Re: Radiohead lyric debate: Idioteque
 

Paranoid and Black Star. I guess Black Star is more of a "favorite" than "best", but I can't really distinguish.

Re: Radiohead lyric debate: Idioteque
 

Up until my second year of college I did chorus. My freshman year, my instructor, Dr. Nouen had an unbelievably strong emphasis on diction. He made us practice pronouncing the last letter of any word very strongly; for example if we were saying allowed, it would be a lou duh. It always sounds kinda funny to myself when I do it, but if a singer doesn't go out of their way to make their lyrics understandable then stupid debates like this happen.

For anyone who is interested, start the song and skip ahead to the 2:35 mark. Listen to Thom Yorke singing. Although it is subtle, he is clearly saying allowed. You can hear the "o," and you can hear the duh. Not to mention the fact that allowed makes more sense when you think about what the song (and that verse) is about. The phrase "here i'm allowed" is said 6 times. Never once is there a discernable v sound. And while it is faint, the sound duh is noticeable.

Besides that, the word immediately following the word in question is "everything." Because it starts with a vowel, a lot of letters would bleed into that word. A "v" for example, if ending the previous word, would cause everything to come out "veverything." In Idioteque, this is simply not the case. A "d," on the other hand, is a much sharper letter, and by its nature can't bleed into other words. Besides the fact that if you just listen it is clearly "allowed," the fact that you can hear "everything" so clearly as well suggests allowed rather than alive.

To the person who said look at Ed's lips, you are forgetting that Ed is singing back up at this point in the song. While Thom is singing "here I'm allowed," Ed is singing "The first of the children." There are plenty of i sounds in this phrase to account for what you see.

Edit: I haven't actually seen the SNL version, and CMI tells me that Ed isn't saying "the first of the children," as he does on the cd. I don't really have the time or energy to download it and see for myself, so instead I just stand by the rest of what I said.

Re: Radiohead lyric debate: Idioteque
 

I remember finding a site that had the sheet music uploaded and that comes with lyrics. So for those of you who care more than me, go find it.

Re: Radiohead lyric debate: Idioteque
 

This is a very well thought out and reasoned response, but I've listened to it over and over again today and I just don't see (hear) it the same way that you do. It is by no means clear what he says.

[ QUOTE ]
You can hear the "o," and you can hear the duh.

[/ QUOTE ]
I hear the "I" and I hear no duh. It seems to me that he ends on the vowel sound, but there is no interim sound. "Here, we're aliiiiiiiii," is what it seems to me like he's saying. I hear no "duh." I'm not saying it's not there, and perhaps it is incredibly subtle and my ears are just not as blessed as some. But I don't hear it.

As for the bleeding, or why it doesn't exist if he says "alive," it's because there is a clear breath-pause in between the words "alive/allowed" and "everything."

I'm not necessarily arguing for either. What I hear is closer to "alive" than "allowed", but I'm open to the other. It certainly makes more sense, so I think I'd rather it be the latter. I just don't think it's clear by any means.

Re: Radiohead lyric debate: Idioteque
 

it's not that unusual for Radiohead to have minor lyric changes from one version to the next. One of my top 5 all-time songs is "True Love Waits." In all, I think the lyrics changed 5 times from various live versions until the song finally made the "I Might Be Wrong" EP. Happens quite a bit

Bah....I didn't answer the question at all...good song

Re: Radiohead lyric debate: Idioteque
 

[ QUOTE ]
I thought I was the only one, and now I find out that two other 2+2ers think this is their best song.

Strange.

[/ QUOTE ]

Add me to the list.

Re: Radiohead lyric debate: Idioteque
 

1. Paranoid Android
2. 2+2=5
3. Sulk
4. The Bends
5. Life in a Glasshouse

But Idioteque would probably make the top 10. It's tough. How can one really pick a favorite Radiohead song?

Re: Radiohead lyric debate: Idioteque
 

[ QUOTE ]


But Idioteque would probably make the top 10. It's tough. How can one really pick a favorite Radiohead song?

[/ QUOTE ]

Because Exit Music is clearly the best. [img]/images/graemlins/tongue.gif[/img]

Re: Radiohead lyric debate: Idioteque
 

What is your interpretation of the lyrics and how does your reading of the line as "Here, I'm Alive..." fit in with that interpretation?

I have always interpreted the song as being about an impending disaster, likely a war, possibly a nuclear one.

Let's figure out what the verse in questions means in the context of our interpretations and perhaps we can figure out whether or not it's "alive" or "allowed."

Re: Radiohead lyric debate: Idioteque
 

My overall interpretation of the song is more along the lines of the impending doom of global warming and possibly nuclear war. He seems to alternate perspectives from someone warning others of the inevitable dangers of the lifestyles we lead to that of an ignorant, vacuous person who is completely oblivious of said dangers.

The more I think about this, "allowed" just makes so much more sense. "Here I'm allowed anything all of the time." would seem to fit in this interpretation, as we can do what we want without much or any repercussion. I just can't hear it. [img]/images/graemlins/mad.gif[/img]