Radiohead - In Rainbows

At every stage since the phenomenal success of OK Computer, Radiohead have struggled to be themselves in the face of crushing pressure from their army of obsessive fans. After being both praised and pilloried for the leftward steps of Kid A and Amnesiac, Hail To The Thief represented that split between fans in its compilation of traditional indie-rock songs alongside more experimental efforts. Thom Yorke's solo album got the scatter-bleeping tendencies out of his system, before Radiohead's seventh album dropped out of the blue to demonstrate exactly how they were supposed to sound all this time. With sumptuous, enveloping production, fluid guitars soaked in reverb, and Yorke's voice at its most soulful, In Rainbows is Radiohead's leanest, warmest and most accessible record in a decade. It exudes the confidence of a band liberated from the pressures of label deadlines and expectant fans, a band that finally seems – dare I say it? – happy in its own skin. This is a new Radiohead, one that subtly melds synths, loops, trips and beats into mid-tempo indie-rock, instead of clustering disparate styles into different songs and worrying about which to choose. Now you have the choice, but whatever you decide to pay for In Rainbows, it's worth every penny. (Ally Brown)