10 Classic Rock Albums That Were AHEAD OF THEIR TIME
6. Kid A - Radiohead
If you were hedging bets on what rock bands were going to be known as the voice of a generation back in 1993, you'd be shellshocked to think it was the guys who wrote Creep. After Pablo Honey though, it looked like Radiohead was going to become the band to lead guitar rock into the next generation, with OK Computer cementing them among the greatest bands of the decade. Right as the mantle of rock god was at their feet though, they decided to scale things back and go off the grid.
Looking to make something with a heavy emphasis on rhythm, Thom Yorke went into the world of electronica and threw out the manual on Kid A, with songs that sound like they're being played from the other side of reality like Idioteque. The band quickly followed suit as well, with Ed O'Brien putting a heavy emphasis on ambience with his guitar and Jonny Greenwood getting more experimental with his guitar parts and string arrangements.
While this may have been a shock at the time, some of the greatest bands that have come up in the meantime have been trying to make their version of Kid A, from Linkin Park trying it on A Thousand Suns to basically the entire rock scene going in an atmospheric direction ever since. The era of beep-boop rock may be upon us, but when it comes to a record like this, you accept no substitutes.