Amazon.com: Customer reviews: OK Computer OKNOTOK 1997 2017

Top positive review

49 people found this helpful

213. "NOTJUSTOKBUTPERFECT"

ByScarlet Jupiteron June 23, 2017

Sometimes a highly revered album deserves the status bestowed upon it. This is one such occasion. The fondest memory I have from the album's 1997 release, is the picture of the cover artwork being literally everywhere in the UK, from the back covers of music magazines and newspapers (Q, Select, NME, Melody Maker), and promo posters in music and retail stores (HMV, Our Price, Virgin Megastores, WH Smith, Woolworths), to tube stations. Too young to understand and appreciate the album's brilliance, it almost felt like a forced nightmare being surrounded by the image of a record that was unanimously hailed as an instant contemporary classic. Many years and repeated listens were needed for me to understand the long-term significance of this visionary tech angst masterpiece which carried Radiohead's depressive worldview, building its queasy vision of the future on a foundation from the past, considering the frailty of the body versus the power of machines in a time where the internet was just beginning to become prominent. Walking a thin line between glistening genious and pompous self-esteem, Radiohead on here are at their most violent and beautiful. 20 years on,"OK Computer" still sounds wild, weird, and wondrous.

The notion of a Radiohead-approved deluxe reissue is especially odd when it comes to this particular record, one which already received a 2-disc reissue back in 2009 by the band's former label, EMI. While it is great to have a Radiohead stamp of approval on this 20th anniversary reissue, that alone is not enough to justify forking over money even for the basic 2-disc edition of "OKNOTOK". The rarities included on here have never been all that rare, and some of the songs included on this set are available digitally, or have been performed live for more than a decade. Technically this is a remaster with B-Sides and rarities added on. Avid fans and collectors will naturally go for the true 20th anniversary box set experience of this (out in July). For the fans, however, "OKNOTOK" will live or die by the 3 songs that render it unique. As with the 2009 EMI reissue, it is nice to have the many B-Sides compiled here, but anyone who owns that prior reissue will probably not really need another CD of that same material. To the uninitiated, "OKNOTOK" stands as the complete version of the album; to those well-acquainted with it, the new standard editions represent a near-duplicate entry in their CD collection. Regardless, "OKNOTOK" is an essential listen.

Note: Opaque blue 3x 180 gram vinyl features the original 12-track album, 3 unreleased tracks, and 8 B-Sides, housed in a triple-sleeve gatefold, including a digital download card; a thing of beauty!

***** for the album
***** for this edition

Top critical review

See all 7 critical reviews›

2 people found this helpful

5 star material, 1 star pressing quality

ByJeremy Shraderon July 11, 2017

This is my second copy of this record. I'm very excited and pleased with all the b sides and unreleased material on vinyl. The remastering sounds great, at least what I can hear through all the noise. Some of the sides are near perfect, but several have lots of noise and distortion problems. The first copy I received had a very loud pop on side 4, making it unlistenable. It had a visible scratch or gouge on the record right out of the box. I haven't listened to the second copy yet, but already I see another very large scratch on the first record (pic below). I'm going to try and make one good copy out of the two I have received and return the faulty discs. If not, I'll probably just return for a refund and order directly from W.A.S.T.E.