Alfred Publishing brings Radiohead's 'King of Limbs' to your Fingertips
(ShackMan | Posted 2011-07-06)
It gives me great pleasure to announce that Alfred will be releasing a book of songs by one of my all-time favorite bands, Radiohead, and The King of Limbs just so happens to be quickly becoming one of my favorites of their whole literature (not better than Automatic for the People or Kid A...curb your e-mail enthusiasm now, children).
Radiohead: The King of Limbs contains sheet music for all seven songs from the album that received widespread acclaim and a No. 3 spot on the Billboard 200, a perfect 100 score from the BBC, and praise like, "Listening to it, you're reminded that Radiohead are the only band of their size and status that seem driven by an impulse to twist their music into different shapes." Truth. Personally, I can't wait to get my hands on a copy just to play through their tranquil, yet heavy piano ballad, "Codex." "Morning Mr. Magpie" sounds pretty fun, too.
The full run of titles includes:
- Bloom
- Morning Mr. Magpie
- Little by Little
- Feral
- Lotus Flower
- Codex
- Give Up the Ghost
- Separator
In case you missed it, The King of Limbs is Radiohead’s eighth studio album which features the prominent use of audio samples and loops, including a well-defined rhythm section presence, reminiscent of their past abstract style works. Not quite as ambient as Amnesiac but pushing past the chamber-pop nature of In Rainbows, The King of Limbs sets out on a new path from Radiohead's ever-diverse discography that ranges from early recordings bordering on hardcore, edges into the pure noise realm of artists like Merzbow, spaces out into Pink Floyd's sector, folds in somber sounds of Jonsi's Go, and now tackles the sample realm often left for hip-hop and DJs. But they make it work as well as any one could have expected. Corey Beasley of the international webzine, PopMatters, gave the album 9 out of 10, stating with sobriety that "The King of Limbs is a beautiful record, one that begs more of a conscious listen than its predecessor, but one that provides equal — if different — thrills in doing so."
As part of Alfred’s ongoing commitment to improving the environment, this songbook is printed on 100% recycled paper stock. You've heard it a hundred times. It's still a plus.
Radiohead: The King of Limbs songbook (00-37578) is now available for $16.99 at music retail stores and at alfred.com.
James Rushin is a bassist, keyboardist, writer, and composer living and working in the Greater Pittsburgh area. He has performed with Selmer artist Tim Price, Curtis Johnson, guitarists Ken Karsh and Joe Negri. His compositions have been featured in and around Pittsburgh, at West Virginia University and Valley Forge Christian College. He is currently performing with recording artist Ben Shannon and singer/songwriters Tim Ruff, and Nathan Zoob (who is still in the process of getting a website - Music to come soon!).
Got questions? Comments? James can be reached as ShackMan in the Music Gear Review forums, or you may e-mail him at James.Rushin@MusicGearReview.com.
