If you know any Radiohead fans, you may not see them for a few weeks. But they’ll be fine. They’re just exploring the treasure trove of content that the British rock heavyweights have just posted online as part of the new Radiohead Public Library.
In a brief announcement about its latest endeavor, the band said: “Radiohead.com has always been a) infuriatingly uninformative and b) surprising. The most surprising thing to do next, therefore, is to suddenly become incredibly informative. So that is what we have done.”
The Radiohead Public Library contains everything from videos, music, and artwork, to websites, merchandise, and assorted ephemera.
Among the music posted on the site, fans will find not only all of the albums issued by the band in its multi-decade history, but also its B-sides and non-LP tracks. Heck, you’ll even find Drill, a four-track EP released in 1992 that marked Radiohead’s first commercial offering.
Dig a little deeper and you’ll also find behind-the-scenes photos, as well as videos of television appearances, one-off performances, and entire concerts. It also includes detailed artwork and an array of merchandise that you can purchase in a couple of clicks.
As for what’s missing, no doubt fans will soon be making special requests for new additions to the library, though whether the band intends to update the collection with newly surfaced material remains to be seen.
To give it that authentic library feel, die-hard Radiohead fans with time on their hands can even download and print off their own library card, complete with unique membership number and space for a photo.
To get the ball rolling, the band’s bassist, Colin Greenwood, signed up and apparently ordered some stuff using “a squeaky trolley.”
Today’s librarian taking you on a tour through the brand new Radiohead Public Library is: Colinhttps://t.co/OJD4AC8Ysw https://t.co/53Zu69iC9W
— Radiohead (@radiohead) January 20, 2020
Predictably, the response from fans on social media was one of sheer joy at Radiohead’s move to pull together so much of its content — spanning nearly 30 years — onto one page.
“Kudos to the website designer,” one Radiohead devotee wrote on Twitter. “Great access to some great videos and easy links to purchase stuff… I mean have most of it already, but well done, well done :),” while another said simply: “This librarian approves.”
