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October 23, 2007

1N RA1NB0WS For Stoners: The Binary Theory, The Golden Section, The U.S. Record Store Release

Not quite on the level of Dark Side and Dorothy, but there are a few outside-the-bong schools of thought on Radiohead's latest release circulating that you might wanna know about.

#1 - The Binary Theory
This comes by way of Puddlegum, and it's all about the mystical connection of 1N RA1NB0WS and the number 10. The facts are these:

  • In Rainbows came out 10 years after the landmark OK Computer, with only 10 days advance notice, on 10/10.
  • In Rainbows was preceded by 10 cryptic messages on deadairspace: nine featuring lots of the letter X (Roman numeral 10 -- e.g. "Xendless Xurbia"), and a tenth of the boys drinking some tea. Which we're pretty sure even puddlegum agrees is random.
  • In Rainbows has 10 letters, 10 tracks, and was rumored to be available for download on 10 servers.
  • PG says that "someone associated with Thom Yorke" wrote them after reading the article, and offered Thom's response:
    “The meaning behind all of this is right in front of our faces, we’re just overlooking it. [Thom] has been expecting an article much like this one for a couple of years, as have I. But I’m willing to wager he’ll have fun waiting a few more. On the other hand, it seems to annoy him that no one ‘gets it’ yet, given the mountain of clues.”
    They go on to draw out a tracklist which they claim proves the intentional connection of OK Computer and In Rainbows, but that's where we'll leave it. No dilly dallying when there's more speculative fun to have...

    #2 - The Golden Section
    According to a post on Mortigi Tempo, you can hear Thom sing the album's title, along with those blissful strings, right when In Rainbows enters The Golden Section (or Golden Ratio), the old Renaissance-era theory that 1.6180339887 (or 61.8%) is an aesthetically pleasing "sweet spot" in a work of art. How it applies here:

    In Rainbows is 42m 34s, or 2554 seconds long. 2554/1.618 is the 1578th or so second of the album, which is 2m49s into Reckoner, precisely when the strings come in with the album title.
    It's Golden, Jerry! Golden, I tell ya.

    #3 - In Rainbows To Be Released In The U.S. Via Dave Matthews's Label ATO
    Far out, right? Best part about this one -- it's true!

    Thanks to reader Brian K. for filling us in on the first two. And thanks to those burnouts at New York Times for the DMB connection.

    Posted at 2:17 PM
    Tags:




    39 Comments

    10 is the new 23

    Posted by: jim at 10/23/07 2:48 PM | Reply
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    How about the fact that "OK Computer" has the same number of letters as "In Rainbows"?

    Posted by: Chris at 10/23/07 3:06 PM | Reply
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    In that same 2-letter-word-then-8-letter-word fashion, no less

    Posted by: Chris at 10/23/07 3:11 PM | Reply
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    And if you put those first 2-letter words together you find the word "Oink". Which actually died today, and I think Radiohead has something to do with it.

    Posted by: Zayin_451 at 10/23/07 3:20 PM | Reply
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    Zayin_451 ftw

    Posted by: thommy greenwood at 10/23/07 3:24 PM | Reply
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    Or maybe they consider it their 10th official release? Not counting singles but maybe including EPs or DVDs or something? I dunno. I'm done.

    Posted by: Chris at 10/23/07 3:34 PM | Reply
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    I think what all of this means is hey, shut the fuck up Thom Yorke. If I wanted to take an I.Q. test I'd join Mensa. Get back to rocking.

    Posted by: Adam at 10/23/07 3:36 PM | Reply
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    I heard that if you play one copy of in rainbows mixed with another copy of ok computer backwards, while the wizard of oz is playing, and with 4 speakers in equal distances away from you at 45 degree angles...your head will explode.

    can't wait to get home and try that out!

    Posted by: ryan97ou at 10/23/07 3:40 PM | Reply
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    I know a guy who knows a guy: no names. Anyways, according to him right before OiNK went down, the site admins decided to implement a new sorting algorithm for arranging torrents on the site. They used the golden ratio as the split point for their quicksort and at that very second, Thom Yorke burst through their door with a bunch of Interpol goons (the real Interpol, not the band... Thom thinks they're lame)

    Apparently he called them motherfuckers too. Because he's CRAZY!

    Posted by: Fibber at 10/23/07 3:49 PM | Reply
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    or if you play The Gloaming (hail to the thief) backwards at one point thom sings "the hairy bishop, the hairy bishop, the hairy bishop, the hairy bishop..."
    when he's normally singing "they should be ringing"

    i haven't worked out the meaning in that one as yet...

    Posted by: Andrew Tutton at 10/23/07 3:51 PM | Reply
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    Whoa. There are 10 comments! ...Oh rats, I just ruined it.

    Posted by: Urgh at 10/23/07 4:45 PM | Reply
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    when i first heard the album i thought the bass line in the break in 15 step was very similar to the one in airbag (both track 1s). giving it more thought bodysnatchers and paranoid android are both the 'rockers' of their respective albums. i wonder if any other connections can be made between tracks 3-10.

    this was all a conspiracy fabricated by radiohead while making ok computer. OMG!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

    Posted by: ariel at 10/23/07 5:23 PM | Reply
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    If you listen to every Radiohead album post-Pablo Honey, they all follow pretty much the same formula, not unlike movements in a symphony:

    1. Upbeat opener (Airbag, 15 Step, 2+2=5, Planet Telex)
    2. Heavy thematic/rocker (Bodysnatchers, Paranoid Android, National Anthem, The Bends)
    3. Wistful ballad (Nude, Subterranean Homesick Alien, Sail to the Moon, Fake Plastic Trees)
    4. Intermission (Faust Arp, Treefingers, Fitter Happier, The Gloaming)
    5. Second half upbeat opener (Electioneering, Reckoner, Optimistic, There There)
    6. Gradual wind-down that spans 2-3 songs
    7. Brief rave-up (Lucky, Jigsaw Falling into Place, Morning Bell, Myxomatosis)
    7. Wistful closer (The Tourist, Motion Picture Soundtrack, Videotape)

    They stick to this tried and true formula pretty rigidly — and In Rainbows is no different.

    Posted by: Chuck at 10/23/07 8:37 PM | Reply
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    Klosterman is that you?

    Posted by: Glib at 10/23/07 9:30 PM | Reply
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    I think what this all means is that Radiohead are going to end up on the island with Jack and Kate in the next season of LOST

    Posted by: Mike at 10/23/07 9:40 PM | Reply
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    does anybody hear "in rainbows" at 2:49 in "reckoner"? i dont hear it...the back up vox maybe...a few seconds later..

    Posted by: christian at 10/24/07 12:49 AM | Reply
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    Pablo Honey = 10 letters.

    I bet all the kids @ ateaseweb are having fun with this ....... or losing their minds.

    Posted by: Honey, It's Pablo at 10/24/07 6:10 AM | Reply
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    I thought the whole secret was just that they used musical samples from lots of OK Computer songs in all of the In Rainbows songs.

    Listen to them and think about it... there's a lot of re-used sounds.

    Posted by: John at 10/24/07 9:43 AM | Reply
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    If you google on rcaoimnpbuotwesr, which is an anagram of In Rainbows and OK Computer, A live Radiohead video of All I Need is only thing that shows up. Also, if you make a playlist with a song from OK Computer then In Rainbows pattern they fit perfectly. For example SHA's ending note carries over to Nude perfectly. Seems to me everyone is really overlooking this like York says.

    Posted by: Ian L at 10/24/07 2:32 PM | Reply
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    The whole 10 theory seems like a bit of a stretch. On Puddlegum's site, he lists a combo playlist alternating songs between OK Computer and In Rainbows, so I decided to test the theory. I've gotta say, the two albums don't mesh as well as everyone says they do....OK Computer is so doom-n-gloom, and In Rainbows seems to have a little more upbeat vibe overall...

    Posted by: Adam at 10/24/07 2:32 PM | Reply
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    on October 10 of 2010, Thom Yorke is going to indirectly kill ten people, all of whom will possess ten toes, ten fingers, full names consisting of ten letters, an apartment on the tenth floor of the tenth largest building in the state/province, and ten radiohead records, the tenth of which will detonate at 10:10.

    Posted by: bluntacious at 10/24/07 5:13 PM | Reply
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    Hey, the 10 letter album title thing works with Kid ABCDEFG, too!

    Posted by: virgil at 10/24/07 5:35 PM | Reply
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    You guys havent heard? Radiohead is a album produced to make you go insane, to make you go insane, to make you go insane, to make you go insane, to make you go insane, to make you go insane, to make you go insane, to make you go insane.

    See you counted to see if it was typed 10 times. Youve officially gone insanenogenasni.

    Posted by: AmOtto at 10/24/07 6:25 PM | Reply
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    How about you all get a job and just enjoy the new cd. That is the subliminal message I heard. "Get a job, and enjoy our cd". That's what Thom said 2 me.

    Posted by: TJ at 10/24/07 11:49 PM | Reply
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    Backmasking in "in Rainbows"

    Couldn't hear him singing the title but tried reversing it as 10 is the reverse of 01, and found lot's of hidden messages I think. Pretty sure they are in there on purpose as they sort of make sense, and Radiohead do this kinda thing all the time, but I might have misheard or be imagining some of them....here goes:

    15 steps - "everybody will see"

    bodysnatchers - "This time"

    nude - "be afraid"

    all i need - "There's love" (not sure about this one)

    faust arp - "you didn't realise"......."you need a new life"

    reckoner - "your eyes won't" - think he says - "believe"

    house of cards - "and"...."i am sick of this" - think he says - "hour off"

    Has anyone else tried it?

    Posted by: dean at 10/26/07 9:03 AM | Reply
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    @TJ -- Nice! My sentiments EXACTLY!

    Posted by: troy. at 10/26/07 9:18 AM | Reply
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    anybody else notice that the In Rainbows version of Reckoner is different than the one played live during the OK Computer days... the older version was more rocking...

    Posted by: tim at 10/26/07 9:53 AM | Reply
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    sorry Reckoner was Kid A era.

    my bad.

    Posted by: tim at 10/26/07 9:55 AM | Reply
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    Everyone has been remarking how Reckoner is so different from the live version at the Gorge -
    I think that's because it's an entirely different song with the same name. No correlation what so ever. But I might be wrong? Anyone?

    Posted by: kelly at 10/26/07 1:26 PM | Reply
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    This e-mail is going out to radio folk:
    --------------------------------------

    Download the mastered versions now!

    Here are two higher quality bit rate/mastered versions of "Bodysnatchers" and "Jigsaw Falling Into Place", the tracks a lot of guys are already playing, from the forthcoming physical release of "In Rainbows".

    Radiohead
    "Selections from "In Rainbows""
    2 tracks - 00:08:10
    on Side One Recordings/ATO Records

    Posted by: DJ at 10/27/07 12:59 PM | Reply
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    @Chuck: your pattern definitely fits, esp. since I can think of other songs on other Rhead albums that fit that pattern:

    3. Wistful ballad (Exit Music)
    7. Wistful closer (Street Spirit)

    um, I can think of more too!

    I noticed that the album The Bends has a pretty consistent song structure: intro/riff, verse, chorus, riff, verse, chorus, freakout/bridge, chorus (sometimes instrumental chorus followed by chorus with words)

    Posted by: historyman68 at 10/29/07 3:37 PM | Reply
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    Everything about In Rainbows is interesting - except for the music.

    Posted by: Mike at 10/29/07 6:54 PM | Reply
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    Ok so 10 is a one and a zero. 1 + 0 = 1, which is exactly the number of tens in the number 10.

    Posted by: john at 10/29/07 9:04 PM | Reply
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    Oink (ok computer-in rainbows): the sound a pig makes..remember paranoid android "Kicking, screaming gucci little piggy"...look at the inside cover ok OKC, where there is written "against demons", in the right top..doesn't it seem a pig?
    Try also to reverse Nude...
    Bye
    Jeff

    Posted by: jeff at 10/30/07 10:14 AM | Reply
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    If you combine OK COMPUTER/IN RAINBOWS you get several anagrams such as

    WIRE PORNO / CUNTS AKIMBO
    ROBOTIC PUNK ARMIES NOW
    I BECKON WARIO; RUN, STOMP!

    Future career paths? Viral marketing for HBO/Daft Punk/Nintendo? YOU DECIDE!

    BRO UP, KNOW CREATIONISM

    Posted by: Chris at 10/30/07 2:26 PM | Reply
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    Is the distinction "In Rainbows FOR STONERS" really necessary?

    Posted by: Femme Fatale at 10/30/07 6:27 PM | Reply
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    hey mister Ian L. The youtube-clip google hit happens because there is a site in which rcaoimnpbuotwesr is the text for a link to that clip. Oh and golden ratio dont forget that, just 30 hundreths of a second off.

    Posted by: Chops at 10/31/07 2:30 PM | Reply
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    Try Puddlegums playlist with a 10 second crossfade...the transitions are seamless

    Posted by: Ryan at 11/20/07 6:38 PM | Reply
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    austinjedwards

    How do i set a ten second crossfade on Itunes? Can i even do that or should i use another program? If so, which program?

    Posted by: austinjedwards profile link at 10/13/08 7:37 PM | Reply
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