6. Idioteque
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DNqv3nHyteM Artist: RadioheadAlbum: 'Kid A'Year: 2000 It should be clear by now how highly I rate Thom Yorke as a melodist, but 'Kid A' was famously the album to swap Yorke's beautiful vocal hooks in favour of rhythm, pace and out-of-a-hat lyrics. And whether you believe Yorke to be a great singer or not, he is of course the heart that beats through the centre of Radiohead's back-catalogue, though he has had more than a little help over the years from the other four, accentuating his knack for song with their own riffs, chord structure and rhythms. 'Idioteque' is perhaps the moment when you feel Yorke is most in the deep end though. Only a threadbare Paul Lansky sample and syncopated beat for company, Thom not only produces one of the finest melodies on 'Kid A', but he manages to sound as petrified and breathless as if the lyrics were actually premeditated. These are words and phrases chosen at random, and he still manages to give an impassioned fear to the words; it really is one of the finest vocal performances not only of the man's career, but of anyone last decade. It's not how great a singer you are after all, but how you use your voice.