Radiohead's OK Computer Top Best Albums List

British rockers Radiohead have dominated a new list by Pitchfork magazine to find the best albums from 1996 to 2011.

Editors launched a readers' survey to determine The People's Top 200 from the 15 years since Pitchfork's inception and counted almost 28,000 votes to compile the countdown.
Radiohead proved to be a popular choice with their 1997 release "OK Computer" topping the list, while its follow-up, "Kid A", came in at number two.

They also scored a third entry at six with In Rainbows.

Arcade Fire's "Funeral" was voted third, while The Strokes ("Is This It"), Wilco ("Yankee Hotel Foxtrot") and Kanye West ("My Beautiful Dark Twisted Fantasy") also earned mentions in the top 10.

The top ten of Pitchfork's People's List is as follows:

01. Radiohead - "OK Computer"
02. Radiohead - "Kid A"
03. Arcade Fire - "Funeral"
04. Neutral Milk Hotel - "In The Aeroplane Over The Sea"
05. The Strokes - "Is This It?"
06. Radiohead - "In Rainbows"
07. Wilco - "Yankee Foxtrot Hotel"
08. Animal Collective - "Merriweather Post Pavillion"
09. Kanye West - "My Beautiful Dark Twisted Fantasy"
10. Sufjan Stevens - "Illinois"

Thanks for the report to Contactmusic.

Comments

[Kriggs]

Apart from "Ok Computer". Have the last 15 years been "that" bad when it comes to music?

[USCENDONE BENE]

Hey, that Neutral Milk Hotel album is stunning. Floored me on first listen.

But stuff like Sufjan Stevens, Kanye West - take it or leave it. Like i said, readers mostly voted for songs reviewed by pitchfork and so it was more a 'readers favourite albums that have been reviewed by pitchfork' list.

[Kriggs]

Sounds right, but have any Pitchfork readers ever heard of the White Stripes?

[insurgentsteve]

Go to the source website, they're there, just not in the top 10.

[iommi600]

Come on, man, Yankee Hotel Foxtrot is awesome.

[iommi600]

Shit, misplaced "Hotel" and "Foxtrot"... well, the album is still awesome.

[prezofbfclub]

You're right. This article said it wrong.

[iommi600]

lol you're right, I think my confusion over the album's title is telling me to take out the dust out of my CD and make it spin a little. xD

[KerNeL_KLuTcH]

"I'm stabbing any blogging faggot hipster with a Pitchfork"

[USCENDONE BENE]

It was a botched list to vote from - they offered you mostly albums that they had reviewed from the past 15 years which you could select. Or you could add your own albums separately, but let's face it most people probably just clicked on albums that were in front of them rather than typing out every album that has made a difference in their life that pitchfork had overlooked.

Radiohead are easily one of the best bands of the last 15 years though.

[JPD026]

actually you could vote for any album, even ones they didnt supply, you just had to type it in

[USCENDONE BENE]

You didn't read my post fully, did you?

[milanio]

Excuse me, I do believe Aenima and Wasting Light or any other Foo Fighters album deserves to be on this list!

[JMZ08]

The Foo Fighters are sooooo overrated man. Can someone explain why they're so popular? They just sound so generic and bland to my blown eardrums.

[mrRICHARD911]

Because their front man, and Dave's a God!

and he demands your apology RIGHT NOW!

[mrRICHARD911]

man is Dave Grohl*

[crazysam23_Atax]

Because they're not overrated. At least, not in the last 5 years. Get over yourself.

[Vinjar]

Foo Fighters never made an album called Aenima, Tool did, it's weird that Tool never gets so much publicity, everyone know they are amazing but they arent often mentioned in rock/metal-society... also Foo Fighters rock, they should've be on every list! people say they are overrated, people who say they are overrated has NEVER even had a peek at one of their live shows, seeing the Foo live is when you realize just how epic they really are

[schirripar]

By The Way - RHCP easily deserves to be on this list.

Also, the people who made this list clearly hate Radiohead. I don't understand how there isn't more Radiohead on this list.

/s

[JEgroeg]

The plebs will disagree, but amazing list regardless.

[Punkbri1]

Plebs is a great word.

[oxymoronicman]

Wow, my Top 15 would look completely different.

[Pan-Tallica]

Looks like they just asked people to choose from the their "top albums of the year" from 1996-2011. That doesn't strike me as a proper way to conduct a survey.

[Noob_Brood]

I love Radiohead....but I have to say, In Rainbows is much better than Kid A. It is even debatable as to being as good as OK Computer. But either way Radiohead POWNED this list.

[Noob_Brood]

As much as I love Radiohead, however...I don't think they should be credited for having 3 of the top ten. Where is Queens Of The Stone Age - Songs For The Deaf? That was legendary.

[ManInTheBox14]

Songs for the Deaf is on there, around #70 I believe.

[joshro]

As much as I love Radiohead, I must say In Rainbows, in my opinion, is their best.

[WardLucas]

Oasis's Standing on the Shoulders of Giants is better than every album on this list.

[iommi600]

I don't get all the negative feedback your comment, dude... Gas Panic and Roll it Over alone already makes it one of Oasis' best albums... Well, at least a lot better than Arcade Fire or Kanye West, lol

[burndttoast]

Nice to see Wilco getting some love in the list.

[insurgentsteve]

I love Radiohead and OK Computer and Kid A deserve the top 10

BUT.. This should really be called the hipster/indie kid Top 200 albums, because so many good albums were obviously overlooked like: Muse - Origin of Symmetry (a lot of indie kids love it, I don't understand), RHCP - Californication, By the Way, Stadium Arcadium, Nine Inch Nails - The Fragile, Tool - Lateralus(!!), Rage Against the Machine - Battle of Los Angeles

I mean come on. Label your lists properly.

[MR.LZZYHALE]

yeah man where is avenged sevenfold on this list

[iommi600]

Trololololol

[MR.LZZYHALE]

im trolling i just love avenged sevenfold whats wrong with that

[gnurph]

I know, right? I mean, a best album survey by a magazine called Pitchfork, you think it'd be all metal? I've always thought that it was an odd name for a mostly indie music magazine.

Really, the article writer should've mentioned the magazines focus in the article to more clearly point out the independent / indie vibe to the list.

[crazysam23_Atax]

The stupid thing about this list is that it's basically ignores about 75% of the rock of the last 15 years...

[raconteur141]

Pretty good list minus animal collective. Would of liked to see some Pavement or Dinosaur Jr. or QOTSA. to everyone who's going to start saying "This is such a one-sided list!" Just Keep in mind they have a very focused audience that voted for the albums, so of course you won't see any classic rock or blues or metal. It's mostly for alternative/indie stuff, which doesn't make it bad just different.

[edgeyyz]

It does make this a pointless news article though. As soon as I saw it was Pitchfork's, I knew what half the albums on the list would end up being.

[robo37]

20 coments down and so far no sign of any classic rock or thrash metal fans whining about how all music nowadays is apparently shit. So far, so good.

[robo37]

comments*

[MR.LZZYHALE]

its such a hipster thing to like classic rock; espially ac.dc and guns and roses imo

[TheWahoo95]

what do radiohead fans look like?

[tele-disaster]

people.

[iommi600]

Honestly, I take Kid A over OK Computer any day of the week.

Inb4, the musical inquisition.

[Paraffinity]

so this is what the majority of people are listening to

not yet listened to a couple, but i more or less agree totally because i'm a mindless indie sheep. obviously.

[Abacus11]

"OK Computer" is my personal favorite album of all time so it's nice to see it top this list... even though these lists are meaningless.

I remember getting it the day it came out and I've loved it since. Sonically, lyrically it's beautiful (in a very melancholy way for most of it).

Radiohead has written some great music since but in my opinion this is their best so far. What an album.

[RadioTape]

In rainbows is a brilliant album.
Kid A was revolutionary.
OK Computer is a very good album.

However, Only Revolutions (Biffy Clyro), Hot Fuss (Killers) and Whatever People Say I Am That's What I'm Not (Arctic Spunkeys) should be on there.

The Foo Fighters don't write amazing albums in my opinion, and I hate this pedestal Dave Grohl has got for writing a couple of good songs an album for the past 15 years, as much as I like them.

[kerguitar08]

Where's Amnesiac? Clearly that's the superior album.

[Maiden95]

I can't stand it when I see a Top 10 list that UG posts and half of it is Radiohead. I've never said this in the comment section, but... THIS ISN'T NEWS WORTHY.

Dream Theater's Scenes From a Memory DESTRYOYS everything here.
*Aaaaand here come the downvotes*

[Agent 00Awesome]

+1 from me man. Agreed.

[Maiden95]

Alright!! You are indeed awesome.

[Weezerrocks]

Wow. Just wow.

[Kueller917]

Some great albums on that list, but if you told me it was Pitchfork doing it I could've predicted the whole thing.

Anyways, people should stop taking lists so seriously. Not everyone's favorite albums are going to make it. Instead maybe try to post your own top 10 and get some discussion.

[Root Beer]

Love the shit out of Radiohead; especially happy to see Kid A on there do high.

Unfortunately, they're the only good band on the list.

[Vedicardi]

Great job Pitchfork.

[mcmuffin999]

Dream Theater? Meshuggah? Steve Vai? Death? Baroness? Mastodon?... No?
im not saying Ok Computer was bad, its just that there's been alot of great music in the last 15 years that also comes into play here

[bobt68021]

justice.

[crystalmonday80]

Funeral by Arcade Fire is such a good album, so happy to see it on the list!

[WaddleDeee]

I'm always gonna be a Kid A guy myself, though OKC is still fantastic.

[raoooos]

OK Computer is a shit album.

[RHCP_Nirvana_FF]

I do entirely agree about OK Computer being the number 1 and I do love In Rainbows just as much but having 3 of their best albums in the top 10 is a bit too much. Personally I would have put QOTSA's Rated R, the Foo Fighter's Colour and Shape, RHCP's Californication and The Arctic Monkey's first album in the Top ten but that's just me.

[archangels]

My first thought reading the list was, "Was this compiled by hipsters?"

Then I realized it was from Pitchfork. Go figure.

[Svennz]

LOL

That's all I have to say. The only albums that deserve to be there are OK Computer, YFH, Is this it, Illinois and Funeral.

I don't know what the hell is Kanye West doing in that list.

[Kueller917]

MBDTF was a great album.

[DaysoftheBlue]

This is pitchfork were talking about bro. The only band you mentioned that even gets thought of by their writers/audience is Mastodon.

[todd6138]

I don't even hear guitars on this album, much less the cream of the crap.

[ManInTheBox14]

Actually, I've been hoping UG would post this list, just to see the reactions of all the mainstream rock fans.

That said, I read Pitchfork all the time, and I voted in this poll. "OK Computer," "Funeral," "Is This It?" and "My Beautiful Dark Twisted Fantasty" were on my list, though not in the top 10. Overall, the list (it goes up to 200) is pretty good, though I would have liked to see some more metal on there, "Songs For the Deaf" being the only metal album on the list. I'm surprised that nothing from Mastodon, Baroness, Opeth, Liturgy etc made the list. For the record, my #1 pick was "Colors" by Between The Buried and Me.

[Alice2Mudgarden]

How is Audioslave not on here?

[Galfadez]

UG really needs a new editor. Even the title of this is wrong.

[emidog]

Top 5 should be
1. Kid A
2. OK Computer
3. In Rainbows
4. Amnesiac
5. King of Limbs

[ToolCreedence]

In Best Radiohead Order Last 15 Years:
1. In Rainbows
2. OK Computer
3. Hail To The Thief (Cannot Forget)
4. Kid A
5. King Of Limbs

[ffaf12]

soundgardens superunnkown should defiantly be somewhere here

[FlyingPirahna]

The cutoff for "past 15 years" for Superunknown would've been 2009.

[zep-floyd-fan]

I think Elephant or White Blood Cells should be somewhere on that list, Those White Stripes albums are amazing!

[prezofbfclub]

you're right. this article is wrong.

[aureliusgtr]

this list is garbage....songs for the deaf, anything foo fighters, californication, and tool to name a few are better than ANYTHING kanye west and the strokes combined....not even close...

[FlyingPirahna]

OK Computer and In Rainbows ARE pretty ****ing stellar records.

[Kueller917]

lol come on people taste is subjective. I don't agree with every album on this list but you can't really call it wrong. There's been too much great music in the past 15 years for everyone to agree 100%

[Scourge441]

This is a pretty generic Pitchfork list, which means I disagree strongly with the choices but can understand why they were chosen.

Except MBDTF, that album shouldn't be on a best-of anything list.

[Galfadez]

Wow... So ignorant

[Scourge441]

Kanye's a damn good producer but his vocal delivery is subpar and it really detracts from his work.

Deltron 3030 should be there instead.

[EnglishToolRage]

Who the Hell are half of these bands???

[guy_tebache]

As a massive radiohead fan, even I think thats probably a bit too much radiohead. I'm also of the opinion that Hail to the Thief is better than Kid A, and In Rainbows MAY even be better than OK computer. All fantastic albums though.

Seeing the Strokes on there was great, but I would have loved to see Arctic Monkeys on there. Any of their first three albums would have been a great addition to this list.

[MoshGrizzly]

Sublime anyone? No? Just me?

[am i inside]

In no particular order:

Mastodon-Crack the Skye
The Black Keys- Rubber Factory
Buckethead- The Cuckoo Clocks of Hell
Jerry Cantrell- Degradation Trip Vol. 1&2

Would have liked to see those on there somewhere, not top ten but certainly top 200. Crack the Skye should be in the teens.

The XX should have been better than 15
James Blake should have been better than 71
The Weeknd-House of Balloons should have been way, way lower on that list than 108, should be in top twenty. It's not rock, but it's a flawless album.

[MeGaDeth2314]

This is such a typical Pitchfork list.

[kaleeb]

Everyone on here saying the Kanye album wasn't one of the top albums in the last 15 years are out of their minds. I can't stand most hip hop/rap and I couldn't stop playing it for almost a month. I still find myself wanting to listen to it.

That being said, I've never understood why people enjoy the Strokes. Awful, lazy musicianship and even worse singer. Opinions are like *******s though...

[Scourge441]

I dislike Kanye's rapping. He's a good producer, but IMO he should stick to producing and stay off of a mic.

[spiff-corgi]

Kanye's a great rapper and a great producer. And he called Taylor Swift on her bullshit. That's the trifector.

[Scourge441]

Listen to Outkast. Or Aesop Rock. Or Del the Funkee Homosapien. Or RA the Rugged Man. Or Swollen Members. Or POS. Or Kool Keith. Or Shad. Or Knowmads. Or Antedote. Or anything by any of the members of Wu-Tang (hell, Raekwon has an appearance on MBDTF where he makes Kanye look silly).

If you listen to ANY of them and still think Kanye's a better rapper, then so be it.

[Scourge441]

Watch these.

http:/ /www.youtube.com/watch?v=Q7_jbluF0qo
http://www.youtube.com /watch?v=V3nbTB2KHuM
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=d0VQEfb Mwb4

[spiff-corgi]

I'm not saying he's a better rapper than any other rapper on the planet. I think he's a great rapper and a great producer, as well as a funny guy, who makes great music.

[ninjagayden777]

Thought I was the only one on here that liked POS.

Plus one for aweaome rap.

And if you haven't yet, listen to Killer Mike's R.A.P. Music. Absolutely stunning

[Galfadez]

Yeah I'm the same. Hate most rap/hip hop but was addicted to that album and now addicted to Channel Orange by Frank Ocean

[danielblau1]

Damn Straight! Yeah honestly, Radiohead deserves to have three albums here (and they could have more). a HUGE number of bands today are influenced by them. Easily one of the top 15 bands of all time. IN RAINBOWS IS INCREDIBLE. MUST LISTEN NOW.

[Omniscient G]

The hipster top album list.

[Emenius Sleepus]

I know it's a list and all, and subjectivity is an inevitable result, etc etc.

But three Radiohead albums in there feels like an insult. One is a stretch

[Kueller917]

It is Pitchfork...

[CJMairMusic]

This could definitely use Tool's Aenima, it's undoubtedly focused in on the alt/indie scene (minus Kanye), nowhere near what my personal top 10 would be, but great none the less.

[kmister]

Would take the Bends over OK Computer.

[mckenna64]

that was 1995, so doesn't qualify.

[SilverchairFan]

I cant believe no silverchair albums made the list. Neon Ballroom and Diorama are masterpieces. So ridiculously underrated

[breadstick]

Unbiased list of the year. There was definitely no viral vote-propagating going on here.

[jacobdubya]

Figured this would be a pretty hipster list. That said, I've listened to all the albums on this list with the exception of "Funeral" by Arcade Fire and "Illinois" by Sufjan Stevens. "Kid A" would've topped the list for me. "Foxtrot Yankee Hotel" is okay, but I never got the hype. Animal Collective is way overrated and I certainly didn't get that album. The rest are very good, though, but I'm wondering where quite a few albums are. "Californication" by RHCP, "Elephant" by White Stripes, "Rated R" or "Songs for the Deaf by QotSA, "Aenima" or "Lateralus" by Tool, "Relationship of Command" by At the Drive-In, "De-Loused in the Comatorium" by The Mars Volta, "The Devil and God are Raging Inside Me" by Brand New, "Lifted..." by Bright Eyes, and so many more.

[jacobdubya]

"Mezzanine" by Massive Attack, "Stankonia" by Outkast, and "Pinkerton" by Weezer are three more wonderful albums I left out.

[xplosive59]

Was gonna disagree BUT it is a very solid list, every album on there I would give a 4.5 or 5 out of 5, That being said though this list desperatly needs F#A#Infinity by Godspeed You!Black Emperor to be Number 1.

[ninjagayden777]

Am I the only one insulted that Merriweather didn't make it higher? A true classic in atnospheric songwriting, not to mention awesome vocal delivery

[HendStrat]

There are so many good bands that are not mentioned here..

[didier_anelka]

I love Radiohead, but no shit hipster bands are gonna be up there if its rated by a hipster magazine.
I'm cool with that, but if a heavy metal mag made a top 100 albums Radiohead and Arcade Fire would'nt even make it