Gorge
Amphitheatre,
George, USA


01 National Anthem
02 Morning Bell
03 Lucky
04 My Iron Lung
05 Karma Police
06 Exit Music
07 Packt Like Sardines in a Crushd Tin Box
08 Airbag
09 Reckoner
10 No Surprises
11 Dollars & Cents
12 I Might Be Wrong
13 Pyramid Song
14 Paranoid Android
15 Idioteque
16 Everything In Its Right Place
-- Encore #1--
17 Talk Show Host
18 Climbing Up The Walls
19 You And Whose Army
20 How To Disappear
-- Encore #2--
21 Street Spirit
22 The Bends
-- Encore #3--
23 Motion Picture Soundtrack
Reckoner
(aka Feeling Pulled Apart By Horse) debuted. it's very likely Radiohead
soundchecked this song earlier. other songs soundchecked: knives out,
the thief, in limbo, optimistic, like spinning plates and an awesome
version of the tourist. [thanks shereef, michael & mike]
by Brock Stotsenberg



by Rusty Willoughby




by Jake Wynne


by Tice Lewis
As i've just returned home to Seattle after seeing Radiohead perform
at one
of the best venues in the States, i am in shock with only an echo of
the
concert left stuck up here in my head. i knew this show would be
incredible, though i had know idea it would evolve into what it did.
This
all began as i met some friends who had camped out the night before
and were
saving places in line. they were very near the front, so when the gates
finally opened we bum-rushed out way over the hill and toward the stage.
My
friend Matt and i ended up front and center, on the rail--absolutely
as
close as you can get! So that's just to say i was set up for the perfect
show to be more intimate than i could have imagined. The Beta Band came
on
and played a quick set. I dug them. They were great fun, and pretty
chill
as they played some songs from their new LP. Their breakthrough song,
"Dry
the Rain" was very groovin', and set us up for much better things.
We were so close to the stage that Matt pointed out masking tape across
the
top of one of Radioheads amps, that had the lyrics printed on it "CATCH
DA
MOUSE, SQUASH HIS HEAD" from "knives Out" (a song which
they unfortunately
did not play). We didn't have to wait too long before the band burst
on
stage with "The National Anthem"--it just straight kicked!
There were
cameras everywhere, for MTV2 i think, through the first three or four
songs.
"Lucky" was definately a highlight, this is when the show
really rocked
into gear, and into the first guitar sounds on "My Iron Lung".
Everyone's
singing along at this point, and pretty much all through the show.
Something weird happened on "Exit Music." Thom just stopped
the song
halfway through, and there was maybe something going on in the crowd,
or
maybe he was just having fun with us. He was in great spirits throughout
the night, cavorting around on stage, and interacting a lot with the
audience. A coupla times he pushed the mike up to the front of the stage
to
sing along with us. Everything picked up at this point in the show,
with
"Packt", completely different than the album version, with
a rad fuzzy
baseline and hyper-active guitars. And Johnny's over there rockin' out
on
the keyboards and everything else. "Airbag" was beautiful,
and i was stoked
that they were playing so many songs from OK COMPUTER (though the KID
A/AMNESIAC stuff is so other-worldly when they play it live).
Ok, the new song...it was awesome. The guys were up there like kids
discovering rock n' roll all over again. The song sounded totally fresh,
totally guitars, and very promising of the next direction radiohead
may go
in the studio. After this surprise, they smiled and fell into "No
Surprises." It was so neat to see Johnny actually hovering over
his
xylophone, or whatever it is, to play this song. "Dollars and Cents"
was
one of the best sounding songs they played. The lighting was just sick
for
that track. Then, the pulled the ol' piano out for "Pyramid Song"
which was
haunting, but really began to show the diversity the Radiohead has when
playing live. I also really liked this because the piano was shiney
and i
could see Thom's reflection in it (he played at an angle with his back
to
us). This was especially eerie. For "Paranoid Android", there
was a
transition where he put on his acoustic guitar, and it was relatively
quiet.
I screamed "TRUE LOVE WAITS" in hopes that he may forget the
setlist and
play the rare song that i really dig on. He heard me! He sort of smiled
and shook his head and said something to Ed. Everyone around me was
cheering and he was looking right at us witha goofy grin, then spoke
into
the mike "We already planned that one for another gig." And
he almost looked
disappointed for us. Almost. Well, that was the intamcy that i was talking
of.
The rest of the show was wonderful, "Idioteque" was just off-the-hook,
and
Yorke got us clapping on "Everything in its Right Place."
Incredible. The
first encore just kept coming--"Climbing up the Walls" was
amazing and
pretty heavy, "You And Whose Army" was really fun to see--at
one point Thom
was playing the piano, and conducting us as we sang along. He was certainly
having a great night. They disappeared for only a minute or two, after
a
guitar/bass guitar driven "How to Disappear Completely." They
came back
again, and played breathtaking versions of two oldies, "Street
Spirit," and
"The Bends." I figured that was it, what a gret concert, when
they came back
for the third time in high spirits (actually just Colin, Thom, and Johnny)
to finish off the song that ends KID A. It was extroadinary, and all
Disney
bittersweet the way Thom likes it. I was just blown away. They waved
and
bowed goodbye, Thom thanked us, and said "Enjoy the rest of your
evening."
Well, I don't know if I will truly be able to realize how incredible
this
night was, and how magnificent Radiohead truly is, fow probably a few
years.
But it's starting to sink in that i just saw the greatest show of my
life.
~TICE
by Joseph Barringer
Just got back from
the show, had to drive seven hours from the venue and started this morning,
after having camped for two nights. A truly amazing show. One of the
most high energy performances that I have ever seen, which suprised
me. I was expecting a rather laid back concert, the precedent being
set by their show at the Salem Armory a couple years back (complete
with signs reading "radiohead kindly requests no moshing or crowd surfing").
We had camped out the friday before the concert, getting there just
as they opened to get a good spot. The camping was great, spending two
days with several thousand radiohead fans (plus some that showed up
early for Ozzfest) was as fun as I imagined it would be. We got in line
early in the morning Saturday, and dealt with all the attending grief
("are those people driving up going to start a new line?" "will they
get in first?" "they don't look like they run very fast, I think we're
safe." etc. etc.) They opened the gates at four thirty, and in the mad
confusing dash, after being re-routed several times and being yelled
at to slow down many more, we made it to our seats, center, one row
back. The Beta Band was great, didn't seem to be completely into it,
maybe. Or maybe just not giving their all for an audience that for the
most part wasn't very into them. The new songs were great, very promising,
and their old songs were good to hear. I really hope they make it back
over soon for a full set. And so after a half an hour break, Radiohead
came on. Thom was all smiles, as were the rest of the band. Looking
quite happy to be there and into the huge audience (20,000 tickets were
sold!). They started National Anthem, and the crowd surfing started
immediately. Everybody on the floor was trying to fit into the two feet
closest to the stage. The next four songs were all accompanied by a
frenzy on the other side of the barricade, and you had to pay more attention
to staying upright and not getting kicked in the head than you could
to the band. Also, what with everyone singing along it was rather hard
to hear Thom or much of the instrumentation. With Exit Music there was
a slight reprieve, but that faded as the end of the song started rocking
and Packt Like Sardines started in. Needless to say I found my way out
of what at that point was a pit and found a more suitable place to enjoy
the show. It was a very intense show, and once I could direct my attention
to what was going on onstage it got incredible. It blew my mind to think
that five people with a handful of equipment could make that music.
Words can't really describe how awe inspiringly beatiful this bands
music is. Seeing the band up there, putting their all into it. Thom
especially, looking like he feels the lyrics as he's singing them, encouraging
the audience and being encouraged by them in turn. Jonny was thrashing
around as well, and they were all doing their best impression of the
rock stars they are. It made me realize that this is the greatest band
that I've had the opportunity to enjoy. Before the show I heard someone
say that this was going to be a life changing experience, that we wouldn't
walk away the same people. Even if it didn't live up to that, which
for some it might have, it was definetely the best show I've ever seen.
And to see a better one is more than I can reasonably wish for.
by Airbag 2089
Some unique moments: (For kicks, I'll start about halfway through the
concert) Thom started Pyramid Song seconds after I Might Be Wrong, surprising
me. It was a delacate performance, one of those "I-hope-nothing-goes-wrong-because-it's-so-perfect"
times. He sounded almost scared as he sang it. For me, this is where
the concert really acended to greatness :). They then marched through
Paranoid Android, Idioteque, and EIIRP perfectly. The latter contained
a ton a little melodies and parts not in the Kid A version. They then,
of course, came back for the first encore. You and Whose Army was truky
enjoyable. A fisheye camera hooked to the base of Thom's mike at the
piano and looking up at him was broadcasting on the two big screens,
and his face looked really funny like that. During a pause in the soft
part of the song he jumped up, turned around to the crowd and tossed
his arms in the air, then just as rapidly, he was back singing. Very
funny. trying to think of an original introduction for The Bends (presumably
the last song) he said, "This is for the people here and there . .*mumble/trailing
off*". The song got us all psyched up for the rest of the night (camping
out/partying). People, who had already got up to leave before the 2nd
encore, gathered their things. Then they returned for Motion Picture
Soundtrack. Thom was standing at the front, playing a tiny keyboard
(or so it looked from as far away as I was). The song came accross as
more electroonic than the album version. But it was sweet and warm and
the perfect ending.
by L. Beckner
the show last night
was perfect. the beta band was tight and flawless, and very fun to watch
as well. radiohead started about half an hour after the beta band left.
thom looked confused during the national anthem and was obviously having
some problems with his ear monitor. the national anthem still kicked
ass, though. next up was morning bell. i was very close to the front
and was somewhat annoyed by the couple of people that decided morning
bell was a good song to crowd surf to. thom sat at the keyborad before
the song mumbling something about no sound, then quickly said 'oh. heh.
i know.' and reached in his shirt to (what looked like) turn his ear
monitor on. morning bell went off flawlessly. then ed did the famous
pick scraping that began lucky. great song live.. wonderul lights..
thom came in late so he kind of walked back twords the drums for a few
bars with a pissed off look on his face and came back to start the song
again. at this point i was kind of worried that thom would be in a bad
mood because of sound problems and such.. but it seemed this song fixed
any problems they were having with the sound on stage. for karma police
i made the *long* hike up to the top of the hill, to see the show from
up there for a few. i stayed up there for exit music, packt and airbag.
it was really great, because the columbia gorge is the most beautiful
place you will ever see a concert. not to mention the best sound you'll
ever hear. thom stopped exit music during the "breathe keep breathing
part." and walked back to talk to phil. the lights went down, and
abruptly he came back to the mic and resumed the song. enough of the
hill! on my way back down the hill i ran into the keyboardist and drummer
for the beta band and talked to them for a few minutes. very cool guys.
very english. reckoner had everyone looking around funny, because it
was a really good song that no one had heard before. glad we were the
first. if anyone saw me, i was the big tall guy with the blue 'security'
shirt on. none of the gorge security were wearing a shirt that looked
like mine, but people were still coming up to me and asking me where
things were and such. no surprises was next. this one was a crowd favorite.
i was really getting into the gigantic LCD screens on the side of the
stage during this song. they had a camera on each side of the stage,
phil's kit, and on each keyboard and piano that johnny and thom played.
dollars and cents was definatly one of my favorites, especially with
the extended outro. the song ended with thom chantin "seattle...
seattle... G8. G8. G8." I might be wrong was also wonderful. At
this point the sound started getting even better. I was really amazed
at the clairty of radiohead's equipment live. there are a lot of things
going on in these songs, but each insturment is heard perfectly and
at a reasonable level. Pyramid song was a nice break, as well. Thom's
piano sounded really good. Thom dedicated pyramid song to "the
people on the hill". he also did the little joke with ed where
they both puff into their mics and then giggle and say 'smokin' weed.'
idioteque and everthing in its right place were next, and probably
the best sounding songs of the evening. once again i must say that i
have never heard that sound quality come out of any insturment. thom
really went crazy during the break down in the middle of the song. everything
in its right place sounded perfect, as well. if anyone has mp3s of
the show, email me. blloyd3@uswest.net
anyways.
the encores.
at this point i moved a little further back. i was standing by a group
of about three or four girls who were saying things like "oh god
yes" and "OHMYGOSH" whenever a new song started. they
sang every word to talk show host. each of them was about a quarter
of a step off from the others. these girls made the idiots on say what
karaoke look like professionals. they shut their mouths for climbing
up the walls though, which was amazing. you and whose army was really
funny because any time thom wasn't singing he was turned around orchestrating
the crowd's applause. he would quickly raise his arms and then give
the cut sign just as he would go back into the verse. people really
went nuts. after their second 'thank you goodnight' they came back and
did how to disappear completely.
i may be wrong here, but i really think they did four encores. i think
they came out and just did how to disappear, left, came back and did
street spirit and the bends, left, and came back for motion picture.
i'm 100% sure, actually.
anyways. great show. the only bad part about it is that it's over, and
we won't see radiohead in the states for a very long time.
by David O'Donnell
Last night turned
out to be a very interesting night for me. It was my first time seeing
my favorite band in the world, and the show was absolutely amazing!!
The band started off with an explosive National Anthem and really got
the crowd going. Then, the stage hands pulled Thom's rhoads organ/piano
out and Thom procceded to shake back and forth with a big smile on his
face. Then he sat down and announced that it was "Morning Bell" It was
absolutely breathtaking. The lights at this show were simply incredible,
and always added a lot artistically to the music. Next was lucky, which
they screwed up in the beginning. Thom I guess wasn't paying enough
attention to how man measures phil had played on the intro, and he started
the first chord off, so he just let phil keep going, and finally joined
in. The final result was absolutely amazing!! Great version of the song.
After Karma Police and My Iron Lung, Thom started exit music, and right
after the first "breath, keep breathing" Thom just stopped playing,
giving a cold stare to the front of the auidence where some morons were
crowd surfing. That had to be the one part about the show that pissed
me off. All the retards who think it's cool to crowd surf to Radiohead.
Especially "Exit Music." Thom finally turns around, takes a swig of
water, and then turns back around to the mic and starts back where he
left off. It was amazing though. Pakt like sardines was full of beautiful
fuzz and was awesome live. Then after that, Thom simply said, "Airbag"
and after fiddling with some things for a moment, they started into
Airbag, which I was very very excited to hear. It was an absolutely
great performance. Now the next song, that threw me like nothing else!!
I knew it wasn't a cover, but man, it sure didn't sound like Radiohead's
most recent material. I downloaded the mp3, which sounds terrible compared
to how it sounded live. It sounded amazing live. Very funky. Nice funky
bass line. They were really getting into it too. Thom didn't even say
a word about the new song, they just moved right along to the next one.
Some other highlights of the night were.........Well crap, everything
was amazing. The show just seemed to pick up, and gain momentum. Thom
was in a good mood, and during "You and Whose Army" smiled a lot and
was making the audience cheer real loud, then suddenly stop, with the
swooping of his arm. He started laughing after doing that a few times.
He, as well as the rest of the bad, were really enjoying themselves.
Thom even said at the end of the first encore that "we love you all,
indeed." You could see that they were honestly appreciative of their
fans, - the morons who were crowd surfing!! The bends totally rocked.
Climbing up the Walls was astoundingly beautiful. As an avid Radiohead
bootleg collector, let me tell you, there is nothing, and I mean NOTHING
like being there in the flesh to enjoy such an amazing event. The only
thing that spoiled the evening was the camping afterwards. It was completely
anarchy!! A bunch of stupid drunk frat boys screaming at each other
and lighting off fireworks. The majority of them weren't even there
to see Radiohead, they were just there to get wasted. It was sad, and
I am just trying to block it from my memory so as not to ruin the best
concert I have ever witnessed in my life. Radiohead is truly a band
that has more integrity as a band then I have really ever seen. They
are truly one of the most underrated and misunderstood bands around.
If you have a chance to see Radiohead live, no matter how far you have
to drive, and no matter how many drunken frat boys there are, do it
anyway, because those 2 hours of absolute beautiful, honest music, are
worth any sort of circumstance. David O'Donnell
by Amethyst Biggs
I had to experience
my first Radiohead concert from the balcony of Seattle's Paramount Theatre
on their 1998 tour. And though it was awesome, it wasn't quite what
I wanted it to be. My redemption came at The Gorge, as I was only about
5 or 6 rows back from the stage. I tried to fight my way to the front,
but there was so much pushing and shoving that I seriously feared being
trampled or squished to death, so I headed back to my original spot,
nearly getting my glasses knocked off my face by a wayward crowd surfer
in the process. Anyway, it was a beautiful concert, and my only regret
is that it seemed to go by so fast that I can't really remember it all.
It was like a dream. Opening bands are usually torturous, like an hour-long
barrier keeping you from the band you're actually there to see, but
the Beta Band were really quite good, and I didn't mind postponing my
Radiohead experience for them. Radiohead came on pretty quickly afterwards,
and as soon as the bass line to 'National Anthem' started, the crowd
was pretty crazy. It's such the perfect song to start a concert with.
After the song Thom was shaking his fist in the air and saying 'Rock!'in
this mock macho voice. 'Lucky' was certainly a highlight, and everyone
was singing along. In fact, the crowd sang along to pretty much the
whole show. After the first verse of 'Exit Music', Thom stopped singing
and just sort of looked at us. We started to sing the 'breathe' part,
but then got quiet after we noticed Thom wasn't following suit. Everyone
was kind of confused, then Thom walked over towards Phil, came back
to the mike and smiled then continued the song. I guess he was just
fucking with us. I was hoping they'd play 'Airbag' and I suppose the
rest of the crowd was too. They went nuts for that song. Thom was doing
his head-bobbing thing which I love, and his voice was really strong.
The new song was totally rocking, very guitar heavy and energetic. It
sounded kinda Led Zeppelin-esque to me, and the band seemed to have
a lot of fun playing it. I hope they do more songs like that on future
albums. Thom dedicated 'Paranoid Android' to the people sitting on the
lawn, and the crowd toally exploded during that song. Johnny's guitar
solo for that song is one of the coolest solos on the planet, and it
sounds even better live. And the lighting was awesome too. A couple
of comedians in the crowd emptied their water bottles on us during the
'rain down' part, which actually felt quite nice since it was so damn
hot. 'Idioteque' was one of my favorites. Gotta love that drumb beat.
Thom did his little crazy, flailing around dance at the end. He really
seemed to have a good time that night, playing with the crowd and smiling
a lot and making jokes. The first encore was the best, in my opinion,
with 'Talkshow Host' and 'Climbing up the Walls.' I could actually feel
the bass vibrating through my body. 'How to Disappear' was simply gorgeous.
I almost cried. Ditto for 'Street Spirit' during the second encore.
After that I figured it was over, since they usually only do two encores,
but then Thom ran back out with Colin and Johnny and said 'Ok, we'll
play one more' and did a lovely 'Motion Picture Soundtrack.' Finally
they waved goodbye, Thom thanked us for coming, told us to enjoy the
rest of our evening (as if any part of our evening could be better,)
bowed and departed. I thought the '98 tour was awesome, but this one
proved Radiohead only get better and better. They were definitely worth
the acheing back, sore feet and 50 bucks (not including gas for my 3-hour
drive home) it cost me.
by Matt Summers
Since no one likes long-winded reviews, I'll keep this short. The absolute
highlight of the evening was Exit Music, when Thom stopped singing and
turned around to say something to Phil, and all the music stopped. I
was afraid there was too much pushing up front, and the crowd started
to get a little nervous. But he turned right back around and told us
to "Breathe, keep breathing" and it was like nothing happened. Packt
was amazing, much emphasis on the 'fuzzy' bass. Reckoner was straight
pop-rock, much like My Iron Lung when it gets going. I wasn't particularly
struck by it, in fact I thought it was a cover, it didn't sound good
enough to be Radiohead. Dollars and Cents was stretched out and wonderful,
much better than the studio version. They went off on Everything in
its Right Place, and that was the most pleasant surprise. Amazing version,
Johnny used the Chaos Pad on Thom's voice and organ, and anyone could
tell that was a live favorite of theirs. How to Disappear was holy.
I felt like I could fly during that song. You could tell the band was
having fun, more than they usually do. How could you not be in awe of
the Gorge Amphitheater? You have to see it to understand. Thom, Colin,
and Johnny came out for a surprising third encore, Motion Picture Soundtrack,
a real treat. This was the greatest concert I have ever been to, and
though I was totally sober, I felt supernatural from the moment they
came out on stage. My life is all downhill from here. Thanks.
by Scott Canty
They took the stage
just as the sun was setting over the Columbia River Gorge, and proceeded
to paint a musical masterpiece over that beautiful backdrop. The songs
from Kid A and Amnesiac take on an entirely different tone when played
live, it really brings it all home. Surreal and magnificent. The thing
that surprised me the most was how well the songs blended together.
Radiohead have evolved greatly from album to album, but hearing the
songs performed live, and in random order (as evidenced by the changing
playlists from show to show) you really get a feel that despite how
different the albums may sound, they really are evolutionary, not revolutionary.
The band was crisp and tight, and the sound quality was incredible.
Must be the natural acoustics. The visuals added so much to the music,
from the lighting to the large screens on either side of the stage.
None of the imagery from the album artwork mind you, primarily black
and white video from multiple mini-cam's placed about the stage. In
my opinion, the spirit award goes to Phil, who was utterly unflappable
and solid, laying down the drum tracks with an unassuming ease. He makes
it look so effortless, which is a compliment to his absolute talent.
I was concerned early on because Thom's equipment difficulties were
quite evident, but far from becoming agitated, he became more animated
and jovial, even downright playful. Stopping mid verse in 'Exit Music
(for a film)' made me nervous, but then all he did was walk back to
the drum kit to get a sip of water. Other fun moments: Controlling the
applause in his best David Letterman style during 'You and Whose Army?'
and yelling out "ROCK!" before the first heavy guitar licks of 'The
Bends.' What else can I say? They look like they really are enjoying
themselves, and having fun with it now, far from the gloominess documented
in "Meeting People Is Easy." I can only hope that they are happy doing
what they are doing, and that there is more to come.