In the now-infamous 2008 Nissan Pavilion washout, the environmental conditions overshadowed the excellent band playing in them. Radiohead was, in fact, excellent, and they played all of the hits and fan favorites, fully understanding that the people on the lawn were not enjoying the show so much as they were enduring it. Admittedly, the lyrics about doom, gloom and rain seemed all the more pointed that night but D.C. was certainly ready for a show where the band could take precedence over stuck vehicles, soaked clothing and waterlogged cell phones.
Without the pressure to overcome Mother Nature on Sunday at the Verizon Center, Radiohead settled into a set that focused on last year’s low-key The King of Limbs and delivered a surprisingly satisfying show. It’d be difficult to find any critic who appreciated The King of Limbs to the same degree they did OK Computer, Kid A or even In Rainbows. This was a nuanced album that focused on moods and details, and their live show mirrored these strengths.
Caribou‘s set was regrettably brief: a five-song sampling of the best songs from last year’s Swim. Their tempo remained very even, but singer Dan Snaith and drummer Brad Weber kept that even tempo groovy while the funky guitar lines of Ryan Smith nicely complemented the band’s more electronic elements. The set culminated with “Sun,” in which the band released the wild energy with a commanding flourish, dropping the beat and bringing the crowd to their feet. “Sun,” was the point in the set where they seemed to let go of their inhibitions and released the rest of the energy that they’d held in reserve.
Radiohead’s set, however, never built to any sort of climax. There were a few high energy moments like “Bodysnatchers” and “The National Anthem”—where Thom Yorke and Jonny Greenwood worked themselves and the crowd into a frenzy—but they were scattered throughout new songs like “Staircases,” which played like a wash of guitars over an electronic beat, and the lush and cinematic “Supercollider.” Much of Radiohead’s set had that cinematic quality. The videos playing amidst the light show revealed that most of the band members remained eerily stoic during their songs. The lights on the moving panels never overwhelmed the crowd with awful disco strobe, even during songs like “Paranoid Android.” More often than not, they burned bright like a fire place or blue like some sort of aquarium. It was a very soothing effect.
Sure, Thom Yorke is very much a rock star during his songs, dancing like a snake, doing Elvis-inspired jumps and duck walking with his guitar. Yes, people started leaping and losing their minds during “Paranoid Android.” However, that hardly seemed like the show’s highlight. The haunting piano of “You and Whose Army?” and heartbreaking vocals of “Nude” actually outshone the obvious favorites. It may have been shocking not to hear “Just” or even “Idioteque,” but this show wasn’t meant to be an action-packed rocker. It ended on the sad but pretty notes of “Separator” and “Reckoner,” and that actually seemed more appropriate. After what we’d been through four years ago, a show that simmered was satisfying and welcome.
