Genius of Radiohead highlights years at UCLA
By Daily Bruin Staff
May 29, 2001 9:00 p.m.
 Cyrus McNally Cyrus is a fourth-year
neuroscience student who currently spends his time trying to
maintain physical existence. E-mail him at [email protected].
I see we meet again. Maybe for the first time. Maybe for the
last time. If most religions are right, then we will meet yet
again, somewhere in the future. Somewhere down that great line
whose end cannot be seen or distinguished from the beginning.
By the way, did I mention that this is my last column? Yes, dear
readers, the time has come, and I want to get some things out of
the way (in no particular order):
1. To all those I’ve offended, I apologize.
2. To all those I haven’t, that’s cool.
Yeah, that’s about it.
This column will serve as a chronicle of music history for the
turn of the century; roughly, the years I was affiliated with
students of UCLA.
No, I’m serious. A lot has gone down in terms of
popularity, redefinition, rebirth and birth in multiple musical
genres and other statistical mulch.
But first, a quick run-through of the highlights and
disappointments of the last four years: Top Five lists for
1997-2001.
Favorite albums:
1. Radiohead ““ “Kid A” (2000)
2. Radiohead ““ “OK Computer” (1997)
3. Massive Attack ““ “Mezzanine” (1999)
4. Underworld ““ “Beacoup Fish” (1999)
5. The Cure ““ “Bloodflowers” (1999)
Radiohead claims two spots, meaning it is on fire and blazing a
path to permanent glory. The Cure still rules, but rumor has it
that it’s done for good this time. It’s only a matter
of months before Robert Smith gets depressed again, though.
Most ahead of our time albums:
1. Goldie ““ “INCredible Sound of Drum N’
Bass” (1999)
2. Orbital ““ “The Middle of Nowhere”
(1999)
3. Roni Size & Reprazent ““ “New Forms”
(1997)
4. DJ Krush ““ “Code4109″ (2000)
5. Banco de Gaia ““ “Igizeh” (2000)
These electronic artists are good to invest in, as they are
likely to carry the future of commercial music forward.
Biggest Tragedies:
1. Jennifer Lopez ““ “J.Lo” (2001)
2. Spice Girls ““ “Forever” (2000)
3. Ricky Martin ““ “Sound Loaded” (2000)
4. Britney Spears ““ “Oops! I Did It Again”
(2000)
5. Lil’ Kim ““ “Notorious K.I.M.”
(2000)
Oops! I’m sorry for y’all out there who got sucked
into ownership of one of the aforementioned titles, whether it be
as a gift, an Internet or postal ordering or a direct purchase at a
merchant vendor. The year of the new century sure had some crappy
follow-up releases!
But hey, its all right, we’re not going to tell anyone. We
are, after all, human.
Biggest Advances for Humanity:
1. Sequencing the human genome
2. Landing stuff on Mars
3. Tom Green and South Park
4. Johnny Depp (minus “Ninth Gate” and
“Astronaut’s Wife,” of course)
5. DSL Internet connections.
As science becomes more scientific, so does art. Where is the
biological aim of appeal? That seems to be the question asked by
many competitive artists these days.
But let’s take it all back to the beginning, when I was a
mere freshman and barely human.
To get the best synopsis of musical remembrances over the last
four years, I recruited the best of the independent music
chronologists in the business.
And believe me, there are not many experts!
Expert No. 1, Cyrus McNally, alternative music historian and
barbarian critic: “We had already been mourning the death of
Kurt Cobain for three years when spring of 1997 arrived, and we
were once again temporarily freed from the intellectual
sterilization process that is public education.
“For me, it was a farewell to my high school days and an
embrace of the college ones. It was time to take a stand and then a
step in the direction toward professional fury and intellectual
girth.
“Alternative rock, once at its peak after the knockout
blow of the postmortem Nirvana release, “˜Unplugged,’
was seemingly on the way downhill. Or was it?”
Expert No. 2, Cyrus McNally, official Radiohead band
chronologist and freelance bioinformaticist: “A furious
quintet from England was taking depressing music to the psychotic
extreme in a style reminiscent of our posthumous poet heroes, as
mentioned above. Influenced by the likes of Pink Floyd, R.E.M. and
krautrocker Can, I read so much about Radiohead’s 1997 Hall
of Fame creation, “˜OK Computer,’ before it came out
that I was expecting nothing less than the arrival of a new Pink
Floyd. Indeed the band was ““ and still is.
“Radiohead is able to leap stylistic buildings in a single
bound, with its latest album “˜Amnesiac’ offering to
stir up your gray matter in unexpected ways.
“Last year’s “˜Kid A’ was thought to be
about the first cloned human. Incidentally, several independent
genetic research institutes are fighting a war over who can make
the first human clone. Rumor has it the feat has already been
accomplished ““ many times over and across the globe.
“Yet out of the boredom and stank of guitar rock, a new,
more independent genre was establishing dominance in the sphere of
popular music. From Kraftwerkian ideals and DJ Frankie Knuckles
skillz emerged the realm of electronic dance music.”
By 1997, the rave scene was full-blown in America, particularly
in Los Angeles, where it really had first taken hold in America.
The Prodigy, Chemical Brothers and Crystal Method were all the
rage, even putting some crappy videos out for MTV.
By 1998 several subgenres had emerged, and to speak about them
we bring out Expert No. 3, Cyrus McNally, subgenre analyst and data
miner/statistician for BBC Radio 1: “Right, so, by 1998 the
electronica bandwagon was so huge and overflowing that people were
jumping off left and right at the subgenre stations, discovering
those as well. Before you know it, you have Euro-pimp celebrity
trance DJ’s (like Paul Oakenfold) spinning at L.A. raves.
“Times have changed, times have changed. The changing mind
is become more genetically selectable than the unchanging one. This
applies to the categorization of subgenres as well. If you think
about it, all musical output kind of bleeds together, but we often
cut it up into inaccurate categories for our own selfish
comfort.
“The point of the story is, don’t be afraid to
explore and learn to appreciate new arts.”
Then came the premillennium scare. What if Armageddon arrived
and all time stopped, and we were all judged for our sins? A real
threat pondered by all.
“The year 2000 came around, and it was generally pretty
boring. According to VH1, All Saints had the No. 1 song of the
year. Need more be said?
“I have to say though, in 2001, I am optimistic for the
future of music. There is a generation of great influence coming to
bear seed in the music industry right now, inspired mainly by the
growth of technology.”
Expert No. 4 is biotech robber baron and music trends analyst
Cyrus McNally: “Today, it’s see-all, do-all bands that
combine such a wide variety of influences that they are granted the
appeal of an all-music lover’s crowd, and lead the future
directionality of popular music to come. Such bands are usually
“˜electronic’-based (since computer-aided recording is
superior at laying down samples), and are not too attached to any
particular genre.”
The path is different for all of us. Just try to keep one thing
in mind: the path is always there, from beginning to end. I’m
out.
