Albums by this artist

This is where Radiohead grew up. Released after the immature Pablo Honey, the EP features seven progressive songs in a cohesive set that foreshadows the band's subsequent two masterpieces, The Bends and OK Computer.

My Iron Lung shows an evolution in songs and sound for the band, with Computer producer Nigel Godrich joining the production crew for the first time.

The title track, which would later appear on The Bends, reveals itself as the proclamation of the new Radiohead. It is an epic tune, with restrained early verses marching steadily toward a breaking point. Then Jonny Greenwood and Ed O'Brien's converging guitar riffs propel Thom Yorke's equally scathing vocals into the stratosphere.

After another go-round, the riff section melts into a middle-eight, Yorke is given a chance to grab ahold of the listener and prove he hasn't been lost in the thick of the storm: "If you're frightened, you can be frightened..." We're soon sent right back into the spiral for a quick, vicious ending.

"The Trickster" and "Lewis (mistreated)" are rockers -- not as visionary as the title track, but rife with fresh sounds. The band appears to be reveling in its creativity, evident in that these songs were never meant for an album.

"Punchdrunk Lovesick Singalong" carries a detached but intense tone that will pop up on Computer-era tunes like "Exit Music (For A Film)," "A Reminder" and "Climbing Up The Walls." Here Yorke establishes a vocal complexion he will become known for: He is a peripheral observer, but he is paradoxically inside your head.

"Permanent Daylight," Godrich's first full credit as Radiohead producer has strong echoes of Sonic Youth's "Teenage Riot," but the band pulls it off well. And if this kind of tribute might not be the most original thing they ever wrote, that's why it's a B-side.

"You Never Wash Up After Yourself" is a haunting fingerpicked tune without percussion that reveals another aspect of the new Radiohead. They can give a simple tune an aura of complexity with devices like mood and dynamics.

The bummer on this album is "Creep (acoustic)," which originally appeared on the band's weak debut. The other tracks on My Iron Lung prove Radiohead has moved beyond the less mature sound of their debut, and this reference to their past only disrupts the flow of My Iron Lung.

But as EPs go, this one is in the top echelon. For any serious fan of Radiohead, it is where to go after you own all of their albums. My Iron Lung marks a great period in the evolution of this compelling band.

TROY CARPENTER | Troy Carpenter founded NATN from a Chicago apartment during the ambitious winter of 1998 with co-conspirators Ben French and Jonathan Cohen. After a five-year stint in New York, he and wife Lourdes have recently relocated to Indianapolis, where he spends days listening to music and nights in the kitchen at Elements restaurant. Musical heroes: Jimi Hendrix, Bob Marley, Super Furry Animals. What else makes life worth living: Sushi, Phucty, runs in the park, and the Atlanta Braves.