the song throws its hands up in disgust. Gorgeous disgust. “I hit the bottom,” croons Yorke as the song pivots downwards in despair. In the context of the album, this song hits like a truck and is a definitive moment in Radiohead’s prolific history.

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