Grade: B | Genre: Modern Rock Summary: The Eraser is a nice day trip to spacious vistas that have become dusty in memory, but I'm really hungry for a real excursion into the new Radiohead. Radiohead has always proved to be a curious creature on the modern rock scene. They entered as purveyors of the youthful grunge movement with radio staple "Creep," only to yank their sound by the leash into the electro-rock of The Bends and one of rock's greatest moments OK Computer. They would seemingly take on the helm of the Beatles of their generation with the quirky innovative genius of Kid A. Since then they have continued to forge the path into the esoteric and strange with little regard to their fan base or their overall place in music. Some would say innovators like this need not answer for their adventures into the land of the bizarre. They needn't carry any semblance of convention or need to tow the line that rock tries to strong-arm them to take. Yet as the blur of obscurity continues to muddy their sound, the listener finds it harder and harder to connect with these brilliant geniuses, try as we might. The rumor is that the forthcoming Radiohead effort is a thankful return to the dirges of rock they abandoned circa-The Bends. It's still largely under wraps at the moment so we can do little more than spin our speculative wheels. While they were prepping the world for their new direction, lead singer Thom Yorke had some music of his own itching in his head that was plotting its escape. Electronic blips flitter about as Yorke revisits the darker looks of Kid A in the fine release The Eraser.

Now don't go thinking this solo release signals that there is trouble in the Radiohead camp. Yorke has been very adamant about the fact that this is simply a vision that went beyond the scope of the group and the direction they were embarking on. He needed to let these songs breathe and that avenue just happened to be this solo project. Whereas every Radiohead album seems a reinvention of the band, The Eraser is Yorke taking a step back to reflect. He steals elements we've come accustomed to in the past, largely in Kid A though also tastes from OK Computer, to create a sound we easily become enveloped by like a big comfy couch. The opening title track is very indicative of this. It is at heart your garden-variety piano ballad, but the flitter of electronic blips seem to linger on the fringes like lavish decorations atop a cake. The two elements weave and intertwine to form this moody cautious optimism as Yorke sings, "the more you try to erase me/the more that I appear." The darker look at "The More You Ignore Me, The Closer I Get" phenomenon.

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So it's all nice that Yorke has taken this side trip, but where does this work fall in the Radiohead lexicon you might ask? Well its definitely an improvement over recent efforts like Hail to the Theif and Amnesiac, yet still doesn't connect with its older brother Kid A. It seems to be proof that you can never go home again. Even if you can recreate the look and feel, the smells are never as potent; the colors are never as vibrant. Yorke shows us with The Eraser that though he is the talented driving force behind Radiohead, he isn't stronger than the sum of its parts. Each member is a contributor, helping to keep it on the bleeding edge of innovation in modern rock. The Eraser is a nice day trip to spacious vistas that have become dusty in memory, but I'm really hungry for a real excursion into the new Radiohead.

Release Date: July 11, 2006