Radiohead has always known how to mess with our, er… radio-heads, in that they have always striven to challenge the norms of popular music. In the 90s, they released several critically acclaimed rock albums, but in 2000, they shocked the music world with their sonically and conceptually radical Kid A. Later, they challenged capitalism itself by allowing fans to download their 2007 album In Rainbows for whatever price these fans deemed fair.

Recently, Radiohead has generated news again with the packaging for its new album, King of Limbs, an album that will be stocked with a multipage art book and will feature both CD and vinyl. The album itself, however, has already been released on the band’s website, and this time the price is fixed ($10). So as shocking and supposedly radical the art book may be, the price is not. The music, also, is none too radical.

Upon first listen, certain aspects of Radiohead’s music are sorely missed: clever basslines, emotive soundscapes, accessibility. One might think that the band members have just been too busy to think about Radiohead (three of the five band members recently released solo albums). Or maybe they’re just bored. Regardless, the album often feels uninspired.

In fact, it almost feels like an amalgamation of the band’s past six albums. The prominent Phil Selway drumbeats and fuzzy guitar on “Lotus Flower”, “Feral”, and “Morning Mr. Magpie” are readily available on In Rainbows and even OK Computer. And since Computer was released in 1997, it’s safe to say that the sound is nothing new.

Other tracks, like “Little By Little” and “Codex”, feature sparse piano chords and acoustic guitars and are therefore reminiscent of both 1995’s The Bends and Kid A‘s “How To Disappear Completely”. Honestly, it’s quite possible that Yorke listened to “How To Disappear” on repeat while recording Limbs, as the album’s vocals and lyrical themes all call upon the song. In “Lotus Flower”, Yorke even says “I would disappear”. The only problem with comparing the album to Kid A, The Bends, In Rainbows, or OK Computer is that it is nowhere near as well-formed, sonically innovative, or, even, sonically accessible as any of these three albums

The best part of this album is Yorke. In fact, the most beautiful and original song on Limbs, “Give Up the Ghost”, features almost no instruments, just several Thom Yorke vocal bits dancing ethereally around each other. Yorke sings in a more strangely heart-wrenching way than ever on Limbs, and his lyrics are more morbidly poetic than ever. He reflects beautifully on the peace of solitude in “Bloom”, exclaiming “No one around… /No one gets hurt”. On “Little By Little”, he explores depression as an artistic inspiration, referencing his “dark cell…/ The one who broke this spell.” And, on the album’s closer, “Separator”, he explores death itself, pining “I’m a heart in cold ground/ Like I’m falling out of bed /From a long and weary dream.”  Yorke has touched upon these themes before, but never as completely as on Limbs.  As a result, he leaves a lasting impression.

The album, however, does not. It is a very good album, one of the best so far this year; Radiohead also reminds us that they’re still one of the greatest “rock bands” (though I use the term somewhat loosely) in the world. However, it leaves something to be desired, some element that’s present in the rest of Radiohead’s music. Fans will disagree on whether this element is originality, clarity, or length (the album is 37 minutes). Most will concede, however, that the album feels somewhat transient and hollow (and not just because Yorke keeps talking about ghosts). As good as King of Limbs is, Radiohead fans will wait for the band’s next album eagerly. And while they wait, they’ll probably listen to some of the band’s older, more complete albums.