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Rainbows Coalition
At a surprise London show, Radiohead prove why they're worth the fuss
By Craig McLean

There was, as Morrissey once sang, panic on the streets of London. But panic, largely, of the positive kind. Some 1,500 fans and a number of policemen - even mounted ones (well mounted on pushbikes) - were crushed up on the side walk outside the Rough Trade store in the city's East End. Security guards jostled for position with TV camera crews. On nearby Brick Lane the Bangladeshi community's epicenter, the bedlam brought diners and wait staff out onto the street.

It was a sharp winter's night, but the heat inside was intense: Radiohead, those five English professor-punks who've made it their personal mission to reimagine how bands, you know, do stuff, was about to perform live publicly for the first time in 17 months. Even better, this arena-size band was playing for a select audience among the racks of (Ds and obscure vinyl in the venerable indie record shop.

Except, they weren't. Since guitarist Jonny Greenwood had announced the in-store on their website that morning [January 16], fans had besieged Rough Trade, desperate for one of the 200 wristbands guaranteeing entry. But by showtime, authorities ordered the show relocated, citing public-order concerns. So everyone - band, road crew media, police, and the eager hordes - quickly moved on, running a few hundred yards to a new venue converted brewery 93 Feet East Enthusiasm was so feverish that pop-star whoops even greeted the appearance of producer Nigel Godrich.

Finally, two and a half hours late, Radiohead strode onto the tiny stage. "Warts and all," said a grinning Thom Yorke acknowledging the merry chaos. "It's gonna get ugly" Then they were off, playing In Rainbows in sequence. "15 Step" was itchy and funky. The full-force rock of "Bodysnatchers" seemed to cause  Yorkes face to shapeshift ecstatically. "All I Need" fared less well - the keyboard atmospherics thrumming with muffled feedback - but when Phil Selway crashed in with his driving cymbal beat, the sound bloomed. The warm, almost sexy vibe that makes In Rainbows so thrilling emerged on the limber, percussive "Reckoner" and the sinuous, shimmering House of Cards" Innovative sales models and webcasts (they've done two others recently) may be clever and fun, but as evidenced by the beaming band members, nothing beats an old- fashioned gig's visceral tang.

Due to the overflow crowd and police presence, Radiohead only had a couple of hours to make the show work. So with a climactic lurch, they tore into "The National Anthem," "My Iron Lung," and "The Bends." But contrary to Yorke's fears, it didn't get ugly. It got beautiful, powerful, epic, and transporting, in a way that few bands, young or old, can match.