Please donate to help save PopMatters. We are moving to WordPress in January out of necessity and need your help.

The 25 Best Electronic Albums of 2019

Electronic music is a huge tent with so many diverse approaches, and it's more international than ever with producers around the globe pushing music forward. The year's best albums featured returns from established talents, as well as ground-breaking newcomers, and a host of women changing the old boy's club of electronic music.

                                      
Music
    
        The 70 Best Albums of 2019
    
PopMatters Staff

        09 Dec 2019
    
Music
    
        The 50 Best Songs of 2009
    
PopMatters Staff

        04 Oct 2019
    
Music
    
        Thom Yorke's 'ANIMA' Offers an Uplifting Kind of Dystopia
    
Rod Waterman

        05 Aug 2019

Recent

Events

Bilbao BBK Live Day 1: Mash of Rock and Roll Classics and Evocative Electronica Prove a Winning Formula

Liam Gallagher brings the hits, Slaves bring out the anger, and Thom Yorke gets experimental in a cozy first night of the 14th edition of BBK Live.

Music

Two Hour Rush Inside Thom Yorke's Glitchy Kaleidoscope

Thom Yorke provides the finest in dreary ballads and glitchy music at a sold-out solo show at King's Theatre in Brooklyn.

Music

Radiohead Dive Deep into the Pool at the Garden

Catching the first two Radiohead shows in New York City practically makes attending the last two essential.

Music

Day for Night Festival Sets High Bar with Awe-Inspiring Acts and Art

Houston's Day for Night festival was more female any other festival I had attended with tons to offer (including shelter from a downpour).

Music

Day for Night Festival Returns to Houston for Third Incarnation

Festival promises an incredible audio-visual experience from musicians and artists like Solange, St. Vincent, Thom Yorke, Ryoji Ikeda and more.

Music

Radiohead's Sublime Return to New York City (MSG Photos)

Radiohead performed "Creep" in New York City for a lucky 15,000 people (give or take).

Music

Mark Pritchard - Beautiful People (feat. Thom Yorke) (Singles Going Steady)

"Beautiful People" is a perfect amalgamation of Yorke's amazing, understated vocals and Pritchard's soft, light production.

Music

"Why Don't You Try Writing Your Own Songs?": 'The Bends' and Its Cover Songs

Three unique takes on tracks from The Bends, spanning the stripped-down acoustic to the full-fledged orchestral, represent how these songs still have the power to stun two decades later.

Scott Elingburg

Music

The Leap: The Universe of Difference Between 'Pablo Honey' and 'The Bends'

In jumping forward from the lackluster Pablo Honey, Radiohead finally started becoming the Radiohead that is idolized today.

Music

This Is Our New Song: 'The Bends' and the Reformation of Alternative Rock

The Bends was the genesis of Radiohead’s perceptive, forward-thinking tendencies, which would go on to inspire countless musicians in myriad ways.

Music

'The Bends' and the Blazing of a Trail Into the New Millennium

Amidst a transformational time in the post-Vietnam and post-Reagan eras, The Bends represented a transition between the tumultuous latter half of the 20th century and the new millennium ahead.

Vance Martin

Music

Too Smart to Be Naive, Too Young to Be Jaded: 'The Bends' and Teen Angst

Even teenagers two decades removed from The Bends' original release can still find deep emotional connections to its depiction of isolation and dissatisfaction.

Amulya Tadimety

Music

"Where Do We Go from Here?" 'The Bends' of the 20th Century and Beyond

The Bends is the 20th century's identity emerging under pressure, forced to search bleakly for some form of cohesion among an increasingly artificial and commercial world.

Brian Schmitt

Music

The Annotated Guide to the Music Videos of Radiohead's 'The Bends'

With The Bends Radiohead left an impressive music video legacy, one that would extend to later masterpieces such as OK Computer.

Marcus Smith

Music

Weird Fruit: Jonny Greenwood’s Creative Contribution to 'The Bends'

Jonny Greenwoods' musical achievements on The Bends represent as far as he was ever going to get by limiting himself to channelling his ideas through his guitar.

Neil Barrett

Music

PopTalk: The 2015 Grammys, "True Artistry", and Meme Culture

The latest PopTalk podcast takes a look at whether or not, as Kanye West suggests, the Grammys and awards culture in general can or should care about "true artistry".

Evan Sawdey and Brice Ezell

Music

Sonic Bloom: The Lackluster Reception Turned Lasting Reputation of 'The Bends'

No matter how many times someone writes that Radiohead and The Bends “changed the face of music” in 1995, the retail and radio numbers tell a different story.

Will Hodge

Music

On Experiencing 'The Bends' As a First-Time Listener

With The Bends having such strong cultural and critical preconceptions behind it, hearing the album from the perspective of a new lister can help cut through the pre-ordained narrative.

Dan Derks

Music

Between the Grooves of Radiohead's 'The Bends'

PopMatters begins its look back at Radiohead's The Bends today. Here we examine The Bends track by track, examining it from angles spanning the cultural to the theoretical.

Music

This Is How It's Gonna Be Now: Beyoncé, U2, Thom Yorke, and Surprise Album Releases

For artists a big as Beyonce, U2, and Thom Yorke, the surprise album release model offers minimal risk and maximal reward. It's a paradigm that's sure to be replicated by others going forward.

Emma Phipps

Music

Is Everything in Its Right Place? A (Polite) Dissent to 'Kid A'

Kid A is more fun to think and write about than it is to actually listen to.

Music

Thom Yorke's 'Tomorrow’s Modern Boxes' Released via BitTorrent

Thom Yorke dropped a great surprise to begin the fall music season. He has just released Tomorrow’s Modern Boxes via BitTorrent.

Music

Atoms for Peace: Amok

Though the roster of Atoms for Peace suggests a perfect blend of talents, the resultant amok is too much, too rapid, and too overwrought to reach the group's full potential.

Music

Thom Yorke + Modeselektor = Coachella Goodness

Radiohead frontman and indie rock poster boy Thom Yorke dropped by the stage of German electronic group Modeselektor's set during Coachella to play “Shipwreck”.

Music

Soma High: Secrets That Didn’t Happen

... records that didn't happen, either.

Jedd Beaudoin

Music

Surprise: Radiohead Release New Album This Saturday

Radiohead announced today that they'll release their eighth studio album, The King of Limbs, in digital form this Saturday, with a physical release to come.

Politics

You've Got a Long Way to Go, Baby

Has this 2010 US campaign season turned into a referendum on women?

Music

Major Lazer: Lazers Never Die EP

The five-track EP from cartoon dancehall duo Major Lazer is greater than the sum of its parts.

Reviews

Thom Yorke: 5 October 2009 - Los Angeles

Let me speak for L.A. when I say that you are welcome back anytime, Thom.

Adam Wieser

Features

Collapse Expand Features

BROWSE ALL ALBUM REVIEWS

Reviews

Collapse Expand Reviews

PM Picks

Collapse Expand Pm Picks

Liam Gallagher brings the hits, Slaves bring out the anger, and Thom Yorke gets experimental in a cozy first night of the 14th edition of BBK Live.

Thom Yorke provides the finest in dreary ballads and glitchy music at a sold-out solo show at King's Theatre in Brooklyn.

Catching the first two Radiohead shows in New York City practically makes attending the last two essential.

Houston's Day for Night festival was more female any other festival I had attended with tons to offer (including shelter from a downpour).

Festival promises an incredible audio-visual experience from musicians and artists like Solange, St. Vincent, Thom Yorke, Ryoji Ikeda and more.

Radiohead performed "Creep" in New York City for a lucky 15,000 people (give or take).

"Beautiful People" is a perfect amalgamation of Yorke's amazing, understated vocals and Pritchard's soft, light production.

Three unique takes on tracks from The Bends, spanning the stripped-down acoustic to the full-fledged orchestral, represent how these songs still have the power to stun two decades later.

In jumping forward from the lackluster Pablo Honey, Radiohead finally started becoming the Radiohead that is idolized today.

The Bends was the genesis of Radiohead’s perceptive, forward-thinking tendencies, which would go on to inspire countless musicians in myriad ways.

Amidst a transformational time in the post-Vietnam and post-Reagan eras, The Bends represented a transition between the tumultuous latter half of the 20th century and the new millennium ahead.

Even teenagers two decades removed from The Bends' original release can still find deep emotional connections to its depiction of isolation and dissatisfaction.

The Bends is the 20th century's identity emerging under pressure, forced to search bleakly for some form of cohesion among an increasingly artificial and commercial world.

With The Bends Radiohead left an impressive music video legacy, one that would extend to later masterpieces such as OK Computer.

Jonny Greenwoods' musical achievements on The Bends represent as far as he was ever going to get by limiting himself to channelling his ideas through his guitar.

The latest PopTalk podcast takes a look at whether or not, as Kanye West suggests, the Grammys and awards culture in general can or should care about "true artistry".

No matter how many times someone writes that Radiohead and The Bends “changed the face of music” in 1995, the retail and radio numbers tell a different story.

With The Bends having such strong cultural and critical preconceptions behind it, hearing the album from the perspective of a new lister can help cut through the pre-ordained narrative.

PopMatters begins its look back at Radiohead's The Bends today. Here we examine The Bends track by track, examining it from angles spanning the cultural to the theoretical.

For artists a big as Beyonce, U2, and Thom Yorke, the surprise album release model offers minimal risk and maximal reward. It's a paradigm that's sure to be replicated by others going forward.

Kid A is more fun to think and write about than it is to actually listen to.

Thom Yorke dropped a great surprise to begin the fall music season. He has just released Tomorrow’s Modern Boxes via BitTorrent.

Though the roster of Atoms for Peace suggests a perfect blend of talents, the resultant amok is too much, too rapid, and too overwrought to reach the group's full potential.

Radiohead frontman and indie rock poster boy Thom Yorke dropped by the stage of German electronic group Modeselektor's set during Coachella to play “Shipwreck”.

... records that didn't happen, either.

If we are going to learn to grin and bear this year's enhanced, prolonged stormy activity, we need an equally stormy playlist to accompany the thunderstorms, tornadoes, hurricanes, and whatever other maladies Mother Nature might throw our way during this summer season

Radiohead announced today that they'll release their eighth studio album, The King of Limbs, in digital form this Saturday, with a physical release to come.

Has this 2010 US campaign season turned into a referendum on women?

The five-track EP from cartoon dancehall duo Major Lazer is greater than the sum of its parts.

Let me speak for L.A. when I say that you are welcome back anytime, Thom.

The Radiohead solo album delivers what it didn't know it promised.