With plenty of live appearances behind them, it feels relatively bold to name the best of all. Radiohead has headlined Glastonbury, Coachella and featured on the main stage of Primavera but it is their Bonnaroo 2006 appearance which gains traction. It is held in the hearts of fans across the globe as a triumphant turning point for a band whose tonal changes provided risk after risk for their listeners. A complete understanding of this style, the growing range the band featured, is felt throughout this marathon-like set. Anyone from the 80,000 in attendance (including a pre-fame Lady Gaga who maintains this is the best gig of her lifetime) to those listening at home can hear the pangs of quality and trust in an outfit which had run for over a decade. Now they struck with a new sound and edged their way into fresh material which would release on In Rainbows.
A bounty of twenty-eight tracks lay in this set and where better to begin than Hail to the Thief? The vastly underrated Radiohead album is paid its dues here. 2 + 2 = 5 is the first of many outstanding moments in this set. An instrumental masterclass made all the better by this lucid attempt to, like any great band, reach out from the stage and shake everyone by the shoulders. Lively and extreme in all the right ways, Live at Bonnaroo certainly makes for one of the best Radiohead shows. Everything from the instrumental overlaps to the energy present in Thom Yorke’s lead is delightful. Incredible and constant moments of real perfection can be found within. One of the great highs within Live at Bonnaroo is a commitment to expanding the studio recordings. Exit Music (For a Film) is taken to new heights while the later likes of Fake Plastic Trees sound absolute and borderline glorious.
Beyond the quality found from track to track (particularly the exceptional turn of No Surprises) is a sense of growing skill from Radiohead. They had loosened the harsh and unremitting days of Pablo Honey and look where they found themselves. Bold, furious songs which have slipped from the top of the charts and into the alternative sphere. Nothing like Radiohead will come again. That much is clear. Their ability to not just replicate their best works but expand them in unique and one-off ways, to consider the quality which comes from doing so, is monumental. What stands out most of all is Yorke’s abilities as a frontman. They were never in doubt and are often praised but to see this sweating, Wellingborough local for yourself – be it in person or the early stages of sleep deprivation – is a wonderful time. Wild and flailing motions of sweat-inducing calamity interspersed with the calm acoustics which pop out of nowhere.
From those in attendance to the band on stage, there is a sense of lightning in a bottle for the experience unfolding here. There will never be another Radiohead gig quite like their Live at Bonnaroo experience. Monumental. Nothing short of a crushing brilliance filtering through a few pangs of perfection like Fake Plastic Trees. A truly wonderful way to spend the evening and a live performance Radiohead will likely never top. Having this version of Idioteque played in your home once a day should be mandatory. What a rush. It is the thrill and joy of Radiohead live on stage which brings out an overwhelming joy – something which can carry you through the rest of the day.
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