Street Spirit (Fade Out)

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Lore & Background

The creation of "Street Spirit" marked a pivotal turning point for Radiohead, with the band viewing it as a major breakthrough in their songwriting capabilities. During recording sessions, the members spent an entire day going round in circles until Yorke nearly gave up, thinking, "This is never going to happen." Suddenly, he felt transported to a place he had been willing himself into for months. This intense emotional journey defined the track's significance; Yorke later remarked that if he ever forgot why he started his career, this song was the reason. The music video, directed by Jonathan Glazer after Yorke was impressed by his work on Massive Attack's "Karmacoma," further cemented its status as a defining moment for both the band and the director.

In Their Own Story

Jonathan Glazer filmed the music video over two nights in a desert outside Los Angeles, shooting in black and white. He employed a technique seen in nature documentaries, using high-speed cameras and removing frames to slow down the footage. The record label, Parlophone, even funded additional filming in Germany to capture more shots of Yorke. Glazer described the project as a turning point for his own work, noting that Radiohead had "found their own voices" while he felt confident creating something with both poetic and prosaic value. The resulting visual narrative, characterized by its slow-motion aesthetic and stark monochrome imagery, perfectly matched the song's introspective mood.

Reader's Guide

"Street Spirit (Fade Out)" serves as a crucial bridge between the "futuristic Britpop" of The Bends and the "dystopian" sound of OK Computer. Pitchfork noted in 2018 that it channels a sense of capitalist dread often repressed by class-conscious artists. The track features a guitar arpeggio written by Yorke and played by Ed O'Brien, creating a hypnotic foundation. In 2015, Stereogum praised it as one of the all-time great album closers, calling it a "perfectly rendered slice of doomy, incantatory psychedelia." Covers by artists like Peter Gabriel and The Darkness highlight its versatility; Gabriel recorded a slower, orchestral version he called an "existential cry of mortality," while The Darkness reimagined it as a speed-metal anthem with power-grunge choruses.

Did You Know?

• Jonathan Glazer used a high-speed camera technique from nature documentaries, removing frames to slow down the footage filmed in a desert outside Los Angeles.
• Thom Yorke described "Street Spirit" as the specific reason he started his music career after a breakthrough moment during recording.
• Peter Gabriel's cover was recorded for his 2010 album Scratch My Back, though Radiohead reportedly did not like his "pretty extreme" rendition.
• The Darkness included a quote of another Radiohead song, "Just" (1995), in their 2012 cover version on the album Hot Cakes.