#the secret rhythm behind Radiohead’s Videotape

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Videotape begins @ min 32:46

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Liked on YouTube: The secret rhythm behind Radiohead's "Videotape" https://youtu.be/p_IHotHxIl8

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Initial Innovation research - Appendix 1

Case Study - Radiohead-Videotape

In 2007 Radiohead released their track videotape as part of their In Rainbows Album (Yorke,2007). Which is an indie/alternative rock track that is deceptively innovative and unique (Giles,2017). Due to the nature of the song on the surface or to a non-musician it seems to be a simple piano ballad (The Legends Of Music,2018) but on further inspection of its arrangement it is much more complicated. The piano in the song is actually syncopated (Caswell,2017). Syncopation was usually used in genres such as jazz, reggae and funk music (Levin,2020) but rare is it seen in a slow alternative rock ballad. This is definitely an example of innovation as it shows Yorke bending the generic constructs of specific genres and merging them to create a whole new somber tone and emotion. Syncopation is usually what creates a danceability in a song and allows for a funky beat however using it in this slow sombre track is something new and inventive that is not part of the normal (Vox,2017)

This syncopation may be useful in my track as I plan to use foley which can often give sections of a track a feeling of syncopation especially when made into loops or ran through a sampler.

References

Caswell.E(2017)The secret rhythm in Radiohead’s “Videotape”[online]Vox.Available at:<https://www.vox.com/videos/2017/8/4/16092184/videotape-radiohead-secret-rhythm-earworm> [Accessed 04 October 2021]

Giles.J(2017)WHY RADIOHEAD’S ‘VIDEOTAPE’ IS DECEPTIVELY BRILLIANT[online]Diffuser. Available at:<https://diffuser.fm/radiohead-videotape/> [Accessed 04 October 2021]

Levin.H(2020)WHAT IS SYNCOPATION IN MUSIC AND WHY IT MATTERS[online]Icon Collective.Available at:<https://iconcollective.edu/what-is-syncopation-in-music/> [Accessed 30 November 2021]

The Legends Of Music(2018)The Story behind Videotape by Radiohead[online]The Legends Of Music.Available at:<https://medium.com/@thelegendsofmusic/the-story-behind-videotape-by-radiohead-75175a7c9858> [Accessed 04 October 2021]

Vox(2017)The secret rhythm behind Radiohead's "Videotape"[online video]Youtube.Available at:<https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=p_IHotHxIl8&t=175s> [Accessed 04 October 2021]

Yorke.T(2007)Videotape[Spotify]London.XL Recordings.Available at:<https://open.spotify.com/track/4T1iiabe7G0UjWQJCY6NE2?si=83da5fe37fbb4408>[Accessed 04 October 2021]

[beetlebun]

The secret rhythm behind Radiohead's "Videotape"

[adamverzum]

Secret rhythm, hidden syncopation, buried rhythm displacement and other mystical creatures

Most of you probably know Videotape by Radiohead. It is the final track on their 2007 album In Rainbows. What you probably don’t know is that it has a ‘secret rhythm’. Well, it doesn’t really, but it sounds cool, doesn’t it?

The album version is a piano-heavy song, with a strange atmospheric background noise and unusually placed beats. In short: a Radiohead song.

What makes this more interesting, is the evolution of this track, from live performance to the album version. Apparently, some Radiohead fans were baffled by the fact, that Thom Yorke had such a difficulty starting such a ‘simple’, straightforward song during one of their shows. This spurred some fans to go on a fact-finding mission. The whole ‘conundrum’ is probably best summarized by this video with a rather clickbaity title: The secret rhythm behind Radiohead's "Videotape"

While the video presents an interesting case, their solution is not really correct, as it is pointed out in the comments. If I counted and understood it correctly, you have to assume a double tempo for the song, and count 4 :

1 e & a 2 e & a 3 e & a 4 e & a

in which the beats in bold are the ones Yorke is playing piano on. 

What is really great about this song, it that it has a sort of ‘hidden double time’ playing in the band members’ heads and it gives a whole different feel to the song if you try to count the measures the way they do, and not the way the piano suggests. I can agree, that it is great, that the band members wanted to challenge themselves with this ‘background rhythm’, so much so, that they eventually decided to remove it from the album version completely. This is the aforementioned ‘Bonnaroo version’ of the song from 2006:

Still, it is ‘only’ rhythm displacement, not some secret voodoo. You can also observe a more extreme case of this in the song Bells by the Norwegian experimental trio Cakewalk:

[djdizam]

Now Watching: The Secret Rhythm Behind Radiohead´s ¨Videotape¨

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You are my center, When I spin away, Out of control on videotape.

Jamming along to Radiohead’s “Videotape”. (Pt. III) Interesting article and short video covering the creative process behind, specifically about the time signatures used in, the song below:

https://www.vox.com/videos/2017/8/4/16092184/videotape-radiohead-secret-rhythm-earworm

[frankinferno]

La parte de "temporary loss of information" es buenísima. The secret rhythm behind Radiohead's "Videotape"

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The secret rhythm behind Radiohead's "Videotape"

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The secret rhythm behind Radiohead's "Videotape"

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Liked on YouTube: "The secret rhythm behind Radiohead's "Videotape"" https://youtu.be/p_IHotHxIl8

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The Secret Rhythm Behind Radiohead’s “Videotape”

Vox has shared their first “Earworm” video all about Radiohead’s “Videotape.” It’s pretty fascinating. --- Please consider supporting us so we can keep bringing you stories like this one. ◎ https://chorus.fm/news/the-secret-rhythm-behind-radioheads-videotape/

[dripworld]

The secret rhythm behind Radiohead's "Videotape"

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The secret rhythm behind Radiohead’s ‘Videotape’

Fascinating dissection of Radiohead’s Videotape, and the syncopation hidden in the slow rhythmically monotonous song.

from The secret rhythm behind Radiohead’s ‘Videotape’

[motifsinthecity]

We’re all Thom Yorke’s center as he spins away.

[daveespionage]

Liked on YouTube: The secret rhythm behind Radiohead's "Videotape" https://youtu.be/p_IHotHxIl8