Absurdism in Radiohead songs

Absurdism in Radiohead songs (Part 1)

Radiohead serves as my go-to band for creative inspiration and solace during times of distress. Not distressed in a way to avoid pain, but to let it consume me and heal from it. Surrendering to and delving into the depths of misery has been the only thing that has worked for me to overcome it over the years. I won't deny that it doesn't have any aftereffects; PTSD is a real thing after all. However, this approach has allowed me to maintain functional sanity.

Returning to Radiohead, I recently revisited one of my all-time favorite songs, "Let Down." It captures the band's signature melancholic essence. The lines that were ringing in my ears were:

One day, I am gonna grow wings,

A chemical reaction,

Hysterical and useless....

Radiohead's music is known for its surrealism, inviting diverse interpretations. While Thom Yorke and the band may not have intended to evoke absurdism explicitly, that's precisely how I perceive these lines. Here's my analysis:

The song opens with a melancholic yet familiar tone. You know you are not going to listen to something chirpy at this point and are aware of what specific moment or feeling it is going to bring to you. You have signed up for the emotions that will be triggered. Thom Yorke voices his discontent with materialism, like the myth of Sisyphus and Camus' existential philosophy. Like Sisyphus, eternally pushing a boulder uphill, Yorke feels trapped in a cycle of disappointment, longing for liberation. 

Thom explains his longing to break free from this monotonous world how he constantly feels let down and hanging around; it's the same kind of disappointment over and over again. But he momentarily consoles himself by saying, It's okay... One day, I'm going to grow wings, I will have a chemical reaction, and things will be different for me. I will break free from this pattern, these cycles that always end the same... He then acknowledges how hysterical and useless that expectation itself is. Like how Sisyphus is punished for pushing the boulder up the hill for eternity, as modern man has built a society and life around mundane daily tasks, this loop will continue on forever. This is again followed by a few lines of expecting things to be different, and hoping for a change. After which, 'One day, a chemical reaction...' is repeated. The lines go:

You know, you know where you are with

You know where you are with

Floor collapsing, falling

Bouncing back and one day,

I am gonna grow wings..

Here he reminds himself, 'You know where you are, you will keep falling and bouncing back, that is how things go'. And he starts again with my favorite lines:

A chemical reaction (you know where you are)

Hysterical and useless (you know where you are)

Hysterical and (you know where you are)

But this time, there's an echo that's prompting: You know where you are, a part of this eternal circle, and there is no escape. This realization takes him back to the same disappointed feeling as the song ends with:

Let down and hanging around

Crushed like a bug in the ground

Let down and hanging around

The music towards the end, however, takes on a subtly different tone; suggesting a tentative acceptance of the absurd.

"Let Down" by Radiohead reflects on the themes of absurdism and existential despair, inviting listeners to contemplate the futility of existence while finding solace in acceptance.