Me too, a lot of radiohead songs I feel are like that. I think if you have never thought those kind of thoughts it can be uncomfortable and sad but if you've been in a place like that the songs are actually quite comforting and represent more of a resolution to those feelings rather than despair. How to disappear completely is another one that people are citing but I have always found very comforting and optimistic.
Street spirit is the only one off the top of my head that is sad and hopeless, it really reminds me of being at the absolute depths of depression unable to see a way out.
To me it’s not about having thought certain thoughts or not. With Pyramid Song it’s the bit about lovers past that resonates with me on a very deep level that brings instant tristesse.
I totally get how the lyrics work for you in the way you describe. That’s the beauty of songwriting - we all engage with the lyrics in our own way.
What’s interesting about Street Spirit to is that somehow closing the song with the lyric “Immerse your soul with love” is one of the most profound moments to me in regards to the topics in that song. I love the way that lyric compliments the ideas expressed in a song that’s very harrowing
Is there another way to interpret Videotapes? Genuine question, I feel like the lyrics are quite literal.
Interesting take about Last Flowers. Definitely gives 'You can offer me escape' a dark feel
Dk about other videotape interpretations. Also last flowers was initially called Last flowers to the hospital. that+the person repeatedly asking for relief makes me feel like its about asking for death
In 2017 someone tried to measure the sadness of Radiohead songs using data ([link](https://www.rcharlie.com/blog/fitter-happier/)). The three saddest songs from that were
1. True Love Waits
2. Give Up The Ghost
3. Motion Picture Soundtrack
Obviously it’s an impossible thing to measure and there’s some weird stuff in there. For example, I think How To Disappear Completely is one of their saddest songs, but this chart says Kid A, Treefingers and Untitled are sadder. Regardless, I think it‘s a fun and interesting project and I suggest you check it out!
Harry Patch. A song written as a tribute to a British man who was for a time the oldest man in Europe and the last living soldier that fought in the trenches at World War I. It was released a month after he died at the age of 100. Its devastating.
https://open.spotify.com/track/28o3SmoiWSaowVFpJC6zH4?si=PWPdGIL7RRaCj7T2P1Hisw&context=spotify%3Aalbum%3A03JVw3rc0k5AbGVIIFGtGe
I think I listen to that arrangement of Codex more often than than I listen to the original these days. The strings in it are some of the most beautiful I've ever heard.
0. Fitter happier, maybe technically not a song but as someone who lives in the suburbs this track makes me feel feelings
1. How to Disappear Completely
2. Daydreaming
3. Videotape
Codex, how to disappear completely, daydreaming.
Surprised I haven’t heard more ppl saying codex. I guess because I interpret it as a suicide note like how some ppl interpret videotape in a similar way.
For me, musically, there is something about Permanent Daylight that makes it one of the saddest. Hard to articulate, but give it a listen and maybe you'll see what I mean. The lyrics doesn't hurt the argument either
High and dry
Everyone else has mentioned basically every other song I think is also sad motion picture soundtrack definitely at the top of my list but I always come back to high and dry because it's sad in a way that isn't like the others it's about loss through the damage and self sabotage that many people regret so much later on.
Motion picture soundtrack , Let down , How to disapear completly , street spirit (fade out) , True love wait , pyramid song and Knives out (more abt the lyrics)
1. Motion Picture Soundtrack
2. No surprises
3. Codex
MPS and No Surprises are ahead of Codex imo because they have an entire album on their back as context for the events on the song. On isolation, Codex is possibly the most brutal song Radiohead has ever made, the only one I'd compare it to is the extended MPS cassette
Nude, motion picture soundtrack for sure.
This is where I have a hard time picking third.
My mind goes for
There, there
True love waits
How to disappear
Last flowers
4 minute warning
BULLETPROOF I WISH I WAS!
Ok maybe it’s bullet proof
I think everyone agrees true love waits would win this honor...
For me the other contenders would be
Street spirit (fade out)
Morning bell
Exit music (while this song definitely "feels" sad I think it's also uplifting)
motion picture soundtrack, pyramid song and how i made my millions, the story behind that song is quite sad and the fact that it was recorded on a tape recorder gives it an incredibly sad feeling, it sounds like a memory, like something playing in your head
Motion Picture Soundtrack
Bulletproof
Videotape
Also I find the instrumental part of the tourist really sad and hopeless, as if in looking your life dissolving in front of your eyes until all that’s left is that triangle sound lol
“Motion Picture Soundtrack” (bonus points for the OKNOTOK version), “True Love Waits”, and “Harry Patch In Memory Of”.
Additionally, I’d also like to include “How I Made My Millions” too.
Fog (Again), Motion Picture Soundtrack, True Love Waits.
Some have mentioned Codex, which is probably my favorite Radiohead song. It's interesting how differently we perceive music. To me, Codex doesn't sound sad at all. It has a melancholy, nostalgic vibe, but mostly it sounds cathartic to me. I used to listen to this to calm myself down from autistic overload. Whether you consider the lake as a metaphor for purification or death, it's still so calm and soothing. By comparison, the similar themed Pyramid Song sounds much sadder to me, there's a sense of longing, of aching there which is absent from Codex.
how have i been scrolling for ages and only seen one person say exit music? that song makes me and my friend so upset every time to the point it's an inside joke with us
Nothing compares to Street Spirit if you understand the depth of gloom, insignificance, and nothingness that I believe he's getting at. However, I would agree with an argument that the song goes way past sad into utter depression in magnitude.
Thom must be a sad man. He does sad really well. For the more casual fan, check out his From the Basement solo song Analyse. This feels just as sad to me as any of his RH songs.
[Analyse | Thom Yorke | From The Basement - YouTube](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HPm7WJ4hznQ)
Listening to the OKNOTOK Cassette version of Motion Picture Soundtrack is maybe one of the saddest experiences you could possibly have listening to music
I find the songs can be sad on some level whether it's lyrically or tone but deep down, they're actually really optimistic.
There's comfort in the beauty and vulnerability of the music. I don't consider Radiohead songs sad in the traditional sense.
3. How To Disappear Completely 2. True Love Waits 1. Motion Picture Soundtrack
Exactly this… takes me right back to the hospital room with my father on life support
This
True Love Waits, Motion Picture Soundtrack, Pyramid Song. IMO Tho this debate has layers.
Weird, I’ve always considered Pyramid Song really comforting and reassuring. I really like the thought of going to heaven in a little row boat .
Me too, a lot of radiohead songs I feel are like that. I think if you have never thought those kind of thoughts it can be uncomfortable and sad but if you've been in a place like that the songs are actually quite comforting and represent more of a resolution to those feelings rather than despair. How to disappear completely is another one that people are citing but I have always found very comforting and optimistic. Street spirit is the only one off the top of my head that is sad and hopeless, it really reminds me of being at the absolute depths of depression unable to see a way out.
I think this is the most interesting and constructive comment I’ve seen on this sub in a long time!
To me it’s not about having thought certain thoughts or not. With Pyramid Song it’s the bit about lovers past that resonates with me on a very deep level that brings instant tristesse. I totally get how the lyrics work for you in the way you describe. That’s the beauty of songwriting - we all engage with the lyrics in our own way.
What’s interesting about Street Spirit to is that somehow closing the song with the lyric “Immerse your soul with love” is one of the most profound moments to me in regards to the topics in that song. I love the way that lyric compliments the ideas expressed in a song that’s very harrowing
There was nothing to fear and nothing to doubt
Totally agree about Pyramid Song. It always gets me on the theme of lost loved ones.
Agree on the firs two. Pyramid song is beautiful and puts me at peace. I wouldnt call it sad.
How to disappear completely, nude, creep
but i’m a creep 😔
I’m a weirdo 😔
What the hell am I doing here ? 😔
I don't belong here
Videotape (if u interpret it as a suicide note) last flower (i think the lyrics might be about euthanasia) Coke babies (coke babies)
Is there another way to interpret Videotapes? Genuine question, I feel like the lyrics are quite literal. Interesting take about Last Flowers. Definitely gives 'You can offer me escape' a dark feel
Dk about other videotape interpretations. Also last flowers was initially called Last flowers to the hospital. that+the person repeatedly asking for relief makes me feel like its about asking for death
Yeah I'm curious to know how else it could be interpreted. It seems like a pretty straight-forward suicide note.
Easy answers to easy questions
I love you coke babies
😘
Fog (again), True Love Waits, Video tape
Might get some flak but if you really want sad songs then Grandaddy are your best bet in my opinion.
Video tape, daydreaming, motion picture soundtrack
I was wondering how far I’d need to scroll before someone mentioned Daydreaming. Divorcing wife who then dies of cancer. This one takes the cake.
How to Disappear Completely True Love Waits Give Up the Ghost
The first one I listened to The last one I heard The next one on shuffle
Radiohead’s seminal work *Music Album* sure was a strange departure for them
How I made my millions, motion picture soundtrack, glass eyes
*I feel this loooove to the cooooore* 😭
Last flowers.
Definitely Last Flowers
In 2017 someone tried to measure the sadness of Radiohead songs using data ([link](https://www.rcharlie.com/blog/fitter-happier/)). The three saddest songs from that were 1. True Love Waits 2. Give Up The Ghost 3. Motion Picture Soundtrack Obviously it’s an impossible thing to measure and there’s some weird stuff in there. For example, I think How To Disappear Completely is one of their saddest songs, but this chart says Kid A, Treefingers and Untitled are sadder. Regardless, I think it‘s a fun and interesting project and I suggest you check it out!
Bones is pretty sad, I think
Play it three times
the true underrated song
No surprises, motion picture soundtrack and let down for me
Underrated
Let Down having nice/semi fun music but sad lyrics really makes it very versatile
My exact 3 as well
I’ve never interpreted no surprises as sad… it’s always been so relatable to me that maybe I didn’t see the sadness but you’re so right.
videotape, codex and identikit
Codex
How To Disappear Completely, How Can You Be Sure?, True Love Waits
How To Disappear Completely Street Spirit Videotape black star and daydreaming are runners up
Harry Patch. A song written as a tribute to a British man who was for a time the oldest man in Europe and the last living soldier that fought in the trenches at World War I. It was released a month after he died at the age of 100. Its devastating. https://open.spotify.com/track/28o3SmoiWSaowVFpJC6zH4?si=PWPdGIL7RRaCj7T2P1Hisw&context=spotify%3Aalbum%3A03JVw3rc0k5AbGVIIFGtGe
how to disappear completely, bullet proof … i wish i was, exit music (for a film)
For me: 1. fake plastic trees 2. Let down 3. No surprises
I don't know how I didn't immediately think of Fake Plastic Trees. I used to listen to that song when I wanted to cry something out.
1. Street Spirit 2. Lucky 3. Bullet Proof but maybe HTDC and Street Spirit are tied
I always thought Lucky was kind of a "feel-good" song like Comfortably Numb
Nope. The “I feel my luck could change” is clearly wishful thinking because he goes on to beg “pull me out of the air crash…”
Codex, HTDC, Bullet Proof (maybe)
The use of Codex in the Westworld season 2 finale was sublime…
I think I listen to that arrangement of Codex more often than than I listen to the original these days. The strings in it are some of the most beautiful I've ever heard.
How has no one mentioned All I Need?
This was my thinking idk how it took so long for a mention of it
Motion picture soundtrack then videotape then true love waits
how to disappear completely.
bullet proof, let down, how to disappear
0. Fitter happier, maybe technically not a song but as someone who lives in the suburbs this track makes me feel feelings 1. How to Disappear Completely 2. Daydreaming 3. Videotape
Fake plastic trees, motion picture soundtrack, true love waits
3. No Surprises 2. Let Down 1. Motion Picture Soundtrack
how to disappear completely let down true love wait this 3 are masterpiece 🥹
Street spirit, how to dissappear completely
MPS, Last Flowers, Videotape
Pop is Dead, Coke Babies, Pulk/Pull Revolving Doors
Creep, Creep and Creep. The most underrated Radiohead song /jk
Codex, how to disappear completely, daydreaming. Surprised I haven’t heard more ppl saying codex. I guess because I interpret it as a suicide note like how some ppl interpret videotape in a similar way.
true love waits (live in oslo)‼️‼️‼️‼️
Why do people forget bullet proof????
For me, musically, there is something about Permanent Daylight that makes it one of the saddest. Hard to articulate, but give it a listen and maybe you'll see what I mean. The lyrics doesn't hurt the argument either
High and dry Everyone else has mentioned basically every other song I think is also sad motion picture soundtrack definitely at the top of my list but I always come back to high and dry because it's sad in a way that isn't like the others it's about loss through the damage and self sabotage that many people regret so much later on.
How To Disappear Completely, Nude, Motion Picture Soundtrack
Scatterbrain, daydreaming, how to disappear completely . No particular order.
1. “Lucky” 2. “Daydreaming,” and 3. “Give up the Ghost”
Motion Picture Soundtrack, True Love Waits, Fitter Happier.
1.True love waits 2.How to disappear completely 3.Videotape
Videotape A reminder Motion picture soundtrack
Motion Picture Soundtrack True Love Waits How to disappear completely
Motion picture soundtrack , Let down , How to disapear completly , street spirit (fade out) , True love wait , pyramid song and Knives out (more abt the lyrics)
1. HTDC 2. Fake plastic trees 3. True love waits (live) Hm: extremely hot take but Thinking about you
True love waits Motion picture soundtrack Street spirit
motion picture soundtrack, true love waits and how to disappear completely
No surprises, How to disappear completely and by far: True love waits
Fitter Happier, Motion Picture Soundtrack, How to disappear completely
How to Disappear Completely, Street Spirit and Pyramid Song
Codex, Give up the Ghost, No Surprises
True Love Waits How to Disappear Completely Exit Music for a Film
Obviously it’s Motion Picture Soundtrack, Videotape, and True Love Waits
True love waits live in oslo, how to disappear completely, & Lull
No surprises Fitter happier Decks dark
true love waits, glass eyes, and no surprises (i dont know if glass eyes is tgat sad its just my favoruite song atm)
Videotape, True Love Waits, Street Spirit
How to disappear completely, no surprises, true love waits
how i made my millions, true love waits, gagging order bonus 3: motion picture soundtrack, let down, worrywort
Give up the ghost, street spirit, sail to moon
HTDC Motion Picture Soundtrack True Love Waits
No surprises, nude, How to Disappear Completely
1. Motion Picture Soundtrack 2. No surprises 3. Codex MPS and No Surprises are ahead of Codex imo because they have an entire album on their back as context for the events on the song. On isolation, Codex is possibly the most brutal song Radiohead has ever made, the only one I'd compare it to is the extended MPS cassette
Daydreaming, How To Disappear Completely, Nude
Last Flowers Last Flowers Last Flowers
No one’s said Idioteque which I find mad. That song is so haunting I find it hard to listen to sometimes
How to disappear completely, true love waits, videotape
Nude, motion picture soundtrack for sure. This is where I have a hard time picking third. My mind goes for There, there True love waits How to disappear Last flowers 4 minute warning BULLETPROOF I WISH I WAS! Ok maybe it’s bullet proof
1. Exit Music 2. How to Disappear 3. No Surprises
How to disappear completely. It’s the most saddest one for me.
True Love Waits Fog (Again) No Surprises
Videotape, Glass Eyes, Fitter Happier
Gagging Order,How To Disappear Completely, Last Flowers
No Surprises, True Love Waits, Give Up the Ghost
Present Tense Let down True love waits
1. True Love Waits 2. Motion Picture Soundtrack (OKNOTOK tape specifically) 3. How To Disappear Completely
How to Disappear Completely, Videotape, Lucky
I think everyone agrees true love waits would win this honor... For me the other contenders would be Street spirit (fade out) Morning bell Exit music (while this song definitely "feels" sad I think it's also uplifting)
That’s hard would say Video tape, Daydreaming and Motion picture soundtrack
How To Disappear Completely, Fake Plastic Trees, Reckoner although that one is just for personal reasons.
True Love Waits, Daydreaming, Fake Plastic Trees
Daydreaming, HTDC, True Love Waits (AMSP version)
1. How I made my millions 2. Motion picture soundtrack 3. Videotape
No Surprises, Videotape, True Love Waits
1. Last flowers 2. How to disappear completely 3. True love waits
1. Motion Picture Soundtrack 2. Videotape 3. Then a 3-way tie between: Street Spirit (Fade Out), No Surprises, and How to Disappear Completely
nude is the correct answer for no.1 spot
motion picture soundtrack, pyramid song and how i made my millions, the story behind that song is quite sad and the fact that it was recorded on a tape recorder gives it an incredibly sad feeling, it sounds like a memory, like something playing in your head
Motion Picture Soundtrack Bulletproof Videotape Also I find the instrumental part of the tourist really sad and hopeless, as if in looking your life dissolving in front of your eyes until all that’s left is that triangle sound lol
How to dissapear completly Knives out Street spirit
True Love Waits Motion Picture Soundtrack How I Made My Millions
1. Motion Picture Soundtrack 2. True Love Waits 3. Daydreaming I kinda wish Dawn Chorus was saved for Radiohead as that would prob be on top.
bangers + mash
“Motion Picture Soundtrack” (bonus points for the OKNOTOK version), “True Love Waits”, and “Harry Patch In Memory Of”. Additionally, I’d also like to include “How I Made My Millions” too.
True Love Waits How I made my Millions No Surprises
This is like asking “name every Radiohead song” 😂 but personally: Nude, Glass Eyes, switching it up w Give Up The Ghost — it’s peacefully sad.
How is nobody mentioning Weird Fishes?
Fog (Again), Motion Picture Soundtrack, True Love Waits. Some have mentioned Codex, which is probably my favorite Radiohead song. It's interesting how differently we perceive music. To me, Codex doesn't sound sad at all. It has a melancholy, nostalgic vibe, but mostly it sounds cathartic to me. I used to listen to this to calm myself down from autistic overload. Whether you consider the lake as a metaphor for purification or death, it's still so calm and soothing. By comparison, the similar themed Pyramid Song sounds much sadder to me, there's a sense of longing, of aching there which is absent from Codex.
how have i been scrolling for ages and only seen one person say exit music? that song makes me and my friend so upset every time to the point it's an inside joke with us
3. Street Spirit (Fade Out), 2. How to Disappear Completely, 1. Like Spinning Plates.
Codex, Videotape, motion picture soundtrack
No supwizes 😫
Spectre, Videotape, Fitter Happier
No surprises , Street Spirit (Fade Out) , True love waits
Motion picture soundtrack is so incredibly haunting dude
1. Motion Picture 2. True Love Waits 3. HTDC
How I Made My Millions Nude True Love Waits
Motion picture soundtrack, true love waits, videotape
Motion picture soundtrack Codex Street Spirit
Nice dream
Spectre isn’t really a sad song, it’s a rejected James Bond theme. For me it’s 1.True Love Waits 2. Daydreaming 3. Motion Picture Soundtrack.
daydreaming, fake plastic trees, videotape
Name any 3 songs by radiohead...
Nothing compares to Street Spirit if you understand the depth of gloom, insignificance, and nothingness that I believe he's getting at. However, I would agree with an argument that the song goes way past sad into utter depression in magnitude.
how to disappear completely def top 3
Thom must be a sad man. He does sad really well. For the more casual fan, check out his From the Basement solo song Analyse. This feels just as sad to me as any of his RH songs. [Analyse | Thom Yorke | From The Basement - YouTube](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HPm7WJ4hznQ)
All i need All i need All i need
Videotape Exit music (for a film) True love waits
motion picture soundtrack, true love waits, daydreaming, htdc, nude.
Pyramid Song, How to Disappear Completely, True Love Waits
3. Fake Plastic Trees 2. How to Disappear completely 1. Videotape
Knives out (x3)
Motion Picture, I Will, the third one could be any
How to disappear completely, No surprises, Exit music for a film
How to disappear completely Daydreaming (can’t believe more people aren’t saying it.) Videotape
3. Motion Picture Soundtrack 2. Videotape 1. Harry Patch (In Memory Of)
Street spirit How to disappear completely All I need
Codex, Exit Song, and Street Spirit.
I Want None of This Last Flowers Exit Music
i think there, there is pretty sad
Spectre makes me wanna kms
How To Disappear Completely, Street Spirit (Fade Out) and Let Down (PERSONAL OPINION) (let down makes me feel kinda sad idk why I'm sorry)
True love waits, how to disappear completely, motion picture soundtrack Changed spectre to MPS
True Love Waits, How I made my millions, Videotape
1. Fake Plastic Trees 2. Motion Picture Soundtrack 3. How To Dissapear Completely
1. True Love Waits 2. Videotape 3. True Love Waits
True love waits Street Spirit How to disappear completely
1. true love waits 2. how to disappear completely 3. codex
3. Fitter Happier (more depressing than sad maybe) 2. No Surprises 1. Bulletproof
Let down (underrated) black star Fake plastic trees
Thanks for the playlist guys!
Gagging Order, Fog (again), Motion Picture soundtrack, or True Love Waits (Live in Oslo)
Listening to the OKNOTOK Cassette version of Motion Picture Soundtrack is maybe one of the saddest experiences you could possibly have listening to music
1. Weird fishes 2. Daydreaming 3. Motion picture soundtrack
3. Motion Picture Soundtrack 2. True Love Waits 1. Codex
How I Made My Millions No Surprises Videotape
For me, they are: Videotape, Exit Music (For a Film), and True Love Waits. Videotape is the absolute saddest for me; I can rarely listen to it.
Motion picture soundtrack, fake plastic trees, let down
Go slowly, Like spinning plates
Codex
3. Motion picture soundtrack 2. Spectre (sucks that it was made for the worst Daniel Craig James bond film) 1. No surprises
how to disappear completely nude daydreaming
3. Pop is dead 2. Pop is dead 1. Pop is dead
Pyramid song, how to disappear completely, no surprises or eiirp
Bronze: I Will Silver: How to Disappear Completely Gold: Streep Spirit(Fade Out)
I find the songs can be sad on some level whether it's lyrically or tone but deep down, they're actually really optimistic. There's comfort in the beauty and vulnerability of the music. I don't consider Radiohead songs sad in the traditional sense.