Review: Thom Yorke’s “The Eraser Rmxs”

  Thom Yorke’s 2006 album “The Eraser” effectively built off of his celebrated work with Radiohead.  In fact, as an album it played like a minimalist, beat-driven Radiohead record.  Looking back, its melodic warmth foreshadowed what was to come on “In Rainbows.”  Originally a Japanese only release, we finally get this collection of “Eraser” remixes two-and-a-half years later, complete with Japanese liner notes. Remix albums can sometimes be a gamble. Remixing itself can be a delicate sonic art.  In skilled hands a remix can be an extension of the original piece of work or take on a life of its own.  Sometimes remixes are purely recyclable. Luckily, as expected Yorke has chosen his remixers well and the cuts contained on this disc serve as effective companion pieces to the original versions.  This is a collection for seasoned fans. If you haven’t heard the original album, I suggest that you start there, but if you were one of those people (like me) who couldn’t stop listening to the original album, this is a must-have.  This is especially true if you also like electronic music.  There were nine songs on the original record.  There are nine songs here.  However, “Black Swan” receives two treatments, so one cut from the original record is completely omitted from the cycle.  It’s amazing that no one decided to remix the incredible title track.  Personally, I think that’s a mistake but it’s not unforgivable.  The record begins with “And It Rained All Night – Burial Remix.” The track becomes even more ominous then the original.  A dark, thudding beat is punctuated by percussion, sounding like a downpour. Occasionally, one hears the sound of a thunder crack.  Yorke’s vocal line is stripped down to its naked essence to great effect.  The “Burial Remix” indeed sounds like a rainy funeral march.  “The Clock – Surgeon Remix” turns the glitch-driven original track into a house and trance-driven groove.  This version adds urgency and propulsion to the already tense original piece.  The extra beats make the track suitable for a sequence in an action movie.  “Harrowdown Hill – The Bug Remix” strips the bass driven original down to an airy, echo-drenched soundscape.  Between the vocal sections the track sounds like a menacing video game score.  When Yorke sings “Don’t ask me, ask the ministry,” in this environment, he sounds like he’s yelling from the top of a mountain and perhaps about to jump.  This track without question equals or betters the original work.  “Skip Divided – Modeselektor Remix” begins with a joke of sorts.  The title repeats over and over as if ironically caught in a skipping loop.  It then emerges as a low-riding, dark synth jam. At one point a phone rings.  At another point the beat sounds like it may be underwater.  Yorke’s voice is tweaked and dissected a number of different ways throughout.  It all makes for a compelling listen.  Four Tet’s remix of “Atoms For Peace” is another highlight.  For those of you familiar with Four Tet mastermind, Kieran Hebden’s work, this is not a surprise.  Like many of his high-profile remixes of the past for the likes of Sia and Beth Orton, this is a lush, jazz-drum fueled exercise. (He previously did an inventive reworking of the Radiohead track “Scatterbrain,” dubbed “Skttrbrain”)   ”Atoms For Peace” is one of the most beautiful tracks on “The Eraser” and Hebden allows Yorke’s strikingly pretty falsetto to shine.  Those who think Yorke and Radiohead are generally too dark and depressing need to hear this beautiful track.  Hebden chills the song out a bit thus rendering it a haunting, soft, rhythmic lullaby.  “Cymbal Rush – The Field Late Night Essen Und Trinken Remix” morphs the original track into an eight minute instrumental.  Some listeners may find this track a challenge.  I find it to be a relaxing ambient breather.  Why Yorke’s vocals aren’t in the mix is unknown, but there’s something almost meditative about this track’s simplicity.  Cristian Vogel’s reworking of the album highlight “Black Swan” is dubbed the “Spare Parts Remix” for good reason.  It sounds like he buried the original track under a grimy mechanical beat.  He also added a woozy guitar line.  It doesn’t play as well as the original but it plays to the song’s twisted undercurrent. “Analyse – Various Remix” turns the original into a slowed down 8-bit videogame soundtrack.  In this context, this sounds like Yorke’s big dramatic moment within a digital opera.  Once again, his voice is tweaked, chopped and delayed to great effect.  It is stirring, stunning and wonderfully frightening all at the same time. The album ends with Cristian Vogel’s second “Black Swan” remix.  This one is dubbed the “Vogel Bonus Beat Eraser Remix.”  It’s a near eight-minute instrumental groove built around a rubbery, looped bass sound from the original.  Again, those not used to the signatures of modern electronic music might find this to be monotonous. On a certain level it is. However, if you listen to this track with deep focus, you’ll be drawn in by the ever-changing beat.  It’s definitely a challenge but one which some may find rewarding.  It’s good to be able to hear these remixes.  I just wish they released it sooner to the original album.  This long-delayed American version is a really fascinating addition to any Radiohead enthusiast’s collection.