Radiohead returned to the stage Tuesday (11/4) Madrid, Spain, launching their European Tour 2025 before a crowd of roughly 17,000. It was their first show together since 2018 and the debut of Chris Vatalaro as a second drummer.
The comeback surprised many, especially in light of frontman Thom Yorke’s remarks last year that seemed to shut the door on any reunion hopes.
Regarding a reunion, last October Yorke told Australia’s Double J, “I am not aware of it and don’t really give a flying fuck. No offense to anyone and thanks for caring. But I think we’ve earned the right to do what makes sense to us without having to explain ourselves or be answerable to anyone else’s historical idea of what we should be doing.”
And yes, he's right. Radiohead have earned the right to do whatever they like at this stage of their career, be it a variety of off-shoot bands, solo projects, solo tours, film scores, or whatever the heck floats their boat.
Besides being one of the most influential bands since their 1992 debut Pablo Honey, against all odds they have sold more than 30 million albums worldwide. Their third album, OK Computer (1997), is routinely cited as one of the best records of all time and won the Grammy for Best Alternative Album.
In this century, offerings from Kid A (2000) to In Rainbows (2007) blended electronic and rock elements in spacey, non-commercial ways while challenging industry norms.
In Rainbows was famously released as a pay-what-you-want download, a punk rock move that showed the market was indeed ready for digital distribution in a way that didn't screw over the artists. Along the way it received six Grammys.
On the heels of a string of bangers that could never be mistaken as being by anyone else (“Creep,” “Karma Police,” “No Surprises,” “Paranoid Android,” and “Everything in Its Right Place”), Radiohead was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 2019 like no big deal.
Now with most of the members in their 50s they do not need anyone else's permission to continue their creative journey.
With that said it sure is nice they got the band back together.
Radiohead was missed.
Kicking off the first of four shows at the Madrid Sports Palace, recently renamed Movistar Arena, Radiohead doled up a 25-song set from eight of their nine studio albums (sorry hun, no Pablo Honey).
From the jump the audience got to hear songs from a variety of eras, beginning with “Let Down” from OK Computer (1997), followed by “2 + 2 = 5” and then “Sit Down. Stand Up.” from Hail to the Thief, the latter being played for the first time in 21 years.
Performing in-the-round with the aid of a new fangled semi-transparent video presentation, it was clear Yorke (vocals, guitar, piano, keyboards), Jonny Greenwood (guitar, keyboards), Colin Greenwood (bass), Ed O’Brien (guitar, backing vocals), and Philip Selway (drums, percussion) and now also Vatalaro, wasn't just doing this for the filthy lucre, they wanted a show as unique as their sound.
Both Rolling Stone and The Independent called the opening night "transcendent," a word that doesn't get tossed about that often in an arena show.
While Yorke may have been coy last year, not wanting to let the cat out of the bag, last year Greenwood admitted to NME that the band had quietly rehearsed in their OK Computer studio over the summer of 2024 for “just for a couple of days” and that it “was really fun and nice to see everyone.”
It was so good that they tapped out of the sessions after just two days because “it was fine and we could still do it.”
The lucky 17k in Madrid on Tuesday, including the critics, seemed to agree.
Which should be no surprise to anyone.
Although tickets are sold out you can get info for alternatives via the Radiohead website.
Good luck. But if this tour tells us anything: nothing is impossible.
Radiohead 2025 European Tour remaining dates
11/05 Movistar Arena, Madrid, Spain
11/07-11/08 Movistar Arena, Madrid, Spain
11/14-11/15 Unipol Arena, Bologna, Italy
11/17-11/18 Unipol Arena, Bologna, Italy
11/21-11/22 The O2, London, England
11/24-11/25 The O2, London, England
12/01-12/02 Royal Arena, Copenhagen, Denmark
12/04-12/05 Royal Arena, Copenhagen, Denmark
12/08-12/09 Uber Arena, Berlin, Germany
12/11-12/12 Uber Arena, Berlin, Germany
